Postcards from Central Spain

I just wrapped up two busy weeks traveling around the central plain of Spain — Toledo, Segovia, Salamanca, and more — updating the next edition of our Rick Steves Spain guidebook. And, as always, I snapped lots of photos and took careful notes. Enjoy these “postcards” from my trip — and please share your own Spain travel stories in the comments below or over on Facebook. Happy travels! —Cameron

We’ll begin in Toledo, Spain’s cultural (and historical) capital.  About an hour south of Madrid, Toledo is a delight — and packs in more than its share of top-notch sightseeing.

It’s understandable why many Spain aficionados believe that Toledo has the country’s finest cathedral — including this exquisite gilded altarpiece. Holy Toledo, indeed! Times like this, I’m glad I bother to haul around the good camera.

In addition to its majestic cathedral, one aspect of Toledo that intrigued me was the strong Mudejar influence — the work of Muslim craftspeople who stuck around after the Reconquista made Toledo Catholic again in the 11th century. If you can’t make it to southern Spain (where the Moors hung around for another 400 years), you can get a good taste of this style in Toledo — such as here, at the Santa María la Blanca Synagogue-turned-church.

I have to admit…even after more than 18 years living in Seattle, I’m still a Buckeye at heart. And I still get a kick out of the street called “Calle de Toledo de Ohío”…complete with the official seal of my home state, in the upper-left. O-H!

Just outside of Madrid is El Escorial, a fortress-like monastery built as the country residence (and final resting place) for Spain’s austere Habsburg monarchs, as well as the headquarters for the Inquisition. The palace — like the people who built it — doesn’t have much personality. But the library, filling a vast hall with the collected knowledge of 16th-century Spain, is a highlight.

Spain’s devastating Civil War ended more than 80 years ago (dooming Spain to 40 years of Francisco Franco’s rule). And yet, the topic is still controversial in Spanish contemporary life. It’s surprising how few sights or museums relating to the Civil War you see in Spain. History museums tend to gloss over that topic, to avoid offending anyone on either side. (I spend a lot of my time in Germany and in Eastern Europe, where many people are willing to grapple with gruesome realities that took place far more recently.) For this reason, I share Rick’s affinity for the Valley of the Fallen, the massive, Franco-built monument and mausoleum for the victims of the Civil War (just up the road from El Escorial). While its architecture and its origins are unmistakably fascist, today it’s considered a rare monument to the darkest days of Spain’s 20th century.

I love Segovia. This was my first visit to this small city, just outside Madrid, and I was enchanted by the gigantic, fully intact Roman aqueduct that runs through the middle of town, as well as by its fine cathedral and its fanciful, Romantic Age castle (which I came to think of as the “Neuschwanstein of Castile”).

I finished my swing through Spain in the place where it all began: Salamanca, where I first set foot in Europe as a college student in 1996. This was my first visit back since my semester abroad here, and I was blown away by how elegant this fine old sandstone university city is…just as I remembered, but even better.

I was so excited to step into Salamanca’s Plaza Mayor — Spain’s finest main square — after all these years. But when I did, I was a little disappointed to see it cluttered with kiosks for a book show. (Don’t you just hate when that happens?)

Still, the space is grand — especially after dark, when floodlights twinkle on, the sky turns a murky blue, and everyone in Salamanca is out strolling.

Speaking of which, one vivid memory from my student days was what night owls Salamantinos (and all Spaniards) are. On my first weekend staying with my host family, I returned to the apartment around one o’clock in the morning. The next morning at breakfast, my host mother asked me worriedly, “Are you not feeling well? Why did you come home sooo early?” I recall seeing families out strolling with their little kids around midnight. Over the years, I convinced myself that I was exaggerating this memory. But on my Saturday night in Salamanca, sure enough, I snapped this blurry photo of a family out with their preschooler at 11:30 p.m. Some things never change.

 


You can read about my student days in Salamanca in this post about a visit to my host family’s farm.

I was in Spain to scout out additions and updates to our Rick Steves Spain guidebook. The 2019 edition will be available this December.

 

 

12 Replies to “Postcards from Central Spain”

  1. Was just in Salamanca myself and was also disappointed by the book fair going on at Plaza Mayor.

  2. It’s been twenty-something years since I visited Toledo Spain. I was a high school student touring Spain with my Spanish Class. Mantequilla por favor Lots of bread, very little butter. Your coverage is wonderful and insightful. Keep inspiring us!

  3. Please, it’s a book fair! culture and education are alive somewhere, thank you very much Spain! And about the preschoolers walking around with their parents after 11:30 pm, I believe that to be a sign of a healthy relationship: an enjoyment of life, a break with the constraints of time and society. I love your shows and your observations, thanks!!!!

    1. Yeah, I don’t know why, exactly, but I’ve always enjoyed seeing little kids outside, having fun, late at night. Especially in the Mediterranean countries. It’s one of those potentially un-noticeable differences– the care-free attitude that we don’t have much of in North America.

      1. So-o-o… As a parent of grown-up kids, I’m wondering –never having been there as yet but may soon go: how exactly do the parents and the young kids (pre-schoolers? kindergarteners??) get enough rest for work/school the next day? OR… do those things start later than compared to here in the States? OR… do they have a mid-afternoon siesta so that not so much night time sleep is required…?
        ROB

  4. Loved your glimpses of central Spain, most of which I’ve seen over the years. Agree that Plaza Mayor in Salamanca is fabulous. Remember a wonderful evening spent there with friends, enjoying a concert and filming the lovely architecture under warm evening lighting. A great place.

  5. We visited all of these in 2017. The valley of the fallen is a terrifying example of religion coopting to the political.

  6. Great glimpses you share with us. I loved Toledo. That is such a doable day trip from Madrid. Having lived in Europe for 10 years I have to say that tourists need to remember that these are people’s homes. Places have to have revenue and venues for such, hence book fairs. I have had my own wishes and that would be to be a tourist more. Ran into Steve when my parents who are big fans visited Helsinki years ago. Yes it is possible to see some of a place in a day. However if you have time, linger in a place for a while so you get more of the flavor, light and magic. Back of our heads are in the old video circa 1998-9 in Uspenski Cathedral. Many more happy travels to you!

  7. Best of Spain in 2016 with Agus Ciriza.
    It was a wonderful trip. Thanks to Rick Steves and the best guide ever – Agus!

  8. I love this post. It makes me want to visit Spain immediately! Can you talk a bit about tourism: are these “smaller” cities crowded like Barcelona ?

  9. I love Segovia and Toledo – such wonderful places! I could spend whole week there just exploring.

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