This past week we traveled with the CofC Trujillo study abroad group through Andalucia.

Andalucia is a big province in southern Spain and is where many emblematic Spanish things such as Flamenco and bull fights come from. On Wednesday, we stopped in Cordoba to visit the mosque. The mosque of Cordoba is very special because it was built with iconic arches resembling palm trees and its minaret was copied both in Seville and Marrakech. It was interesting to see for the first time how after the Reconquista of the city the catholics built a cathedral in the middle of the mosque creating quite a strange mixture of architectural styles. After Cordoba, we went to Granada about 3h away southbound. Granada is found next to the Sierra Nevada and is home to la Alhambra, one of the most visited sites in the world. La Alhambra, meaning red castle in Arabic, was primarily built by the moors after they conquered the Iberian peninsula in 711. During their 800 years of reign in Granada they developed the complex we now call la Alhambra, which served as a fortified city for the rich and nobles of the caliphate. After the Reconquista of Granada in 1492, the Catholic kings took over the city as the last stronghold of moors in the peninsula and thus over la Alhambra. They built a church in the complex and eventually King Charles V also built a palace.

In Granada, we were also able to watch a Tablao Flamenco show; this type of flamenco reminded me of tap dance since they were creating rhythm through stomping on the ground. On Friday we headed to Seville, one of the most well-known cities in Spain. The first day we sailed down the Guadalquivir river, meaning big river in Arabic, and saw the tower of gold which is found by the river. Thanks to the Guadalquivir, Seville was the most important city during the Spanish empire, since only from there could one sail to the New World. This brought immense wealth to Seville which is easily observable in the architecture of the city. Seville is home to the 3rd largest cathedral in the world, a gothic style cathedral built over the complex of a mosque. La giralda, an icon of Seville, is actually the minaret and one of the last remaining parts of what used to be the mosque. Next to the cathedral, we find the Alcazar, arabic for fortified palace, where the kings resided in Seville. The Alcazar was very interesting to visit since the mixture of architectures between arabic and catholic styles created the iconic mudejar style so typical of Andalucia. My favorite part of the visit was seeing the beautiful gardens of the Alcazar, filled with palm trees, orange trees, peach trees and many more plants, creating a stunning green space. We were so lucky to come to Seville during spring time since the orange trees were blooming and the city was filled with the sweet smell of orange blossom. Overall, the trip was great and I recommend everyone to travel to the south of Spain, you won’t be disappointed!