Tuesday May 30th
Cathedral walls in the morning light.
Got up early to make the 8:30 opening time of the Mezquita Cathedral.
Cathedral walls in the morning light. Notice the carvings.
This was originally a mosque but was converted into a church when the Moors were defeated. The building is huge and an amazing configuration of the of the original plain geometric decoration with gothic embellishments where ever they could be “embelled.” Sometimes a column begins with austere base but as the eye goes up it ends crowned with gothic wedding cake decoration.
Forest of columns.
Without a doubt the original is more to my taste. Still, you have to hand it to the christians they really know how to put on the dog. No shortage of gold leaf and Jesus in agony paintings.
Mixed styles, mixed media.
I went in, free no less, at 8:30 for a one hour grace period before groups are allowed in and I’m sure turn the place into a train station atmosphere with disco flashes going off like night time firefight from all the selfies being taken. In the middle of my visit someone began practicing on the mamouth organ that was in the center of the building so I found a bench and enjoyed the concert. It also served to cover up the cackling of the tourists rushing to and fro all afraid there might be something they failed to capture for their social media pages. I just sat looked and and enjoyed the view of the sea of moorish columns receding into the darkness. I tried to imagine what it looked like with hundreds if not thousands of worshippers all on their knees bowing toward Mecca. it must have been quite a sight and such a contrast with what is happening today in the space. They ushered us all toward the front door at 9:30 so I only had an hour but I’ll come back tomorrow for photos and more time in the forest of columns.
Bridge and gate
I went out into the blinding sunshine and walked across the the old stone bridge: La Puerto del Puente so I could have a view of the cathedral and the city stretched out along the river. At the end of the bridge was a giant stone gate that someone copied from Game of Thrones that once defended this city access. The view from the opposite bank was breathtaking and the crystal clear weather made everything glow.
The old bridge.
Not much to see on this side of the river so I walked back admiring the Roman structure sitting in front of the cathedral/mosque. The outside walls of the complex were encrusted with smaller gates and carving all topped with a crenelated finish to provide protection for the archers who once defended the building from infidels. From there I wondered into the oldest part of the city know as the Jewish quarter all of whom are long gone except fro a life size bronze of Maimonides. I’m sure it looks just like him and made him roll over in his grave as the Jews have the same prohibition of representational art – especially human figures – as do the Muslims. By the way the foot is worn shinny just like John Harvard in Cambridge. I never got close enough to touch it as I, alas, didn’t have a selfie stick to fight my way through the crowd. I walked through the very narrow streets of the quarter. Everything has been restored and the streets and sidewalks have all been paved with granite and sometimes even marble curbs. Everything is SO clean! I ended up a smaller gate that breached what was left of the old city wall and sat in the shade and enjoyed an ice coffee.
Another gate too the Jewish quarter.
A double espresso poured over some large ice cubes. What a treat!
Town center.
From there I ended up in the center of the newer part of town in a gorgeous plaza with the a Hotel Boston just to make me feel right at home.
Hotel Boston beckons.
The scale and proportions of the buildings surrounding this space were perfect. Five stories seems to be just right height and almost all the buildings have a tower on one side with some kind of statue or decoration on top. Did they have zoning back in the 19th century when this was built or were they just trying to fit in with the buildings in the rest of the plaza? Didn’t anyone want to make an extra buck by putting up more floors?
Had more coffee and then wandered back to my room to rest before dinner. I love this town!!
Walking in the center.
Wednesday
Another day beginning with a repeat visit to the cathedral where I succumbed to peer pressure and shot some photos, none of which do justice to the light or the space. Still I have to try and keep up with the Chinese. I just got to buy a selfie stick, at least so I have something to fence with. maybe later….
Had a long breakfast after and tried to catch up on typing this blog. Got to sit outside and eat and had access to a fast internet connection at the restaurant. And the coffee was great.
More walking around after just to get lost in the maze of streets and trying not to get run over by the bikes and motorcycles who are the only ones who can really get around in these street that wouldn’t even be called alleys back home. Some that do grant access to cars have little tiny sidewalks less than a foot wide that you jump up on to let the vehicles get by. The sunshine is strong and so everyone walks on the shady side of the street which means you have to switch sides often because they wind so much. I walked toward a church tower just to see what was there and along the way encountered other churches all of which I popped into but I’m pretty much “churched out” so it was as much for the shade as for the sightseeing. Lots of Jesús in agony statues and paintings. The town is not big so I passed through my favorite spots again and again as I toured.
Jesus and his girlfriend.
Spent the evening with Jesus (yes Jesus) sitting in the Plaza de la Corredera near my room surrounded by young people. A group of whom were singing but instead of football chants beautiful songs and harmonizing perfectly. Believe it or not we spent a chunk of the time talking about Buddhism. Plaza de la Is a miniature, but still large, plaza Mayor absent the football roadies and hucksters trying to sell me things and cage cigarettes. The beer sure tastes good after a day in the sun and And, its cheaper than water!
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