Toledo... at last

I promised Toledo information, and I shall deliver. On January 23rd I took a day trip to Toledo with a few friends. Toledo is about 50 minutes outside of Madrid, and it used to be the capital of Spain. I think this shows, as it seems to be larger and has more sites than Segovia. The town was absolutely amazing, and so full of things to do. I definately want to go back before I leave Spain; maybe I´ll take Mom and Aunt Leann with me when they visit!

The day started when we paid a mere €8.42 for a round-trip ticket. When we got to the bus station, Emily, Zach, and I waited for Eric, as he had to take a later bus. We explored the city a bit, and found a really cute park (NNAAAAAAAMMMMMEEEE???) (pictures below)

Can you spy Zach and Emily?

Trying to climb the hill outside the city walls. This is why Toledo was a defendable capital, lol.



The city is situated on a hill, so climbing everything was difficult. As we were heading toward a main square, we found this old gate (Puerta del Angel) that used to be a part of the city´s defenses. There was a tiny, tiny, tiny staircase that took you to the top. The cramped atmosphere and steep stairs were totally worth the view that we got at the top. Check this out:

Approaching Puerta del Angel

Zach and Emily at the top. Looking toward the center of the city.

Looking away from the city


Afterwards, we found the square and used that to find El Museo de Santa Cruz. It´s an old monastary, and contains amazing works of sculpture and art-- including El Greco´s 'Inmaculada Oballe'! El Greco is VERY famous in Spain, so I´m trying to get to the point where I can recognize his works on sight. His painting style is very distinct, so I think this is an achievable goal.

The inner courtyard of El Museo de Santa Cruz. Notice the 13th century (and earlier) sarcophagi under the walkway!


We tried to find the cathedral right after visiting the museum, but in a city where the builders had obviously never heard of a grid pattern, it's easy to get lost. This is my favorite part of exploring a new city. Getting lost and refinding myself really helps me understand the city. Eventually, we found the cathedral: a Gothic giant built from the mid-1200's until almost 1500.

Yeah, that's a life-sized representation of the Last Supper taking place over the door. :)


We couldn't take pictures inside, so I guess you'll just have to visit to see it for yourself! Haha, but really, if you're in Spain, check out this cathedral. In the church of the monastary in Lisbon, the stone walls were completely covered in carvings; here, the walls were completely covered in paintings. The whole church smelled like Oregon Chai tea, probably because of the insense they use. The high alter and choir box were in the middle of the cathedral, and there were at least twenty chapels all along the outside walls. It was the first European cathedral I've been inside, so I was appropriately in awe.

After the cathedral we ate and wandered. It was a long day of walking, so we were ready to go back by the time it started to get dark. There was stil so much I wanted to see, so hopefully I'll be able to return soon.

And that was Toledo!