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Published: October 9th 2009
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Romantic weekend in Segovia: castles, churches and...military bands?
Music: Goin' to Acapulco - Calexico & Jim James version Segovia, about 30 mins northwest of Madrid by bullet-train, definitely deserves its status as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Anne-Laure and I went there while she was in Spain for a romantic weekend retreat from the hustle and bustle of the capital...and what a trip! Here are some of the highlights:
The old town is perched up on a hill and, from afar, looks like a ship with the Alcázar (castle-palace) jutting out as the prow, the Gothic Cathedral as the main mast and the millennia-old Roman aqueduct as the rudder. Although all of these are breathtaking sites, the aqueduct is perhaps the most famous, so let’s start there.
Segovia’s city shield is just a picture of the aqueduct and, consequentially, this landmark is the first thing one sees when stepping off the bus at the downtown stop. It was built by the Romans around the first and second centuries AD and was meant to bring water down from the Sierra de Guadarrama mountains about 18km north of the city. The aqueduct spans the last kilometer of this track. According
AVE train
We're on our way! to Wikipedia (source for obscure historical knowledge that may never be used in academia), its 20,400 stones make up 166 arches and 120 pillars that stands more than 100 feet tall at its highest point--all, of course, without mortar or any other adhesive!! I literally had to stand at the bus stop for a few seconds to fully understand the magnitude of this achievement (and the fact that it is still standing almost two millennia after it was built). It is truly a testament to Roman (and human) engineering. Our last day in Segovia, Anne-Laure and I walked to the end of the aqueduct and were amazed to see that the channel for the water was not bigger than my hand! We also had our picture taken by a very nice but very picky Spanish photographer at the top of the aqueduct. He coached Anne-Laure for a good five minutes on how to take his picture; where to stand, what ISO to use, etc. However, for all of his equipment and “expertise,” when it came time for him to repay the favor, he couldn’t take a clear shot of us using my digital camera for dummies. Oh well!
Moving
Aqueduct by night
Beautifully preserved Roman aqueduct by night! on from the aqueduct, we went in to the center of town and visited the 16th-cathedral, which is just off of the main plaza (and coincidentally, about 5 mins from our hotel). The cathedral was beautiful, as only old Gothic buildings can be, complete with two massive pipe organs and vaulted ceilings with intricate paint patterns. I also managed to secretly snap a couple of pictures of the inner chambers that housed the icon that the Segovianos haul out for festivals and parade through the streets. Think of an ornate, gilded buggy pulled by people and then put a massive silver trophy on top, and you get the idea...
As an old city, Segovia has tons of smaller churches as well. In one of these, called the Church of Saint Michael, Isabel 1 of Castile was crowned Queen of Castile in 1474 (we know her as Isabella from Ferdinand as Isabella who financed Columbus’ voyage). There is also a small, round church outside the city’s walls called Vera Cruz that was founded by the Knights Templar in homage to Temple Mount in Jerusalem, which is currently maintained by the Knights of Malta, but it was a bit far of
Cathedral by night
The Gothic Cathedral by night. Check out those buttresses! :) a walk so we decided to view it from the Alcázar balcony instead.
Which brings me to the last of Segovia’s “big three” sights to see: the castle-palace. It dominates the land around it standing high on a massive rock formation. The Alcázar was built originally as a Moorish fort (most Spanish castles were) which was conquered by the Christians during the Reconquest of Spain in the 11th and 12th centuries. Several generations later, the castle came to look like it does today, with 16th-century stile slate roofs and conical towers. Unfortunately, these are not original because in 1862 a fire burned almost everything down. However, it was restored soon after to its former glory, but you can definitely tell that it has had a face lift! The Alcázar now holds many historical manuscripts from the Royal Artillery school (also in Segovia)--which include treatises by Tycho Brahe, Galileo, Lavoisier, Laplace and Newton--and a collection of pharmaceutical objects from the Royal Pharmacy that is now the ticket office for this awesome landmark. We trekked up the 287 stairs to the top of the main tower and had a great view, even if it was a bit claustrophobic to get there!
Terraced gardens
Cathedral and communal gardens along the path to the park. (Note: not nearly as bad as St. Vitus’ basilica in Prague...).
While the Alcázar was very cool, what really spoiled us was the view from the luscious park below. There is a small river that has carved away at the cliff on which the Alcázar stands and, if you follow the path starting at the Puerta Angel, you’ll wind around the river and eventually come out into this vast space with some of the greenest grass I have ever seen in my entire life! The journey takes about 20 mins, but it is definitely worth it! You start directly south of the Cathedral at an opening in the medieval walls. There are several steps that take you down through some terraced gardens (see pic) and onto the floor of the river valley. Then the path curves around for a bit until you hit the river and copious amounts of fresh, wild blackberries. We really should have brought some Tupperware to take a bunch home because they were so good! Since the sight is so moving, it is a popular place for wedding pictures, so we had to wait for a couple to have their moment on the little bridge
Organ
One of two massive pipe organs in the cathedral. over the river, but it was kinda cute. Once you hit the grass, you see the picture-perfect postcard view of the Alcázar towering above you and what a sight! If you ever come to Spain, you must go there, just to see that view. We loved it so much (and laying in the park as well) that we went back before the bus left on Sunday.
The last thing I want to mention about Segovia is that, while we were there, the city hosted its second annual military band competition!! i have no idea why, of all places, Segovia has this quirky honor, but it was a blast to see the different marching bands and their nerdy re-enactors march through the old city streets. There were a handful of bands from Spain, Germany and Italy and, after a little prodding from yours truly, Anne-Laure was wearing a feather-plumed Bersaglieri hat and making some soldiers jealous... 😊 The Spaniards wore their shirts mostly open, exposing massive amounts of chest hair, the Germans were straight-laced and had several women in their ranks along with a sweet legion-esque standard, and the Italians brought flag twirlers (complete with matching tights) and ran while
A-L + Spaniards
Anne-Laure making Spanish soldiers jealous... they performed (hilarious!). If I can, I’ll try to post a video or two so you can hear the songs as well... Unfortunately we didn’t figure out who won, but were nonetheless treated to daily concerts in the town square!
This weekend is a long weekend, and while most other Fulbrighters are headed to the coast to catch the precious few rays of sunshine, I start my CELTA Young Learners course on Saturday. I hope that this is as informative and well-directed as my CELTA course was, and I’ll probably be able to apply most of what I learn to my current classes. All that is going just fine, I’ll write more about it later. My private lessons are up and running and I’m also going to begin fencing next week at the Club Cardenal Cisneros, which is the oldest club in Madrid (created circa 1919). There’s a tourney coming up at the end of October, so I’d better start getting my form back quick!
Until next time...
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Chris aka Mom
non-member comment
Really enjoying your travelogue...
This looks like it was a great trip and I'm glad you're finding the time to write about (and photograph!) this whole experience. Can't tell you how proud I am of you...and I hope, of course, that it doesn't embarrass you too much for me to mention that in my 'comment.'