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Roland Routier

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    Orange grove

    3. april 2018, Spania ⋅ 🌬 18 °C

    Patio de los Naranjos
    This classic Islamic ablutions courtyard, with its orange, palm and cypress trees and fountains, forms the entrance to the Mezquita.
    Its most impressive entrance is the Puerta del Perdón, a 14th-century Mudé­jar archway in the base of the bell tower.
    When the mosque was used for Moslem prayer, all the naves were open to this courtyard allowing the rows of interior columns to appear like an extension of the trees with shafts of brilliant sunlight filtering through. However, it was Bishop Francisco Reinoso who added the orange trees as a continuation of the columns in the hall.

    Torre del Alminar
    The 54m-high bell tower was originally built by Abd ar-Rahman III in 951–52 as the Mezquita’s minaret. It was strengthened with an outer shell and heightened to contain a belfry by the Christians in the 16th and 17th cen­turies.
    The original minaret would have looked something like it's copy, the Giralda in Seville. Córdoba’s minaret influenced all minarets built thereafter throughout the western Islamic world.    Les mer

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    Church parade

    3. april 2018, Spania ⋅ 🌬 18 °C

    Córdoba in 756 was the biggest city in Western Europe, with a population somewhere around 250,000.
    This was the famed ‘city of the three cultures’, where Muslims, Jews and Christians coexisted peaceably and Abd ar-Rahman III’s court was frequented by scholars from all three communities.
    Towards the end of the 10th century, Al-Mansur (Almanzor), a ruthless general whose northward raids terrified Christian Spain, took over. But after Al-Mansur’s son Abd al-Malik died in 1008 Berber troops looted the city and by 1031 the Umayyad was over. Córdoba became a minor part of the Seville taifa (small king­dom) in 1069, and after Castilla’s Fernando III muscled in it became just another pro­vincial city.
    Mosque
    The Mezquita or mosque is one of the world’s greatest examples of Islamic ar­chitecture.
    Abd ar-Rahman I purchased half of the Visigothic church of San Vicente for the Muslim community’s Friday prayers, and then, in AD 784, bought the other half on which to erect a new mosque. Three later extensions nearly quintupled the size of Abd ar-Rahman I’s mosque.
    These are the entrance doors:
    The Puerta de San Sebastian has the oldest remains of Muslim decoration in Spain and the first Arabic inscription on the building (855 AD).
    The Puerta del Sabat has a raised passage allowing the Caliph to pass unseen from his palace to the maqsurah (place of prayer.)
    Under the Umayyad Caliphate Cordova overtook Damascus in importance.    Les mer

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    On the tiles

    2. april 2018, Spania ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    By 152 BCE a strategic provisioning point for Roman troops had been estab­lished in Córdoba. By the 1st C it had become Emperor Augustus' capital in Baetica, one of the three Roman provinces on the Iberian Peninsula. By the 3rd C, after Christianisation, it declined and fell to Islamic invaders in AD 711.
    The old Roman town lies a couple of metres below the modern town and very little can be seen or remembered beyond the outstanding legacy of citizens such as Seneca and Lucan.
    Some mosaics were dug up from the Plaza de la Corredera in the 1950s, but they must have shattered into many small pieces.    Les mer

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    Bleak House

    2. april 2018, Spania ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Alcázar de los Reyes Cristianos

    Built by Alfonso XI in 1328 on the site of a Moorish predecessor, this Mudejar style palace is really a pretty stark fortress but the Catholic Monarchs Fernando and Isabel held court here in the 15th century before going for Granada. One of their guests here was Christopher Columbus in 1486.Les mer

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    Easter Eggs

    1. april 2018, Spania ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Not a Bunny in sight and not even much chocolate around.
    The benevolent tourist office clerk informed me that the local Easter specialty is called 'Torrijas' so I bought myself one for 1.65 Euros. Maybe it was a "Poisson d' avril" or perhaps she just took pity on me and steered me towards a nice sweet. It is like a soft shelled custard tart with honey. Yum!Les mer

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    When its over

    31. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    After the excitement, when the stimulation of squeezing through narrow openings has abated and all the grunting and groaning has died down, we should not be surprised to find some of the marchers' cones a little limp.

    Members of the band relieved of duties resort to modern technology for their light relief.    Les mer

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    Penitent

    31. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Now the Spanish have always been strict about non-conformism so it is no surprise to see someone who obviously didn't carry the float appropriately being made to pay by completing the course barefoot.

