Next we decided to go low impact and follow the suggested walking tour of the quaint Barrio Santa Cruz in the Rick Steve’s Spain guide. This old neighborhood still maintains hints of a time when lords and ladies walked around the city and courting across balconies in streets so narrow they are called “kissing lanes.” We strolled around for a while taking in the feel of the city before we had to leave. After the walking tour and some lunch we walked back to the hostel to pick up our bags and headed to the bus station. We had an afternoon bus but it was a pretty quick ride (2hrs 15min) so we weren’t very stressed about the trip.
We were trying to get a special pass for 100 euros that gave us access to unlimited busses for a week but we ran into a bit of trouble. We filled out all of our application information online and had confirmation numbers for it but unfortunately the bus station, after making us wait in a 15 minute line to start, gave us more paperwork to fill out. We realized that it would be a better idea to just go ticket by ticket and save the hassle. We could have saved about 10 or 20 euros but since we booked a flight from Barcelona to Madrid instead of a 7 hour bus, we figured it would all work out. The only real interesting part of the ride was the giant fields of sunflowers which we passed for miles at a time. The only thing I have seen sunflowers used for in Spain thus far has been margarine so perhaps we were seeing fields of future bagel spread, but who knows.
We got to the bus station with no problems and walked the couple of kilometers to our hostel carrying our backpacks. When we got to the Seneca Backpackers Hostel we were pleasantly surprised, again, with a nice facility. Two floors of rooms surrounded an inner courtyard open to the air and full of plants. We had wifi, one bathroom per floor, and comfortable beds, albeit a bit unconventional. The bunk beds (three to a room) were only waist high for the top bunk with the bottom bunk resting on the floor. It seemed like a good design at first but I then realized that it would never catch on in the US because we value our under-bed storage far too much.
Next it was off to a late lunch at a local bar where we both decided to try some local dishes. I had the Salmorejo, a version of Gazpacho featuring hard boiled egg and local ham, while Brian had a Flamenquín with fried potatoes. This dish was something like a pig in a blanket but with a local sausage and tasty dough.
After being fed and content, we walked a few blocks to the historical section of the town bordering the same Guadalquivir River as Sevilla. This hostel has been the most centrally located yet as it was literally three blocks away from the famous Mezquita as well as the Jewish quarter and other attractions.
As a type of introduction, both Córdoba and Granada, the next city, are highly historical and represent a time when cultures were colliding in a big way on the Iberian Peninsula. The Islamic Moors from Africa had arrived in Spain across the strait of Gibraltar and soon populated the rich lands all the way to the foothills of the Pyrenees Mountains. While the rest of Europe was mired in the dark and middle ages, the Moors cultivated science, medicine, and government in their advanced centers such as Córdoba and Granada. Here they build palaces using exquisite geometrical designs motivated by modern mathematical concepts, used desert-living techniques to provide solace from the brutal Spanish sun, and even incorporated water into almost every section of their rooms and courts. The Moors were very open to Christians and Jews and offered an example of peaceful coexistence and co-prospering.
Obviously, Spain did not remain a Muslim country and a lot of blood was shed during the reconquista of the peninsula by the Christian monarchs. Mosques were razed and Muslims were forced to convert and now today some of the monuments of that triumph sit atop the foundations of the old Islamic symbols of enlightenment and faith.
With that in mind, Córdoba has offered a chance to see a cross-section of this change and clash of cultures as much of the pre-reconquista charm and culture has been maintained by a sort of symbiosis with the Christian architecture and population.
Brian and I wanted to see some of these symbioses before it got too late but unfortunately almost everything was closed or closing by the time we got there. The Mezquita charged an 8 euro entrance fee but was open for free before 10AM the next morning and the 14th century Jewish Synagogue was closed as well. We did, however, make it to the river and we found the Living Museum of Al-Andalus (the Arabic term for Spain) and had a great time viewing all of the exhibits. The premise of the museum was that you get a free audio guide headset and as you walk into each room your headset begins to give you the details automatically. It was a cool effect and it made the exhibits much more homey and personal than I would have thought before.
With lots of plans for the morning, we then went out and got some tapas before retiring for the night. It was a very satisfying day but with much more to come tomorrow!
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