Córdoba Morning

Before I start posting about our last full day in Spain, let me apologize for the last three blogposts being out of chronological order. They should be about Granada, Granada and Córdoba, but somehow inexplicably have been posted as Granada, Córdoba and back to Granada.

I have no idea how that happened nor how to correct it.

Wednesday in Córdoba would be another scorcher as the temperature on the taxi drive to the train station at about 1:00 p.m. took us past three time temperature signs that all agreed that it was 41ºC/105.8ºF!!! 

Before the day got too hot, we ordered a room service breakfast in our Royal Suite to be served on the balcony.

And OH so good for you too!

In the Lap of Royal Luxury

Most of the hotels that we stay in do not provide either breakfast on our balcony or bath robes for some reason.

For that matter, they don't usually come with balconies at all.

The bath robe could have been a tad larger.

Once properly nourished and bathed, we were off for one last morning stroll in Andalucia.  

Early Day Climate Control

In a very smart move by the people who built these southern Spanish cities centuries ago, most of the buildings are painted white to reflect the Summer heat away from the interior of the structures. The outer walls are quite thick helping to insulate them as well.

Of course, this morning paseo would be mainly about shopping for more souvenirs. 

Laurie Window Shopping

A young girl can never have too much jewelry, I could not pass up taking this photo.

In related news, the Spanish news today was predicting that the sagging Spanish economy should signs of finally turning around as indicated by the sudden boom in the sales of Spanish fans over the last week.

Córdoba's Bullfighting Museum

We were told that it was closed for repairs.

For over five years.

One of Laurie's hearts

The Juderia,
The Jewish Quarter

More than half of Córdoba's historic Old Town district has streets that are too narrow for modern day car traffic on purpose. This was done to insure maximum shade for pedestrians and, as a by-product, to again keep buildings cooler throughout the day.

Smart thinking.

One of Córdoba's Moorish doors

Not going in there!

A museum dedicated to the torture techniques from the days of those fun loving Inquisitors should have been high on my list of things to see in Córdoba.

Since I went to Catholic elementary and high schools in the 1950s and 1960s, there was no need to see these techniques as I had both seen and in some cases experienced them at work during those formative years.

Time for Lunch

The Bodega was a bullfight oriented eating establishment that is frequented mostly by locals.

Besides the bullfighting mini-museum motif, I liked it because of their cold drinks, tapas and . . .

Mysterious Women

Holding Court

In the room next to ours in the Bodega Guzman, this man held court with about six of his closest friends who sat spread out solely for the purpose of being forced to talk loudly during their lively discussions.

They seemed very optimistic over the news today about the booming trend in Spanish fan sales.

No Ears

They are missing because in his fight the combination of this bull's aggressiveness and the matador's skill earned the bullfighter at least two trophies, both of the bull's ears.

Bodega Guzman Bar

How old are those wine vats?

1919 Corrida Poster

How big are these posters?

Laurie by a 1920 Poster

Nice tie

Entry Gate to the Juderia

Fountains were an important
feature of the Moorish culture

A Wandering Jew in the Juderia

Someone's Courtyard

One of the joys of our trip to Sevilla, Granada and Córdoba was getting off the beaten path and just wandering through the back streets see random things like this garden. I really enjoy seeing how the local culture lives away from the touristy areas.

Yep, that's her

Actually, ADIOS!

We finally bid farewell to the south of Spain as we boarded our last train, a high speed AVE affair, bound for Madrid.

Once at the Spanish capital's Atocha train station, we recovered our two big suitcases that had spent the past week in a storage locker and headed to our hotel near the airport via taxi. It was so nice to travel all week with just our two carry-on bags in tow!

Once at the hotel, we repacked our bags one more time to eliminate any unnecessary items and try to bring all four bags into the airlines weight restrictions of 23 kilos for each cargo hole suitcase and eight kilos for carry-on luggage. It seems that we had bought a few more souvenirs in the past week that we now had to account for on the trip back to California on Thursday morning.

Once satisfied that we were close on the various weights, we boarded the nearby #5 Metro line for the 15 minute trip back to the heart of Madrid, Puerta del Sol.

For once, and ONLY once, I decided not to take my camera and just enjoyed the scene and my wonderful wife fully one last evening in Europe.

It was as lively as usual with street performers, tourists and locals out for a paseo, shopping, dining and drinking.

We consumed more tapas and claras and strolled the night life until about 11:30 p.m. Then it was time for one last order of chocolate y churros at Chocolateria de San Ginés.

A GREAT way to end an AMAZING five and a half months living the EuroBall dream thanks to Switzerland's Thun Tigers American Football Club.