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    Hunting

    31. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    No Easter Egg hunts here. Instead the young spectators accost certain participants like this one, who have Holy Pictures to give out. Or maybe football cards - I tried to have a look at one but received menacing glances at my feeble attempts at Spanish.Les mer

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    Self-effacement

    31. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Each parish has its own colour scheme for tunic, cloak, sash, belt etc.
    The witches hats may stem from pagan times for all I know. Nobody could tell me the significance beyond the act of self-effacement.Each parish has its own colour scheme for tunic, cloak, sash, belt etc.
    The witches hats may stem from pagan times for all I know. Nobody could tell me the significance beyond the act of self-effacement.    Les mer

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    Ornery folk

    30. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ 🌬 15 °C

    All ages of parishioners take part in the parade. The youngest was chewing on a pacifier and the oldest who couldn't chew was in a wheelchair.
    Even the officials range in age, and they even have female thurifers!
    The point of this exercise is really an exercise in community and, especially for the carriers, in teamwork. Like the Carnivale in Rio, it takes a whole year of organisation and practice to carry through.    Les mer

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    Routes

    30. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ 🌬 15 °C

    The parades approach the cathedral converging on the Puerto del Puente, completed in the days of Philip II.
    The present triumphal arch is the work of Hernán Ruiz III and replaces what was first a Roman gate mentioned at the time of Julius Cesar and later a Moorish gate. A documented restoration took place in 720 AD.
    Nowadays it is a traffic island, but today the floats cram themselves through it.
    Then it is round the side of the Mezique and into the Orange Garden in front of the building. They then squeeze into the building, pass through the colonnades and exit through another tight doorway.    Les mer

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    Change of direction

    30. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ 🌬 15 °C

    In places the clearances on either side are down to a cm on either side. Of course, the load carriers cannot see anything except the arse of the guy in front so they rely on the dark suited chaps around the outside to instruct them. I wish I understood the dialect for it must be hilarious to listen without the responsibility.Les mer

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    Floats

    30. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ 🌬 15 °C

    Small floats are carried in rotation by 24 men, whilst most of them are up to 50 bods. Each man carries 50kg, meaning that many weigh as much as a large car. If that wasn't enough, the centre of gravity is usual found about a metre higher than the bearers heads, which is what poses the challenge. Swaying more than minimally is a big no-no. As the float wobbles, the outer people can have their load increased substantially, so the trick is to move slowly. At full speed ahead they place their feet one foot in front of the other, slower than a funeral march. To turn, frequently in a space barely larger than the entire float, they shuffle sideways, half the width of their feet at a time.
    Groups of lusty young men in Egyptian headgear can be encountered strategically along the route, ready to jump in and takeover when the cortege halts every 100m or so for a rest. When they stop, they collapse to their knees.    Les mer

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    Semana Santa

    30. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ 🌬 15 °C

    Throughout Spain, the main feature of this week is the procession of floats from each parish through the streets into the main church or cathedral and back to their home base.
    In Cordova alone I counted 55, although I certainly didn't see all of them. The
    Parroqui de Santiago Apostol carried a 1975 work by Luis Alvarez Duarte of Mary at the foot of the cross for the shortest time of 4 hours. At the other extreme the Parroquia San Antonio Maria Claret carried their float, a 19th C anonymous work of Christ on the cross with Mary at the foot, for 10 1/2 hours starting at 17:30 and finishing at 04:00 the next morning. The Iglesia Conventual de San Augustin claims to have commenced their processions in 1558. Although there are a few who claim to have been founded in that century and re-constituted in the early 20th C, the majority have origins in the latter half of the last century, up to the youngest, (Parroquia San Vivente Ferrer,) in 2006.    Les mer

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    Córdoba - Long Bridge of Volantis

    30. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ 🌬 15 °C

    I was all excited at the prospect of actually standing on the Long Bridge of Volantis, where Tyrion Lannister and Varys were seen travelling incognito, (for Tyrion was a wanted man,) from Pentos to Meereen. After travelling inside a carriage for days Tyrion insisted on getting out. As the two men walked across the bridge crammed with ramshackle buildings, they passed houses, shops, a preaching priestess and a brothel.
    Alas, they faked it as you can see in the photos. According to the Arab geographer, Al-drisi the Roman bridge 'surpasses all other bridges in beauty and solidity', but since it has been reconstructed frequently only the 1st C foundations are really Roman. The present structure is medieval, though the 19th-century cobbled paving does give a Roman feel. There is an irregular pattern to the 16 arches in size and abutment protections.
    I took a couple of leisurely days driving from Granada to Cordova. The countryside is repetitive and the grids of olive plantation give the land the look of an old lady in a hairnet.
    At one spot I found a lay-by concealed from the road with a nice olive farm extending from it. There were a couple of drivers having their siesta in their cars and otherwise plenty of free space. It was a lovely spot for a campsite and so I stopped even though it was early, taking the opportunity to sit and read in the sun for a while.
    I watched a lorry pull up for a break and two men wander over for a chat in the typical, familiar way I saw Spaniards conversing with strangers in bars. They sauntered past my van taking a good look at the 'giri', (ie non-Andalusian,) as they did. Then one of them came over and asked me if I was alone and how had I found the place. I did my best in broken Spanish to explain my presence, wondering whether he was 'casing the joint' for anything of value.
    In my innocence I had missed the warning signs of naked paunch and belt undone, but the penny dropped when he asked whether I was 'active' or 'passive'. It may have been a 'lay' by but clearly it was also a cruising ground not mentioned in the Nautical Almanac, so in order not to give offense I up anchored and bore away for another port.
    My first view of Cordova was this old bridge.
    In the centre of the eastern side's stone handrails there is a little shrine to St Raphael, at whose feet the devout burn candles.    Les mer

