Holy Toledo! No Really.
Up early and ready for our next adventure in Spain. Today we're heading to Toledo.
We meet up with our local guide Carlos. Carlos tells us we are in the region of Castilla- the land of Castles. There are 10,251 castles in Spain, he says.
Toledo was once the capital of Spain. It's a cliff-top city on the Tajo River, is sometimes referred to as La Ciudad Imperial (The Imperial City). It is the center of Iberia-they even have a place on the sidewalk marking the center. The town was built by the Romans, went through a Visigothic stage then was controlled by the Moors. In 1561 Phillip II moved the capital to Madrid.
Carlos tells us he's surprised by some visitors to Spain that come looking for warm weather, yes it can be brutally hot in the summer but the latitude is the same as northern N.J., Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Annapolis, Denver and Lake Tahoe in California-he's looked it up.
Our first stop is to a traditional handcraft shop where they work with gold, silver and steel. A craft brought over from Damascus Syria.
Our next stop is the oldest synagogue, Sinagoga de Santa MarÃa La Blanca. The synagogue is a Mudéjar construction, created by Moorish architects for non-Islamic purposes. But it can also be considered one of the finest example of Almohad architecture because of its construction elements and style.
At the Iglesia de Santo Tomé, we view the The Burial of the Count of Orgaz, an oil on canvas painting 4.80 x 3.60 meters, painted in Mannerist style by El Greco between 1586 and 1588. No photos are allowed but if you visit a shop nearby you can see a representation of the painting above an ice cream chest.
You can also stock up on marzipan to energize you through the day.
Toledo Cathedral, Catedral Primada Santa MarÃa de Toledo is a visigothic church the moors built as a mosque. It's the second largest church in Spain next to Seville.
Be sure to check out the "light at the end of the Tunnel" created by three brothers. One of the most outstanding features of the Cathedral is the Baroque altarpiece called El Transparente. Its name refers to the unique illumination provided by a large skylight cut very high up into the thick wall across the ambulatory behind the high altar, and another hole cut into the back of the altarpiece itself to allow shafts of sunlight to strike the tabernacle.
It has over 750 Flemish stained glass windows and 22 artists worked on the altar over seven years.
We break for lunch at El Trebol.
Wine, beer and tapas, oh my.
We walk around a bit after lunch to burn some off the calories from this "light" lunch.
The views are spectacular.
Then it's back on the bus to our Madrid hotel.
Next up a high speed train ride to Córdoba then on to Seville.
More photos from Toledo: https://photosbynanci.smugmug.com/Spain-2019/Toledo/
More photos from our adventure: https://photosbynanci.smugmug.com/Spain-2019
Nancy Nutile-McMenemy is an Upper Valley freelance photographer and writer who loves to attend concerts and local events in and around Weathersfield and the Upper Valley.
If you have an event you'd like listed please email it to: photosbynanci@comcast.com
We meet up with our local guide Carlos. Carlos tells us we are in the region of Castilla- the land of Castles. There are 10,251 castles in Spain, he says.
Toledo was once the capital of Spain. It's a cliff-top city on the Tajo River, is sometimes referred to as La Ciudad Imperial (The Imperial City). It is the center of Iberia-they even have a place on the sidewalk marking the center. The town was built by the Romans, went through a Visigothic stage then was controlled by the Moors. In 1561 Phillip II moved the capital to Madrid.
Carlos tells us he's surprised by some visitors to Spain that come looking for warm weather, yes it can be brutally hot in the summer but the latitude is the same as northern N.J., Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Annapolis, Denver and Lake Tahoe in California-he's looked it up.
Our first stop is to a traditional handcraft shop where they work with gold, silver and steel. A craft brought over from Damascus Syria.
Our next stop is the oldest synagogue, Sinagoga de Santa MarÃa La Blanca. The synagogue is a Mudéjar construction, created by Moorish architects for non-Islamic purposes. But it can also be considered one of the finest example of Almohad architecture because of its construction elements and style.
At the Iglesia de Santo Tomé, we view the The Burial of the Count of Orgaz, an oil on canvas painting 4.80 x 3.60 meters, painted in Mannerist style by El Greco between 1586 and 1588. No photos are allowed but if you visit a shop nearby you can see a representation of the painting above an ice cream chest.
You can also stock up on marzipan to energize you through the day.
Toledo Cathedral, Catedral Primada Santa MarÃa de Toledo is a visigothic church the moors built as a mosque. It's the second largest church in Spain next to Seville.
Be sure to check out the "light at the end of the Tunnel" created by three brothers. One of the most outstanding features of the Cathedral is the Baroque altarpiece called El Transparente. Its name refers to the unique illumination provided by a large skylight cut very high up into the thick wall across the ambulatory behind the high altar, and another hole cut into the back of the altarpiece itself to allow shafts of sunlight to strike the tabernacle.
It has over 750 Flemish stained glass windows and 22 artists worked on the altar over seven years.
We break for lunch at El Trebol.
Wine, beer and tapas, oh my.
We walk around a bit after lunch to burn some off the calories from this "light" lunch.
The views are spectacular.
Then it's back on the bus to our Madrid hotel.
Next up a high speed train ride to Córdoba then on to Seville.
More photos from Toledo: https://photosbynanci.smugmug.com/Spain-2019/Toledo/
More photos from our adventure: https://photosbynanci.smugmug.com/Spain-2019
Nancy Nutile-McMenemy is an Upper Valley freelance photographer and writer who loves to attend concerts and local events in and around Weathersfield and the Upper Valley.
If you have an event you'd like listed please email it to: photosbynanci@comcast.com