Day 17 – Toledo

Today we had out last European hotel breakfast (we’re eating en route tomorrow), and then walked to Puerta de Atocha to catch our train to Toledo. Half an hour later, we stepped off the train into Toledo’s pretty and quaint train station (it had stained glass and fancy designs and things). We got a map of the city, then joined the flock of tourists on the bus to the historic center of the town. Nearly every person we saw today was a tourist; we even began to recognize people and tour groups.

The closest tourist destination was the Alcázar, which played various governmental and military roles throughout Toledo’s history. The museum is built on top of the remains of the old building. The exhibits we saw basically led us through all of Spanish history from 1400 to about 1800 (we skipped the twentieth century). Miel was very happily recounting all of her Euro knowledge and made us go back to the royal family tree that was displayed near the beginning of the exhibit to check her facts. She also asked a museum employee (the awkward ones that just walk around the exhibit and watch you read stuff, made more awkward by the fact that we were practically the only ones in the museum) when Carlos V reigned. The employee didn’t know, but Miel did get to have an awkward encounter in Spanish! Anyway, los Reyes Católicos were not on the family tree, “which frankly, I think that was a huge oversight, given how often they were referenced.” We saw a bunch of armor, weapons, flags, and other things to do with royalty and the military.

A statue in the courtyard of the Alcázar.

Because Miel doesn’t want me to start another paragraph with “next,” I will quote her: “The route we had mapped our earlier pointed us in the direction of the cathedral.” This was the biggest and fanciest religious building we saw today, and the most similar to other cathedrals and basilicas we’ve seen on this trip. There were no pictures allowed, so I only took a few. It had the usual cathedral-y things (cloister, chapels, ornate altar, stained glass), and also a Sacristy, which housed paintings done by such icons as el Greco, Goya, van Dyck, Raphael, and Caravaggio. We wanted to go up to the tower in the Catedral but were informed that we couldn’t until later in the afternoon, so we moved on.

Illicit photograph of the Catedral.

From the Catedral, we stopped briefly at the Iglesia de Santo Tomé to see one of el Greco’s most famous works, El entierro del Señor de Orgaz. We then went on to the Sinagoga del Tránsito, the main synagogue of the Jewish quarter of Toledo. The museum told us all about the history of Jews in Spain, and we also got to see important examples of mudéjar art. We were kicked out when the museum closed at three, which Miel tells me is an important cultural note.

Outside la Sinagoga del Tránsito.

We stopped by the house that once belonged to el Greco, but it too was closed, so we headed west towards Santa María la Blanca, a former synagogue (now preserved by the Catholic Church). It “was constructed under the Christian Kingdom of Castile by Islamic architects for Jewish use,” making it a unique mixture of cultures and faiths (Wikipedia). It is labeled as a synagogue, but the artwork inside (as well as the nun) is clearly Christian, and the architecture is mudéjar (Muslim).

The pinecones decorating the pillars are a typical Muslim motif.

To continue our religious and historical tour of Toledo, we went to the Monasterio de San Juan de los Reyes. It was Gothic and had a beautiful courtyard, as well as an intricately designed sactuary. I particularly enjoyed their gargoyles, which were in the forms of various birds and mythical creatures. There was a portrait in honor of Isabella de Castilla, who was the Catholic Queen that drove out the non-Catholics, including the Jews we learned about in the Sinagoga del Transito.

The cloisters of the Monasterio de San Juan de los Reyes.

Even with our lovely map, we got rather lost on the way to the Mezquita. Streets and “plazas” (usually just slightly wider sections of streets with four or five different roads branching off of them) were occasionally labeled, but even when we knew where we were, it was difficult to figure our which way to go. Toledo is a veritable labyrinth of narrow, sloped streets, without any semblance of an organized grid. We did eventually make it, and explored the thousand-year-old Mezquita del Cristo de la Luz. It built on top of a Visigoth church and was used as a chapel about two hundred years after it was built. The vestiges of a colorful painting are still visible on the ceiling, and it has many arches and uniquely designed ceilings.

The tall, narrow streets of Toledo, conveniently covered to provide shade.

Pillars and arches in the mosque, built in 999 A.D.

We walked through the Puerta del Sol on the way back, and bought postcards and swords. Toledo is famous for its steel and metalworking, especially swords, so we couldn’t leave without them. We hope customs doesn’t mind. We had jamón ibérico again for dinner, this time on pizza. It was the first time I have ever seen Miel give up on using a fork and knife (“my teeth work better!”).

Our last train ride in Europe. Goodbye, RENFE!

After consulting bus drivers and being consulted by other tourists, we found the correct bus back to the train station. We took the train back to Madrid, printed our boarding passes, packed and commenced the daily blogging ritual. We are sad to be leaving Europe and going back to real life – this is our last real blog, DEAR READERS! – but our adventures in Toledo were an excellent note on which to end.

-Sara & Miel