If I had to capture the essence of Cordoba in two tangible forms, it would be the Mezquita-Catedral and my sit spot. The Mezquita, I think, is the city’s natural symbol. It’s a source of local and cultural identity for the community, whether they live in the center or the periphery. Aside from being a […]

Spring has sprung! There is green, green, green all around. The birch trees no longer slump in their grayish-white suits, their bare spindly arms lowered in a halfhearted attempt at strength. Now, their trunks shine strong and colorful in the brilliant sunshine, branches valiantly reaching toward the sun, adorned in vibrantly green leaves. This year’s […]

I root, I root, I root. It is Holy Week –or Semana Santa– and I am hearing sounds at once familiar and foreign. Sometimes I have trouble figuring out what time of year it is, especially lately. This winter (at least, I thought it was winter) was long and wonderful, filled with rain day after […]

This time, it takes me a minute to tune out the human-produced sounds. There’s an endless stream of tweeting birds; some caw loudly from a distance, some tweet softly from trees right next to me, nearly all of them invisible to my eye. I hear, too, the low rumble of the river. It roared from […]

My sit spot is one of Cordoba’s unique green spaces; it is not a park or plaza in the midst of the city, nor just a place next to the river. Rather, it’s within a protected feline habitat. The spot was intentionally created as a place of confluence between humans and animals. Although it’s certainly […]

My feet rest on the bumpy, moist ground. It has rained here a lot the past few days, much more than is typical for sunny Andalucía – people are torn between despair (at the incessant, dismal, wet gloom) and joy (that their drought-ridden land is finally blessed by some water). My “roots” encounter almost entirely […]

How glad I am to be in Cordoba at last! Today is only my third day here, but already I feel a fondness for the city’s cobblestone streets and Moorish architecture. We spent the past two weeks traversing Andalucia, roaming quaint streets, watching flamenco shows, wine tasting, etc. in a fun albeit tiring tour of […]