Two weeks ago today we left Toronto. Since then we’ve cycled 675 kilometres and eaten a mountain of Serrano and Iberian ham, goat cheese and olives.
This weekend in Cordoba has been restful after all of the cycling and packing and unpacking. We’ve been here since Friday afternoon and we leave tomorrow morning when we’ll cycle to a car rental place at the train station, pick up a small van we’ve reserved, throw the bikes in the back and drive a couple of hours to Malaga where I think the most stressful element will be finding the place where we’re actually supposed to park. We’ll be there until Wednesday morning.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. Yesterday – Saturday- we had no plans for the day so we took the advice of some Belgian tourists we’d met at the horse show and walked to Palacio Viana. It was brilliantly sunny but holy cow, so much cooler than last week. We poked our heads into every gallery and studio where doors were open. Note the intricate stonework on the ground: not only is it decorative but it serves as air conditioning in the summer if you wet it.
At the palace, the only tour available was in Spanish but it allowed you entrance into the private apartments, so we signed up. The last marquesa sold the palace to the city in 1980 and it had been beautifully maintained so the tour was a real treat, full of extraordinary collections of artwork and leather. We walked through the 12 outdoor courtyard gardens, and then headed for the Roman Bridge. By now it was windy and drizzly exactly as had been forecast so we headed back to the hotel.
At 5:00 we met a guide for a (rainy) tour of some of Cordoba’s famous courtyards/patios. They are a UNESCO site (as is the Mosque-cathedral we had seen on Friday). The patios are part of an annual contest, competition is fierce and rules are stringent. There must be a stone floor, a water feature, and pots and pots and pots of flowers. See the photos. People spend from 2 – 4 hours a DAY watering those hundreds of little pots with a small can attached to a cane rod.
We followed up that tour with a third visit to our favourite Uruguayan steak house for dinner. I know, I know, we seem to be in a rut, but their salads and beef are so delicious and it’s just around the corner from the hotel. A quick run in the rain…
Sunday morning: John organized a nice 30 km route up and out of Cordoba into the hills. We had to pause briefly while a church procession passed in front of us complete with an enormous float and a statue of a Madonna, carried by around 18 men.
And then halfway up that hill I had to, er, pause for about ten inelegant minutes at the side of the road in a discreet hollow and accept that the Imodium I had taken an hour before had not done its job. There’s a first for everything!!!
I walkie-talkied to John to come back and join me for the ride back to the hotel. It’s not something I ate, this happens to me once in a while and it’s nothing that an afternoon off plus clear fluids – and more Imodium – can’t sort. John’s enjoying the excuse to nap under a huge cosy blanket (it really is cool and damp, we’re just getting used to that after the extreme heat of last week). In fact, it’s just started to pour outside so we may have had a soggy end to that original route anyway!
Tomorrow, Malaga. (And apparently a week of rain. The van portion of the trip is well-timed.)
