Being a Tourist in Old Town

Wow, what a difference from Monday. We roamed around old town on our own two days ago, and it was basically deserted. Today we retraced our steps with our guide Toni. And it seems like a lot of other groups had guides today too. The streets were congested with people, you could overhear guides talking in different languages, and it seemed like every school in a 100-mile radius was having a field trip on the same day at the same time.

We re-visited La Mezquita today (and were allowed to take pictures -yay!). It was a completely different experience, with a thousand people roaming around, guides talking, school groups clustering, and lights on everywhere. I was able to see more of the structure at once (although it was less dramatic), and take in the size and scale. When it was a mosque it could hold 15,000 people at one time for prayer.

The red and white arches were as mesmerizing during the day as they were at night. Capturing them in a photograph was challenging, although I did try, about 5,392 times. I may have to suck it up and just buy a postcard.

We then wandered around the old Jewish Quarter and managed to cram ourselves into an old synagogue along with a large school group and two other guided groups. The room was a small square that was about 50×50 feet and our guide was told to make her explanation short. (I recognized the word “cortó” that the docent repeated to her over and over). She was gracious and with a smile on her face, explained to us what we were seeing, told him she made it short on our way out, to which he had a grumpy sigh. I think being cranky is part of docent training.

Oh, and we had lunch and drank wine.

We continued after a nice long siesta by taking a patio tour. Patios are a thing here, less like large overhangs with a built in barbecue, a living room, and seating for 8, more like a Spanish interior courtyard with hanging baskets of flowers, water fountains, and garden decorations. They were used to help keep things cool in the summer, but hidden away from neighbors so as not to inspire envy. People can be so considerate. Now you can pay to wander into peoples’ courtyards. They compete each May for awards and proudly display the plaques on the walls outside the house. Speaking of exterior walls, there are also flower pots attached to those as well. Often in a haphazard fashion. Flower pots were originally used to hide wall cracks. I’m wondering what my HOA would think if I start attaching potted succulents to the exterior of my house instead of patching the stucco cracks. It would almost be worth it just to see what they would write on the Homeowner Violation ticket.

To finish up the day we went to an equestrian show. Horses are big in Andalucía, as in they are a thing, not just a big animal. Unfortunately, I have no photos to show you except a few exterior shots; you could not photograph during the show. It was smaller and more intimate than I expected. The show took place in an old hall about the size of a high-school gymnasium. 250 spectators were arranged in bleachers on one end. We had chairs, thank goodness, Although butt numbing I was glad to have a chair back. And for an hour we watched horses. Horses prancing, dancing, balancing on two legs, performing a four-legged kick, dancing with flamenco dancers, dancing around a rather long spear….it was fascinating. I wish I had more context, before seeing the show, as to the history and training these horses go through. And I thought the small dancer performing sophisticated movements around a large animal doing intricate grapevine steps was mind-boggling.

In our latest installment in Adventures in Hygiene we have commenced sink washing protocols. We are now about 8-10 days before we will have time and access to a laundry mat. Operation Sink Washing is a factory like process that involves Peter pummeling a handful of clothes in the bathroom sink, and then using his big bicep and forearm muscles to try to wring every drop of water out of them. I actually think watching this may be better than watching the horse show. Peter then throws each item down on a towel that is laid out on the floor. I do my flamboyant towel-roll technique to try to get some more water out. This time, my industrious laundry guy packed a portable clothesline with clothespins as one of his essential items (for those of you who remember Canada, he gave up his 2,053 Q-tips, to make room for the clothesline #priorities). Because it has been so wet and humid here, we had to move the clothesline from the bathroom into the room. We cranked up the heat to create a dry sauna desert-like environment (reminded me of home). Then complicated engineering was involved to direct the hot hair coming from the high wall vent. We employed balancing acrobatics using various hotel furnishings to creatively string it across from a framed photo with a light to the end of a curtain rod. Yep, if visitors come to our room (I’m talking to you Mark and Cat), you will certainly get an eyeful.

Tomorrow we leave Cordoba.