Toledo

Today we went to Toledo, the capital of Spain before it was moved to Madrid. Toledo is truly a special place. First we picked up our local guide, Alejandro, and then we headed up the hill and stopped at a vista. As we soaked up the view of the city, Alejandro explained its long history, from the Roman era, to the almost 800 years of Moorish (Islamic) rule, to its strong Jewish quarter, and finally to the conquering of the Iberian peninsula by the Roman Catholics. Influence from all three religions remains strongly evident throughout. Of course, we took the obligatory group photo from the vista and then we headed down to one of the bridges crossing the river to town. The rest of the day was spent on foot, as there are few cars in town and the streets are narrow. We toured the small Synagogue of Santa María La Blanca (build by the Muslims, finished as a Jewish synagogue, and converted to a church, before becoming a museum dedicated to the three religions). Then we saw El Greco’s most famous work of art, The Burial of the Count of Orgaz in the Iglesia de Santo Tomé. Our final stop with our local guide was the Catedral Primada Santa María de Toledo, the most famous cathedral in Spain. After saying goodbye to Alejandro, we broke up into groups for lunch, exploring the narrow streets and shopping. One group decided to try the zipline across the river, which was amazing! Then we went back to our hotel in Madrid. As usual, we had some free time to clean up and/or explore. Finally, we had dinner, packed up, and went to bed early. We have to awake early tomorrow to head south to Cordoba and Seville.