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Spain is renowned for its fast and efficient train service, notwithstanding the recent crash in the north of the country. Today we experienced it first hand but not without a minor hiccup in getting to the station by taxi. When I asked for Atocha Renfe (Renfe being the train company) he thought I said Atocha Vente (20 Atocha Street). Thankfully Atocha Street is close to the train station. In an unexpected act, he turned the meter off so we only paid what would have been incurred if my Spanish was better or my directions more precise - like asking for Puerta de Atocha.
The journey through the flat countryside went quickly and in 1 hour 40 minutes we were in Cordoba. Our hotel - Exe Conquistador - is directly opposite the Mezquita, the main attraction in town. After checking-in at the very busy reception desk, we had a short walk to the box office to collect tickets for tonight's tour of the Mezquita that we booked online.
We walked through the many twisting laneways and lots of interesting sites typical of Mudejar towns and cities. Buildings here are renowned for their enclosed patios. The exterior walls are very plain but interior patios are ornate, colorful and cooling. Many are turned into tapas bars and restaurants.
After sharing a plate of tapas, we strolled down to the restored Roman bridge and crossed the Guadalquivir river. The view includes old mills, some in decay, on at least restored. There is also the Arabic water mill that fed water to the gardens at the Alcazar until Queen Isabella shut it down because it was too noisy!
From here we walked to the Alcazar de los Reyes Cristianos, the 14th century fortress built over Roman and Arab forts. The fortress itself is ok but the gardens are an absolute delight. Full of ponds and parterre gardens and containing a statue of a rather surprised looking Christopher Columbus reporting back to the Spanish monarchs: "You won't believe what I have found!" His journey to the new world was largely planned from here.
Our entry ticket provided us with free access to the evening sound and light show at 10pm.
We headed back to the hotel for a late siesta and then at about 7pm searched for a light snack to see us through to at least 11pm. As Spaniards eat late, this wasn't easy and eventually we found a nice vino and tapas bar in a side laneway. There was a group of 4 Germans sitting nearby and every time a dish arrived the all called out their delight. It sure looked good. We had two salads which were very nice.
We arrived at the meeting point for our night visit to the Mezquita. The audio guides proved to be quite troublesome during the tour but are essential. Unfortunately, any instructions from the guide are in Spanish only. In short time I discovered that photos are not permitted.
The Mezquita is an ancient mosque dating from 785. There was an earlier Christian chapel on the site. When finished to its current scale, it held 40,000 people. The archways are the most famous and unique aspects of the building. There are plenty of them. The main mihrab portal contains over 1600kg of gold mosaic. It's a site to behold.
Then the tour turned to what I describe as 16th century vandalism. The Christian conquerors demolished part of the Mezquita and built a cathedral in the centre. If you're into baroque then this is for you, however for me the contrast of the architecture simplicity and wonder of Mudejar structure does not sit easily with the overly ornate intricacies and excesses of this work. Naturally, this part of the tour was considered the highlight by most.
At tour end we headed around the corner to the Alcazar for their sound and light show. This started with a series of portrayals of the evolution of Cordoba to today. We then followed a speaker - presumably representing Queen Isabella - through the gardens. Dialogue was in Spanish of course, but there's plenty to watch while she gave her short monologues. The ponds along the Avenue of the Kings provided the first water, light and music show, however the finale at the lower ponds was just fantastic. A great night that stretches the superlatives.
We finished off with dessert at a bar we discovered earlier and then to the hotel.
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