Córdoba

On the morning of checkout, I had my usual breakfast, packed up and headed to the Atocha Renfe train station via taxi. I could have taken the subway two stops, but I didn't feel like lugging my stuff up and down the steps and my unlimited metro ticket of three days had expired. I booked a train leaving at 11:35 am to Córdoba on the Ave, the high speed train. The train took about an hour and 40 minutes. Here are a few pictures of the station:

When I arrived in Córdoba, I walked over to my hotel which was only a few blocks from the train station. I had booked one night at Tryp Hotel which is owned by Mélia. I had stayed at Mélias in South America and Bali and is a Spanish hotel chain. The front desk, Adolpho, was super kind as I was trying to book a bus to visit the Medina Azahara last minute. He thought the next bus was at 3 pm, but I advised him that I thought there was a 5 pm bus and I could book online. He was only aware of tickets sold at the tourist office in the center of town which he thought would be too tight on time to buy and then make it to the bus stop. After we researched, he was kind enough to help print out my bus voucher. The hotel is definitely for business travelers and not so much a tourist hotel as it appears they were hosting a conference. 

I walked over to the park area that divides pretty much the old city from the modern area where my hotel was situated. In the middle, there's a Mercado Victoria where I had a beef empanada for lunch. As I walked into the old city, I wasn't sure where I was - the streets are winding and not well-marked on my map. I asked two nice older men where we were and they advised I was in front of Trinity church. One of them asked the other if he thought I was Chinese and then asked if I could understand them. After they gave me directions to the synagogue, I advised I was not Chinese, but Korean-American. They howled with laughter and I was on my way. I stumbled upon a Roman wall and then found the synagogue, one of the three oldest in Spain. It's supposed to reopen in the afternoon according to my guidebook, but was closed for the day. I then walked over to Capilla de San Bartolomé, a Fernandine chapel. There are about 13 left in the city, built upon the location of prior mosques in the 14th century mapped out by King Fernando III. Although, apparently the Jews, Christians, and Muslims lived in Córdoba peacefully. The church exemplifies Mudéjar construction, described by the information panel as Hispanic-Muslim. The church indeed had Islamic designs and an Arab prayer along the wall along with beautiful tiles. The only discernible mural is that of Victoria, the patron of Córdoba. Here's a collage of the chapel:

Córdoba is unique with the Islamic, Jewish, and Christian elements. The streets are winding and there are beautiful tiles everywhere. My guidebook says the residents love to show off their verandahs and patios as they take great care of flowers, plants, and fountains. Also for two weeks in May, there's a festival of flowers and patios where people just open up their homes as many have small courtyards. I know that both Amanda and my mother would enjoy this festival. Here's a picture of a cute alley with potted plants:

Afterwards, I walked around the Jewish neighborhood called La Juderia and ran into the same older men who gave me directions previously and their wives. We chatted for a bit and they offered food and beverage, but I said I had to catch the bus. They were excited to see their Chinese Korean American friend! I stopped again in the Mercado Victoria for a pincho of cheese and smoked salmon as the bus stop was right in front. 

I was taking the bus to Medinah Azahara, which is about five miles west of Córdoba. It costs about 8 euros, and the only other way to get there is to take a taxi which costs about 40 euros. It's an excavated city of a self-proclaimed caliph. Less than a 10% of this old city has been excavated and only about 25% open to visitors. This walled city was expansive and exhibited the Islamic architecture of horseshoe arches that in threes, represented the power of the caliph. They had an extensive plumbing system and many societal customs adopted from the Romans. The movie in the beginning was excellent and the museum was named European Museum of the year recently. Our guide advised that they can't keep excavating, because it costs too much money especially with the maintenance and restoration. My tour also had two lovely ladies from Los Angeles who were definitely living it up. They are staying in pretty much only paradors, which are in converted palaces or historic buildings. Here's a collage of the courtyard, arches, and gardens:

The bus dropped us off in the center of the city, lo and behold, in front of the Mercado Victoria. Here, I ordered a spaghetti bolognese and had several glasses of Rioja in the park. The Mercado is cool as there is a small beer garden and has many types of food all the while being in the middle of the park.

Tomorrow, I visit the Mezquita which was the main reason for coming to Córdoba. I had seen pictures in college and the thought of Islamic architecture in a Catholic cathedral with the beautiful columns had always stayed with me... 

I end the night with Mad Men and the Simpsons dubbed in Spanish. Thank goodness I've seen both episodes!