Four nights ago I tried writing this post, but the internet went out. It just came back on a few hours ago. I normally wouldn’t much care, but with pending travel arrangements and the inability to keep to my writing schedule (kind of), it was frustrating. The upside is we are staying in a lovely (very) old neighborhood in Granada, the Albaycin. A UNESCO world heritage site, it’s a winding maze of cobblestone alleys and whitewashed buildings on the side of a mountain overlooking the city. It’s impossible not to get lost, and hard to imagine how modern infrastructure even works here.
As it turns out, this past week was the biggest festival week of the year in Granada, Corpus Christi. The streets have been full of parades, processions, perfomances of music and dance, costumes and more. I need to read more about the origins of the festival, but I think it is such a big deal here as it celebrates the return of Catholicism to the last stronghold of Islam in Spain. We saw some questionable large puppets in a religious parade, lots of flamenco dresses, and even, in passing, a crowded bull ring. It kind of felt like all Spanish cliches rolled up into one. I’ve got a full slate of experience to write about, so here we go.
