Why Andalucía Is The Most Romantic Walk Of Your Life

This past weekend I traveled to Spain’s southern autonomous region of Andalucía for the first time.

It’s true that whenever people imagine what Spain is like they think of Andalucía, with its sunny weather, brightly colored architecture and warm, welcoming vibes. I spent a perfect weekend discovering the wonders of Sevilla and Granada on foot.

The parts of my trip that really made me fall head over heels in love with Andalucía and all of Spain even more, were the times I spent strolling through the barrios of Santa Cruz in Sevilla and the Albaicín in Granada. Both are among the most picturesque places you will ever see and walking through those streets will make you feel like you’re in a storybook.

The Santa Cruz district of Sevilla, formerly known as the city’s Jewish quarter, is a collection of narrow streets and alleys where you will find colorful, rustic houses with vines and flowers growing on the exterior, and then stumble upon quiet, tranquil plazas. Most often you will be lucky enough to have your walk accompanied by the dreamy sounds of Spanish guitar as live musicians sit and play throughout the streets for many hours. Getting lost in this barrio—throughout which I had no idea what district I was in the entire time—was among the most romantic experiences of my life. Especially when I ended up in the square of Plaza de Santa Cruz which overflows with luscious vines and yellow flowers. There is an iron-wrought cross in the center which looks like a bird cage where lovers leave padlocks with their initials on them like those on the Love Lock Bridge along the Seine in Paris. Obviously I would personally rather leave my love on lock in this gorgeous square in Andalucía than in France. It was also quite spiritual resting in the Plaza de las Cruces, where the silence, shade and prayer of local pedestrians gave me a great sense of tranquility and rejuvenation.

Just when I thought I had seen the most picturesque place there is to see, I walked through the famous barrio of Albaicín in Granada—also unknowingly—the next day. This intimate neighborhood retains its unique Moorish influences from the country’s Islamic past. From the bottom of the hill starting from Calderería street—both Nueva and Vieja—there are lots of shops selling colorful, handcrafted lanterns, plates, scarves, incense and all sorts of magical trinkets you won’t see elsewhere. As you keep walking up the winding cobblestone streets, you’ll see beautiful houses tiled with intricate, colorful patterns and charming lanterns and fountains with bright flowers around each corner. Before you know it, all the houses are white and before you is a vivid view of the Alhambra. If you go a bit further, you’ll be greeted with a sprawling view of the city of Granada at the plaza in front of the church of San Nicolas. The best part was that simply walking down the other side of the hill brought my mother and I right to the scenic springs at the back entry of the Alhambra, which we had intended to see afterwards.

Simply walking through these two districts–during which I felt like I was in a movie the whole time–made me think to myself “why don’t I live here again?” just so I could come back whenever I want to. There is nothing quite like it and these two unique barrios are worth making the trip south of Spain to tranquil Andalucía.

CLICK HERE FOR SLIDESHOW OF ALBAICIN:

Nadia Cho

Communications Associate

As the empowered female behind the blog: International Women of Mystery, Nadia reps Team JST traveling the world in search of exclusive features on hidden gems and cool hotspots. You can find her exploring metropolitan cities or lounging on tropical beaches.