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Published: November 5th 2009
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View of Toledo
We remarked on how the clouds were reminiscent of El Greco's famous painting of the city. Hola from Toledo. After a very short week in Virginia, we were off on Monday afternoon for Spain. Unfortunately, Alec's trusty MacBook Pro went South on Sunday, rendering it unusable for the trip. Fortunately, we purchased an extended warranty from Best Buy, so we stopped there on the way to Dulles to drop it off for repair, and to purchase a new MacBook to bring on the trip. Andrew was about due for a replacement anyway, so we'll use it on the trip, then pass it along to him for the Spring semester.
Our flight to Spain was via Amsterdam. I have to say that Schiphol airport was one of the most confusing terminals I have visited. We had about 2 hours between flights, and by the time we passed through immigration, checked through security, and found our departure gate, we had about 5 minutes to spare. At least we didn't miss our flight, and we didn't have to worry about killing time.
We arrived in Madrid at about noon on Tuesday. My luggage and Alec's arrived with us. Two out of three isn't bad, I guess. Andrew's backpack was missing. We explained to the helpful baggage representative that
we were planning to go to Toledo, and he assured us that if we called him with our hotel information, he would send the bag along the next morning. After picking up our rental car (we rejected one for lack of head and leg room), we headed for Toledo. Fortunately, given our jet-lagged, sleep-deprived state, it is only about an hour's drive from Madrid.
We arrived at Toledo tired, but Alec and I were immediately buoyed by this amazing medieval city's massive walls, impressive gates, and numerous historical structures (Andrew was fast asleep in the back seat). We found a nice hotel close to the old city and settled in. While the boys took a much-needed nap, I climbed the hill to the old city. I wandered around the narrow, steep, curving streets for 2 or 3 hours, getting thoroughly lost and generally soaking up the atmosphere. Although the city retains its general shape from the Gothic/Renaissance eras, it is a living, active town in the present, with residents of all ages, a busy university, and a great deal of commercial activity. Tourism plays a large part in the local economy, but this is also a place where people
live and work.
I returned to our room and picked up Alec. Andrew was still out cold. I'm not sure why I wasn't in the same state, but travel adrenaline must have kicked in. Alec and I climbed back into the city and found a nice outdoor cafe for tapas and wine. We wandered the streets a bit more, then returned to the hotel. At this point, Andrew was awake and very hungry, so we went out once more to a neighborhood restaurant for more wine, calamari, salmon, and cheese. We are all enjoying the Spanish habit of eating communal plates of savory food. I think everyone has had the experience of enjoying appetizers at restaurants, then being underwhelmed by the entrees. In Spain, you just keep ordering appetizers. They call them tapas, but generally they are similar to what American restaurants serve as appetizers. Very satisfying, and not overfilling.
We returned to our room and fell asleep. On Wednesday morning, we enjoyed the breakfast buffet at the hotel and decided to stay a second night in Toledo. Happily, Andrew's luggage arrived as promised. Then we set off to explore the old city and its many sights. We
13th Century Synagogue
The remarkable carving shows Moorish influences. It was one of the most memorable sights in a day filled with wonders. have been to other remarkable places and seen many very old structures, but for the sheer volume of remarkable sites, this must be tops. We saw the cathedral, numerous other churches and monasteries, and the 13th century synagogue that now serves as a museum of Sephardic culture. All were memorable.
We managed to have a tasty lunch (more tapas at an outdoor cafe), lingered over beer and wine, then found some delicious Havanas to smoke in the cathedral square. As the sun set, we headed back down toward our hotel. Since we were not quite ready for bed yet, we stopped by the hotel bar for a nightcap. As it happened, our drink orders were accompanied by more tapas, courtesy of the hotel and the bartender. I think we ended up having 4 rounds of drinks and 5 rounds of tapas. A happy end to a great first full day of touring.
We got up (a little late) on Thursday (check-out time is noon in Spain, bless their hearts) for our next destination, Salamanca.
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Kevin
non-member comment
Greetings
Hi McQuillens, I'm glad to hear ya'll had a safe and almost uneventful trip from the US to Spain. I hope your travels in Spain are every bit as enjoyable as your travels here in the US.