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| A little rejoicing for finally making it to the impressive Roman aqueduct in Segovia after many hours of traveling |
Three weekends ago now (goodness I'll never post a blog on time) I had my first free weekend to do with as I wished! So my friend Melanie and I decided to hit the road and see a part of Spain on our own time with our own itinerary. Our destinations were Segovia and Salamanca, two beautiful old cities to the west of Madrid, which meant we had some serious traveling to do. We started out by taking a bus to Madrid where we visited the Reina Sofia Modern Art Museum and got our fill of the weirdest "art" I have ever seen (There's a joke about the museum that tells about how one day people were walking through the museum's galleries and saw a mop leaning against the wall. As the people stood mesmerized in front of the simple mop, trying to interpret the message it was meant to convey, a janitor walked by, picked up the mop and returned to cleaning the floor). However, amongst the pile of tires and pieces of trash glued together, we were able to see Picaso's "Guernica" which thankfully hangs apart from the other modern artwork in the museum.
From downtown Madrid we took the metro to Aravaca to meet up once again with my loving host family who so kindly offered us a place to stay for the night. Melanie and I lucked out to be arriving on Guillermo's 17th birthday, which meant we were able to join in the family dinner! Mmmmm.
The next morning we were off again, heading west on a fast train to Segovia, which is a small city rich in history that sits over a ravine in the Castile and León plains of western Spain. Arriving to the city, our first stop was at the Roman aqueducts that loom over the city and keep everyone in constant reminder of the powerful empire that ruled before - as in 1st century AD when this aqueduct was first constructed out of NOTHING but stone (which means nothing to hold the stones together but the stones themselves). We then headed down the winding streets, past the jaw-dropping Cathedral and a little further to the Alcázar, a fairytale castle built on a cliff side, where we climbed too many steps with our heavy backpacks to get a breath-taking view of the city below and the valleys beyond. And then, before we knew it, we were heading away from this enchanting town as the cathedral bells tolled 4pm, because we only had a two days to take in two cities and we still needed to travel to Salamanca, which meant two more bus rides before night-fall.
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| The aqueduct is massive, to say the least |
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| They just don't make them like they used to - no mud, cement or glue! Just rock on rock and fingers crossed (for 20+ centuries) |
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| The Cathedral of Segovia that soars above the rest of the quaint town |
Around 8pm that night, Melanie and I arrived on foot to our charming hostel after walking from the bus station in Salamanca and we rejoiced at being able to put down our back packs and step out into the cool air under the golden glow of Salamanca lights. I mean it when I say "golden" the original stomping grounds of Salamanca, which still functions as the heart of this lively college town, glows like a golden ember in the night as all of the old churches and university buildings are made out of sandstone and thus "light up" the night. To uphold our budget, Melanie and I skipped out on the fancy dinner and instead bought a small smorgasbord of food at a nearby market which we then enjoyed while sitting on the ground in the middle of Salamanca's Plaza Mayor, which is said to be the most beautiful plaza in all of Spain, and I can certainly see why (and so can you!) again because of the golden hue given off by the ornately decorated buildings around the square. We called it a night rather early and then spent the next day walking around the older part of Salamanca, taking in the typical sights such as the city's main Catedral, el Convento de las Dueñas (which is a convent with sheep and goat bones laid in the tile work and ghoulish figures carved into the columns - creepy to say the least for such a tranquil place), and the original buildings of the University of Salamanca where names of prestigious alumni are written in red lettering on the outside walls of the buildings (supposedly some of them written in blood?) and where above one door everyone stares in frustration to find the famous frog sitting atop a skull (as legend has it that if you find the frog, you're guaranteed good grades on your exams...or good luck with love...etc...). We did find the frog, but only because a street vendor cheated by using a small mirror to reflect the sunlight on the little creature, very well hidden amongst the sandstone carvings, so do we still get good grades?
It was great to visit another college city in Spain and to enjoy the unique atmosphere of the night life while walking through golden alleyways. We did our best to not get knocked over by the strong wind that swooped through the city from the plains beyond as we ambled through the streets and poked around the favorite tourist destinations, but before we knew it, our time was up in Salamanca and so one again we hopped on another bus, this time to head back to Madrid and back to my host family for one more night with great company before making the final trek back to Granada.
A whirlwind of travels and a pocket-full of meomories...with more to come.
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| Plaza Mayor - Golden |
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| After a lovely dinner for two in the center of Plaza Mayor, college kid style - market food, sitting on the ground. But look! We certainly weren't the only ones! |
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| Day two in Salamanca, sitting outside the cathedral and admiring the gorgeous sandstone architecture |
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| The looming halls of the Catedral Nueva |
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| Bones from a goat's spine inlaid in the floor of el Convento de las Dueñas |
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| A plaza outside of the original University of Salamanca. The little frog is somewhere above the pair of doors on the left side of the photo (trust me, you certainly wont see it from here) |
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| With Melanie on a Roman bridge on the outskirts of old Salamanca |
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