Córdoba Parte Dos

Why We Went Back

Karen and I returned to Córdoba last weekend after visiting the weekend before. The first was only a day trip and we realized there was much to see so we went back and spent the night having almost two full days to look around.

The Mezquita (Spanish for Mosque)
The Mezquita, also known as the Cathedral of Córdoba was begun as a mosque in the 9th Century by the Muslims. To build the mosque they razed a Christian Visigothic church, San Vicente, which had been built atop a Roman pagan place of worship. When Córdoba was re-conquered by the Spanish in the 13th Century the mosque was turned into a Christian church. The structure has been added onto several times and is several times its original size.The bell tower shown here was built around the mosque minaret. Many sites are considered holy by more than one religion and a conqueror often would use part of an existing structure, expanding and redecorating it to their taste. I am not sure whether this was done for economy or to taunt the former owner, like keeping a hostage instead of executing a prisoner. I am certain that more than one historian has published a thesis on the topic, if not there's your idea.

The tower is at one corner of a walled courtyard that is paved with what looks like small river rocks. Many of the streets and sidewalks in Córdoba are also paved the same way.


They have used light and dark colored stones to create patterns.

The interior of the Mezquita shows the juxtaposition of the Muslim and Christian architectures and how parts of the original 9th Century construcion were just redecorated and reused. Note the Moorish arches with alternating red and white stones right next to the Gothic ceiling.

There would be 1014 arches supporting the ceiling except that twice over the centuries different bishops have removed some of the columns and built churches inside the mosque. It's down to about 850 left. King Carlos V, after authorizing the latest remodeling without seeing it, came to visit the site and remarked something like "We are tearing down something of historical importance to build something we can see everyday". He was correct. There are thousands of beautiful churches in Europe and the mosque was already redecorated and being used as a church.

The view above shows only a small fraction of the building. It is impossible to stand in any one place inside and see all of it, even in the center. It is immense and I would estimate that it covers the equivalent of several city blocks.

La Sinogoga
We also visited La Sinogoga, (the synagogue) the only one left in Córdoba and one of only three in Spain that pre-date 1492 when all the Jews were expelled from Spain. Karen poses beside a statue of Maimonides, a Rabbi, physician and philosopher born in Córdoba in 1135. Legend has it if one touches the statue one will be endowed with his knowledge. We didn't really believe that but both of us touched it anyway.

Another example of the juxtaposition of two religions is this photo taken inside the synagogue showing a cross added to the wall of the synagogue sometime after 1492 when the Jews were expelled from Spain and it served as a Christian church.

Streets, Houses and Flowers
Karen and I pose below on Calleja de Flores, a narrow, dead end alley lined with flower pots. The bell tower is in the background.

Below is a shot from the other end.

We liked this place so much we went back at night and took some more photos. It was so quiet and we were the only ones in the courtyard.

This is one of the many, many beautiful courtyards in Córdoba. The foyer led into an area with fountains and lots of flowering plants. The entrance to someone's home.

This is a window shade woven from fiber. Many of the houses had the bottom draped over the porch railing, blocking the sun but letting in the breeze. Couldn't really do that on this window since the bars go to the top. We were told that in the old days before air conditioning the people would wet the shades so that as the breeze blew through them and evaporated the water it cooled the house. Pretty clever! Perhaps something we should consider in Florida as we move toward green technologies to climatize our homes.

This house had even more plants and flowers than most. The green stuff at the top appears to be growing from pots on the roof. It was hanging down on the two sides of the house we could see.
We wouldn't mind going back to Córdoba again and actually we think we could enjoy living there.

There is so much more that we saw and I didn't include in this short blog. Nice people, castles, museums, breathtakingly picturesque streets and homes. A really great place to visit.