La versión en español está después de la versión en inglés.
After all the talk in recent days of half-dressed costaleros, it’s finally time to tell you where I was when I saw them. The church on the hill: Construction on the Baroque-style Sanctuary of Our Lady Mother of Mount Carmel Crowned Saint Cajetan (more simply known as San Cayetano) began in 1638 and was completed in 1656. I’ve always been curious about this church, but I was wowed by the painted interior.
The Discalced Carmelites (if, like me, you didn’t know, “discalced” is Latin for “shoeless”) were a strict and austere order of nuns that settled in Córdoba in 1586 and moved in 1613 to this location. The collection of frescoes, murals, and canvases forms one of the richest of the Carmelite order in Spain.
Yesterday morning I had to head over to our private health center to have lab work done. I’m hoping for continued good news since I’ve been so much better in recent months. I had been having tests every month but am now only required to go every three months. That’s enormous progress.
We are going out for coffee and second breakfast while Merchi cleans today. We’re meeting up with Steve and Dave at a cafe near the train station for one more visit (and photos this time which I’ll share tomorrow) before they continue on their adventures. We wish they were our neighbors.
Our usual coffee place has been closed recently on days it should be open. Food quality has not been consistent, credit cards are no longer accepted, the heat isn’t on even on the coldest days, surveyors were there obtaining unusually detailed data that even made the waiter curious, and business has been slower and slower.
We have loads of options in the neighborhood, but haven’t settled on one that truly feels like home, like Mesón Salvador had once been in Fuengirola. The first place we were going nearby is excellent and high-end, but the owner (or manager) seems to be an unpleasant overseer and servers aren’t allowed to visit with customers for even a moment. The atmosphere makes it hard for us to feel at home, which is why we switched to this less popular, less trendy, and less good place that is now even less, less, and less. Maybe we should move. (Just kidding.)
We (San Geraldo) have a new tall cabinet to assemble for the kitchen. As I’ve mentioned before, these projects are done by only one or the other of us and he seems to want to do this one, which is fine with me.
I’m waiting for a plumber to repair my toilet and for a carpenter for some other things. It’s still not raining.
Después de tanto hablar estos últimos días de costaleros a medio vestir, por fin es hora de contarles dónde estaba cuando los vi. La iglesia en la colina: La construcción del Santuario de Nuestra Señora Madre del Carmen Coronado San Cayetano (más simplemente conocido como San Cayetano), de estilo barroco, comenzó en 1638 y se terminó en 1656. Siempre he tenido curiosidad por esta iglesia, pero me cautivó su interior pintado.
Las Carmelitas Descalzas eran una orden de monjas estricta y austera que se estableció en Córdoba en 1586 y se mudó a este lugar en 1613. La colección de frescos, murales y lienzos es una de las más ricas de la orden carmelita en España.
Ayer por la mañana tuve que ir a nuestro centro de salud privado para hacerme análisis. Espero seguir recibiendo buenas noticias, ya que he estado mucho mejor en los últimos meses. Me hacían pruebas cada mes, pero ahora solo tengo que ir cada tres meses. Es un progreso enorme.
Salimos a tomar un café y un segundo desayuno mientras Merchi limpiaba. Nos encontramos con Steve y Dave cerca de la estación de tren en una cafetería para una última visita (y fotos esta vez que compartiré mañana) antes de que sigan con sus aventuras.
Nuestra cafetería habitual ha estado cerrada últimamente los días que debería estar abierta. La calidad de la comida no ha sido constante, ya no se aceptan tarjetas de crédito, la calefacción no funciona ni en los días más fríos, los peritos estaban allí obteniendo datos inusualmente detallados que incluso despertaron la curiosidad del camarero, y el negocio ha ido cada vez más lento.
Tenemos un montón de opciones en el barrio, pero no hemos elegido ninguna que realmente nos haga sentir como en casa, como lo fue en su día el Mesón Salvador en Fuengirola. El primer sitio cercano al que íbamos es excelente y de alta gama, pero el dueño (o gerente) parece ser un capataz desagradable y a los camareros no se les permite entrar ni un momento. El ambiente nos dificulta sentirnos como en casa, por eso nos mudamos a este lugar menos popular, menos moderno y menos bueno, que ahora es cada vez menos. Quizás deberíamos mudarnos. (Es broma).
Nosotros (San Geraldo) tenemos que armar un nuevo armario alto para la cocina. Como ya mencioné, estos proyectos los hacemos solo uno de nosotros, y parece que él quiere hacer este, lo cual me parece bien.
Estoy esperando a un fontanero para que me arregle el inodoro y a un carpintero para otras cosas. Sigue sin llover.
• San Cayetano, patrón de los que buscan trabajo, los desempleados y los trabajadores, y también del pan, los jugadores, los banqueros y la buena fortuna. Creía que el juego era pecado (y los banqueros, también, para el caso).
