Hola todos,
We made it to Córdoba in time to see the sunset over the city at the Roman Bridge. There was a street musician (bridge musician?) playing his guitar, lots of people bustling about, and a cool breeze blowing after dusk. With the gorgeous watercolor sky and the incredible skyline, the scene was perfecto.
Córdoba reminds me so much of Florence: the narrow, winding streets hiding restaurants and shops behind every corner; the picturesque river and bridges; and easy lunches of bread, meat, and cheese at unassuming tiendas. We spent a couple of days in this city, and it wasn’t nearly enough. Spoiler alert: Córdoba is a frontrunner for all three of us this trip. Here’s what we did, ate, and saw:
Food.
Lo obvio. Breakfast pastries (okay, just desserts eaten for breakfast), helado, and tapas galore. And lots of jamón ibérico. The Murillo-Moreno wine region is just outside of Córdoba, so we tried our fair share of local wines, too.
Left: Tapas dinner of jamón y queso, berenjenas con miel de cana (fried eggplants drizzled with molasses), and espinacas con garbanzo (a creamy dish of spinach and chickpeas). [Not pictured: the tortilla española—egg and potato bake. I fell in love with these in Argentina and am trying to order them here whenever I get the chance!]
Right: Breakfast pastries. One was an orange marmalade danish of some kind; another was some sort of crispy pastry with soft merengue. [Not pictured: the apple tart that I ate before I remembered to take a pic.]
Left: My parents tried some local Córdoban brews.
Right: “Snackie” culture is big here; between snacking olives and to-go conos filled with bites of meats and cheeses, I’m a happy woman.
Gelato, of course!
Street Views
The narrow streets, coupled with tall buildings, decorated walls and balconies, and historic architecture, created “oooh” and “aaah” moments at every turn. I’m a sucker for walking around streets decorated by string lights and outdoor restaurants on a warm night, so this city has my number.
Mezquita Catedral
Yet another mosque-turned-cathedral, this is the third-most visited site in Spain (behind the Sagrada Familia and the Alhambra). It is a blend of Moorish architecture and Catholic altars that made for a veritable maze. (We even lost a member of our crew inside for over an hour!) The Mezquita Catedral was, at one point, the second-largest mosque in Europe. Walking around a building that is over a thousand years old and seeing the evolution of the space is an experience that just makes me shake my head in awe and wonder every time I think about it.
The minaret-turned-giralda (bell tower) from outside the complex (left) and inside the complex’s patio (right).
When you first enter the cathedral, you are struck by the Arabic elements of the building—all around you are arches of red and white that all look similar. (Like I said: easy to get lost!)
There was a somewhat helpful audio guide and map to help you find the stained glass windows, altars, and paintings interspersed throughout the cathedral. It’s pretty wild to think about how these “late” additions to the building are from the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries.
We couldn’t enter the royal chapel, but we could peek in through the upper windows to see the wall and ceiling decorations within!
The horseshoe arch style of this doorway and Arabic script around it are indices that this was part of the original mosque.
It was hard to miss the central chapel—it was right in the middle of everything and had high, vaulted ceilings and a ton of natural lighting (in stark contrast to the rest of the interior).
Walking Tour
Of course! Our walking tour took us all around town and again touched on the mixed Roman, Arabic, and Christian history of Córdoba (which was reclaimed by the Christians about 250 years before Granada was).
The Roman gate and border wall surrounding the city. There’s a lovely paved river walk around the wall.
A synagogue in the Jewish Quarter was one of our stops—really beautiful plaster designs throughout the building.
A former Roman forum (or temple or something?) still has half of its columns in the middle of the downtown area.
Royal Palace Gardens
The Real Alcazar (“royal palace”) was closed for renovations. However, the Alcazar’s beautiful gardens were open for exploration and relaxation. We spent over an hour enjoying the cooler temps, beautiful green space and flowers, and feeding the fish in one of the ponds.
Royal Stables (and a show!)
I’m not a horse girl, but I was raised by one. So when my mom found tickets for a riding show at the Royal Stables, we decided to go—it would complete our Spanish Riding School passport that we started in Vienna. We even arrived early to watch the horses train, and to our surprise (and my mom’s eternal delight) got to pet them. I don’t really have the background knowledge to understand how much effort and training went into the show, but my mom told us that the tricks, quick turns, and total control between the riders and horses was truly impressive.
* * *
After an evening stroll along the river front, we ended our time in Córdoba the same way that we started it: watching the sunset from the Roman Bridge. It was the perfect ending to our too-few days in this city.
We were all a little reluctant to leave Córdoba, but we had one final city to check off of our list: Sevilla was next!
Besos,
Tina the Exploradora
(me, photobombing my mother’s attempt at a nice photo)
