Dat Selfie Face, Tho

So I was on the train to Córdoba, just chilling, writing my blog, and all, and then I got off at the train station before the train continued on to Sevilla.

So then, being unsure of which bus to take to city center (because the train station is not anywhere near the places one wants to go in Córdoba. Which is dumb), I stopped in at  tourist information, which was a fantastic idea. Remind me to never mock, disparage, or malign them again. They actually just gave me a free map, told me where everything was, told me which bus to get on, and recommended other sights that I could see in one day. It was fantastic. So then I got on a bus, and basically got where I needed to go due to the directions of a group of older ladies from Córdoba, who made sure that I knew where to get lost and knew where I was going.

And that's actually probably the moral of my trip to Córdoba: sometimes, you just get by on the kindness of strangers.

So I walked along the beautiful river

 over a really old bridge

 It was just a beautiful day

 I swear, the Spanish set up shrines just anywhere and everywhere.

 And there's this old tower at the end of the bridge, and it's super cool.

  That's the famous mosque/cathedral of Córdoba in the background. More on that later.

 So I walked around the tower. It had a moat.

And, because it was a beautiful day in a cool place, I decided to take a selfie. At which point I had a revelation

 I think

 I might

 have a face

 I make when I take a selfie

 Or one of about two.

And I thought back, and I realized this had been a pattern.

Because this picture is from Thanksgiving

and this one is from BEFORE Thanksgiving

 So it's clearly a face I make. (and yes, that is at the Macy's Thanksgiving day parade. It was very cold.)

But it's interesting to me, because I used to not take selfies. I considered them kind of... dumb, I guess. And there is a surprisingly large stigma against selfies from some people. They get frowned upon as vain or frivolous or useless. And I try not to judge, but I admit that I shared some of those opinions. Now, clearly, I have changed my tune.

A lot of that has to do with something that my dad said to me early on in this trip. He said that the pictures are much more fun when I am in them, and as much as I enjoy the lovely landscapes and pictures of art, I agree with him. I know it sounds vain, and it kind of is, but I like remembering what I looked like and what I was doing and who I was when I did all of these things.

And maybe it is a little bit frivolous and silly, but here's the other thing: that ridiculous face I make in all those selfies, over 90% of the time that is an absolutely genuine expression of wonder and joy at where I am. More than anything else, looking back at selfies reminds me how happy and how fun these adventures were.

 The other 10% of the time, when I'm not doing emotional backflips at just getting to be where I am, making that dumb selfie face actually makes me feel better. Taking a selfie reminds me of where I am and how lucky I am to have that moment, and it makes me smile and laugh and enjoy life just a little bit more. And I think that has some intrinsic value.

Now, obviously, if I'm traveling with people I get them to take a picture, because it's usually a better picture, but at the same time, a lot of those pictures aren't actually as much fun to take as the dorky selfies I do. (There are some that are more fun, but more about that in a later post) Traveling alone has taught me a lot, and I'm really grateful that I have the opportunity to do so much of it and to spend that time getting to know myself. And one of the most important things I have learned from traveling alone is how to be happy and joyful and grateful, even when there isn't anyone there to take the picture for you.

And so I thought a lot about selfies as I went back across the beautiful bridge

and wandered around the river banks

Then I headed over to the Alcazar and, since I honestly had no clue what to do, went in. 

 Which was a fantastic decision.

 It was so cool. It was built or inhabited at some point by the reyes católicos,

 and it was just spectacularly beautiful.

 Especially the gardens.

But the actual architecture of the castle was super cool too 

  Plus, there was a great view of the city of Córdoba

 But it was such a legit castle, with the towers and parapets

 And I just love going to those, because we don't  have them in the US

 and they look so cool.

 and look at that sky, man.

So anyway, after I got done running around the roofs and towers of the alcazar, I went down into the main building, which was also cool. Lots of fun artifacts.

 There was a roman coffin

 and some very old mosaics

 which I am usually very impressed with.

 obligatory ruins.

 I just thought this was so cool.

That was down in the mudejar baths in the basement of the alcazar, and they had the stars cut into the ceiling to let the light in, and it looked awesome.

So then I went down into the gardens

 I really can't express what kind of beautiful, wonderful day it was.

 It was warm and sunny, and a perfect day to be out wandering around a garden.

 Look at that color.

 statue of the reyes católicos receiving Columbus. I think.

 Doesn't this look like something out of a story?

 I'm not entirely sure what this is, but it is so cool.

 see, flowers and butterflies kind of beautiful day!

  looking back at the alcazar

 other tourists who were enjoying the day

 it looks so castle-y

 whimsical selfie

 and we're back to the entrance.

This was just the perfect place to be. I mean, I had been in Fallas for a week, and life had been crazy, so it was just perfect to get to spend a few hours walking around these beautiful gardens in the sunshine. It was so relaxing and invigorating.

 So I then went off in search of somewhere to have lunch, since I hadn't had breakfast. And, see this is what I love about Spain, and Europe in general, you walk around, and there is this history all around. You live with the past in a way we don't in the US. For example:

 see this building? Looks old, and important and impressive, right?

 it's a parking deck. I mean, they have this stuff around, and they experience it very differently than we do.

 we take pictures in front of it.

