Blogs from Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain, Europe

Bonjour à tous, Je n'en connais pas la raison mais la nuit dernière plus un bruit, ni dans la rue, ni dans l'immeuble. Un miracle. Que la nuit à été bonne. Ce matin je retrouve ma voiture, je programme les visites, que je n'avaient pas faites hier, car trop excentrées. Les Arènes de las Ventas. Elles sont ornées des "azulejos" carreaux de faience décorés, peints avec les armoiries de toutes les provinces du pays. Construites en 1931, elles peuvent accueillir 23 798 personnes, et considérées parmi les plus grandes du monde. Le nombre de corridas, a considérablement augmentés, passant de 4 par an, au siècle dernier, et 30 aujourd'hui. Dans un autre style j'ai fait le détour pour avoir un aperçu du Stade Santiago Barnabeu. Sa capacité est de 81 044 places, et est la propriété ... read more

13 décembre 2017 : Il est l'heure de rentrer à,la maison. Sur le chemin du retour nous faisons étape à Tolède.... read more

The following day, we went to Toledo which was about an hour drive southwest of Madrid. Toledo is this old little town on a hill that is surrounded on three sides by water and the fourth side by walls. Due to its position, it was very easy to defend and was the capital of Spain for a long time. For many years it was home to three different religious groups all living in relative harmony - Christians, Jews and Muslims. Because of this harmonious living arrangement (granted, this didn’t last forever but prior to the late middle ages/early Renaissance), there are influences from all three groups. Apparently, many of the builders at the time were Muslim which meant that many of the buildings – religious buildings included, were in the a more Arabic/Moorish style. These tended ... read more

Up early and off to Madrid to return our home exchange partners' vehicle and pick up a rental car. Even with gps it was a bit trying getting around and out of Madrid. Once out of the city we enjoyed a one hour drive south to Toledo. Our boutique hotel was located in the old city on one of the narrow winding streets, so we parked in a local parkade. The parkade was a ten minute walk uphill on narrow cobblestone streets in 38c heat!! We were very happy to get into our air conditioned one bedroom apartment. After a short rest, we went out and wandered the maze of narrow streets. It is easy (and fun) to get lost here. By arriving later in the day, we seemed to miss most of the big tour ... read more

Issy is either turning Spanish or reverting to her teenage years. She's been going to bed at 2am every night, and then waking up at about 10.30am. Actually she doesn't wake up; I wake her up. First stop this morning is the El Greco Museum. On the way we pass the 14th century Puente de San Martin, which we read is Toledo's second oldest bridge across the Tagus River. It has large towers at both ends, and its 40 metre long central arch was apparently one of the longest on any bridge in the world at the time it was built. We buy tickets to both the museum and the synagogue next door. The museum was founded by the Marquis of Vega-Inclan, who was a patron of the arts, and it opened in 1911. The Marquis ... read more