An Enriching Trip to Cordoba
By Elizabeth Strachan
Today was our first day trip in Spain! After a delicious breakfast at the Hotel Simon, we headed out at 7:50 a.m. to our bus. The ride lasted about two hours, and we arrived at our first site, Madinat al-Zahra, well rested and ready to learn. Madinat al-Zahra is an archaeological site located just outside of Cordoba and was once the location of a magnificent fortified palace-city of the Umayyad Caliphate in Al-Andalus. The city was built in the 10th century by Abd al-Rahman III, the first Caliph of Al-Andalus and a member of the Umayyad dynasty. Legend has it that he built the city for one of his favorite concubines. In reality, historians believe it was constructed to demonstrate the wealth, authority, and political legitimacy of the Caliphate. Our tour guide for the day, Javier, led us through the ruins and shared fascinating stories and historical insights at every stop along the way. After the tour, we headed into Cordoba.
From left to right: The first image shows a part of the ruins believed to have been the residence of the Caliph, located at the highest point of the city. The second image shows the ruins’ arches, a characteristic feature of Islamic architecture. Photos by Elizabeth Strachan.
Cordoba is a very old city. The Romans established the city of Corduba in the mid-second century BCE. Over the following centuries, the city was ruled by the Romans, the Umayyads, and later the Christians, leaving behind a rich historical legacy from each culture, as well as from the Jewish community that lived under these successive rulers. Once in the city, we began with a tour of what had once been Cordoba’s Jewish quarter before the expulsion of the Jews in 1492. While the neighborhood itself still survives, few specifically Jewish structures remain today apart from the synagogue. We visited the synagogue that once served the city’s Sephardic Jewish community, and although it is small, it is quite lovely. Hebrew inscriptions decorate many parts of the walls, and visitors can still see the niche where Torah scrolls would have been kept, as well as an upper gallery traditionally associated with women attending services. After 1492, the synagogue was converted into a church, later served as a hospital and a kindergarten, and was eventually recognized as an important historical monument and preserved.
The bimah of the synagogue, where the rabbi would lead services and the Torah would be read. Photo by Elizabeth Strachan.
Next, we arrived at the Great Mosque–Cathedral of Cordoba, a monumental building that reflects both its Islamic origins under the Umayyad Caliphate and its later transformation under Christian rule. The structure tells a layered story of shifting power, as visitors move through spaces shaped first by Islamic expansion and later by the insertion of a Christian cathedral nave at its center after the Christian takeover of Cordoba. As we walked through the building, Javier explained its rich architectural history, including how different phases of construction reflect the resources and priorities of the ruling powers at the time. For example, the use of marble and other high-quality materials in earlier sections reflects the wealth and stability of the Umayyad period, while later additions and repairs sometimes used simpler materials, reflecting changing political and economic circumstances during periods of conflict and transition.
From left to right: The first image shows the oldest Islamic section of the mosque, commissioned by Abd al-Rahman I. The second image shows the central area of the former mosque, later transformed into a cathedral and elaborately decorated during the Christian period. The third image shows the central hallway of the cathedral, which leads toward the most elaborately decorated area beyond the main altar space. Photos by Elizabeth Strachan.
After the tour, we took a lunch break, during which some friends and I went into a small Spanish restaurant that appeared quite ordinary but had pizza displayed in the window. We sat down and ordered, and shortly after, a group of about a dozen older adults entered as well. After ordering drinks, they began singing and dancing flamenco together. It was wonderful to see the joy and comfort they shared with one another, as well as the pride they clearly took in their culture. Others in the restaurant began to join in, and it became a genuinely memorable moment of experiencing local culture firsthand. After leaving the restaurant, our group agreed it was one of the most memorable parts of our trip so far.
Our lunch was filled with vibrant singing and dancing by locals. Video by Ari Levins.
The last stop of the day was the Casa de Sefarad, a museum that preserves the history of the Sephardic Jewish community in Spain. We had two guides, one of whom sang traditional Sephardic songs, including Yigdal in Hebrew and other traditional melodies. He also performed a song that incorporated multiple languages, including Spanish, Arabic, Turkish, Hebrew, and Italian. Afterwards, we toured the museum, where we learned how the legacy of Jewish converts to Christianity, some of whom continued to practice Judaism in secret, is reflected in Spanish culture today. One example the guide shared was the use of gold embroidery: Sephardic Jewish communities were known for richly decorated textiles, and similar decorative styles can now be seen in the elaborate costumes of Spanish bullfighters. Although this may reflect a degree of romanticization in how historical Jewish influence is remembered—something we also observed in Morocco—these stories nevertheless offer interesting perspectives on cultural memory and historical connection.
We enjoyed a performance of Sephardic Jewish music by our museum guide. Photo by Melody Asaresh Moghadam.
All of our stops in Cordoba were fascinating and revealed a city with a vibrant culture and rich history shaped by many layers of its past. After crossing the ancient Roman bridge, we returned to Seville by bus, reflecting on an immersive and memorable day in Cordoba.
A view from the end of the Roman bridge as we left Cordoba. Photo by Elizabeth Strachan.