Toledo

On a Sunday night, I bought a ticket to Toledo for the following morning, somewhere in the neighborhood of 9:30 AM.  I have Mondays off, and I wanted to make the most of my day.  Then a couple of Sunday night drinks in La Latina with a friend turned into a very late Sunday evening/Monday morning.  When my alarm went off, I considered blowing everything off, but with the tickets already bought, I dragged myself out of bed and to Atocha, where I took an AVE southwest into Castilla y La Mancha.

I immediately fell asleep on the train and woke up in the Toledo station.  Still blurry eyed, I walked out into the crisp early December morning, a thick layer of fog hanging above the ground.  I expected Toledo to be a lot like Segovia, and the biggest theme of this trip was how incorrect I was about that.  There are similarities, but both cities are distinct, and in the end, I prefer Toledo. 

Toledo is cradled by the río Tajo, the longest river in Spain that flows all the way to Lisboa before emptying into the Atlantic.  The old part of the city resembles a medieval wedding cake, with layer stacked on top of layer, stonewalls and ramparts covering the sides.  When I first arrived and as I walked towards and up into the old part of the city, the mist and the lack of people made me feel like I was in a dream, 500 or 800 years in the past.

I hit the main square soon, however, and things picked up speed as the sun rose and I was no longer the only person around.  I grabbed a double espresso and a croissant from a café and then set myself to exploring. 

Toledo shares many of the same charms as Segovia…the winding and narrow cobble stone streets, excellent views from all around the city, delicious local specialties, and history for days.  Toledo is usually pitched as the city of three cultures, since before the Reconquista in 1492, Christians, Muslims, and Jews all lived in the city.  At this point, the Christians have left their mark most strongly, but elements from all the groups live on to this day. 

I was particularly enamored of the river and the way it cut through the landscape and framed the city in such a way.  While I was exploring the area around the Puente de San Martín, I stumbled upon the Camino de Don Quixote, a cultural trail that follows the character’s travels through Toledo and elsewhere through La Mancha.  It was really cool to be following in the footsteps of Spain’s greatest literary caballero and to also know that most likely not much has changed.   The terrain and the feeling of the land itself, along with the buildings, the walls, the cathedrals, make you feel like your walking through the pages of history.

La Mancha is a semi-arid but also very fertile plateau that makes up a large part of central Spain.  Much of Spain’s agriculture is based in La Mancha, along with other goodies like queso manchego, the delicious cured cheese, and very good red wine.  Toledo is also known for its carefully prepared wild-game dishes, especially perdiz, or partridge, along with several stewed, pork-based dishes.  Mazapán is the staple dessert, and the sweetly dense dough can be molded into a variety of shapes. 

Toledo was also the long time home of El Greco in the late 16th century, and the legacy of the celebrated painter, who was born in modern day Greece and then came to Spain, is very strong in the city.  I went to the El Greco museum during the middle of the afternoon, when a lot of the other businesses were closed for siesta.  It was very interesting to see how he developed as an artist and pushed the boundaries of religious painting and portraiture. 

                                     The Burial of the Count of Orgaz -- El Greco, 1586-88

I spent a solid 10 to 11 hours in Toledo, and I never felt bored.  Between walking around and getting lost in the streets, the museums, the food, and the cathedrals, the city has a bounty to offer the traveler.  Once the sun goes down, the city becomes even more magical, illuminated against the darkness of the surrounding countryside.  You can definitely do the trip in a day, but could also easily spend 2-3 days.  One of my favorite parts of traveling is really enjoying a place that you thought was just going to be OK. 

Toledo exceeded all of my expectations, and if you have to choose between Segovia or Toledo for a day trip, Toledo has my vote.