La versión en español está después de la versión en inglés.
A good half day is better than nothing. I walked down to the river yesterday morning while the temperature was still comfortable and checked out ticket prices at the mezquita/cathedral. Admission is expensive and I think I’ve already paid five times for visits. I don’t really need to see it all again. However, I have to have a ticket to the mezquita/cathedral if I want to visit the museum and visitor center across the street, and if I want to enter any of the Fernandine churches from the 14th century (the ones ordered to be built by San Geraldo’s 22-greats grandfather Ferdinand III (like his greats grandson, also a saint).
Fortunately, the incomparable blogger and blog reader Judy C, who has a fascinating blog about Sears Kit Homes (SearsHouseSeeker) wrote to me to tell me I no longer had to pay for a ticket to the mezquita/cathedral because I was a resident of Córdoba. We didn’t yet have our new residency cards the last time we visited, so we’re not out any money. But, to think a friend in St. Louis, Missouri had to tell me this! I am so grateful to Judy!
I went yesterday to the mezquita, picked up my free ticket at a kiosk (I could have done it online) and went across the street to the recently updated and expanded Information and Reception Center. I had no idea what to expect except that I wanted to go up to the roof to see the view.
The building, part of the Bishop’s Palace, was a huge surprise. Before my climb, I explored an exceptional exhibit on the restoration work on the mezquita and cathedral over the centuries. The day was glorious and the view was what I’d hoped for.
I had planned to stop by at least a couple of the Fernandine churches on my way home, but my damned digestive system began to act up, so I had no time to dawdle on the 25-minute walk. Still, I can now visit those any time I want by just obtaining my FREE ticket to the mezquita. Did I mention how grateful I am to Judy C?
This morning, Merchi was here and SG and I went across the street to La Bandera for coffee. So relaxing. More of San Geraldo’s aquascape plants arrived while we were out. He’s planting those now. He has one more order still to come. We both sat in front of the aquarium yesterday for 20 minutes and simply watched the movement of the water and light and the sway of the plants. Just imagine when there are fish.
The legend of the elephant or what the Carthaginians left behind: When the Romans chased the Carthaginians out of Córdoba they didn’t know what to do with the abandoned elephants. Since the elephants wouldn’t fit in the stables, the Romans drove them into the mountains to graze. There was severe drought and the oldest elephant stomped on the ground causing water to gush forth. Apparently, that water has never stopped flowing, although no one can tell me precisely where it happened.
As for the skimmer/dragonfly at top, as I cut through the Patio of Orange Trees in the Mezquita, I stopped for a moment by a small fountain. The dragonfly arrived and hung out next to me for about five minutes. I had a difficult time identifying it (Google said it was a dragonfly that doesn’t exist here in Spain) until I came across side-by-side images of Epaulet skimmers, male and female. It’s a female!
Más vale media jornada bien aprovechada que nada. Ayer por la mañana bajé hasta el río, cuando la temperatura aún era agradable, y consulté los precios de las entradas para la Mezquita-Catedral. La entrada es cara y creo que ya he pagado cinco veces por visitarla; en realidad, no necesito volver a verlo todo. Sin embargo, necesito una entrada para la Mezquita-Catedral si quiero visitar el museo y el centro de visitantes que están al otro lado de la calle, así como para entrar en cualquiera de las iglesias fernandinas del siglo XIV (aquellas cuya construcción fue ordenada por Fernando III, tatarabuelo en vigesimosegundo grado de San Geraldo —al igual que su tataranieto, también santo—).
Afortunadamente, la incomparable bloguera y lectora de blogs Judy C —autora de un blog fascinante sobre las casas en kit de Sears (SearsHouseSeeker) — me escribió para decirme que ya no tenía que pagar entrada para visitar la Mezquita-Catedral, dado que soy residente de Córdoba. La última vez que fuimos aún no teníamos nuestras nuevas tarjetas de residencia, así que no perdimos dinero. ¡Pero pensar que tuvo que decírmelo una amiga de St. Louis, Misuri! ¡Le estoy muy agradecida a Judy!
Ayer fui a la Mezquita, recogí mi entrada gratuita en un quiosco (podría haberlo hecho por internet) y crucé la calle hacia el Centro de Información y Recepción, recientemente renovado y ampliado. No tenía idea de qué esperar, salvo que quería subir a la azotea para ver las vistas.
