El Torcal de Antequera

 

We took a walk in a remarkable mountainous landscape outside Antequera in Andalucia.

El Torcal de Antequera is formed from limestone that was under the sea for 200 million years before being thrust upward.  The layers are very pronounced.  They reminded me of a pile of pancakes,

Wild goats are plentiful.

Domesticated sheep with bells also graze there.

In a few spots we stopped to see the impressions of fossils.

In the heat of late spring in Andalucia, the cool, fresh mountain air of El Torcal was welcome.

Cordoba

 Mezquita -- the Great Mosque of Cordoba -- now known as the Mosque Cathedral of Cordoba is every bit as huge and impressive as its reputation suggests.

It fills the skyline and is reached from an old Roman bridge.

The mosque parts were constructed in four waves,  The red and "white" (really beige or tan) arches above high columns are what most visitors remember.

There are also later arch and columns styles.

I had read that a Catholic cathedral had been built into the middle of the mosque.  But, what struck me most -- aside from its sheer size and grandeur  -- is that the cathedral elements are integrated into many parts of the mosque, so that a visitor often sees both Islamic and Catholic features at the same time.

The cathedral elements are also quite spectacular, though their placement within a mosque almost keeps one from focusing on them.

Ronda

 A wonderful visit in the southern Andalusian mountains to the city of Ronda.

A gorge of almost 400 feet divides the two sides of Ronda.  It is connected by the "new bridge." 

 "New" means the bridge was completed in 1793.

We visited Ronda's bullfighting ring, the oldest and largest in Spain.  

We also visited the bullfighting museum and got an education about bullfighting and its traditions.  The best bullfighters come from the same families, with the Romero and Ordonez families having the longest and most successful lineages.

The visit ended with a visit to a small winery outside the city, with delicious local food, a selection of three wines, and a tour of the vineyard.

Seville

 

Plaza Espana.

Real Alcazar.

Hall of the Ambassadors.

Cathedral.

The Alhambra

 What to choose from all the glorious sights at the Alhambra? 

Maybe a ceiling?

Of course, everyone shows the Court of the Lions.

Maybe another ceiling, this one of wood?

Maybe a bas relief at one of the entrances?

Another popular view is a reflection in the pool of Palacio Nazaries.

Maybe tone of these ceilings?  (You get the idea I like ceilings . . . )

I give up.  You pick.  On to Seville tomorrow.

Antequera

 In Andalucia for a week, staying in the centrally located town of Antequera and taking day trips to better known towns like Seville, Granada and Cordoba.  I was here last summer on a trip to Portugal and Spain but caught Covid as we left Portugal and entered Spain, so I saw little more than hotel rooms.  

Hoping for better luck this year.

The view from the highest point in Antequera is pretty, looking over white buildings to the next hill.

Like so many European towns, people in Antequera beautify their simple homes with a bit of color and life in the window.

We visited a museum about the 6,000 year old dolmens and then visited two of them.  Not surprisingly, I was too tall to go inside.  On to Granada and the Alhambra tomorrow.

Peony

 More than half of my peonies have blossomed.