My heart goes flip, flip, flip

DO you know that feeling when your heart does a little flip at the sight of something beautiful? Mine did that last week. In fact, over the course of a couple of days, it did a series of little flips—possibly even a whole somersault.

Seat of power: the historic Alhambra, backed by the snow-capped Sierra Nevada mountains, overlooks Granada in Andalusia, Spain

I wish I could say that what I laid my eyes on was a hidden gem, a perfect secret for a big reveal. I fear, however, I’m going to disappoint and deliver only a cliché—somewhere we all know is famously beautiful, but somewhere I had never had the good fortune to visit before. The place in question is the Alhambra in Granada, Spain.

We were staying in the Parador, right in the heart of the palace, which was converted from Franciscan convent to a hotel back in the 1940s. I had only been able to book a meagre room online, but, on arrival, we were offered the chance to upgrade to a suite with a view. Normally, I wouldn’t fall for this trick—hotel rooms, in my book, are for sleeping in, not lingering—but something told me that, in this instance, it would be worth the wallop of extra euros.