El edificio, que forma parte del Palacio Episcopal, fue una gran sorpresa. Antes de subir, recorrí una exposición excepcional sobre las obras de restauración de la Mezquita y la Catedral a lo largo de los siglos. El día fue espléndido y las vistas, tal como las había imaginado.
Había planeado pasar por al menos un par de las iglesias fernandinas de camino a casa, pero mi maldito sistema digestivo empezó a dar problemas, así que no tuve tiempo de entretenerme durante el trayecto de 25 minutos a pie. Aun así, ahora puedo visitarlas cuando quiera con solo conseguir mi entrada GRATUITA a la Mezquita. ¿Mencioné lo agradecido que estoy con Judy C.?
Esta mañana estuvo aquí Merchi y SG y yo cruzamos la calle hasta La Bandera para tomar un café. Fue muy relajante. Mientras estábamos fuera, llegaron más plantas para el acuario de San Geraldo; ahora mismo las está plantando. Todavía le queda un pedido más por recibir. Ayer nos sentamos los dos frente al acuario durante 20 minutos y simplemente observamos el movimiento del agua y la luz, así como el vaivén de las plantas. Imagínate cuando haya peces.
La leyenda del elefante, o el legado de los cartagineses:
Cuando los romanos expulsaron a los cartagineses de Córdoba, no sabían qué hacer con los elefantes abandonados. Como los animales no cabían en los establos, los romanos los llevaron a las montañas para que pastaran. Hubo una sequía intensa y el elefante más viejo golpeó el suelo con fuerza, haciendo que brotara agua. Al parecer, esa agua nunca ha dejado de fluir, aunque nadie sabe decirme con exactitud dónde ocurrió.
En cuanto a la libélula de la parte superior: mientras atravesaba el Patio de los Naranjos de la Mezquita, me detuve un momento junto a una pequeña fuente. La libélula apareció y se quedó a mi lado durante unos cinco minutos. Me costó identificarla (Google sugería que era una especie que no habita en España) hasta que di con unas imágenes comparativas de ejemplares macho y hembra de libélula de hombreras. ¡Resultó ser una hembra!
dsfadsfdsfdsa
• Patio principal del Palacio Episcopal, creado en el siglo XVII.
• La fuente del elefante. Un surtidor de agua del siglo X, perteneciente al Califato de Córdoba. Se cree que formaba parte de un complejo palaciego situado al norte de la ciudad; estuvo en uso entre los años 982 y 1193 y fue trasladado a su ubicación actual en 1988.
• Muros de la Mezquita, con la Catedral alzándose en su centro. A la izquierda, el antiguo alminar.
• Triunfo de San Rafael (haz clic aquí) en proceso de restauración, con el puente romano al fondo.
Click the thumbnails to enlarge.
Haz clic en las miniaturas para ampliar.
Beautiful pictures and fun facts and stories.
larry:
It was fun to see something new to me.
That poor elephant look a little worse for the wear, missing an ear and a trunk and looks to be cracked in two. All four sides of the courtyard are the Bishop’s Palace? How does one man use all that space.
ellen abbott:
Still, it looks pretty good for being over a thousand years old, don’t you think?
Oh, the tough life of the church elders. That is one of two “central” courtyards!
Gorgeous photos in the sunshine. Yay for Judy C. Free is a great price. I have a damned digestive system, too. Dare I ask if you have IBS?
Love,
Janie
janiejunebug:
SO grateful to Judy! I have not been diagnosed with IBS. This is all supposedly reactions to meds I went on after the health scare in 2024. But I have some testing coming up to see if anything else is causing the problems.
I love dragonflies.
Kelly:
So do I.
Yay for Judy C.! Sorry to read about your digestive issues. No fun when you are out and about.
Michael:
The digestive issues have been an inconvenience. I’m hoping to maybe have some help with the problem.
Woo hoo! I’m so glad that you were able to get in for free!
And, it is very, very cool that you and SG are enjoying the mesmerizing view in the aquarium, before the fish are even there…. oh boy!
Judy C:
Have I told you thank you?!? I will think of you every time I use my pass. Yes, the aquarium aquascape is already hypnotic.
