Saturday morning our group of 12 met around 9 to get on a bus to Córdoba. It was about a 2 1/2 hour ride, so we definitely all crashed. Once there, we got toast and orange juice and hung out for about 15 minutes before our tour of the Catedral de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción (The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption). It was so pretty and interesting because it was originally a mosque. The architecture of the mosque is still there, and Muslims still try to come pray. However, it has been considered a cathedral since 1236-the Spanish Reconquista. It is the only place to have a cathedral built within a mosque!
View walking into Córdoba
Garden and tower outside
Remains under the mosque of an older mosque
Many pillars are different-they used a lot of recycled materials to build it!
The names of all the people who helped build the mosque-they signed the pillars (like the picture above) and then had a mold of their signatures taken
Cathedral within the mosque
Gorgeous ceiling
Old pieces of wood from the roof
After we toured the mosque, we went to la Calleja de Las Floras (Street of the Flowers). Every year they have a "Patio Contest". It is a contest in early May where everyone opens their gates and visitors can see gorgeous flowers and other plants all over the patio. Obviously they weren't in full force in July, but there were still a lot of pots aligning the walls! It was such a pretty but simple thing to see! Then, we went to the old Jewish quarters. We saw an old temple and a small courtyard. Afterwards, we headed to get lunch. We went to a small restaurant for pizza, but unfortunately the pizza was premade (so Denver couldn't eat it!), it took about an hour and a half, and it was hotter than Hades! We used our final 30 minutes to shop around and some of the girls and I all got handmade leather sandals. They are super comfortable but mom doesn't think they are very cute (but they definitely are!).
Pots for the Patio Contest
"Provisional sanctuary and abode for the Testimony completed by Yishaq Moheb, son of Mr. Elraim Wadawa, in the year seventy five. So return, Oh God hasten to return to Jerusalem"
Jenny and Mike sleeping on the way to Granada!
Obviously we were all exhausted from walking around Córdoba for hours, so we all fell asleep on the bus to Granada, too. Once we got to Granada, we all perked up and had a wonderful time! We had about two hours to freshen up and go eat, so that's exactly what we did. Somehow my roommate and I got the nicest room in Hotel Meliâ...we had a couch, a big tv, and even a fruit platter! Everyone else was jealous! We went to dinner at a local restaurant in Plaza Nueva and got tapas-lots of smoked salmon, guacamole, and pizza! Then we walked up to a spot even with the Alhambra and took a lot of pretty pictures. Finally, we walked down to las cuevas, the caves, and saw a Flamenco show. I loved it! It is such a passionate and fluid dance. I hope everyone has the opportunity to see a Flamenco show at some point in their life!
We found 2 of the dancers after the show!
Later that night, we went to get more tapas (tapas are just appetizers) and then to a bar. We ran into the high schoolers with ISA and had lots of fun "talking" on the phone with the directors and asking them what time they would be at that bar. The high schoolers heard and took off running since they had curfew soon! The next day, we got up, ate breakfast, and left to tour the Alhambra. It was breathtaking. It was a lot of walking, but we got to see some of the most beautiful scenery and architecture in Spain.
Cooper, Jenny, and Afhton!
After we toured the Alhambra, we went for lunch and to walk around Granada a little bit more. It was by far my favorite city (besides Sevilla!) and I am SO jealous Tory got to study there! I would love to have gotten to spend a few more nights there, but I am thankful I got to see it all. Tomorrow we are going to go wine tasting around Sevilla, so I'm sure I'll have another blog soon! So sad this is my last week here! :(
