Cordoba

With just a month of our trip remaining, and Tom still traveling, we decide to visit Cordoba for the weekend. Of the 3 cities which most embody the conflict between the Christians and Muslims, Cordova is the least visited. (Seville and Granada are the other 2). Many people tour Cordova as a day trip from either Granada or Seville.  We depart Saturday and arrive in the early afternoon. Since we are only staying one night, I splurge on a posh hotel. The hotel is centrally located in an ancient neighborhood called the Juderia and directly across the street from the most popular site in Cordoba, the Mezquita.

Unfortunately, it’s raining again, so we tour the Mezquita first. It’s the most unusual building I have ever seen. It is a gothic cathedral constructed inside of a massive mosque. During its lifetime it has been consecrated and deconsecrated several times, depending on whether the Muslims or Christians were in power. Not surprisingly, like many important buildings in this part of Spain, the mosque was constructed atop a Roman temple.

The absolute vastness of the mosque makes describing it adequately difficult. The footprint occupies an entire city block, and at its largest over 45,000 people worshipped there. Over 1,000 stone columns connected by graceful double arches support the massive timber roof.  The mood of mosque portion is both tranquil and somber with the interplay of black, grey, pink and blue stones: jasper, onyx, granite and marble. The builders of the mosque saved ornamentation for the most important site, the mihrab, or door facing mecca. This part is richly adorned with copious amounts of gold and semi-precious stones.

The Cathedral was added in the 1200s. In stark contrast to the mosque, the cathedral is built in the gothic style where high, arched ceilings and large windows allow light to flow in. Over 200 columns were removed during this renovation. Ironically, this conversion while jarring probably ensured that the building wasn’t completely destroyed during the Spanish inquisition.

Later that night, after the rain cleared, we wandered across the Roman bridge and through the tiny narrow streets of the Juderia taking pictures. After a delightful Italian dinner, we, of course, indulged in ice cream.  Sunday brought warmth and sunshine. After seeing a couple more sites we opted for the touristy but thoroughly entertaining Spectacle of Horses show. There were 5 parts, each about 10 minutes long which showcased a different discipline of riding. Both the horses and riders were graceful yet powerful.  We loved it.

We were walking in the direction of tapas place written up in Trip Advisor, when we saw a huge number of people enjoying food just outside the Mezquita. In fact they were using the platform as a picnic area. They all seemed to be enjoying plates loaded with tortilla Española and salmorejo (a thick version of gazpacho). As everyone seemed to be speaking Spanish, we adopted the “when in Rome” attitude and sent Zoe into the fray to procure our food. After numerous people skipped her, she asserted herself and came away with 2 tortilla Española and 2 salmorejos. Was it worth it? Well, I will only say that we are forever ruined for tortilla Española. That will be the yardstick by which all future tortillas will be measured. For a dish made with only potatoes, eggs and olive oil, it was unbelievable rich and delicious. It was the perfect ending to a lovely day and we headed back to Granada shortly thereafter.