Córdoba -- la Mesquita

Our first stop in Spain was to Córdoba, a lovely village with cobbled streets and winding ally-ways. The central square of the town is a gorgeous, massive church/cathedral/mosque (not sure what to call it, actually) the official name is la Mesquita. It was built in the 13th century as a mosque, but later turned into a Christian church during the crusades. The architecture was fabulous, both outside and in.

Here's the front courtyard, notice the palms and the orange trees! Truly Mediterranean.
Okay, so this picture below is not about me (blurry, dark and not smiling), but about the gorgeous red and grey arches framing the building, hundreds of archways in perfect symmetry. (I made Brian put me in the picture after he took several without anyone, just because I like pictures with people... and I love to pose, of course). We could hardly see from one end to the other. Brian said that when this was a mosque, on specific prayer days, the entire building-- as well as the courtyard outside-- would have been filled with people praying on prayer rugs.
A more artistic view...
Tucked away inside this massive framework is an intricately carved chapel, with amazing lighting and murals on the walls and ceilings. Apparently this chapel was added after the Crusades, when they turned the building into a Christian cathedral. The place is so large that we were walking around for a good 8 to 10 minutes before we even came to the chapel, hidden away in the center of the building.

Here's Sam and Kam in the chapel. It was all decorated for Christmas, with poinsettas and lights everywhere. It is sad to me that it's a building rarely used for worship now, even though that was its obvious function.