Tales of the Alhambra

The Alhambra is a palace and fortress built by the Moorish rulers of Granada in southern Spain in the XIII century. The Alhambra is one of the most widely known of all Islamic works of art. To me, Alhambra's relation to Granada resembles the Acropolis' relation to Athens. The Alhambra is built on a hill over looking the town of Granada in the foothills of Sierra Nevada mountains at the edge of the plain of Granada.
Nasrid, the palace complex, is impressive in both its size and attention to elegant detail, and blends form and function in an especially pleasing way. While the exterior is plain and even austere, the interior details the theme of "paradise on earth" and features column arcades, fountains with running water, and reflecting pools. In the 1800s, American writer Washington Irving reflecting on the red and golden yellow hues declared, "How unworthy is my scribbling of the place."