Cordoba, Spain, Mon, 10/18/21

Today we'd head on up to Cordoba and the "Mezquita," aka the Cathedral of Our Lady of Assumption or Cathedral of Cordoba.  Renowned ... and a World Heritage Site since 1984.  But, let me tell you that the drive from Seville to Cordoba was very different, mainly farmland as you see below.  Pastoral.  We had about an hour-and-a-half drive.  You see the bull at top, the Osborne Bull (used to be an ad for brandy!)?  Do you also see the truck below the bull?  That's how large the big guy is!  And this was just the beginning!

But this mosque (mezquita), turned into a cathedral ...?  We have seen a lot of special things this trip, but this one was beyond our wildest imagination.

Walking toward the entrance -- Jimmy is in the orange shirt.

See if you can figure this out!

Yes, this.

The columns and double-tiered arches are in the original section of the mosque building.

I copied the following paragraph, because I don't have the words to tell you. The building has mammoth dimensions: It stretches across 24,000 sq meters [which is 258,334 sq feet] and features as many as 856 esthetic columns made of marble, granite, jasper, and other fine materials. Visiting the Mezquita gives you a glimpse of how it was at ancient times.  To say the building is colossal is an understatement.

In a nutshell:  A Christian church was built in the Visigoth period (5th Century).  After the Moorish conquest of Spain, it was used as a mosque.  In 1236, following Cordoba's fall to Ferdinand and after over 500 years of use as a mosque, the site was re-consecrated Christian and a cathedral was erected INSIDE in 1523!  

One small capture of all the gold we saw.

So much magnificence.

The main altar.

Details of the barrel vault ceiling over the choir.

I took many pictures!  Which to choose?  It was difficult to pick, because it was all so overwhelming.  I hope you get the idea.  Anyhoot, today, the building continues to serve as the city's cathedral and Mass is celebrated daily.

I didn't get good pics of the courtyard, sorry I can't show you any.  It's filled with orange trees and an efficient watering system designed hundreds and hundreds of years ago.

After touring the Mezquita, we continued on a walkabout in Cordoba.  In springtime, Cordoba has a Best Flowered Patio contest. Though we are far removed from spring, our group was allowed to visit some of the patio winners.  The owners were present and were very proud of their work.  Rightly so -- their patios were really pretty.

We walk and tour and then we eat!  Lunch time!

One of the tables.  L-R, Alice, Barbara, Lili, Freddy, and our guide, Ulises.  Very nice lunch in a lovely atmosphere.

Ceiling design over the restaurant atrium.

This guy gets around!  Haha, who knew he'd also be in Spain!

Palaces! Castles! Cathedrals! Convents and Monasteries! As we see what's on tap at the beginning of each new day, many in our group are saying "ABC:" Another Beautiful Church. And it's true. We don't see anything that isn't heart-stopping beautiful, or at least off-the-chart eye-catching. I hate to say it, but I will. These marvelous edifices are starting to run together.  But ....

Back in Seville, we stopped at the Cathedral of Cathedral of Saint Mary of the See, better known as Seville Cathedral. Registered in 1987 by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site (along with the adjoining Alcázar palace complex), it's the fourth-largest church in the world (its size remains a matter of debate) as well as the largest Gothic church.

From Wiki, above.

Again, its interior is incredible.

The Silver Altar.

Baptismal font.

Yes, here lies a few bones from Christopher Columbus.

Priceless gold and silver religious accoutrements.

Simply massive pipe organ!

A few in the group climbed round 'n round the bell tower ramp, 343 feet up (former minaret, converted into a bell tower after the conquest over the Moors) and looked out over the city.  Quite the view!

Jimmy in red, at left.  Glad the bells didn't peal while we were up there, 'cause it would've been LOUD!

Giralda (bell tower) from Wiki.

There isn't enough time to tell you the history of this cathedral.  Feel free to check Google if you're interested.  Both the Alcazar and this cathedral have history that goes back a thousand years or more.

Well, after all this, we walked back to our hotel, met Ibby and Bernice and walked just a block or two to a cafe for dinner and a nice cuppa coffee.  We were hungry.  Seated outside, we enjoyed kicking back and eating tapas, and then saw the sun setting over the city, below.

This was another five-plus-miles-on-our-feet-day, with serious sensory overload and lots of "massive!"  Tomorrow morning we'll check out of our Seville hotel and drive southeast to Ronda, Spain.  This has been quite the journey thus far.  Truly.