This past weekend, I took a trip with a few friends to southern Spain to visit Seville and Córdoba. A few highlights? A mosque, a cup of chocolatey goodness, an unexpected meal and a trip that almost wasn’t.
1) Chocolate con churros- After an afternoon of sightseeing in Seville, we’d walked around the beautiful cathedral and taken in the Plaza de España. We walked back toward the center of the city to see the Alcazar and its gardens, but were disappointed to find that it was closed. Instead, we ended up watching the opening ceremony of the Olympics in a café with cups of chocolate con churros, the signature Spanish sweet I’d been dying to try. My disappointment faded quickly with the warm taste of chocolate.
2) Right idea, wrong city- While attempting to buy bus tickets to Córdoba in Spanish, my roommate swiped her credit card and signed her receipt, but the bus ticket was more than we expected. After looking at it for a moment, I realized the lady behind the counter had booked her a ticket to Málaga, not Córdoba. After explaining again which city we wanted to visit, she changed the order. We could have ended up on the beach and very confused.
White-walled alley in Córdoba
3) La Mezquita- After seeing a photograph of the famous mosque-turned-cathedral in my Spain guidebook, I knew I had to see it in person. With its intricately adorned ceilings and peppermint-like stripes across its arches, La Mezquita was somehow even more beautiful than I’d imagined. I was completely in awe of it and glad we’d made the two-hour bus trip from Seville.
La Mezquita de Córdoba
4) Stumbling upon delicacies- We decided to avoid the touristy cafés around La Mezquita and try to find an authentic restaurant. Upon seeing the menu at one of them, we decided to go in. The waiter told us we were welcome to eat there but the place was booked after 1:30 for reservations. With an hour to spare, we agreed and sat down. The warm bread tasted heavenly with olive oil, and the waiter brought out my order of scrambled eggs with mushrooms, artichokes and baby shrimp, elegantly stacked into a cylindrical shape and dusted with chili powder. When we googled the restaurant later, it had five stars. An accidental gem of a find.
Christina, before our accidental five-star lunch
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Rachel Thompson
<p><span style="color: rgb(29, 29, 29); font-family: Arial, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: normal; background-color: rgb(237, 237, 237);">Hi there! I'm a California native studying journalism in one of the coolest cities in the world, at The University of Texas at Austin. I'm a fan of chocolate, watching sports (go Giants), nice people, anything vintage and pretty much all music. I write as much as I can, whether it's a news article, a blog, or just a journal entry. When I'm not writing, I love to run, try new recipes in my little kitchen, take dance classes and catch up with friends. My goal is to see every continent someday. I'm getting there!</span></p>
