And the sightseeing in Andalusia continues: Cordoba and the little tiny village Zuheros.
In Cordoba, we focused on the Mosque–Cathedral, also known as the Mezquita. The Mezquita started off as a Mosque in 784 and was later converted into a Roman Catholic church (1236). It is best known for its hall of arched pillars with the candy-cane stripes. It is one of the most beautiful and fascinating ancient buildings I have ever seen – no wonder it is classified as a world heritage site. Of course, we climbed up the bell tower to enjoy the view from the top. It costed an extra 2 euros but was well worth it.
Cordoba must have the most narrow streets of all the Andalusian towns. Amazingly, some tiny cars still make it through. No oversized offroaders here!
The below soup is not gazpacho, but salmorejo – fresh tomatoes mixed with garlic, bread, olive oil and sherry vinegar. It is eaten cold and most people top it with a hard boiled egg and Spanish ham (jamon). We did not pay for the soup – it came as a free tapas as so often in Spain.
On our way back to Malaga we visited Zuheros: a beautiful little mountain village with the typical white-washed houses and ochre roofs. It only has 800 inhabitants but it felt like a lot less – we only saw about 10 people. And for a change we were the only tourists. Oh, and the 50 minute drive from Cordoba is worth it: miles and miles of mountains with olive trees and little villages dotted here and there. Beautiful countryside.
There is more to come: Sevilla, El Rocio and Granada!