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Published: January 12th 2011
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Hello again everyone...and sorry for the late update (I know it drives my parents crazy not to hear from me). I suppose that my late reply reflects how busy I have been lately, but busy in a good way. Things have been great in Madrid and I have definitely made friends with the hostel goers who have been here since I have. It's kind of sad making friends here, only to see them go so quickly, however I suppose that's how things are with trips like this.
Madrid has been nice, but the feel of the city is modern and quite frankly the only things to really do here are eat, drink, and look at paintings. So...I have heard so many incredible things about the neighboring city Toledo, which was the original capital of Spain until the 16th century when the King decided to move the entire capital in one day (literally! There were aristocrats sleeping in the streets of Madrid because there weren't enough rooms)! Toledo is centered within steep rocky hills all around. In the 8th century the Moors arrived and strengthened Toledo's reputation as a center of religion and learning. And...for a good period of time (i.e.
the "Golden Age") there existed unusual tolerance for all religions, as Christians, Arabs, and Jews worked together to create a thriving city with a highly advanced culture. However...by the early 1600's with hostility towards Jews and Arabs, Toledo's economic and political culture began to decline rapidly with the expulsion of those who didn't convert.
So...enough history? This city is incredible!!! I'm not sure my trip would've been complete if I didn't go, and I picked the perfect day to do it! The sky was so clear you could see the moon the whole day, and it made for a gorgeous sunset at night. I arrived using the high speed train, which cost 10 euro to travel 44 miles (it took only 30 minutes...where are Texas' high speed trains???). I've never been more excited walking up to a city as I have this one. Toledo is really a medieval town captured in time. Its winding streets and hills are tiring to walk through, and the narrow streets make it really easy to get lost only because you can't see where you're headed. My first stop was at the Museo de Santa Cruz which houses El Greco's Assumption, who lived and
painted in Toledo for a period of time. It also houses an amazing collection of giant woven rugs, which up close you can see each stitching. Next was the famous Alcánzar, originally a Moorish citadel occupied from the 10th century to the Catholic Reconquest. It was a beautiful building, and although parts were highly renovated to fit the museum inside, the original parts were incredible. There were these two ladies who were taking pictures outside the fortress, so we asked each other to take pictures of each other. One was from Spain and the other from Colombia. I talked to them for a while, they seemed nice 😊
The most impressive part of my stop was definitely the Catholic Church, the Catedral Primada. The outside looked like a typical European church, however the inside was probably one of the most impressive displays of architecture and artistry I have ever seen. You just get chills walking through all the different rooms and observing their amazing attention to detail, which you'd never find in a modern building now of days. One of the rooms housed several paintings by el Greco and other artists.
The end of the day was equally
as good. As the sun set over the hills, the sky was just as clear as the morning and the Medeival city looked just as beautiful as during the day, with the various colors of the sky surrounding it. You can see a few picture of it below. Well, I'm really tired, but figured I might update you all with something! Wish you all could be here with me. Until next time...
~Zach
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