Toledo, what a city!

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Geo: 39.8598, -4.02347

An hour south of Madrid brought us to this remarkable city. The rabbit-warren of tiny streets in the old town defeated the Mini's GPS and we parked and walked.

Madrid is suffering from a two-week strike by municipal rubbish cleaners - that explains the mess. The city has outsourced the work and the private company is cutting wages and the workforce. At 26%, national unemployment is as high as it has been. The youth figure is over 50%. Apart from the rubbish, Madrid showed no signs of the poor economy, but in the country there are For Sale/Rent signs everywhere and closed shops. There are many beggars, human statues and hopeful €1 street vendors, but you see that in many cities.

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Photos

Toledo old town
Cathedral and Military Museum prominent on the skyline. Typical of Spain, the countryside and the building were mostly various shades of beige.

Puente de Alcantara
Roman bridge, rebuilt over the ages. Also there were lots of ancient-looking ruins, but we had no guide to interpret it for us. There was an art class further along the bank with earnest students drawing and painting remarkable landscapes.

For the foodies
Restaurant Alfileritos 24 in Toledo. Fine dining on a four course daily special menu. The food was probably the best we have had so far. Fig and anchovy salad plus cold tomato soup with minced veggies and prosciutto for starters.

Toledo Cathedral
As Dick would caption it - ABC (another beautiful/bloody church/castle). The other facades were compromised by crowding buildings, but this aspect was special.

The intricate entrance
It looked impressive from the inside foyer but we had church fatigue and didn't want to spend the €22 to have a proper look inside. "No photos" also deterred us.

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