Córdoba (part 1)

One of the things I was looking forward to most in our holiday was going to southern Spain; flamenco dancing, guitar playing, hot days and thick-walled white houses, Moorish architecture, shuttered rooms and private courtyards. And it didn’t disappoint. I loved Cordoba (and Granada even more, but we’ll get to that later).

Córdoba is old – properly old, and used to be a great and important city. It was founded by the Romans, became a flourishing capital under Muslim rule, and was finally taken over by the Catholics, it has significant cultural sites that show all of its changing history. We stayed in Córdoba’s historic quarter - beautiful winding streets and alleys, intimate squares and whitewashed houses that give glimpses into tiled courtyards.

This is where we stayed

Madrid...

In Spain when you order a gin and tonic the waiter will bring the gin bottle to the table and just pour and pour it. So the first time I ordered a gin and tonic I was too scared to drink it (don’t worry, I got over that). It was quite staggering how strong the drinks were. The wine was good too. We ate very well all over Spain, but I think we put in an extra special effort in Madrid.

We were there at the same time as The World Gay Pride Festival so the city was wonderfully colourful and vibrant. We ate out a lot, found favourite restaurants, drank fish-bowl sized gin and tonics and walked and walked.

Madrid is a beautiful city, and apart from a day at the Prado (where they wont let you take photos – boo hiss!) and an afternoon at the Reina Sofia, we were pretty unscheduled and just wandered. It’s an excellent city for that, and since we were staying in Barrio de las Letras it was easy to walk to everything. From the moment we arrived we started walking - from the train station to our airbnb, then around the narrow and interesting streets. We walked to the Galleries, and to churches and squares – everything was easy to get to and I don’t think we used any transport at all the whole time we were there. Luke liked Madrid so much he decided to learn Spanish, and I would love to come back to see the Prado again.

Barcelona (part 2)...

Gaudi and the modernists really gave Barcelona it's individuality. Their architecture is sublime. Nothing really prepares you for the quirkiness of it, or the way it's been embraced by the city – so that the organic, colourful, tiled and patterned structures pop up all over the place.

Gaudi was an interesting man, very religious, very egalitarian, and seemingly very kind. He built his most famous cathedral La Sagrada Familia where the workers of the city could worship. He famously walked around looking like a tramp, concerned only for his work, and the glorification of God. His attention to detail was staggering, and it’s easy to see how all-consuming his work must have been to him. And it’s so joyful. Happy architecture. I really wish there was more of it.

Park Güell and La Sagrada Familia are both wonderful and it took us most of the day to see both. I particularly liked the park with its beautiful views over the city. It’s such a playful place, and bigger than I’d expected. As usual, it made me want to transplant some of the ideas to my own home – a mosaic-covered home with turrets? Why not?