This morning we checked out of our wonderful hotel in Madrid and got on our tour bus which will remain our transportation for the rest of the trip. Our destination was Sevilla but along the way, we stopped in the ancient city of Cordova. It was a walled city with a rich history of varied cultures. We had lunch on our own, and Merle and I joined two other ladies to have some authentic Spanish food. I was delighted because they served a fried eggplant dish with a light sauce of honey and wine. Yummy!! This particular restaurant served a complementary beverage, which was a sweet vermouth. At first all four of us said oh no, not at lunchtime, but when we tasted it, it was delicious! A local product.
We then were joined by a local guide, who took us into a mosque/cathedral. That might sound odd but originally it was built as an Islamic mosque. Then later the king and queen determined it should be a cathedral, so they had it consecrated by a priest and voilà. It became a Catholic cathedral! The architecture was so interesting because the building was added on to over several hundred years and the architecture changed accordingly. It was really clearly a mosque in some parts, until you turned to the section that had been completely converted into a Catholic cathedral. Fascinating history, and a very famous site.
Our local guide, then walked us through the old town, including the Jewish quarter, and gave us the history of Jews in Cordova. Amazingly there were periods when Christians, Jews, and Muslims could actually live in harmony.
The local guide today was excellent as was the one yesterday and our full trip guide. Carmen gave us a great deal of history as we were driving through the countryside. There was a lot of driving today, and we covered a lot of territory, most of which was filled with all of trees.
Merle has taken most of the pictures and I have not gotten them from her yet so I will have to add pictures later. But here’s one of miles and miles of olive trees, and the old Roman bridge at Cordova.
We have had excellent weather today and only yesterday did we have some light rain. It appears that the forecast is for clear skies the rest of the trip. We are all really happy that we came here in the comfortable month of February, and not July with the hordes of tourists and the heat!
We are getting to know some of their people in the group and they’re really very nice.
Buenos noches.
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