We took a week out and travelled with
Mum, Terry and Gill to central Spain for a week visiting several historic
places and immersing ourselves in the Iberian culture.
We flew into Madrid on a week when a
heat wave was sweeping this part of Europe. It was 41 degrees when we arrived
but cooled down a bit as we drove up to our first stop in the southern part of
the Castile and Leon region, Segovia.
The region has been exposed to many
different cultures over time, each leaving an imprint on the architecture and
culture of the place, and in Segovia you can see some of the early megalithic zoomorphic
monuments commonly called verracos (for their boar like appearances), the
famous Roman aqueduct, many mediaeval churches and grand buildings and evidence
of the Spanish Civil War.
Our accommodation was the lovely Hotel Infant Isabel well situated in the heart of the old town on the Plaza Mayor
opposite the towering cathedral. That evening we soaked in the atmosphere of
the square which, as it was Saturday, was a busy with local families and tourists
alike eating and drinking and socialising late into the night.
On our first full day we walked down
towards the river where we had a great view of the Alcázar (rumoured to be the inspiration
for Walt Disney’s fairy tale castle), through the tree lined park, up on some
of the remaining city walls, and around to the amazing aqueduct.
We had two nights at Segovia before we
travelled onto our next destination. On the way we stopped briefly at the
lovely Our Lady of Soterraňa monastery at Santa Maria la Real de Nieva.
Then for a walk through the run down
Arevalo with its grand castle (currently being restored) where Isabella grew up.
We had lunch here before continuing.
Another brief stop was at Madrigal des las Atlas Torres – birthplace of Isabella the Infanta.
Then we arrived at the grand university city
of Salamanca perched on high ground dominating the river Duero.
Our hotel was the NH Salamanca Palaciode Castellanos with a lovely atrium at its centre like an old cloisters, again
well located in the middle of the historic old city.
We had three nights here and managed to
see quite a lot, though there was so much more we didn’t get around to. We visited
the old and new cathedrals side by side, the charming Convento de Las Duenas,
the Convento de la Anunciacion policed by a small nun, the little circular
church of San Marcos, the amazing hidden ceiling at the Monesterio de Santa
Clara (along with its fascinating museum on early Spanish life), the Casa Lis museum
of Art Nouveau / Art Deco, the Roman bridge, and the Plaza Mayor among many
more.
In the main square was a sculpture by
Miquel Barcelo of an elephant balancing on its trunk which would occasionally
issue gas from its upended rear end. We also saw this artists other sculptures and
his paintings on the subject of the Divine Comedy.
Our final destination was the lovely
walled town of Avila.
We stayed a couple of nights at the attractive
Palacio de los Velada, based on an old 16th century palace located
next to the cathedral.
It is the imposing walls that dominate
the character of this town, with the cathedral integrated into them and with
walks along a large portion of them you get a great view of the town and
surrounding countryside as you are buzzed by screaming swifts as the flying
close picking off insects as they fly. The best view of the town and its walls
is from outside up on a nearby viewing area.
The cathedral is another impressive structure
and the museum dedicated to Saint Teresa is informative.
We had an enjoyable evening listening to
jazz just outside the walls with the band performing in the blocked off road to
patrons in the roadside bars.
During our holiday we soon fell into the
local custom of taking a siesta in the afternoon to retreat from the worst of
the heat and to give us the stamina to continue on with the drinking and eating
later in the evening. Something we could really appreciate.
