Cordoba

Hotel room picnic
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We made a short overnight visit to Cordoba, partly because we couldn't find accommodation in Madrid and partly because we'd read the Mezquita was worth a look.  It turned out to be a very wise decision.

We arrived late in Cordoba and as our hotel was a 20min walk from town we ended up buying some cheese, bread, various hams and beer from the near-by store and having a little hotel picnic!

An opportunity taken and an opportunity missed

Mezquita from river
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The next day we wandered into town and were stunned by the Mezquita.  It is one of the largest and most beautiful Islamic mosques ever created and was built between the 8th and 10th centuries.  It is huge and filled with red and white striped arches over hundreds of columns.  However, what adds (or takes from) the building is that in the 12th century the Christian rulers began to turn it into a cathedral and by the 16th century it had a whopping big old school church in the middle and chapels all around the walls.  It is a truly bizarre sight and while the cathedral section is impressive, it has none of the beauty and style of the original mosque.

Mezquita arches
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Afterwards we walked around the old Jewish neighbourhood which was lots of tiny winding streets, white building, red geraniums on the walls and stacks of tourist shops!

Once back at our hotel we were extremely disappointed to find a brochure for a 2hr Segway tour of Cordoba for only 60euro for the two of us - we were disappointed as we were waiting for the taxi to take us to the train station to leave - doh!  The website is www.blobject.es if interested and they also do them in Seville.