How to get lost the fabulous Andalucian way

How to escape the heat, but not really, and see the Alhambra, but not really, and find solace in Granada’s best kept secret.

AS I’ve only recently started blogging for The Olive Press, you probably know very little about me. So in the interest of providing a background to my style-related musings, a couple of biographical snippets: for the past ten years I have lived in three different countries, seven different towns, and I have just moved to Málaga from freezing Brussels. Additionally, I have a worrisome tendency to use the word “fabulous”… a lot, however, never loosely.

The thing about moving back to a warmer country is that the first summer is the hardest. One must find a way to cope with the melting make-up, try not to puke at the sight of one’s pale legs day after day… after day, and come up with creative ways to dress that won’t have you looking like you are wearing a soaked napkin. After failing at staying cool with countless Málaga Feria mojitos – I have to recommend the ones served at La Casa Invisible –  I decided to escape the city’s humidity, drive for an hour and 40 minutes and re-visit Granada. When I used to lived there, I enjoyed its lovely cool temperatures… except I never lived there during the summer, and it is actually extremely hot. Not humid, just dry “walk in the sun and you will feel like a grilled sausage” heat.

The sweltering temperatures, the hilly Albaycin – Granada’s old district – and my silly habit of wearing leopard print wedges – seriously, what is it with me and these shoes?! – made the trip slightly painful at times, but mostly fun.

Tips:

On going out: A plate of Serrano ham in El Albayzin will be overpriced and there are a few terraces that boast views to The Alhambra, but unless these sightings occur in one’s imagination, the ancient fortress is not in sight.

On accommodation: Solar Montes Claros. Go there. You must. Go now. Heaven in the shape of a luxury hostel. My room had a huge bath raised on a cute platform, close to the most comfortable bed in the world – I swear this bed deserves to have Michael Buble sing an ode to it. The deco is superbly beautiful: a great mix of Arabesque and Indian style furnishings. The biggest downside of my trip was having to leave that piece of paradise, with ACTUAL views to the Alhambra. It was worth the high daytime temperatures simply to spend the evening with a glass of wine, gazing at the stars from its bliss inducing patio.

Oh and as an end note, no high wedges for Albayzin walks… they might make your legs look fabulous – OK, may have used the word a tad loosely here – but there’s nothing glamourous about wobbling along the streets, camera in tow, taking blurry pictures… of absolutely everything.

To find out more about Solar Montes Claros go to www.solarmontesclaros.es

For further musings about style and life, plus the occasional rant, visit www.fashionlimbo.com