So I wandered around the old Jewish quarter to find somewhere to eat, and wound up at this lovely little restaurant and ate out on the patio. It was a very chill atmosphere and the food was delicious, and the waiter was really nice, and stopped me from ordering something that apparently most people don't like, and pointed me towards something that I thoroughly enjoyed. He also gave me free dessert, which wound up being some kind of alcoholic beverage. I don't know what it was. It tasted slightly better than the average alcoholic drink I have tried, but that's really not saying much.

So after lunch I went to the famous Córdoba Mosque. When the Moors were running Spain, Córdoba was the center of government, and that's where they built the biggest and most important mosque in Al-Ándalus. And then when the Christians took the city they were like, "dang, this is a nice building. And it's already a place of worship. It would make a fantastic cathedral." So they wound up with the most amazing, crazy, messed-up Cathedral/mosque hybrid ever.

See, I've gotten pretty used to normal cathedrals. They've got the latin cross shape, high alter in the center of the cross, chapels along the sides. But then the shape of a mosque is much more rectangular, with pillars all over. But in Córdoba they took the big rectangular mosque and dropped a church in the middle of it. The mix of cultures was making my little religion nerd heart so happy.

 So it's got these great moorish arches.

 and this is the outside. That flat bit is the Muslim bit, the part sticking up is the Christian bit.

There was also a really pretty courtyard with orange trees outside. I really like this whole Spanish style of the orange courtyard. It is just a nice aesthetic.

 So this is basically what the mosque-y bit looks like. Lots of supercool arches. It's kind of hypnotizing really.

 I was so freaking happy.

 As a current resident of Valencia, I get very excited when I see that Saint Vincent is getting some recognition.

 So, out there looked very Muslim, but that is an indubitably Christian chapel.

 Gothic stonework in the foreground, Moorish arch in the background.

 I love the little details.

 and the double arches are so cool.

 Moorish and mudejar ceilings are my favorite.

 

But the dome of the Christian bit is OK too.

 I think I might like the Moorish bit better.

 So it's kind of difficult to see, but all that decoration is ringed with writing in Arabic.

 and then you walk like 20 feet and you're in a Cathedral!

 I love the vaguely ominous looking lanters

 This is a passage back into... some important part of the mosque

 so many impressive archways.

 I really enjoy the Moorish arches with the crucifix below them.

 *tour guide voice* and now we move from the mosque that they just slapped some Christian symbolism onto, into the cathedral that they built in the middle of the mosque

 if you look to your left, you will see that we are still, in fact, in the mosque.

 I just thought this detail was really awesome.

 the disparity between ancient craftsmanship and what we decide to do nowadays sometimes saddens me.

 Even the smaller parts make you feel tiny.

 I really liked the light in this cathedral too.

 pulpits are my favorite form of religious art. I don't know why, I just love them, and I always want to climb up in them and start reading.

 

 I mean, LOOK AT THAT!

 But choirs are pretty cool too.

 and, ya know, retrochoirs.

  I just really love woodwork.

 And I know, it's not the lion of my homeboy Matthew, but I was just really impressed by this ox.

 A view towards the outside.

 So much gold.

 BOOKS!

 This one was my favorite.

 This was the mechanism for a clock. I thought it was cool.

 what would a cathedral be without stained-glass windows? (also, seriously, English? That's so inconvenient. In Spanish "stained-glass windows" is just "vidriera." So much more convenient.

 Eh, they're pretty in any language.

 I swear, Mary shows up in religious iconography more than that Jesus guy.

 Moorish latticework!

 It makes me want to take bad selfies.

 Ceilings!

 Basically, I really loved this Cathedral.

 It looks so normal Christian.

 Or not.

 Arabic text!

 And back to the courtyard.

So then I walked around a bit, and headed to the tourist information office to figure out which bus I needed to take back to the train station.

 Even the building with the tourist information is pretty.

 Cathedral exterior.

 I honestly don't know what this is. There is a lot of impressive stonework.

 Selfie w/random monument.

 It's a cool random monument.

 Maybe the cathedral?

Anyway, so I get on the bus and head back to the train station, and I am very early (better early than late) so I go sit in a park and read for a bit. At this point, I have to admit, the tired hits me. I did SO well for most of the day (remember, I had 3 hours of sleep the night before) and was able to see things and do things and really appreciate them, but once I slowed down for a second I just crashed. But that's pretty par for the course for me, so it's alright. Anyway, my train arrived, and it was on time, and I headed out for Sevilla. And that was my wonderful, fantastic day in

The train ride was pretty uneventful, I found my hostel without too much confusion (but again, I cheated and used GPS. It was getting dark, and I didn't know the city). It seemed nice and safe and comfy and when I walked in there was this sign up

with my name on it, which was cool. The woman at the front desk gave me a map and lots of excellent suggestions, and showed me to my room. I had a dinner of the food I'd brought from Valencia, and then basically went to bed.

I didn't get as much written in this post as I wanted, but I have tomorrow to work on another couple of posts. I still have to talk about Sevilla and Cadiz, and then the week I've had back, so I'll get on that!