The Companion Guide to the South of Spain (Companion Guides)

I Value The Traditional Virtues Of The Companion Guides... Actually Written By An Individual Rather Than Packaged By Production Teams... Straightforward Intelligent Guides To Cultural Sites. Bookseller Andalucia In Its Heyday, After The Invasion Of The Moors In 711, Was Famous For Its Wealth And Fertility, And The Province's Moorish Character Remains Distinct; Even Before The Moors, The Phoenicians, The Romans And The Vandals Had All Been Drawn To This Beautiful Land. The Moors Cultivated Science And The Arts, And Their Influence Was Felt Throughout Western Europe - In The Songs Of The Troubadours, The Poems Of Dante And The Discoveries Of Copernicus; Their Merchants Enriched The Province; Their Courtiers And Architects Set New Standards Of Luxurious Living. This Glory Finally Ended In 1492, When The Christian Armies Of The Reconquista Entered Granada, But Much Remains In The Three Moorish Towns Of Cordoba, Seville And Granada, And The Country Round About, To Recall The Great Times. Alfonso Lowe Is An Admirable Guide, From The Intricacies Of The Distinction Between Mozarabic And Mudejar Moorish Styles To The Characteristic Dishes To Be Found In Restaurants And Bars - And To The Adjacent Territories Of Murcia And The Greater Part Of Alicante. CONTENTS ......Page 6 1 The Road to Córdoba......Page 20 2 Córdoba and the Great Mosque......Page 30 3 Córdoba – The City......Page 49 4 Excursions from Córdoba and the Road to Seville......Page 69 5 Seville – The Cathedral......Page 92 6 Seville – The Northern City......Page 113 7 Seville – The Southern City......Page 127 8 Devotions and Diversions in Seville......Page 148 9 Excursions from Seville......Page 157 10 From Seville to Jerez......Page 174 11 Jerez to Cádiz......Page 193 12 Cádiz to Ronda......Page 210 13 Ronda and its Surroundings......Page 224 14 Ronda to Málaga and Granada......Page 243 15 Granada – The Southern City and Albaicín......Page 270 16 Granada – The Cathedral and the North-Western City......Page 289 17 Granada – The Alhambra......Page 306 18 The Alhambra Circuit and The Generalife......Page 326 19 Granada to Alicante......Page 335 20 Alicante to Granada......Page 358 21 Granada to Jaén......Page 378 22 Baeza, Úbeda and the Sierra de Cazorla......Page 394 Appendix 1 – Chronology......Page 415 Appendix 2 – Glossary......Page 419 INDEX ......Page 426 Andalucia in its heyday, after the invasion of the Moors in 711, was famous for its wealth and fertility, and the province has a distinct Moorish character. The Moors cultivated science and the arts, and their influence was felt throughout western Europe. This is a guide to the South of Spain.