Cordoba+-+Three+Empires+Route+Version

Plaza de las Tendillas, 5-3ª - 14002 Córdoba
 * Population -** 321,164
 * Square Area -** 1,252 sq. km.
 * Distance from Granada -** 166 km
 * Tourism Office**

Cordoba was first founded in the ancient Roman imperial days and became a provincial capital within the empire. The city enjoyed a priveleged status during the Visigothic period as well, before becoming the capital of the Emirate. There is a long tradition of cultural achievement, dating from the time of the independent Emirate.


 * Sights**

The most famous site in Cordoba is the Mezquita, a massive mosque first constructed in th e 8th century during the Ummayyad period and later converted into a cathedral, following the reconquest. Unlike many other mosque to cathedral conversions, which only echo now and again their Muslim past, the Mezquita still retains a very strong resemblance to the mosque that stood there in pre-Reconquest days.
 * Mezquita**

A well-constructed fortress that, while built for military fortification and defense, as it was a launching point for Christian armies seeking to conquer the rest of the taifas, is arguably most famous for its lavish and beautiful gardens that are so varied and rich in their flowers and fountains, that they rival even those of the legendary Generalife gardens at Granada's Alhambra
 * Alcazar**


 * Festivals

Cruces de Mayo** This is a festival in the first weekend of May, where elaborate and gorgeous crosses are built of flowers, a temporary bar set up at each cross. The days are spent drinking, partying, and relaxing at these temporary bars and there's a competiton each year to determine which cross is the best one. On average, there's about 80 crosses and bars established in the plazas of Cordoba during this holiday celebration.