#islamicspain

[perevision]

Practicing for #mermay !! I have had this story in my head since I visited the Alhambra many years ago. It’s only occasionally escaped onto paper, but this year the time has finally come! One challenge is that in the Little Mermaid, the main character spends half her time NOT a mermaid. I’m excited to find some creative solutions. #mysteriousbeasts #mermaids #merpeople #littlemermaid #islamicspain #medieval #fantasy #illustration #watercolour #fountainpen #penandink #characterdesign #ocean https://www.instagram.com/p/CrUCj5sKy1s/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[aysee36]

[light-reflections-blog1]

Granada

[ahmadaltibi]

The grand mosque of Córdoba from inside!❤️ #españa #alandalus #andalucia #cordoba #mosquita #mosque #islamicart #islamicspain #history #bonito #lindo #mehrab #masjid #travel #spain #explore #culture #architecture #الاندلس #الجامع #حضارة_العرب_والمسلمين (at Mezquita-Catedral De Córdoba - Cordoba, Spain)

[ahmadaltibi]

The western gate of the grand mosque in Córdoba/ Al Andalusia #andalucia #cordoba #mosqueofcordoba #islamicspain #islamicart #architecture #history #alandalus #culture #ancient #unescoworldheritage #world #instatravel #breathtaking (at Cordova, Andalucia, Spain)

[quatrus]

Wishing a good #Ramadan to those who observe the fast, and taking the opportunity to admire the #Alhambra palace in Granada, Spain, built in the 1200s. By 1250 AD, the Christian kings of Spain had pushed the Almohads south so that they only ruled just the city of Granada, far in the south of Spain. Because they were such losers, the Almohads in Granada were soon overthrown by new Islamic rulers called the Nasrids. There in Granada, the Nasrids built their palace, the Alhambra (it means "the Red" in Arabic, probably because of the red color of the bricks). Because the Christian kings were still trying to get the Nasrids out of Spain, the Alhambra is first of all a fortress. Alhambra The palace is on top of a steep hill, and it has a fortified wall all the way around it. Originally all the rooms were arranged around a central courtyard, but gradually people added more small courtyards with more rooms around them to make the palace bigger. The outside walls are all plain, with all the decoration on the inside, to show that the palace is meant for insiders and not outsiders. On the inside, though, the carvers covered every inch of the Alhambra with patterns like lace. In accordance with Islamic rules, they didn't carve any images of people or animals (though the lion fountain you see here is an exception). Everything is either patterns of leaves, Arabic letters, or abstract geometry. They also used a lot of glazed clay tiles to decorate the walls. In the courtyards, there are fountains everywhere. Because it is always hot in Granada, they didn't build many closed rooms - most of the rooms are open on one side to the courtyards, or separated only by lacy wooden screens. #alhambra #nasrid #islamicarchitecture #medievalislam #islamicspain #medievalspain

[mchehab13]

Cordoba

The last Andalucían stop in our Spanish adventure was Cordoba, a lovely little city that was once the headquarters of Muslim Spain. After arriving at our hotel, we had a walk around and looked for a place to eat. I remember feeling slightly disappointed with the cafes and restaurants available, but then again everything is disappointing when you’re hungry.

The next day started well with waffles and a walk through the Jewish area, a beautiful area of low white houses with blue windows and doors, and potted flowers along the walls. It's was like something out of a postcard:

I had to take a photo of this…

...because I thought only Arabs ate it, but alas, I was wrong. What is this even called in English??

The mezquita (mosque) is beautiful. The rows of arched columns create a sense of serenity and make the building seem bigger than it actually is. Be warned that there are heaps of tourists and that you will likely have a random head or arm in your photos.   

It’s good to know what you are looking at, so I would recommend that you quickly do some reading about the mosque before you visit. In a nutshell, the building was first an ancient Visigoth Church, then a mosque, and then a Church. The Cathedral is in the middle of the edifice and the arches surround it. It’s a two – in – one, but only Church services operate.

#Latin on the columns

#part of the mosque still remains

#The Church:

Down from the mosque, there’s a old wall.  I can’t recall any other information about it, but it was Moorish.

An old bridge that links to the other part of the city was a 3 minute walk away.

