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It is best that we write about Granada and Sevilla in the one blog - mainly because we have left it so long to write and there is not long before we depart on our first leg of the camping trip - but also because both were brilliant.

Granada was first where the main reason to visit was to see the wonderful Alhambra.IT was constructed in the 14th century by the then Moorish rulers of southern Spain:It is a huge palace with stunning Islamic art and decorations.Certainly the style makes a difference from visiting the traditional cathedrals and palaces seen throughout the rest of Europe.The Alhambra and Granada were captured back by the Christians but the setting was left relatively undamaged due to its beauty.

We spent nearly the full day wandering around the various rooms and gardens of the palace and were lucky to have some great weather.

The Alhambra was set slightly out of town on the top of a hill (as palaces tend to be).We were lucky enough to book a room in an affordable hotel that was set into the walls of the Alhambra (one of only two that were not in the city).This was great as it gave us such great access to the Alhambra but unfortunately meant we had a bit of a walk down to town for dinner and a very steep return, so steep that once we didn't even bother going for dinner as we didn't want to walk back!We really are getting lazy in our old age.

We did wander around the town in Granada etc etc, but really the Alhambra was the one and only site in the city, but well and truly worth the visit for anyone else considering travelling through that part of Spain.

As much as we liked Granada, our final stop in Spain was going to be even better.Seville probably ranks now as one of our favourite cities in Europe.As with any city, it really depends when you visit and a huge number of factors influencing whether you have a good time in a certain place.It just seemed that everything went right during our visit with a cheap but great self contained apartment booked in the middle of the old town, great weather, not many other tourists, and a huge number of things to see and do.

We saw all the usual tourist sites like the massive Cathedral which again was originally built on the site of the main Muslim mosque and then converted into a catholic church, apparently Christopher Columbus is buried inside but there seems to be a fair bit of argument over that.We visited the next door Alcazar which was yet another stunning display of Islamic architecture, and also contained an absolutely massive garden you could wander around.We had a somewhat disappointing tour of the bullfighting ring, but then that evening saw a great little Flamenco show that made up for it.Rae is a convert to the style and wants to learn....Chris and his left feet are not so sure.Each day we had great food, and then treated ourselves to a nice dinner on the final night....our last night in Europe after 4.5 years....

Next it was onto Singapore, and who would have thought it would take so long....this cheap travel does come at a cost.....