MEDENİYETİN KALBİNDE: ENDÜLÜS
USTALIKLA MUHAFAZA EDILEREK GEÇMIŞTEN GÜNÜMÜZE TAŞINAN ISPANYA, ZIYARETÇILERINI KENDINE HAYRAN BIRAKIYOR. ŞEHIRLERI SANAT ESERLERIYLE DOLU GÜNEYDEKI ENDÜLÜS’E YOLUNUZU DÜŞÜRMEK IÇIN FAZLA GEÇ KALMAYIN.
Çiçeklerle özene bezene süslenmiş sokakların havasını soluyacağım ve İspanya’nın büyülü rüyasını yaşayacağım yolculuğum büyük bir heyecanla başladı. Gezi rehberlerini tarayarak ve yakın çevremin yıllar önce yaptığı Endülüs turundan esinlenerek yola çıkmadan önce kendime bir güzergâh hazırladım. Malaga’dan başlayacağım gezi rotama iki güzergâh üzerinden ulaşabilirim; Afrika’dan Cebelitarık’ı geçerek ya da doğrudan Malaga’ya uçarak. Ben tüm vaktimi şehrin detaylarını keşfe ayırmak için ikinci yolu tercih ediyorum. Akdeniz kıyısına konumlanmış şehir, kış mevsimine rağmen güneşli bir havayla bana merhaba diyor. Bu aydınlık havanın da etkisiyle yüzümde bir gülümsemeyle yürüme mesafesindeki kaleye yöneliyorum. Kaleye ad olmuş “Alcazaba”; İspanya ve Portekiz çevresinde Mağribi mimarisine ait surlarla çevrili yapılara verilen genel bir isim. Oymalı, kemerli duvarlarıyla büyüleyen Endülüs mimarisine, palmiye ağaçlarıyla süslenmiş bir yoldan varıyorum. İç avlusu zarif süs havuzlarının yanında turunç ağaçlarıyla taçlandırılmış. Modern sanattan antik dönem eserlerine kadar birçok eser bulunuyor. Picasso Müzesi ve Antik Roma Tiyatrosu da Malaga’da görebileceğiniz yerlerden. Hızlı bir tempoyla geçen ilk günün sonunda Sevilla’ya hareket ediyorum. Geceyi dinlenerek geçirmem gerekiyor; zira bir hayli yoğun bir gün beni bekliyor.
Ah Seville, or, by its old name, Ishbilia! I think this is the city in Andalusia that impresses me the most… After breakfast, I set out in the streets of Seville with my camera. The electric scooters parked on the side of the roads are the best choice for travelers like me who want to tour this flat city at a high pace. Although it’s the first time I am using a scooter, I immediately get the hang of it and take a quick tour of the river. This scooter continues to accompany me throughout my trip here. The shores of the Guadalquivir River offer a refreshing, appealing environment to walk, and its waters are ideal for canoeing throughout the day.
During the Andalusian period, the Guadalquivir River was called al-wadi al-kabir. As the river allowed large tonnage vessels to enter from the Mediterranean and reach Seville, this made the city an important destination in world history -to the extent that Christopher Columbus set out from the port of Seville on his voyage to discover America. In the 16th and 17th centuries, merchandise and gold from America would pass through the Seville customs before entering Europe. It is assumed that this gold was stored in the Torre del Oro -that is the Tower of Gold on the shore of the river. But today, the tower is one of the ideal spots to take in a panoramic view of Seville. Another alternative is La Giralda that is classified as the symbol of Seville. Today, this structure that was the minaret of the large mosque during the Islamic period is the bell tower of Seville Cathedral.
Crossing the bridge constructed over the river, I find myself in a street that resembles a historical marketplace. Towards noon,
the people begin to flood into the restaurants on this street for lunch. I decide to try paella, one of the main local dishes of this region. The most preferred paella, which is a rice dish with saffron and has many varieties, is the one prepared with sea produce.
