Ok, now that that portion is done, everything here is great as expected, except for the aforementioned lack of sleep. Time is flying by and it is hard to imagine that I’ve been here for almost 2 months.
I actually had an email assembled and most of the pictures uploaded until Spain’s reliable energy service decided to illustrate its reliability. After that debacle, I decided to pull a Charlie Brown (walking away/slouched/defeated) only to return now. Pat and Sue (for those of you who don’t know, my soon to be brother-in-law and his girlfriend) came to visit March 12th-17th as did Mora (I hope I don’t need to tell you who she is) who was here the 16th thru the 23rd. We had a lousy time and complained about being on vacation in Spain and how much trouble it is to pack and travel, relax, and how much we couldn’t wait to get back to work blablablah. But we got by. No worries. We did celebrate my birthday at O’Neill’s here in Sevilla and thanks to all who wished me a happy birthday, and to those who didn’t; I etched your name in a table at O’Neill’s while Charlie Brown-ing
over a cider. But I got by. No worries. Hope everything is well with all, and I’ll be talking to everyone soon. Now here’s your reward

Córdoba
1. This is the Torre de Alminar, the tower of the Mezquita, or mosque of Córdoba. It was originally a minaret until a riffraff pack of meddling kids came and conquered the city and built over it. Ok, it was really the Christians. This theme is very popular here in Spain. Behind the bell you can see the red brick that is the leftover minaret.

2. This is the inside of the mezquita and one of the most famous landmarks of Spain, the pillars and arches of the mezquita. The arches are the usual horseshoe shape found in Muslim architecture, and are red and white mainly for aesthetic purposes. There are over 850 pillars in total. Along the
perimeter of the building are 19 doors that used to remain open during Muslim occupation, but now stay closed just to mess with peoples’ cameras.

3. Another shot of the Arches, or as we say in the industry, reverse angle.

4. The fountains of the Alcázar of Cordoba. Alcázar translates into fortress and is actually an Arabic term. Interesting factoid #521: Spanish words that begin with AL are Islamic words, such as Alcázar, almonde, Al B. Sure, you get the point. Every major city has an Alcázar, even Sevilla, which is
somewhat of a spoiler alert. But before we go there, let’s see Barçelona.

Barçelona
5. Definitely the best city I’ve been to while here in Spain, except for Sevilla, Barçelona is very different from the rest of Spain from their architecture to their language, which is not Spanish but Catalan. There architecture is a product of Antoni Gaudí who combined Gothic and Surrealistic styles to come out with, well, this: Casa Mila, otherwise known as La Pedrera (the quarry). Originally an apartment complex but now a museum which was built in 1910. On the top of the building he transformed the chimneys into ‘knights’ along with other sculptures.

6. This is the roof of La Pedrera. Intense.926

7. I could send a whole email with just Gaudí (which supposedly the term Gaudy comes from) work, but here is his masterpiece La Sagrada Familia. It took him 40 years to plan/build but he never completed it. He died in 1926 after being struck by a trolley. Each tower was to represent each apostle, but he only reached 8. We were able to climb the towers via a very cramped spiral staircase in which the lady in the front of me, claustrophobic, started screaming crying making it a pleasant experience for all. Plan ahead people. That’s today’s lesson. They’re in the process of completing it (no the cranes are not part of the work) which is a bone of contention in the art world for most feel as if it should be left alone.9648. Close-up of the exterior. You can see similar sculptures from La edrera.

9. Me on the shore of the Mediterranean. The top floor of the tall building to the right is Ronaldnho’s condo. For us Americans who don’t follow fútbol, he is the 21st century Péle and plays for Barça. He stays there while I succumb to the elements. (I.E. pelted in the face with sand) Thanks Ronaldinho. Thanks a lot. I have yet to be in a picture where I’m not battling weather. And losing.

10. The water show at Plaça de Espanya which is said to be better than the Bellagio in Las Vegas. I’ve never been, but there is something about water fountains, lights and orchestral music (I’ll get to the track list) that just…well, we had laughs. The songs you ask? Spring (4seasons Vivaldi),
E.T., yeah, THAT E.T., and the, I hope most of you can recall, the awards ceremony from Star Wars. GENIUS! Then 2 guys stripped, danced around the fountain in the nude with many tourists following snapping away, only to be chased by the police down the street. GENIUS! Now THAT is a fountain
show!

Ronda
11. This is from Ronda. The Puente Nuevo (New Bridge) which spans the great gorge connecting the old city to the, you guessed it, new city. I have an amazing story about this to tell that is too long, so when you see me again, ask me about it. I’ve written too much already.

12. View from the Puente Nuevo.
13. And the other side
14. Just to put it to scale, I put this so you can compare the two people to the surrounding area.