We stopped in Salamanca (Ron has pointed out that Salamanca isn't actually in southern Spain...but it was en route, so included here), where Rick had spent some time during the Franco years. The name alone conjures all sorts of exotic images, at least for me. It was a beautiful city with lots to offer both residents and tourists. The Moorish influence is readily seen, along with some Gothic and neo-classical architecture.
After a lovely patio lunch and wandering, we hopped back in the car and headed for Cordoba. It's most famous site is la catedral mesquita, a former mosque that was converted into a Catholic cathedral (a sacrilege in my humble opinion.) The vastness of the interior cannot be appreciated without seeing it in person, but hopefully the pictures will impart some of its majesty. The old town is one of the best preserved, I think, in all of Spain and gave us a small taste of what Morocco might offer.
I was looking forward to the next part of our journey, as it meant we would be able to unpack and rest up for a while. We'd arranged for a home exchange outside of the small pueblo of Gaucin, near the fabled white city of Ronda. Getting to the house was a bit of a challenge, but once we arrived we found a miniature paradise, complete with infinity pool. Over the next ten days we toured the area, even heading down to the Costa del Sol and visiting the beautiful city of Ronda.
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| Our home away from home |
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| Garden and views |
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| Ronda |
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| Ronda |
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| Plaza de Flores in Estepona, Costa del Sol |
Ron and I made a quick trip to Sevilla, a city where our companions had spent three months a few years earlier. If money were no object, we would live there quite happily, but alas, money is always an object for us. We did enjoy our time there and even managed to indulge in a tapas crawl. (That's an enjoyable Seville tradition.)
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| The Cathedral |
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| Slice of life in Sevilla |
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| Metropol Parasol |
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| Alcazar and Plaza de España |
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| Alfalfa Bar home of incredible tapas |