Excellent dragonfly shot!
Very cool that you found out about the free tickets from a blogger in St. Louis. NOW, to add to the oddness- just a few hours ago I was telling Jessie about Sears kit houses and how some of them are still standing. How some had been quite spacious.
Yeah. That poor elephant. He’s the one who needs restoring. Actually, I’m glad St. Raphael is getting a make-over.
Mary Moon:ç
You should check out Judy’s blog to show Jessie examples. She’s expert at identifying Sears homes and has some wonderful information.
You can see the elephant’s legs were restored. I wonder if they’ll do more than that or if it’s strong enough that it’s not necessary.
I sent Jessie the link to Judy’s blog as soon as I saw it. I was pleased to be able to show her I was not making this stuff up. And now I just realized I dreamed I got a Sears and Roebuck catalog in the mail. One of those big, giant thick ones and I thought, “Well, how smart! Everyone is getting stuff delivered now. Sears is back at it too!”
Free stuff!! Yes.
Love the buildings, of course, and the elephant and the view from above the Triumph of San Rafael.
This morning in Camden it was sixty degrees and I was in heaven … then it went to 97. We had a leaky roof repaired and then I had to have a leaky tire repaired. It wasn’t the best morning except for the coolness.
Bob:
I remember the first time I got a senior discount at the NYC Transit Museum. I didn’t know if I should celebrate or mourn my lost youth.
What a day you had. I didn’t know you had such extremes in temperature in one day. That’s normal for us. Hope the roof repair worked (unlike ours) and the tire!
What an excellent decision to climb to the roof and get those views – of course, they’ll be even more special once the restoration work on the Mezquita and San Rafael are completed.
Poor elephant – it looks even more worn by the ravages of its age now it has been plonked next to that brand new shiny fountain/pool.
Jx
PS I adore dragonflies! We’ve had plenty hunting over our garden, but none have landed (as far as I have seen) so far…
Jon:
Yes, I look forward to climbing to the roof and not seeing scaffolding and screens. But it sure was fun to see the area from a different perspective. I agree, poor elephant. I wonder if they plan to do more restoration. I’m not big on close-up looks at insects, but dragonflies are a different matter. I love them, and I was so excited to be able to identify this one.
Oh, the joy of FREE ADMISSION! Make good use of your residency to see lots of things now!
Debra:
Our residency has already provided me with some fun visits with no charge. Some cost little to begin with, but this one is a huge savings.
Looking at that statue, I’m reminded of the Kipling “Just So” story “How the Elephant Got His Trunk.” In this case, it’d be a prequel.
Kirk:
Oh, thanks for the reminder of that story!
I read the first paragraph, and went down the rabbit hole of google to see if there was a membership or something, and found the Andalucia Junta 65 residents card. There is a guide to other places you can use it at – it sounds like you have found this (https://www.juntadeandalucia.es/agenciadeserviciossocialesydependencia/index.php/m-tarjeta-andalucia-junta-sesentaycinco/m-ofertas)
I am never shy about asking for the Senior discount, for local venues, we often look for an annual membership. The most fun was when I was a graduate student in middle age, and had a University ID card, that opened a lot of doors for free.
David:
Yes, I’ve checked that site before but never dawned on me to read about the Mezquita. It’s so expensive that I couldn’t imagine being free or discounted for locals. So glad Judy told me. I hit two more churches today. I have no qualms about asking about the senior discount now. My mother was still taking classes at the community college when she was in her late 80s. She loved pulling out her student ID, although the seniors discount was usually identical.
Our first home in this town was Sears and Roebuck kit house, still sturdy as ever, built in the 1930s. There are several here in town. Boud
Boud:
How wonderful. Judy does in-depth research and describes (and illustrates) the houses in great detail. It’s fascinating.
The Bishop’s Palace looks beautiful and what a great view! Dave and I didn’t visit there, alas, but we DID go to the little cafe in the background of your photo of the Triunfo de San Rafael (the cafe under the tree).
The elephant fountain looks more like a bear, or maybe a fat dog.
Steve:
I knew in advance there was an elephant fountain there, but I immediately thought bear. Would you recommend the cafe?
I liked the elephant story. I had not heard it before.
Urspo:
Neither had I.