• Por supuesto, me dije a mí mismo: “¿Así que así era como se veía en 1935?”
Click the thumbnails to enlarge.
Haz clic en las miniaturas para ampliar.
Fabulous though the interior of that church looks, it’s hard to imagine anything more distracting to a congregation (especially the newbies) whose attention OUGHT to be focussed on what was going on at the altar. 🙂
Raybeard:
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a church as wildly frescoed as this. I thought it was a blast but I agree it would be hard to focus. (But maybe that would be a good thing.)
Your photos of the gorgeous church are amazing. Gamblers don’t think gambling is a sin. I can attest to that, as someone who was married to a gambling addict. Catholics, at least in the US, have often used gambling events as fundraisers. I don’t know if they continue to do so. My Aunt Evelyn was a Catholic. Mother hated her — the joys of sibling rivalry.
Love,
Janie
janiejunebug:
I guess greed and idolatry (which is where gambling is classified) are only frowned upon when they don’t benefit the church.
Glorious pictures you captured Mitchell!!!!! I feel in love with the architecture. I used to think and still do wonder if I could become a monk. I wonder if I would make the requirements ?
Mistress Maddie:
Hmmm. Trying to imagine you as monk. I ’m pretty sure chastity is required. You up for that?
The thing that strikes this northerner as most opulent isn’t the elaborate church decor or architecture, it’s the orange trees everywhere! I wonder if church buildings, mosques, all that, have been places for conspicuous consumption wrapped in the virtue of ” doing it for God.”. Hm. WWJD. Boud
Boud:
In Sevilla when we lived there, there were 1,400 oranges trees in the city and they were harvested every year. Here, they appear to be just for decoration. Such a shame. The fragrance when they’re in bloom is unbelievable.
I have a friend who was in France for a couple of months and she kept sending me postcards of churches and when she got back I asked her why and she said, “You always say that, while you hate what goes on inside churches, you love the architecture.”
Juts like the ones you visit, the ones she saw were just beautiful.
Bob:
That’s my feeling, too.
That is an amazing interior. In Europe I always peek inside churches, some of them are filled with amazing art and architure.
David:
My natural tendency is to resist going inside because of my own lack of religion. But, I do tend to be awe-struck by the incredible art.
I am not sure what Jesus would have said about all the money spent on churches themselves instead of helping those in need. I doubt he would have said, “Hey! You know what? Let’s put more gold leaf over here.”
But they are incredible. Mind blowing, in fact.
Ms. Moon
Ms. Moon:
I agree. Imagine what a difference all that gold could have made in people’s lives. (Other than the difference it made in the lives it was taken from.)
San Cayetano in 1935 looks like a true gay blade, I must say. And patron saint of gambling? That’s probably why all those nuns ended up shoeless.
Debra:
No craps. No craps. Mother needs a new pair of shoes.
Well, bless their little shoeless feet. That ‘order’ is still around I take it? Thanks for the history…….helps put it all into some perspective for me.
Every three months now eh? Congratulations. Good work!
Jim:
Pleased about my progress. I hope the lab work says the same. Oh, yeah, the discalced Carmelites is still a very active order.
I guess even gamblers and bankers need a saint too. I’ll never understand why people embraced austerity as being properly devotional to their god as if being human itself is a sin. No pleasure allowed except that which comes from devotion to their god via prayer. Meanwhile all the money is spent on elaborate cathedrals to the glory of a god that preached feeding the hungry, housing the homeless, clothing the naked, lifting up the down trodden.
I meant to comment on the last post about all the oranges in the trees! Does anybody harvest them?
ellen abbott:
You and I come from the same place, I think, when it comes to religion.
It doesn’t appear that oranges are harvested here in Córdoba. Last year, I saw crews going through town, shaking the trees, and sweeping all the oranges away. When we lived in Sevilla they were harvested all over the city. I think there were 1,400 trees planted.
Those girls got themselves one heck if a church alright. And I soooooo want that outfit Cajetan is wearing!
wickedhamster:
I could PhotoShop the outfit onto you like I did for my sidebar photo of San Geraldo.
The Catholics certainly believe in OTT decor for their churches! All those different patterns on every surface – it would give me a migraine… Jx
Jon:
I was shocked by the frescoes inside.
When I was growing up we would pass Marylake Carmelite Monastery on the drive to my grandmother’s house. There was a lake in front of it and I always thought it was funny to see monks floating on rafts on it in the summertime. It was originally a country club and I remember my aunt telling me her senior prom was held there. It’s a gorgeous place!
I really like your photo of the reflection in the windows!
Kelly:
Thanks regarding the reflection photo! That would be bizarre to see monks floating on rafts!
Just as I always thought. Jesus was the first hippie!
Kirk:
I learned that from Jesus Christ Superstar.
All positive progress!
Rade:
Here’s hoping it shows in the tests, too.