Cordoba, Spain

From our base in Seville we were just an hour and a half by train from Córdoba. That's on the “slow” train, which only goes around 160 km/hr (100 mph). The bullet trains go about twice as fast (but cost three times as much). The main draw of Córdoba is the Mezquita – the expansive former mosque, parts of which date to as early as the 8th century. It's an impressive sight with a forest of double-arched colonnades that seem to go on forever. More than 20,000 worshipers could pray here at once, all facing the Mihrab, a highly decorated focal point of the mosque – the equivalent of an altar in a church. And speaking of churches, there's actually one inside the mosque. The Christians reconquered Cordoba in 1236 and, in the typical fashion, did a bit of remodeling to turn the mosque into a church. (The mosque was actually built on the site of a Visigoth church of the 6th century – so the pendulum swings). Later, in the 16^th century a full blown cathedral was built smack dab in the middle of the former mosque, but fortunately retaining most of the original structure. It's odd but very interesting to see the two different building styles growing around and out of one another like some mad experiment in architectural cross breeding.

The old medieval town surrounding the Mezquita was worth a wander, and there we eventually found a restaurant to suit our needs. Deborah and I split a pan of paella, the famous Spanish rice dish with, in this case, lots of seafood. Myra wanted to try something local but as a result was subject to our accusations that she had ox tail breath.

Outside of the Mezquita



Inside the Mezquita. Red brick and white stone are alternated to get the striped effect.


The Mihrab


Dome above the Mirhab


Deborah


Myra


The cathedral inside the mosque



A bride on the streets of Cordoba


Section of the old town