Feb. 23
On Friday I had an unexpected day off from school and decided to go on a solo day trip to Cordoba. I have been wanting to go to Cordoba for a while, it’s a two and a half hour bus ride north of Granada still in Andalusia and I loved it. Cordoba is famous for the Mosque-Cathedral or Great Mezquita which was originally a small church then a Catholic Basilica until the Moorish ruler order the construction of the Great Mosque, the mosque was expanded over time by Muslim rulers before being converted to a Roman Catholic Church during the reconquest and the catholic nave was added. The building was not fully destroyed when turned from mosque to cathedral and still sports the incredible architecture of the Moorish people.
The Mosque-Cathedral was my first stop when I got to Cordoba, the inside is filled with arches and catholic gold decoration. It’s a beautiful building, but my anxiety however did make an appearance when I attempted to get a picture of myself inside. I wanted to ask someone to take a picture of me and I was given the perfect opportunity when another girl asked me to take a picture of her, but instead of asking her to take my picture as well I panicked and left. It took me about 30 minutes of wandering around and trying to work up the nerve to ask someone to take my picture before I found the same girl that I took her picture and I asked her. She of course said yes and it was no big deal, but it took considerably too long to get that accomplished.
After the Mosque-Cathedral, I also went up the bell tower and saw the view over Cordoba, I loved all the white houses and buildings, so pretty. Then I walked a short way to the Alcazar de Los Reyes Catholicos; the small fortress was interesting to see but was much smaller than I expected, the building itself was only really one room and two towers while the grounds had a few gardens surrounding it. The gardens were very pretty and there weren’t many people there so it was quiet and peaceful.
I ate a sandwich my land lady made for lunch and an orange while sitting on the wall around the mosque-cathedral and people watching, then wandered around the streets a bit. I looked in a few stores and ended up at a museum about Bull fighting in Cordoba, and while I am very against bull fighting it is interesting to learn about and see the history and culture of it. The museum was interesting and even though it had a few sad and gory videos it was good to see.
The rest of my day I spent wandering around the streets. I saw the Roman bridge and various plazas and relaxed in the park. Cordoba is a fairly small city and I was able to walk and practically see everything. I took a bus back to Granada at 7pm and made it back home by 9:30. It was a successful and laid back day.
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