I follow the sounds I hear while walking down the street, and notice children creeping up behind tourists and scaring them with the noise from their toys. In addition to the joyful sound of the children, I am accompanied on my walk by huge trees extending their heads between the buildings into the sky with the air of a giraffe, and scores of parrots that live in the trees. Maria Luisa Park is the best place to see the variety of trees and parrots more closely. The Plaza de España beside Maria Luisa Park was built for a fair in the 1920s, and is one of the city’s most magnificent buildings. Scenes from outstanding films including
Dr. Zhivago, Star Wars, and Lawrence of Arabia were filmed in this building that is one of the prime examples of Mudéjar art, a style created by the Spanish with inspiration from the works of art they seized after recapturing Andalusia. Real Alcazar, built in Mudéjar art and one of Andalusia’s most beautiful castles, is also worth visiting.
The next day, I leave Seville for the Cordoba day trip I’ve planned. As it only takes half an hour by train, I can spend the whole day wondering around the city. Owing to the famous Spanish tortilla de patatas, which is comprised of eggs and potatoes, that I ate in a café in Cordoba, I start the day with a full stomach.
Cordoba, one of the most important centers of the Islamic civilization, was both a capital and a center of science, and is the fourth greatest Islamic city after Mecca, Medina, and alquds (Jerusalem). When I learnt that a significant phase in the development of cameras was recorded here, as a photography enthusiast, I begin to look at Cordoba from a different perspective.
I enter the Cordoba Mosque (Le Mezquita Cordoba), one of the most significant structures of the city. With its interior that expands with columns and features a spectacular mihrab, this monumental structure captivates me. I walk around the chapel that was built by the Spanish by removing the columns in the center of the mosque, and opening the ceiling. Today, this structure that was first used as a mosque and later as a cathedral, serves as a museum. Casa Andalusi reviving an authentic Andalusian house and the tower museum Torre de la Calahorra hosting objects peculiar to Andalusian culture were gifts to the city by the convert Roger Garaudy known for his admiration for Cordoba.
As evening sets in and time comes to return to Seville, I begin to get excited about Granada. Despite being located in southern Spain, Granada is one of the coldest cities in the country because it backs onto the Sierra Nevada Mountains. It is situated in a fertile region that is fed from the waters flowing down the mountains. Granada in Spanish means pomegranate, and because this is the symbol of the city, depictions of the fruit can be seen everywhere.
The magnificent Alhambra Palace, another unique structure in the city that is worth seeing, is not only the pride of Granada, but the whole world. The structure reflects the level of civilization reached in the period of its construction, and is like an envoy that conveys the precision and detail of history to the present. Don’t be surprised by the simplicity of the palace’s outer walls -there are many details inside, on the walls and domes, that remind us of the beauty of paradise, and which stand out with their spectacular plasterwork.
Another famous object in the palace is the water clock that has twelve lions, each spurting water from its mouth in turn on the hour and informing the palace visitors of the time; the clock is now situated at a central, easily accessible location in the gardens. The gardens of the palace, or Palacio de Generalife, also known as the “Gardens of Paradise” offer visitors the chance to relax. I enjoy the beauty surrounding me, imagining that walking around these gardens in spring would be a wonderful experience.
Amidst all this beauty and splendor, the inscription “Wa la Ghalib illa Allah” (There is no greater conqueror than Allah) that appears on almost every wall in the palace seems to convey an important message to its residents and visitors -from the past to the present.
Although the exterior of the Alhambra Palace, a complex consisting of sections of buildings and tower palaces, is square,
the inside is actually a circular design. This complex also includes the Palace of Charles V that resembles the Colosseum in Rome. This is open to the public and is certainly one of the places worth visiting.
Visitors should spare plenty of time to tour around this huge palace complex, and buy the entrance tickets days in advance available online. As the day I visited the palace was a special day, January 2, the day when Granada was retaken from Muslims (Reconquista), I had the chance to tour a part of the palace without a ticket.
I look down from the palace that offers a view of the city from above, and leave it behind after planning a route towards the city center. When I notice a shop selling the famous churros, I decide to take a short break. Churros are similar to the Turkish tulumba sweet and are served with chocolate sauce. After gathering the energy I need to continue my tour, I begin to climb the Albaicin Hill that is immediately opposite Alhambra. The Great Mosque of Granada was restored and reopened in 2003, and since then has been an important focal point for the Muslims in the city.
My tour around the citrus-perfumed streets of Andalusia, which blends history, art, and science, has come to an end. I depart Andalusia, the heart of civilization, with memories of both glory and sadness.