Monday 16 June: Cordoba

Today we had tickets for the Mosque-Cathedral and hop on hop off bus. We booked our visits in the wrong order in retrospect. Should have done the bus tours first before it got too hot and the Mosque-Cathedral later as we would be inside. Oh well.

There is a lovely green courtyard that has a bell tower that used to be a minaret.

The courtyard has fountains as water was important in Islamic worship and the building began life as a mosque. It’s been a mosque and a cathedral during different periods but a catholic cathedral since the 1400s.

The original mosque was initiated by a leader of a ruling family from Syria who was escaping rivalry from a competing family. He took 5 years to get there but quickly established an emirate and prospered seemingly alongside the existing inhabitants. The city had earlier been ruled by the Romans for several centuries and then the Visigoths. Apparently the new ruler was a bit of a relief. Over the next few centuries from the 800s the mosque was hugely extended. Interestingly the rulers purchased adjoining properties in order to firstly build the Mosque and then to extend it. It was originally big enough for 5000 and was extended to fit 40,000. It’s big.

We had an audio guide which took a bit of getting used to in order to orient ourselves. Frustrating at first but we got there. The audio described it as a vast hall with a forest of columns and arches. The cathedral is set within the centre and recesses along the outer walls have been turned into chapels. It’s pretty amazing, not least because the later Christian architects retained the Islamic look and feel, mostly. I’ve never been into anything quite like it.

It goes on in every direction. The columns in the original part were recovered from Roman buildings and are all different. The striped bricks are spectacular, though in the new extension the stripes were just painted on.

I think this is the entrance to a former link bridge across to the Emirates palace, which is now completely gone.

Mahogany carved choir stalls and bishop’s thrones.

The information centre has a model of the complex which is quite helpful.

The hop on hop off tour in a mini van (narrow streets) for one route was interesting but there was no context. Mike dodged the second route but Barb and I did half of it. Some of the routes overlapped but the tour through the new area was interesting.

Walking back from the tour. That’s hot enough for us.

Also with the ticket was a walking tour that began at 8pm. Mike said no, but Barb and I set off. There was just a UK couple and us on the English speaking tour. I quickly messaged him to join us as it was excellent (luckily we’d set up find my friend tracking on our phones at lunchtime. Mike was very adept with his tracking skills).

Outside of the palace linking door. The stone was quarried locally.

This is a sea urchin fossil. Evidently the sea used to come right up to Cordoba and there is evidence in the fossils in quarried rock

The tour was through the Jewish quarter where we are staying (close to the Mosque-Cathedral) and the tour guide was a young woman who studied art history at Cordoba. She provided context and heaps of interesting information about things we’d passed but not even noticed.

Maimonides. A Jewish doctor, rabbi and philosopher who was extremely enlightened and taught tolerance and for religious texts to be read and interpreted in context. He was eventually forced out of the city by extremists and went to be a physician in the Court in Cairo.

These symbols are above doors and on the pavements and signify Jewish residents.

This was a 12th century Islamic optometrist who pioneered cataract surgery. 12th Century!!

They have this historic courtyard area and the cats that live nearby are protected.

This alleyway was created in the 1800s by a city mayor who wanted to have a nice view to the bell tower. They took out a bit of the buildings on either side and then braced them with the 2 arches. It worked!

The tour finished at 9.30pm so we found a taverna nearby and had tapas for dinner. It was just a small place and understated but the food was excellent. Our tour guide recommended some Córdoba specialties which we tried and thoroughly enjoyed.

This is a print of a painting by one of Cordoba’s most famous artists. Julio Romero de Torres. All of the tours referred to him. His paintings all feature local women. This one was on the wall of the restaurant and was very striking. We’d buy it 🤗