Sam Molyneux - Cordoba to Toledo

Intricately carved horseshoe arches at the ruins of Medina Azahara

I stopped at Medina Azahara on my way out of Córdoba — a palace city built by Abd al-Rahman III at the height of the Caliphate's power, and thoroughly destroyed less than a century later during the civil war that brought the Caliphate down.

Two rally cars rounding a corner in front of a small whitewashed town hall

Family lunch under canopies in a holm oak meadow with poppies in the grass

Brick shelter in front of a field of bright red poppies under power lines

Two solitary holm oaks on dehesa pasture with low hills on the horizon

Rear wheel of a loaded touring bike leaning against a rusted metal gate

Some creative problem solving after one of the bolts supporting my rear rack sheared off.

Bush of white rockrose flowers in full bloom under blue sky

River winding through an oak wooded valley seen over a yellow bridge rail

White stork standing in its stick nest on a wooden utility pole

Wide reservoir framed by trees with low hills under overcast sky

Group of older men playing cards at an outdoor cafe table beside a granite column

Bottle cap poker at the bar with dominoes in the background.