Friday March 14, 2008
Today I woke up at 5:45am to shower, eat breakfast, and be at the bus stop by 6:30am. It was a little rough getting going, but Sam got up and helped me back my bag and made me breakfast, thank goodness! Melissa and I left Sevilla at 7:45am and we were in Córdoba around 10:15am. The bus ride wasn’t too bad and since we were practically driving the bus, we had a pretty good view. We bought our tickets the day before and we were still in the front row of sets. So, I basically felt like a bug on a windshield. After getting into Córdoba we harassed an information booth worker to point us to the nearest bathrooms and tourist info. booth. We found a map and then we wandered the city for the rest of the day. The itinerary is as follows:
n La Mezquita-Catedral (Mosque-Cathedral): 8 Euros, audio tour.
o We took the audio tour of the famous Mosque of Córdoba, which is considered to be the most important Islamic monument in the West. The Mosque was really unique to see with all of the changes and additions that it had been through. This mosque houses a mix of Islamic, Mudejar, Renaissance and Baroque architecture. The arches of the Mosque are the most unique characteristic of the building and it was interesting to have the audio tour so I could actually understand what things were and learn a little bit of the history behind the building.
o Jackie Chan apparently trains for his movies on these steps, because there was a man who had no shirt or shoes on and was hopping from one high peak of stairs until the next. It was hilarious, so be looking out for Rush Hour 23 to come out, entitled “On the Steps of the Mezquita.”
n Alcázar de Los Reyes Cristianos (Castle of the Christian Monarchs): free on Fridays!
o This was a fortress in Roman times, a part of the Caliph’s palace in Arab days, and after the Christian conquest (1236) it became the castle and royal residence of the following kings. The best parts about this site are the gorgeous grounds filled with a series of large tapered ponds and the colorful gardens. There was actually a wedding going on while we were there and we decided to eat our lunch (that we packed because we are that cool and that cheap) in the park as well. I may have been a creeper and taken pictures of the bride and groom. In my defense, her dress was amazing.
o Another interesting fact: the Alcázar has public restrooms. This is an important thing to know in Spain because they apparently don’t believe in public bathrooms. Therefore, if you are ever in Córdoba on a “free Friday” take advantage of entering the national monument, just to use the bathrooms.
n Sinagoga (Synagogue): .30 Euro cents, and it wasn’t even worth that!
o This is the only synagogue that still exists in Andalusia and is only of only three that are still intact in all of Spain. It was pretty lame, not going to lie. First off, it was .30 Euro cents because we weren’t from the European Union, and secondly it was one room. It wasn’t even a big room, just a room with pieces of Mudejar style architecture. If you ever come to Spain, do not waste your .30 Euro cents on it. Although, this “must see” did inspire me to want to open my own tourism business that rates monuments on a scale from lame to freaking sweet. So, at least something good came out of the synagogue, and it was an experience.
n Museo Julio Romero de Torres (Julio Romero de Torres Museum)
o This is a small 6-roomed art gallery of Julio Romero de Torres who is the most famous Córdoban painter. This gallery is situated on the Plaza de Potro, which is a plaza associated with Cervantes’ works (kind of cool). I went to this museum because my host mom suggested that I see it, which was a good suggestion because it was filled with a lot of really amazing Spanish style art.
n Museo de Bellas Artes (Fine Arts Museum)
o This museum is another one of those “you get in free if you’re from the European Union” places, but I may or may not have gotten the security guard to give us free passes. Apparently all you have to do is be nice, speak in Spanish, and tell him how much you really like being a student here and you are learning a lot, blah blah blah. He told us to tell the people at the door that we were from Great Brittan, how funny.
n Puente Romano (Roman Bridge)
o We walked a crossed the bridge…yeah, its just a bridge to tell you the truth. It gave a really cool view of the rest of the city though!
n Los Baños do Alcázar Califal (The Arabic Baths of the Caliph’s Palace)
o We spend a good 20 minutes looking for these baths, and it turns out that we were literally standing on top of them. Amazing, huh? Who knew that the Arab baths would be underground? For future reference, look down and read signs.
I finally got home around 11:30pm, ate dinner and headed to bed. It was a successful day, but a long day at that.
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