Instead of Seville: Córdoba, Where Three Religions Built the Same Wonder
The Mezquita's 856 bicolored arches, the Jewish quarter and flower-filled patios. Moorish Spain at its most intimate, without Alcázar queues.
Foto: Bobo Boom (CC BY 4.0) — Wikimedia Commons
Seville is magnificent but suffocating: queues for the Alcázar exceed two hours in summer, the Giralda is besieged, and prices in the center have exploded. An hour and a half away by AVE train, Córdoba offers one of the world's greatest architectural wonders — the Mezquita — and a UNESCO-listed historic center that moves at an entirely different pace.
The Mezquita-Cathedral is unique on earth: a tenth-century mosque with 856 marble and granite columns supporting double bicolored arches — red and white — creating the effect of a stone forest that takes your breath away. In the sixteenth century, Christians built a cathedral at the heart of the mosque, producing a surreal architectural hybrid where Islam and Christianity share the same space. Carlos V, upon seeing the work, reportedly said: 'You have built something that can be found anywhere, destroying something that was unique in the world.'
The Judería — the Jewish quarter — is a labyrinth of white alleys with red geraniums at the windows: the Synagogue (one of only three remaining in Spain), the Calleja de las Flores (Córdoba's most photographed lane), and small squares where the only sound is the murmur of fountains.
Córdoba's patios are a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage: the interior courtyards of private homes, decorated with hundreds of flower pots, are the result of centuries of neighborly competition for the most beautiful patio. In May, during the Festival de los Patios, residents throw open their doors and welcome visitors — a uniquely generous experience of hospitality.
The Roman Bridge over the Guadalquivir — with the Torre de la Calahorra at one end — offers Córdoba's most celebrated view: the Mezquita as backdrop, the river below, the light at sunset gilding everything.
Eating in Córdoba is an Andalusian pleasure: salmorejo (the cold tomato cream with egg and jamón that was invented here), flamenquín (fried pork roll), oxtail braised in wine, and pastel cordobés — pastry filled with angel hair. A tapa with a beer costs one euro fifty in many bars in the center.
Córdoba is reached from Madrid in an hour and forty minutes by AVE, from Seville in forty-five minutes, from Málaga in an hour. The nearest airport is Seville. Staying in the historic center costs half what it does in Seville.
Practical guides for Roma
Practical info
When is the best time to visit Instead of Seville?
The recommended time is March, April, May, October and November, when it is less crowded.
Is Instead of Seville crowded?
Instead of Seville is a very quiet destination compared with the more touristy ones.
Where is Instead of Seville?
Instead of Seville is located in Córdoba, Andalusia, Spain.
