Cordoba is in Andalucía in southern Spain with a population of 345,000.

It is less than 2 hours on the fast train from Madrid and is an easy daytrip destination from Seville.

Cordoba is known for its leather manufacturing and silversmiths as well as being the home to some of the biggest Olive plantations.

In 935 Cordoba was considered to be the world's largest city.

It was initially an important Roman city and then a major Islamic centre in the middle ages being the capital of the Umayyad Caliphate of Cordoba.

It was transformed into a world learning centre of education and established large libraries.

Cordoba has more world heritage sites than anywhere else in the world.

Mesquita (Mosque) of Cordoba

Most know and visit Cordoba for the famous Mesquita.  It is said to be the 2nd largest Mosque in the world – not all references confirm this.

It started as a mosque that is 24,000 square metres.

It has 865 columns inside the mosque (used to be 1293 before the cathedral was built). They are made of marble, jasper and granite.  The columns are the red and white horse shoe shaped decorative arches and they are topped by a second Roman arch to add height and light.

The mosque is so impressive in size that you can’t stand on one side and see the other side.  It is also impressive in its sheer beauty.

To add to the amazing building that is the mosque, right in the centre, the Christians built a full size cathedral in the 16th century – Can you imagine walking through this mosque with its 865 red and white decorative arches over 24,000 square metres and then you turn a corner and there is a full size cathedral with all the artwork, gilded gold statues, fully carved wooden choir area and everything that goes inside an elaborate cathedral including the domed ceiling.  It is one of the most spectacular sights in all of Spain and probably the world.

There are church services conducted here every day.

The Mesquita has four main entrances and a typical Islamic courtyard with orange trees.

The Roman Bridge in Cordoba

The Roman Bridge in Cordoba is one of the largest in Spain.  It was built early in the first century and crosses the Guadalquiver River.  It has 16 arches.  It is 331m long and 9m wide.  It is one of the most impressive Roman Bridges in Spain and it is the best vantage point (especially at sunset) to see the Mesquita. 

It is a pedestrian only bridge and it so lovely to walk across and check out the views.  It was declared a World Heritage Site in 1984.

Alcazar de Los Reyes Christianos

The fortress was one of the primary residences of Isabella I and Ferdinand II.  It was built in 1328.

It was declared a World Heritage Site in 1994.

It was used as one the first Spanish tribunals of the inquisition.

It is a fortress so it is surrounded by a protective wall which is huge and quite intimidating from the outside.

The Alcazar has four towers.

It is a large building with courtyards made up of a Hall of Mosaics which is the main hall of the building built in the 18th Century.

The Courtyard of the Mariscos is surrounded on three sides by arches and has access to the gardens on the fourth side.

The Courtyard of the Women is on the eastern side and was named after the area where women prisoners were held.

The Reception Hall is next to the Hall of Mosaics and also houses beautiful ceramic artworks.

The Royal baths of Dona Leonor were constructed by Alfonso XI for his mistress in 1328.

It is a beautiful complex to explore. You can climb the bell tower, walk around all the courtyards and admire the beautiful ceramic art. 

The Gardens of the Alcazar

The gardens cover an area of 55,000 sq metres. 

There are three levels – the high level, the middle level and the lower level. The most common way to enter is from a majestic staircase the leads from the Alcazer into the middle level of the garden.

The high garden occupies the part of the garden between the Tower of the Lions and the Royal Stables. The middle garden stretches along the castle wall that separates the garden from the Courtyard of the Mariscos and incudes two large pools.

The lower garden covers a much larger area and has three pools.  It also includes the Kings Avenue which is lined with cypress trees and statues of Queen Isabella I, Ferdinand II and Chrisopher Columbus.

It was a stunning garden area.  One of our favourites was the topiary garden with large hedges shaped in huge vases with weeping trees and golden ground cover.

There are three beautiful rose gardens.  The pools are lined with masses of pretty flowers.

The Patios of Cordoba

The Festival of the Patios of Cordoba is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Cordoba.  Each year in the first two weeks of May many locals decorate their patios/courtyards with hundreds of bright coloured pots on the walls and around the courtyard full of masses of flowers.  There is a competition, so everyone tries really hard to make theirs the best.  There are whole streets where every house has a patio you can visit.

During those two weeks there are a lot of tourists (and locals) visiting the patios.  You can visit most of the patios throughout the rest of the year as well, as the owners love to show off their beautiful flowers.

One of the most popular patios is the Viana Palace.  It has 12 unique patios that are elaborately decorated. 

The Royal Stables of Cordoba

We were lucky enough to be in Cordoba when the Royal Stables were having a celebration show.

The Royal Stables were built to house and breed the Royal Andalusian horses.

The show at night in the 15th century stables was incredible.  There was the Cordoba Symphony Orchestra, the Cordoba Choir and of course the majestic Spanish horses.

The music played, the spotlights came on and the horses and riders came out.  The riders were in traditional costumes and the ladies were in flamenco outfits. 

Some of  the show was done in formations, others were done as dances, but the most impressive were the jumping horses.

The horses were fabulous, the music was great, the atmosphere was almost haunting, but the overall show was one of the best nights we have had in Spain.

Our favourite place to have a wine in Cordoba

Lyle – at one of the restaurants in the old town with views of the Roman Bridge and river.

Leanne – in a busy plaza where we luckily ran into a couple of guys we met in Cadiz and were hoping to see in Cordoba.  We had almost given up seeing them and then all of a sudden the guys walked into the plaza. Meeting people and enjoying a catch up is always a highlight when you travel.

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