Carrera del Darro, Paseo de los Tristes and Albaicin.
We start our tour in Plaza Nueva, the oldest square in Granada. It has been a meeting place for the people of Granada in all ages. This square was built on the vault of Darro river and it is surrounded by very important buildings and streets. The Real Chancillería Palace is in the middle of this square and was built between 1531 and 1587.
Diego de Siloé and Francisco Castillo el Mozo, renowned Renaissancen architects, designed it. They are the authors of the patio and the facade respectively. In this same place is the church of San Gil and Santa Ana. This temple houses important religious imagery works belonging to the baroque sculptor José de Mora. In addition, this church is a resting place for distinguished people of Granada.
We continue our itinerary through Carrera del Darro. This street is one of the narrowest streets in the city, because is next to the river bank. On the right and over our heads is the “eighth wonder of the world”: the Alhambra, on top of Sabika hill.
While we walk, we can appreciate the beauty of this part of Granada: on both banks there are many houses, some of them are Moorish and converted in hotels; others with suspension balconies on the Darro river. All this, together with the architecture and the stone pavement, forms the magnificent image of the place, also colored by the green of the vegetation which surrounds the river.
Cadí Bridge or Puerta de los Tableros is in the Darro. Although at present only a small part is preserved, during the eleventh century onwards it was one of the access doors to the Alcazaba. There are still some parts of the horseshoe arch which worked as a gate and whose bars prevented the passage of intruders. There, a spiral staircase which led to the riverbank to collect water is inside.
Opposite this small fragment of the zirí history of Granada are the Arab baths of Bañuelo: one of the most historic monuments in Granada and the best-preserved Arab baths in Spain.
The church of San Pedro and San Pablo is one of the mudejar temples in Granada. From its outdoor patio there is a magnificent panoramic view of the Darro river and the Sacromonte.
Opposite this church is the Archaeological Museum. This museum houses a large number of archaeological remains which help trace the history of the province. It is located in a Renaissance palace, Castril House, which was owned by Hernando de Zafra, secretary of the Catholic Monarchs. If we look at its facade, we will observe a walled balcony on the second floor. An inscription reads on this: “Waiting for the one from heaven”. The legend says that the sentence has to do with a disagreement between the lord of the house and one of the servants, who was hanged on this balcony. The inscription could refer to “waiting for divine justice.”
After our stop at Castril House, we continue our walk until we reach the Paseo de los Tristes. The word ‘Tristes’ means ‘sad’, so the name of this place is related to the funeral processions which passed through this street to access the cemetery of San José in the 19th century. In the right corner of the promenade you can see the Chirimías House, built in the 17th century for the concerts which the musicians offered from the viewpoint of the building. The Chirimías House was one of the first buildings to introduce the baroque in Granada.
There is a bridge which connects the Chirimías House with the other side of the river. This bridge is also known as Chirimías Bridge. This is one of the fourteen which cross the Darro and originally the Arabs called it Qantarat Inb Raxiq. It had to be rebuilt in 1882.
From this river bank you can see the closed and fenced Bosques de la Alhambra Hotel. This building dates from the 19th century. Its situation in the shady and on the banks of the Darro made the building an inconvenient place for lodging. After its closure, the building served as a hospital, meeting place for masons or dressing room of actors.
In a cross street, is the Horno del Oro House. This building is a typical Andalusian house which preserves very well its patio with pool and the rest of rooms. The second floor is a later construction, since it has clear influences of the Castilian domestic architecture.
At the end of the Paseo de los Tristes is the Cuesta del Chapiz. From this steep street you can access the Albaicín. During our climb, we will find Chapiz houses, of Moorish origin, dated in the 14th century and connected by an arch. Materials from other buildings such as columns and arches were used for its construction. This place is the point of confluence of the entrance to the Albaicín Alto and also to the Sacromonte.
Facing the road which takes us to the Sacromonte we will find Peso de la Harina Square, place where wheat was weighed during the 17th century before being ground to avoid miller’s fraud.
In our walk through the Albaicín we will encounter a large number of aljibes, small or large water tanks built during the Muslim stage of the city. These “wells” were built both for water supply and for ablutions, since most of them were next to mosques. The first that we will find in our ascent will be precisely the cistern of the Peso de la Harina. Later we will find another one, the aljibe of El Salvador, annexed to the church of the same name. This church was built on the main mosque of Granada and retains its beautiful original patio.
We continue our itinerary through of main streets of the Albaicin: Pagés Street. Here, we can find different establishments such as banks or bars, in addition to one of the most famous Moorish houses in Granada, the house of the Mascarones, named for the two stone masks of its facade. It is currently a private property which cannot be visited.
Our next stop is the church of San Bartolomé. The most striking of this temple is that it still conserves in its subsoil the cistern of the primitive mosque which occupied this place.
Very close to this temple is Plaza Larga, the nerve center of the Albaicín. In one of the ends of this square the arch of the Pesas is located, one of the doors of the disappeared wall of the Qadima Alcazaba.
Just one street from Plaza Larga is the Dar-al-Horra Palace. This place was the residence of the mother of the last king of Granada: Aixa had been repudiated by her husband and she was ordered to leave the Alhambra. This palace is one the best examples of Nasrid civil architecture in Granada.
Finally, and to finish our first walk in Granada, we will visit one of the main tourist attractions of the city: San Nicolás viewpoint. It is a wonderful place to finish the day, since observing how the afternoon falls on the Alhambra is one of the most beautiful images in the world.
And, from here, our return to the city center begins. We recommend you go down Calderería Vieja or Cuesta de San Gregorio. This street was in the past one of the most comercial areas of the city. You can buy souvenirs in its small shops or have tea and pastries in one of the many Arab tea houses are there.
If you prefer to visit the Albaicin accompanied by a professional guide, we also propose different options for guided tours in Granada.
Taken From: https://www.alhambradegranada.org/en/info/blog/a-weekend-in-granada.asp