Cordoba
We spent all day today taking in the sights in the historic and beautiful city of Cordoba. In the morning, we explored the wonders of The Mezquita in mostly silence. The silence was only broken by a morning mass held in the active Cathedral part of the Mezquita. Following the Mezquita, we visited a unique synagogue with Arabesque plaster carving and Hebrew calligraphy. We also strolled the extravagant gardens of the Alcazar de los Reyes Cristianos (Castle of the Christian Kings). In the afternoon, we all enjoyed a fun and educational tour at the Living Andalusia Museum in the Torre de la Calahora.
In our spare time, we have been sampling Andalusia's finest foods - gazpacho, tortillas (with potatoes and eggs), and of course churros con chocolate - not to be missed!
Tomorrow morning, we will visit Medina Azahara, an ancient city that was abandoned shortly after construction - it would have been the largest city in Western Europe of that time. In the afternoon, we will move on to Granada - our final destination of the semester. Cultural and historical jewels wait for us there - Alhambra, Albayzin, gitanos, flamenco....