Córdoba (part 2)

Ah, I see you've stuck with me! Here's the second part of my fantastic weekend...

Friday morning, the Berlin team presented our panel Islam as a Religious Minority in Germany: 50 Years after the Labor Recruitment Deal between the BDR and Turkey, followed by presentations from the Paris, Florence, and Moscow centers. The panels were completely interesting and engaging and it was such an incredible feeling to be amongst such talented peers. After the sessions, we had lunch in the Jewish quarter and began our tour of the city. We began with the Mezquita - the Great Mosque turned Cathedral. From there, we meandered through the streets to the Jewish quarter and saw the house where Maimonides might have lived and went to the Casa de Safrad; the Jewish museum and Syngagogue.

Courtyard at La Mezquita (Great Mosque/Cathedral)

Team Córdoba: Berlin!

My new friend, Moshe ben Maimonides. You may call him Rambam.

Friday evening, I went with my good friend Amy and my JaM (Jewish and Muslim Berlin) Professor to the syngagogue for Shabbat. We were greeted in the streets, as the sounds of the gitarra and tamblas floated over us welcoming us into the building. The synagogue is in an upstairs room of a house that has been occupied by Jewish residents since the 13th century. Our Shabbat family was a small one, we didn't have a minyan, but it was one that was beyond welcoming. The president of the synagogue taught us a beautiful Sephardic melody to L'cha Dodi and a London-based, Spanish-speaking Rabbi delivered his drash in English as to make us feel comfortable. The service concluded in the courtyard of the house, with an open ceiling so that we could see the stars. We blessed our wine and bread with melodies old and new, and thanked our new friends for an unforgettable experience. I later joined up with my Stanford friends for dinner and nighttime explorations around the city.

Saturday, we again had our morning sessions (this time from Oxford and Washington) and then, after a closing ceremony, headed to Seville. We toured the Santa Maria Cathedral, which interestingly enough, was also a Mosque. It was insanely beautiful and looked something like this:

The minnaret turned bell tower

View from the Bell Tower

After the tour, we got some free time in Seville. As I mentioned, all the European Centers were there, so it was wonderful to have the opportunity to be with some of my great friends from Stanford who are at other campuses. We did some shopping and sight-seeing with time for more tapas and churros con chocolate - which were actually the best things I've ever had. If you are taking anything away from this trip, let it be food and good friends :) - before heading back to Cordoba.

Sunday, we said goodbye to our friends who had early flights, and headed to Grenada to see La Alhambra. La Alhambra is an unbelievably gorgeous palace and fortress, originally built by Moorish rulers and then was occupied by Christian Kings until the 16th century (but don't quote me on that). It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site for a reason! Here is a peek, but my photos really don't do it any justice. Seriously. I also don't have pictures of the gardens, which are the most beautiful and romantic gardens I've ever seen.

The fortress from afar.

King Suleiman's symbol adorning the walls.

One of the many courtyards in the Palace.

View of the Sierra Nevadas (not Tahoe) from the top of the fortress.

After the conclusion of our tour in Grenada, we made our way back to Berlin via Madrid. The weekend was spectacular on so many levels - intellectually stimulating, professionally interesting, socially wonderful, culturally explorative and gastronomically delicious. I am so beyond thankful to have had this and every opportunity that I've been given these past few months.

Wishing you all love and joy as we enter into this holiday season,

Doria

Córdoba (part 1)

Hola Amigos! (That's about the extent of my Spanish...)

Last Thursday was the first time in 20 years that I have not been with my family in the Bay Area for Thanksgiving. Though nothing can replace my beloved family, I do believe that southern Spain was about as good an alternative as any, should I have to be abroad for the holidays.

For those of you who need to be caught up a bit, every academic year, the Bing Overseas Studies Program (BOSP) at Stanford holds a workshop for the European Centers. This year, the theme of the workshop was "Islam in the West, 711-2011: 1300 Years of Contact and (Mis)understanding." Select students from every European campus were invited to present a paper on some topic pertaining to Islam in the country in which they were studying. The Berlin team consisted of myself and eight peers, and my paper was entitled "Comparable Phenomena? Anti-Semitism and Islamophobia in Germany." In essence, in exchange for writing one paper about a topic in which I am genuinely very interested, I got a "free" trip to Spain for five days. Good deal? I think yes.

The Berlin team arrived in Madrid and made our way down to Córdoba early on Thursday morning. After settling into our hotel, we got the chance to wander around the beautiful city before the conference began. Córdoba was unbelievably gorgeous and the plentiful orange trees ripe with fruit gave the air a distinctly sweet and citrusy scent, which made it all too easy to settle into vacation mode. We explored quaint side streets and finally made our way to lunch - tapas, of course - before heading back to the El Conquistador hotel to prep for the afternoon sessions.

Orange trees everywhere!

Tapas?! Yes, please.

The workshop officially began with welcomes from people from Stanford at Stanford (what up, Vice-Provost Elam!) and a panel of the professors who accompanied us on the trip. The Madrid team provided us with a new perspective on the term Convivencia and then it was time for dinner! Once Helen Bing (of Bing Program fame) realized there are really no turkeys in Spain, had some brought over from the US for our Thanksgiving consumption. Ridiculous, yes, but a kind gesture nonetheless. I know that my mother, for one, will ask what I ate for Thanksgiving, so for your pleasure, I stole a menu from the evening.

Berenjenas con Miel de Cana: eggplant with sugarcane honey

Panche de Verduras Naturales a la Plancha: grilled vegetables

Pavo Asado con Frutos Secos, Salsa de Frutos Rojos y Boniatos Asados: turkey cordobese with dried fruit and nuts, and sweet potatos)

Tarta de Calabaza: pumpkin tart with cinammon scented whipped cream

YUM TIMES 50.

Despite the fact that everyone was too full to move after dinner, we were whisked away by the BOSP staff and went through the old city to watch a traditional Andalucian Flamenco performance. Having studied flamenco for a very short period of time, I loved being able to see short snippets of my training mixed in with the Spanish flair and general sassiness of these amazing dancers. After the show, we headed back to the hotel and I promptly crashed in preparation for my presentation the next morning.

See part 2 for the rest of the story!