“I have an invitation to speak at Granada University in Spain.  If we go, we could stay a few days longer, play golf at Valderrama, and visit the sherry country in Jerez.”

 My husband did not have to convince me to go.  I was so excited. We packed our bags and our golf clubs and set off for Spain.  After we got on the plane, a thunderstorm kept our plane on the ground long enough for us to miss our connection to Madrid.  We spent another day in New York waiting for the next plane.  We arrived in Granada and found that our luggage had arrived.  Everything was there except my clothes!  We were lucky that Don had made it in time for his presentation and had a suit to wear. Fortunately, my suitcase came the next day.

Granada is a lovely city which is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada Mountain.  It has a rich history, dating from 2000 B.C.  The Moors came from North Africa and ruled Granada for 800 years. Some of their architecture remains and is the most famous in the world.  

Our first venture on our own was a walk up the hill to the Alhambra, a World Heritage Site. It is a fortress and palace built in 1232 by the Moors as a royal residence. In 1492, the Catholics and the Muslims were involved in a Holy war.   The King of Aragon, Ferdinand and the Queen of Castile, Isabella, took possession of Granada. The Muslims were expelled, and their Mosques became churches. The Christian victory led to the mass exodus of Muslims and Jews.

The Alhambra is a complex of buildings and gardens.  It is one of the best-preserved places of historic Moorish artifacts, Islam architecture and Spanish Renaissance architecture. We enjoyed sauntering through the buildings as well as the Fine Arts Museum.

On our way back into town, we stopped at Calle Navas for a refreshing glass of wine.  The chef started bringing the most delicious tapas to our table.  Small plates of sandwiches, sausages and my favorite, deep fried calamari went with the drinks!  What a wonderful visit we had!

We were anxious to go to our next destination, Sotogrande.  We had reservations to play golf at Valderrama. It is one of the best-known golf clubs in the world. I could not take my camera on the course, but one of the pros took our picture under the Valderrama sign. The course was magnificent, and it was beautifully manicured.  The most striking feature was the cork trees.  I had never seen one.  They were harvesting the cork while we were there.  Early May until late August is the time the cork can be separated from the trees without causing permanent damage.  Every time we open a bottle of wine, I wonder if the cork came from the cork oak trees at Valderrama.

Our next stop was in Sherry country in Jerez. We had a super visit to the winery, Tio Pepe. It was founded in 1835 by Manuel Gonzalez. Soon, he went into partnership with Robert Blake, his agent from London.  They set up a family business.  Today, it is run by the 4th and 5th generation of the Gonzalez family and are known for their dedication to high quality wines and brandies.

Palomino grapes are used to make sherry. The wines are aged in American oak casks.   Brandies are made by distilling the wine for three years in casks used to make sherry. We had a tour of the winery with some tastings which were outstanding.

 We played at another beautiful golf course in Jerez. Montecastillo was designed by Jack Nicklaus and is host to many championship tournament. It is next to one of the vineyards, and I was able to get a picture of my husband teeing off next to the big Tio Pepe sign.

It was a wonderful trip.  It was time to drive across Spain to Madrid and catch the plane for home. I would love to go again!