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    Family hospitality

    27. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ ⛅ 6 °C

    Time to leave Otura and my hosts.
    David deFreis, the celebrated jazz trumpeter, (seen here making war on stubborn vines,) has gone on a gig somewhere after we finished pruning the trees and garden. We found that our ideas were surprisingly similar and so established an immediate rapport.
    His partner Monica Lopez is a viola player with the Granada Orchestra and relaxes by learning the intricate rhythms of Flamenco. She always wanted to be a dancer but was convinced by well-meaning adults that a career in music was a better option.
    They have 2 daughters, Muriel, who coaches Acro gymnastics whilst she takes a year off after school to decide what she wants to do, and Rayen, who suffers from a developmental condition and although functional, (she studies percussion and plays in a brass band,) is not likely to live independently. Regularly she breaks out in laughter which warms the whole house and makes you smile.    Les mer

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    Dam, I thought you were dry

    23. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ ☀️ 7 °C

    A couple of weeks of rain has filled one of the dams above Granada and the fields are overgrown.
    We were lucky enough to spot a rare mountain goat crowning the summit of an adjacent peak. 15 mins later he hadn't moved a muscle - must have been stoned. How the locals laughed at the gullible "girl", (foreigner.)

    I lost my bottle when the deluge started. I forgot that the temperature could still drop to freezing in the morning and left my Chinese 2 dollar shop water bottle outside with predictable results.    Les mer

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    Not lot of people know this

    9. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Where did the Indians get the idea for their Taj Mahal?

    That's right - from Granada. The original sketches for the building can be seen on the walls of the Alhambra, and the original execution of the design, ( the Taj Halal,) is still operating today in the town centre.Les mer

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    Training

    9. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    On the way to an outstanding, private flamenco performance given at the Granada Flamenco Society, (the first one ever convened,) I stumbled across some fellows training for the easter parade. They have to carry the floats, supporting various statues and relics from their local church, around the alleys and byways of old Granada. I dont have the courage to drive my van down some of these streets, so imagine what it must be like for 32 blokes to carry a float with a bigger footprint than my camper around. Not only do they have to manoeuvre around parking bollards and corners but they also have to lower the float (sometimes even on their knees) to pass under arches and doorways! No wonder they train with these concrete blocks.Les mer

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    Often missed

    9. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    The statue on top of the the 16thC building housing the tourist office is by Ramiro Megías López based on the painting “El instante preciso” (The precise moment) by Guillermo Pérez Villalta.

    The other statue commemorates flamenco, of which Granada claims to be the capital. What the frieze around it suggests is open to the imagination.

    Nobody could explain the monkeys: four of them guard the old bridge.    Les mer

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    Museo Casa de los Tiros

    9. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    I cannot hope to match the eloquence of Francisco Izquierdo in his evocative commentary of the 1983 tryptich entitled "Dispair" by Juan Manuel Brazam
    on view in the Museum:

     "The colossal language, which gags static voices with the bandages of suffering, totems of the immediate, which changes broken limbs into memorial stones, which culturally orders the labyrinths of blood, which transforms sexes unknown and charismatic into funerary drums, which denies any means of evasion or resurrection, being the plunder of that moment, the new seed, that stony monologue or that fierce weeping is the material with which Juan Manuel Brazam works the masterpiece on the eighth day."

    Beside that prose, the ceiling displaying all the kings of Spain becomes mundane.    Les mer

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    Cuarto Real de Santo Domingo

    9. mars 2018, Spania ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    Surrounded by beautiful gardens, the 13th-century Moorish palace owned by Queen Fatima or Aixa, the mother of Boabdil, was used as a place of rest and retreat during the month of Ramadan. Queen Isabel I of Castile became enamoured of the place and bought it from Queen Fatima, although the deeds surrendering the property signed in Santa Fe, allowed her to continue enjoying the use of them even if she left Granada.
    The XIII century Royal Room is the origin of the architecture and the Nasrid decorative themes adopted subsequently in building the Alhambra palaces.
    Unfortunately, it no longer exists except for a qubba, or reception hall, which today houses temporary exhibitions.
    Its interior closes a square room of seven meters on each side, whose entrance arch has a glazed plinth of tiles, with the inscription: 'Say: God is unique', this phrase that is repeated constantly throughout the lower part of the plasterwork in the living room ; verses of the Qur'an around, with cursive characters and in the upper part, golden reflection tiles with a precious work of leaves.    Les mer

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