Walking toward the synagogue, we came across an artist’s market that had to be in the prettiest location ever.

Finding the synagogue closed, we decided to have lunch a Jewish restaurant. It wasn’t kosher though, strangely enough. Our meals were delicious – Nada got a massive Greek salad and I got fried eggplant in a honey sauce. So good!

The ancient synagogue was open by the time we finished. It was very very small as it only had only 2 rooms:

To end, Cordoba is a beautiful little city that you can definitely explore in a day.

That was the last of the amazing trip! 

[mchehab13]

Granada

Ah Granada. I can understand why the ‘Moors’ held onto you for so long. I would not have wanted to give you up either.    

The architecture here is like Madrid and unlike Seville. What do I mean? I’m not completely sure, but unlike its Southern neighbour, the buildings are not flat-ish or white-ish:

It was through these beautiful streets that we got quite confused finding the main information office to pick up this tourist card we had bought. Luckily, the locals were lovely enough to help.  

We arrived quite late, so the first day was spent walking around. We saw an Easter procession close up:

#I loved these costumes. Very stern yet so pretty!

On the way back to the hotel, I suddenly saw a little sign with a little arrow that said ‘Alhambra’. Nada and I had thought we would need a bus or some type of vehicle to access it, seeing that it’s on hill. Alas not! We walked up that street and what do you know, we went straight into the gates of the Alhambra! Now, we didn’t go into the actual building because we had our ticket for the next day.

Walking back down the street, we purchased some flamenco tickets and a couple of hours later, went for the show:

The most surprising element of the performance was the just how loud it was with all the foot-stomping, clapping and yelling. The one thing that was incredibly amusing AND slightly off-putting were the faces the dancers and guitarist pulled whilst performing… kinda made it hard to watch!

By far though the most irritating aspect was this annoying woman in the audience who would randomly and incorrectly say ‘Oley’ during and at the end of the dances. It was soooo out of place and awkward for this obviously non-Spanish person. After the third time it went something like this:

FOOT STOMPING AND MAN SINGING AND GUITARIST GOING CRAZY, LOTS OF NOIS -

“Oley”

*Heads turn and sighs of annoyance*

Regardless, it was a great performance and I will upload some of it for you to check out.

Oh! On the same street I spotted a beautiful lamp. Mustn’t forget the lamps!

The next day was the day we visited the Alhambra. 

You cannot imagine Spain without the Alhambra. The Palace is the most visited tourist attraction in the country and for me, the principal monument that highlights the complex position Islam has within Spanish history and imagination. Despite the fact that its splendor and beauty is held in such high esteem, the period of Al-Andalus is not really acknowledged or valued within and outside of Spain. It’s such a shame – to me, it feels like the monument (along with the mosque in Cordoba) are somewhat held separate from that period, like a solitary beacon of what once was. Not many people know of the other achievements from that time, especially in regards to the sheer amount of inestimable knowledge that was fostered and shared as a result of religious belief. In fact, in the Alhambra, there is a lot of recognition of American historian and novelist Washington Irving, with statues and souvenirs in his name…but I didn’t see any of the leaders who actually built the place. Anywho, the subject is far too deep and layered for a university student to dissect on a travel blog, so I’ll just recommend that you research the subject at your own leisurely pace :) Off you go now.

To simply put it: Yes, it is that beautiful, that special and incredible. For a good while afterwards, everything else I saw seemed a little humdrum.  If you go to Spain, you have to see it. It is overwhelmingly impressive. Not only are the buildings inside amazing (with the most mind-blowing detail) the gardens were gorgeous.

I’m just going to put up a whole bunch of photos now:

  We overheard a guided tour leader point out the best viewing point (San Nicholas) to see the Palace as a whole (great piece of *free* advice, sir!) and off we went. It was such a trek to walk but it was so so worth it:

Our route out of the viewing point led us to the Moroccan area, known as the albayzin. Much as you would expect, it was an eruption of colour.   

Our third and final day, we checked out the Cathedral and the royal chapel.

We weren’t allowed take photos inside, which was unfortunate because the tombs of Ferdinand and Isabella, the Catholic monarchs who regained Spain from the Muslims were inside. Granada was the last Muslim kingdom to fall, so the city was very symbolic for them.