Live Love Spain

We made a leisurely start to the day, having breakfast on the little terrace. I then went upstairs to the laundry to put on some washing; not without help from a neighbour when I couldn’t get the machine to start. Venturing out, we passed the line of carriages adjacent to the Mesquita, turned right before the Puente Romano and soon encountered, on our left, the historic Water Wheel that long ago fed agua into the Alcazar. We had walked along the river bank promenade too far. The tourist coaches were lined up and we had passed the street leading to the entrance, so had to double back. Tip 14: Arrive before opening time to queue for the Alcazar. There was no express lane here and the queue was relatively short. Being early we found only a small queue. While waiting we were trying to avoid direct sunlight as it was moving from very warm, to hot, quite quickly. With tickets in hand we moved inside toward the towers. I decided to purchase a guide book, hesitant at dealing with a machine. My fears were founded as it ate my 3 euros, made an enormous heaving sound and spat nothing my way. Returning to the official at the ticket desk where we had paid out €4.50 to enter, there was plenty of shrugging shoulders at my request in espaniol, then a translation from a helpful bystander, as the official told me the machine had not worked in years, to which I replied in a combination of English and Spanish, that if the macina no funciona, then why is there not a sign? Or better still, why hasn’t it been removed? I knew the answer. I thanked the girl in the line for helping to translate my plight before returning to Karen and at the macina. A more persistent approach from Karen led to the male counterpart of the woman on the desk, coming to unplug the machine. I spoke to him again to see if there were other copies of the booklet or a pamphlet we could have, but it seemed to be falling on deaf ears (or was it my Spanish?) When Karen vehemently said “Dinero mas importante por la touristas,” he walked off. He returned a short moment later with an English copy of the guide book which he handed to me. I thanked him. I took it upon myself to disconnect the machine from the power point and relocate the plug to hang from the top of the machine, where it was clearly visible. With a piece of paper we saw on a desk near the doorway, we placed our own sign, “No funciona” with the English equivalent, onto the machine. We would see when we exited, much to our amusement, that someone had also added the French!! With that episode behind us we continued, spiralling upward around the steps leading to the Leones Tower, to properly commence our visit. There was a lovely view down into the jardins, out over the rooftops of the old city of Cordoba and to the Puente Romano across the rio Guadalquivir. Up here I again saw the young woman who had translated for me in the queue. Restating my thanks we all chatted, taking in the view. We then took some mutual photos, as she too was travelling with a friend. Karen and I proceeded to walk the length of the wall across to the Inquisition Tower, before making our way down into the palace itself. The Alcazar or Royal Palace, was originally built by King Alfonso XI in 1328, as the usual residence of Christian Kings, when they came to Cordoba. While the Leones Tower is original, the Inquisition Tower was added by the Catholic Sovereigns in the 15th Century and the Palomes Tower during a 20th Century reconstruction. The information sign indicated that the discovery of America and the retaking of Granada were planned in the rooms of this palace. The Baroque Chapel built in the 17th Century, once used as a prison, had since been converted into a museum, containing walls full of mosaics from Corredera Square. Each was stunning in its own right. The main colours were negro (black), stone, rojas (red), amarillo (yellow) and verde (green). The Cubic Roman tessellated style was beautiful. I practised my translation skills with Karen on a large mosaic depicting the four seasons, with a central motif of Eros and Psyche. At another we improvised our own video snippet; Polyhemus and Galitea. He has long flowing hair, a tiger skin over his muscles and is holding an ancient musical instrument. This mosaic showed the platted style around the outside perimeter and some dolphins with the tails of fish. Quite spectacular! I noticed that in the booklet someone had reversed it when printed. We spent a long time in this hall, appreciative of the effort and artistry of producing these mosaics so long ago. The manana had turned to tarde and outside it was calor; moving towards mucho calor! The first courtyard we entered was a mudejar patio, built by King Alfonso. Similar to those we had seen at La Alhambra, it contained beautiful small fountains and a pool, surrounded by orange trees, naturally. Through a gate we wandered into the larger expanse of gardens via another citrus grove and fountain. Steps led to goldfish ponds – sizeable; both the goldfish and the ponds. Looking skyward gave a well-framed view, to the Leones Tower we had first climbed. Deciding which angle gave the least tourists per frame, every view was a delight; composed of arches of water lining long, rectangular pools, fringed with purple flores or combinations of colour, backed by rows of pine trees, edging the gravel walkways. Tourists were lining up to take the photographs on various media, at the top and bottom of the two large rectangular pools. Mucho hente were quite at home pushing in and not waiting their turn. In my highly prized booklet of the Alcazar, I had found a picture of a stunning Mosaic Pool in the grounds; a replica of the original was shown. Eluding us, thus far, we went searching. Tucked away on one side of the gardens, seis or siete escalares led down to the pool. It looked fabulous and I wanted to take it home with me. At that moment, the difficulty lay in getting a decent photo, as a protective tree shaded some elements of the mosaic, including Poseidon, although the seahorse and some fish were in the sol. Around 2:00 p.m. people started evaporating. It was time to close for siesta. We retraced a few steps for tourist free photos, stumbling on the Roman Baths (I still preferred those in Granada), before making our way out. A bit of a circuit took us to the “new” part of town and Tourist Information, located in the busy Plaza Tendillas. The cross here was still erect and the plaza a palette of colour. From Tourist Information we collected some maps and striking posters of the “Fiesta de los Patios”, as this festival was a primary reason for scheduling Cordoba at this point in our itinerary. Lunch was in a cafe near the Mesquita Catedral; a less than memorable paella mariscos. The limonada granizada, frozen like a slushy, was very cold, even on a hot day. I was waiting for it to melt before I could drink it. As I paid for my lunch I spied other goodies in the cabinet and bought a pastry for my next desayuno. I asked directions to the supermercado, as we wanted a few supplies, but it was closed. Returning to the apartment, I went up to check the washing, which we had forgotten. There was a nicely phrased note from Apartment 2, who had taken our washing out of the machine to put theirs in. Most clothing went into the dryer but some went on our trusty portable lines.