Cordoba

La Mezquita de Córdoba is an amazing and stunning example of a crashing together of cultures. Originally there was a Christian temple, the basilica of San Vicente which was destroyed sometime in the 8th century a.d. It was destroyed by the Spanish Muslims in order to build the Mosque, a sanctuary that would become one of the most important in all of western Islam. Years later in the 13th century, the Christians reconquered Cordoba and commenced with the rituals of purification of the mosque. Usually cathedrals were built on top of these holy buildings but this Great Mosque of Cordoba was so immense that the cathedral had to be built inside. It is an amazing experience to be walking around the mosque and then suddenly come face to face with an enormous cathedral. Some of the images below illustrate this clash.

Here are some pictures of the Mezquita from outside as well as from inside.

Just outside is the Guadalquivir river which is one of the four large rivers in Spain. By the time it gets to Cordoba it is really big. It looks dirty but it's really the turbulence lifting sediment and carrying it downriver. We picked a lousy day for visiting Cordoba; the temperature got up to 115 degrees F. We thought we were going to die. Luckily we brought with us a spray bottle which we continuously emptied on us and the kids. The only people out on the streets were idiot tourists like ourselves. So, some respite in the shade of some trees on the banks of the river did us well. It also gave Natalia and me a chance to grab some pebbles and water for our collection.