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Published: January 14th 2020
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What better way to start the day in Sevile than by having a bowl of cinnamon toast churros with friends? We had to check out the Crunch Cafe before heading to Cordoba for the day. It was delicious and fun. I think a franchise in New Brunswick would be a success!
Cordoba was next on the schedule and since I hadn't pre-arranged any tour there, I turned to my good friend Rick Steve's and he didn't disappoint. He suggested a personal guide, Angel, and that's who we spent 3 hours with in Cordoba. At least we did once we figured out the right orange tree and fountain that was our meeting place. Once again there was a Jewish Quarter; only in Cordoba it still has that name. And there is a remnant of a synagogue to see. It was built in 1314 and was in use until 1492, and of course the Inquisition. Just one small room but it was interesting to see parts of Hebrew letters and women's section above. The Jewish Quarter is really private homes, colorful patios, stores, and lots of beautiful flowering plants hanging from the walls.
Next the Mezquita...a UNESCO site, that started as a small
church that was made into a massive mosque starting in 784, expanded each century until 1236 when a church was built inside that is used every day for services. Fortunately the incredible structure of the mosque was kept...all 600 pillars that at one time allowed 25000 Muslims to pray together. Like the Jews there is no Muslim community today in Cordoba. Angel was very knowledgeable about the architecture but also about history and it's impact on the Mezquita. He left us off to do some souvenir shopping before we met up with our bus, and our ever prompt bus driver John.
We made it back to Seville in time to get dinner at a Moroccan restaurant on the Square and then to walk to a Cultural Center for a flamenco dance performance!
The next day we packed up and loaded the bus once again but this time to Granada. John made a stop near the Plaza de Espana so we could explore one last Seville sight. It was designed and built for the 1929 Iberio-American Exposition. It's a large semi circle of buildings surrounded by bridges, open plaza and parks. We explored it for a bit, took pictures, of course,
and got back on the road. Our next stop was very special. Thanks once again to Rick Steve's (I know I sound like a groupie ?) I found Cueva de Pileta. Incredible underground Caves dating back 40,000 years! It involved a steep walk up to the cave and a very challenging walk (slippery steps, wet areas, minimal light) through the cave itself but it was totally worth it. Our guide, Jose, was a very spiritual man who believed the cave picked him to share it with visiters. What he shared was drawings , cave art, done during the Neolithic and Paleolithic period. We walked, using lanterns to light our way, about a half hour into the cave seeing the typical, but beautiful stalagmite formations but the drawings were unique. In red, black and yellow there were drawings of animals, a large fish and many other shapes in a number of different places in the cave. Skeletons and many pottery fragments and utensils were found after the cave was discovered by a farmer in 1905. Scientists date the pictures to be over 30,000 years old. Unfortunately we couldn't take pictures because of efforts to keep from impacting the cave but what
can incredible experience we had.
We were exhausted from all the climbing and had taken way more time at the Caves than originally planned but still we made one more stop in Ronda, one of the white hilled towns, pretty, with deep gorges and a bridge that spans them. We walked over the bridge, took the necessary pictures, and walked through the Muslim quarter to find a snack. Fortified by drinks and delicious cheese cake and ice cream we settled in for the 2 1/2 hour ride to Granada.
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Robert Feder
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Glad you are having a good time.
Looks like a great trip. Wonderful pictures.