Day 56 Cordoba

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We took an early morning ‘side trip’ to Cordoba (a place that Jane has wanted to visit since I have known her), which resulted in a guided tour of the majestic Alcazar of the Catholic Kings and its purely magnificent gardens (as they all happen to be here in Spain), the Jewish quarter, Synagogue, and the monumental site of the Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba. The majority of side streets that we walked were flower lined and our senses were enjoying a high with va...rious aromas wafting through the air. We did, as usual, try the local cuisine.

The photos of inside the Mosque-Cathedral, with all its long history, do not satisfactorily convey the vastness or skilled architecture / engineering of the place. It is an exceptional monument, still in everyday use for religious purposes, and to an uninitiated person such as myself, it is a true testimony to the ancient alliance of art and faith. I / we were in awe of the majesty of it all. We witnessed the Islamic architecture with Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine touches and comes together with Christian architecture to create an impressive array of columns, arches and domes.

It is just too vast a place to write of all ‘sections’. We felt the spirituality of it whilst silently walking and listening to the audio. All I can now say is, visit it.

We wandered beside the river and over the bridge taking in what we had visited from afar. The journey continues to ‘take our breath away’ and have our hearts and minds remind us to be very grateful for what we are enjoying.

It cannot go unsaid, again, how orderly and well maintained the agricultural crops are in the countryside. Also, the use of alternative energy, in particular, solar.

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