Arabian Bath of Granada

Sitting ample about the boiler with our vino tinto and Manchego cheese, captivated in blankets for added amore – we hatched our escape plan. We were annoyed of getting so cold! You’d anticipate we were in Antarctica – and not the Costa del Sol.

The Costa del Sol in southern Spain allegedly has over 300 canicule of sunshine a year – not that it wasn’t sunny. It was just so algid that the boondocks now appeared bare of humans about axis into a apparition boondocks overnight.

A bounded bar buyer told us that it was just too algid - the Spanish were blockage inside.

Our admirable bank acclimate from simple canicule afore had taken a about-face for the worse – coast from a affable nineteen degrees to a actual arctic six. Unheard of for this allotment of the country, even at this time of the year!

I had spent the endure two weeks in Nerja with accompany who were visiting from home. Just as they were leaving, my acquaintance Athena accustomed from California, abrogation abaft baking temperatures and angry backwoods fires.

When the algid breeze struck, the three of us couldn’t stop cerebration about the Arab baths in Granada. We fabricated it our mission to go absorb in the hot baths and assuredly thaw ourselves out.

The Aljibe Banos Arabes have to be appointed in advance. Anniversary affair lasts for an hour and a half; if you pay an added nine euros, you’ll aswell get a 15-minute aromatherapy massage. For the baths only, it will amount you 17 euros, so the abounding accord with beating is 26 euros (if you appointment on a weekend or holiday, you’ll pay an added two euros).

The sessions alpha every two hours alpha at 10:00 am, with the endure affair at 10:00 message (they abutting at midnight). Towels and lockers are provided chargeless of charge, as are baptize and the tastiest candied excellent tea ever.

We accustomed in Granada hours advanced of our appointed ablution affair so that we could aberrate the streets and adore a appetizing cafeteria afore our soak. Wandering about the Albayzin – the North African allotment of boondocks - with its attenuated cobbled streets, shops abounding of bright accouterment and intricate carvings, and the amaranthine best of restaurants antic hookahs, we acquainted like we were in Morocco.

Slipping into one of the restaurants area the that appears to smell of aroma wafted about, we took a bench at a table tucked into what acquainted like our own abstruse nook. We had to avoid beneath the entrance (well, not Athena, who’s about the admeasurement of a Smurf) to get to the beautifully inlaid table ample in candlelight.

We ordered a adorable pot of Chai tea and the lamb with couscous – which was actually to die for!

With abounding bellies we connected our aberrate – eventually barrier aloft the absolute atom for a amazing appearance of the Alhambra, with the snow-covered Sierra Nevada Mountains in the background.

And again it was ablution time! The chargeless map that I had best up from a day-tripper advice berth helped us cross our way to the baby artery (which looks added like an alley) that houses the baths.

After alteration into our swimsuits, we heaved accessible the abundant copse and adamant aperture and entered a altered world.

There are seven altered pools: six of them alignment from balmy to hot, with one algid attempt pool. The abstraction is to alternating amid the algid and balmy pools, never absolution your physique get overheated. The algid basin sits at the centre of the room, lit from beneath and backed with a beautifully tiled wall. Marble and asphalt administration actuality and the allowance is advised to accommodate some aloofness in the nooks and crannies of assorted baths – some of which are hidden by accomplished means or columns.

The amount of guests per affair is limited, which is great. There were eight humans in absolute in the baths during ours, so we never even had to allotment a basin with anyone else. The atmosphere is tranquil, adequate and romantic. If you speak, it’s in a hushed whisper.

We were all accustomed a amount aloft arrival, and if it was time for the massages, the beautiful masseur wandered the baths, cautiously calling out a amount in Spanish.

When my about-face came, I was accustomed a best amid a back/neck beating and a leg beating – so, of course, I chose the back. As I lay on my abdomen on the beating table, the masseur apart the strings on my bikini and covered me with beautifully ambrosial oil. Again his big able easily formed their abracadabra as I drifted added into the relaxation. The alone affair befitting me from falling comatose was the casual dribble of air-conditioned baptize adjoin my balmy skin, the abstract from the ceiling.

Those fifteen account were over too bound – but they were account every penny. After a quick battery to ablution off the oil, I slipped aback into the baths as Curtis began his 15 account of aces pampering.

Twenty account later, a man in a white lab covering appeared. He looked actual austere and important as he snaked his way through the baths. But again he pulled out a flashlight, aflame anniversary basin of humans with his blinking ablaze several times.

We bathers looked at anniversary added questioningly, almost suppressing giggles at this awe-inspiring sight. After a moment of confusion, we estimated it have to be the arresting for the end of our session.