We were keen to get away from the site and, very carefully, I drove around the obstacles and out onto the track. We had decided to push on to Cordoba and attempt to visit Seville from there by public transport.
We took a route across country to Carmona and then up to Lora del Rio to pick up a road that followed the Guadalquivir river all the way to Corborba. The scenery was pretty but although the road was close to the river, we only saw it on the one occasion that we crossed it. This route also took us very close to Madina Azahara, just west of Cordoba, a very important Moorish city. It was founded in 936 AD by Abd ar-Rahman III but by 1013 it had been wrecked by Berber soldiers. The city is very large, with only one tenth of the city excavated and only one quarter open to the public. It should keep archaeologists happy for many years to come! Our 10 year old guidebook showed that the site was closed on Mondays but there was a possibility that this may have changed and so we decided to go there anyway and stop for lunch. When we saw that the car park was half full with cars, we thought that it might be open, but it wasn't. We never did work out where the owners of the cars were. A steady stream of cars and a coach full of school children arrived during the time that we were there but the occupants checked the entrance, saw that it was closed and, after a short walk, left again. After lunch, we did the same. The walk gave views across a small part of the site, which looked very impressive. Jane had spotted a field of black bulls on the way to the car park, so we walked down to see them. They were the archetypal Spanish bullfighting bulls - black, stocky, broad-shouldered with large horns and an intimidating stare. Whilst Jane kept her distance (she doesn't like cows and bulls are far worse), I walked up to the (“very insecure”, said Jane) fence. All of the bulls retreated whilst continuing to stare in my direction. Surprising, they seemed very timid, all moving away some distance, but I didn't test this by getting into the field – this was not allowed as can been seen in the photograph.
We then drove by a very scenic route over the hill and down into Cordoba. The sat nav took us exactly to the campsite that was well hidden in a residential area. We were allocated a large pitch by the receptionist, who also gave us very good information about buses, trains to Seville, where to visit in the town and where were could get good food at reasonable prices. All of this was drawn on a map for us and I said that she was so good that she could work in the tourist office. It turned out that she had indeed worked in the Cordoba tourist information office and I suspect that she was very good. She also told us that they were desperate for rain – the normally large river Guadalquivir only had a trickle of water in it. We said that we didn't want it to rain, so we came to a compromise – it could rain at night provided that it was sunny and warm during the day.
Photos: There is really no need for the 'Security Zone' sign when you see what is in the field!; A view of a small part of Medina Azahara.
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