If you enjoy combining cultural history, good food and wine with a stroll through pretty old streets and some olive groves, then the province of Cordoba in Spain’s southern region of Andalusia is the perfect itinerary.

Cordoba city is less than two hours from Madrid aboard the high-speed ‘Ave’ train, which offers a comfortable ride and excellent waiter service.

Founded by the Romans, Cordoba sits strategically on the Guadalquivir River linking the port of Cadiz to the interior. It was the heart of the Moorish (Arab) empire that ruled Spain for 800 years until the ‘reconquest’ by the Christian forces of King Ferdinand V and Queen Isabella I in 1492.

The cultural legacy of Moorish Spain is still in evidence, even if the society around it today is emphatically Christian and westernised.

Cordoba’s Jewish Quarter is where you want to stay, as it is inside the old city walls and everything is within walking distance. There are plenty of options, including the highly recommended NH Hotel Amistad (www.nh-hoteles.es/) that is conveniently located in the Plaza Maimonides.

It’s only a short walk through the narrow streets of the old city to the cathedral/mosque, indisputably Cordoba’s main attraction.

The 16th-century cathedral is built on top of the Great Mosque of Cordoba, which was erected in the 8th century by the first emir of the city. The mosque is stunningly preserved, a forest of 850 columns of granite and marble connected by arches of red stone and red-and-white brick, typical of Cordoba’s Caliph architecture.

The two structures are so closely interlocked that a few steps take visitors from one religion into another.

The cultural legacy of Moorish Spain is still much in evidence, even if the society around it today is emphatically Christian and westernised

From the mosque, head towards the Palacio de Viana. Interesting sights on the way include the Plaza del Potro, mentioned in Don Quijote, and the museum of local painter Julio Romero, famous for his realistic portraits of women.

In May, the streets are full of flowers and houses open their patios and decorate them in a 10-day competition, the Festival of the Patios.

The Palacio de Viana (www.palaciodeviana.com/), built in the late 15th century, was the home of the Marques of Viana, who was close to King Alfonso XIII. The house is built around 12 patio gardens, each with a distinct design varying from orange trees, palms and fountains to one with a huge 400-year-old Holm Oak. The rooms contain some magnificent tapestries, as well as period furniture and paintings.

To appreciate the intellectual might of Cordoba under the Moors, visit the Museum of al-Andalus in the Tower of Calahorra, on the banks of the Guadalquivir.

Also, about 15 minutes west of the city is the Medina al-Zahra palace, built in the 10th century by Abd al-Rahman III. In his heyday, he impressed audiences with a room studded with diamonds and a mercury fountain that visitors thought was liquid silver.

For a tour of the city, local guides can be hired by the hour. Reuters used Juan Torres Carmona (torrescordobaguia@gmail.com), a friendly, flexible multilingual guide.

The mosque is illuminated at night and there is a spectacular night-time tour at 10pm, dubbed ‘The Soul of Cordoba’.

There is dancing at the Centro Cultural de Flamenco in the Posada del Potro, the former horse stables in the Plaza del Potro. Alternatively, catch a flamenco show near the mosque at El Tablao El Cardenal every night at 10.30pm.

If you like horses, there’s also a popular night-time show of Andalusian thoroughbreds with flamenco music at the Royal Stables.

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