We walked along the riverfront to the Alcazar de los Reyes Christianos. While Lyn waited on the wall connecting the two main towers I climbed to the top for the view.
I then returned to find Lyn had found out that Queen Isabella ... the Isabella ... had ordered the nearby waterwheel stopped because she didn’t like the noise. Lyn expressed much outrage at this over 500-year-old example of royal pique. I pointed out that between defeating the Moors, unifying Spain, backing Christopher Columbus and basically altering world history, she was entitled to a bit of peace and quiet. Lyn said Isabella needed to “harden up”. We then explored the Roman mosaics, Arab baths and courtyards below before wandering around the water features to beat all water features.
Then we crossed the ancient Roman bridge which spans the Guadalquivir and found a local bar where we had coffee and cake to refuel. Next stop was the brilliant little museum in the tower guarding the southern end of the bridge. This was an extraordinary tribute to the cultural fusion, intellectual brilliance and religious tolerance of Al Andalus.
At 1.15 we had our guided tour of the Mezquita. Popular culture continues to see this place as one of the world’s great mosques despite the Christian cathedral sitting within it. Certainly, neither UNESCO, nor modern tourists, would value the site were it not for the survival of much of the mosque.
After lunch we walked back through the narrow streets occasionally catching glimpses of the patios.
This evening we walked towards the Mercato Victoria but found our way blocked by the first Easter procession of our trip. No doubt I’ll be describing more about these in the next week. It was very impressive; not just the enormous float but also the huge brass band which followed it.
After that diversion we ate at the markets and then walked home along the river. Tomorrow we move on.
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