Córdoba. Lejana y sola.

Beneath this bell tower´s Renaissance carapace
hides a tenth century minaret.  

Córdoba, at first glance, seems remarkably similar to Seville.  Don´t ever tell that to a sevillano or a cordobés; it seems that one of the few qualities that the people of Andalucía admit to sharing, apart from a fierce tendency to disagree with one another, is an indomitable sense of local pride.  Still, my tour of Córdoba did include its cathedral, its palace (alcázar), and its old Jewish neighborhood (judería), all three of which can also be found in Seville.  Strolling through the narrow, winding streets of the judería and seeing the cathedral´s bell tower looming overhead, I felt a striking sense of déjà vu.  (Interesting fact: the twisting and turning Jewish sectors in both Córdoba and Seville were constructed strategically so to maximize shade and give the persecuted minority that lived in the neighborhood a home turf advantage when authorities pursued them through the labyrinthine barrio.)  Even so, a daytrip to Córdoba will leave a lasting impression, as evidenced by the photos below.  

Córdoba´s cathedral is colloquially referred to as la mezquita
de Córdoba, or the Mosque of Córdoba, and for good reason.
The majority of the structure consists of the original mosque
constructed during the Muslim occupation.  The Moors
recycled the columns seen here from Ancient Roman buildings.

Here we see Christ hanging out under some "polylobulated
arches," a typical adornment in Muslim architecture.  The
juxtapositions/contradictions only get more extreme.

Ferdinand III "reconquering" Córdoba from the
Moors. They love this dude in Spain, especially
in Seville where he serves as patron saint.

A Baroque cathedral was erected quite literally in
the middle of the mosque in the sixteenth century.
It´s looks as absurd as it sounds.

The massive choir is comprised of elaborately carved mahogany.
Just a modest adornment...

This Moorish dome looks down upon the opening to the mihrab,
where the Qur´an used to be stored.

"What were they thinking?!"  This was Carlos V´s reaction upon
visiting the cathedral-in-progress. The monarch originally jump-
started the project, only to later regret the partial destruction of
what he found out too late to be a remarkable, truly unique edifice.

Despite the ill-conceived, albeit impressive, basilica interrupting
what was once a forest of columns and Moorish arches in the
original mosque, many believe that the cathedral´s presence has
saved what remains of the Muslim structure from being destroyed
altogether, as has been the fate of most (all other?) Iberian mosques.

The gardens of Córdoba´s alcázar, or palace.

Córdoba´s Roman bridge has survived millennia.  They just
don´t build stuff like they used to.

These statues commemorate Christopher Columbus´s first
meeting with Ferdinand II and Isabel I, the Catholic Monarchs.