Cadiz, Spain

We have crossed the Atlantic and are in the port of Cadiz--which is right in the heart of the city. You could throw a baseball from the ship and have it land in the old town. This city has quite a History. They have found bones of people who lived here 900 to 800 BC. The Phoenicians settled here and founded the current city about 1100 AD. The Carthaginians had already been here and they have recently unearthed a Roman amphitheater which dates back to about 100AD. For hundreds of years the Jews, Christians, and Muslims lived here side by side (each maintaining their own culture) without conflict. Then Ferdinand and Isabella (yes, indeed, the same ones who sent Christopher Columbus across the ocean blue) married, uniting several Spanish kingdoms. She was very strongly catholic, and had all the Jews and Muslims evicted from the country. The Spanish Inquisition began then. Now Spain is 95 percent catholic, so I'd say, she achieved her goal. And we thought she was so nice.
Cadiz is a beautiful city with lovely parks and a nice beach right on the Atlantic Ocean. We have been into town once on Rob's FDE (Faculty Directed Practicum) to "The Churches of Cadiz". Now we are going to walk back to look around on our own.