The Old Jewish Quarter

Granada has a Jewish quarter that is still called a Jewish quarter even though there are very few Jews living there. You might be confused by now, but you shouldn’t be. In Spain’s darker days, there were some ugly events that saw the Jews of Granada, and of the whole of Spain, expelled, killed or forced to convert to Christianity.

Under the rule of the Moorish kings, the Jewish population lived in relative peace. That is, relative peace compared to that under the Christians. When the Kingdom of Granada finally fell to the Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand II and Isabel I, a treaty was signed to tolerate the customs of the Muslims who would remain in the city, but the Jewish inhabitants were soon expelled.

Realejo is the name of the old Jewish neighborhood of Muslim Granada that they left behind. They say, actually, that the Jews called their part of the city Granata, from which Granada was eventually derived. That’s kind of an interesting irony.

Today the neighborhood has many, many inhabitants in its tightly packed snaking streets. You can get there from the Alhambra, circling around the sneaking callejons until you reach the main Campo del Principe beyond the Puerta del Sol. At the plaza you’ll enjoy the view from your bar’s terrace of the Church of San Cecilio, a church that was symbolically built over a mosque and given the name of the city’s patron saint.

Down San Matias Street, you will enjoy walking under the auspices of interesting buildings like the House of Gran Capitan or the Convent of the Mercedarias, eventually arriving to Plaza Mariana.

Realejo will also delight you with its palaces and the Church of Santo Domingo, which was built by the Catholic Monarchs themselves, who are now interred in the Royal Chapel. Basically, a trip to Realejo makes for a pleasant afternoon or morning walk in Granada.