Toledo was the former capital of Spain before the monarchy moved the court to Madrid. It has a very long history of Catholicism that resulted in a lot of churches in the small city, which is apparently where we get the phrase, "Holy Toledo!"
Except I never say that. Because it just sounds silly.
Their main cathedral is huge and took 400 years to complete. Can you imagine working on a project your whole life, knowing that you will never see the final product?
Before getting into the actual city
400 years in the making
An arc of swords. Spaniards have this slightly terrifying thing for anything with a blade. It actually kinda freaks me out.
In front of one of Toledo's claims to fame: marzipan =)
You can't go anywhere without seeing one of these!
That same night, after taking a little siesta, a couple of girlfriends and I went out to do what people in Madrid do best - fiestar. We started at an Irish pub that was not Irish at all in any way, shape, or form, and then hopped to a tapas bar later on. When 12:30am rolled around, it was time to move on because that's when the discotecas started to open their doors, and there we stayed until, um...late. Good time to be had.
That's a tinto de verano. Red wine + lemon Fanta. It tastes better than it sounds, HAHA!
The next morning, my friend Jenn and I decided to go to El Rastro, a huge flea market in Madrid where you can buy things relatively cheap - but don't forget you're on the Euro. The first leg consists of newer items like clothing, toys, souvenirs, and such while the back end is more obscure with antiques, trinkets, and some genuine crap. If you look hard enough, you can pretty much find anything there.
See? You can buy remote controls, a hairdryer, a flashlight, AND a pistol all in one stall!
The biggest monalith of an aqueduct I have ever seen in my life. Not that I had ever seen one before today.
The market before it got crazy busy, shoulder to shoulder
See? You can buy remote controls, a hairdryer, a flashlight, AND a pistol all in one stall!
That same night, I went to the last night of a tapas fair that was going on in Madrid. In Spain, it's common to receive tapas - or little appetizers - when you go out. It's the Spanish version of peanuts and such, but there's a lot more variety, they're oftentimes complimentary, and they taste a lot better. Spaniards would pee in their pants if they saw how our happy hours charge for beverages AND vittles.
It's like being back in Vegas in an expo or trade show!
I wrapped up this weekend - no class today thanks to the generous cancellation by my professor - by taking a trip out to Segovia with a classmate. This place is famous for its huge Roman-style aqueduct and cochinillo - roast suckling pig. Again, another city rich in religious history, so the tourism guide was littered with churches and cathedrals. The highlight was Álcazar of Segovia, a gigantic castle that's rumored to have been the model for Sleeping Beauty's castle in Disneyland.
The biggest monalith of an aqueduct I have ever seen in my life. Not that I had ever seen one before today.
The view of the cathedral from la Plaza Mayor
PRETTY! =)
Think Walt really copied this?
What would a castle be without a knight in shining armor? :)
PRETTY! =)
Think Walt really copied this?
What would a castle be without a knight in shining armor? :)
And that pretty much sums up my second weekend in Spain. Only 47 days left! Hope everyone enjoyed the pics because my technophobe self pretty much just gave up an hour and a half of my life for your viewing pleasure.
Well worth your hour and a half :)
ReplyDeleteThese pictures are making me mad jealous gurrrrrlll! If I took pictures of my summer, it'd be a lot of microscopes and chemicals......not quite as interesting. saddd
ReplyDeleteI don't know why my name is coming up as something really, really nerdy, but this is Allison......
ReplyDeleteniiiiiiiice. btw, check out my bunny!
ReplyDelete