Spanspek

The history of Spain is inextricably linked to the Arabs and Moors who, it must be said, civilised the place. The brought great advances in architecture, art and personal hygiene. (The indigenous Spaniards and the Visigoths didn't bath much before then.) They invaded only those parts they wanted, avoided those they couldn't get to or those that were too cold, and waged constant war against those who resisted (mostly the Portuguese). Once successful, they were remarkably tolerant of others—Christians and Jews.

Nowhere is this to be seen more than in Sevllle and Granada. Their old cities have many traces of the time: Mosques converted to Christian churches, design elements everywhere, and even old synagogues. And this despite attempts to erase their legacy. One can only presume that when the cleverest minds in the Christian kingdoms beheld the splendour of Arab and Moorish architecture, they threw up their hands, realising that it was pointless to try to exceed them... so they converted the to Christian places of worship and dwellings.

Real Alcazares is one such example. It's an Arab palace with Christian additions. Like others of its kind, it is adorned with intricate decoration—portraits of people (and perhaps an living creature) being forbidden under Islam. The beautiful, but often over-the-top, filigree of the Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo periods is garish by comparison. In any case, the latter came from elsewhere in Europe and a few hundred years after the Moors were defeated. So beloved by the Caliph was Granada that he surrendered rather than see his city destroyed.