Bill and Jean: Family, Friends, Activities, and Adventures: SPAIN: OCTOBER 2012

SPAIN: ART, CASTLES, CATHEDRALS, EL CID, AND PILGRIMS

October 18-28, 2012

Maria, Steve, Anna, Kate, Bill, and Jean

Bill and I paid our first visit to Spain in May of 2006 with Insight Tours, followed by a few days in Benicassim with the Axelrod/Fuerch family. It was a fantastic trip and left us with a desire to see more. The opportunity came in October of 2012, when Steve and Maria invited us to accompany them on their family trip during the fall school break for Anna and Kate.

Instead of riding in a big bus and going only where big buses can go, we traveled in a rented Citroen Jumpy, expertly driven by Steve on complex motorways, down muddy byways, and through narrow streets. We seldom saw a big bus, and on many occasions wondered if we’d make it in the Jumpy. We were very proud of Steve as he returned it to Europcar without so much as a tiny scratch—dirty, but unscathed.

The Jumpy

As on our previous trip, we enjoyed watching for “Mr. Osborne” along the motorways and attempting to take his picture from the window of a speeding vehicle. We’re told that the Osborne sherry company erected about 200 of these bulls as advertising billboards. The bulls were to be removed after a law was passed in 1994 prohibiting roadside advertising. After a public hue and cry to save them, 91 were painted solid black with no advertising text and spared. They have now become quite a national symbol of Spain.

Mr. Osborne

Wherever we are, we attempt to enjoy regional cuisine. However, this generally becomes an opportunity to see just how culturally narrow I am when it comes to eating meat. Even though I buy local, humanely raised meat at home, it still comes packaged neatly from the butcher and it doesn’t stare back at me from the plate. So I stayed pretty much in my comfort zone when it came to eating. The four-star Hotel Preciados in Madrid provided a breakfast that could last all day. I think this hotel provided more variety in fruits, vegetables, cheeses, meats, eggs, pastries, and breads than I have ever seen on a breakfast buffet. Of course, there was unlimited access to freshly-squeezed orange juice and great coffee as well. Our two- and three-star hotels offered more basic fare, but we always had a breakfast sufficient to start the day. For lunch we often ate Tapas, which are small snacks. Favorite dinner mainstays for me were hake, a mild, flaky white fish; and paella. I also enjoyed grilled vegetables, salads, and the ubiquitous French fries that seem to appear in every country.

Paella in Santiago de Compostela

Our hotels ranged from four-star chains in Madrid (Hotel Preciados Madrid) and Burgos (Abba Hotel Burgos, which had a swimming pool and tennis to give Anna and Kate a break from museums and cathedrals) to small, simple two- and three-star boutique family operations in Segovia (La Casa Mudejar Hotel and Sephardic Restaurant), Salamanca (Hotel Placentinos), and Santiago de Compostela (Hotel Entrecercas). All of the hotels were near the old city centers, allowing us to walk to many places we wanted to see.

We set out with some specific objectives in mind. These are indicated by the words in bold type.

We wanted to visit castles. Bill has been “collecting” and studying castles for years and Steve has taken up that hobby as well. We saw several types.

I still remember watching El Cid with Charlton Heston and Sophia Loren in our VW bug at the Drive-In fifty years ago. I loved that movie. So I was ready to jump right into the plan for visiting the sites and legends of The Cid, Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (1043 – 1099). Bill and I watched the movie again before we left home. I cried at the end. Again.

On our 2006 trip to Spain, as well as on visits to France, we heard about the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, which pilgrims have followed for over a thousand years. Tradition has it that the remains of St. James are buried there. Before the trip I watched The Way, a 2010 film that was a collaboration between Martin Sheen and his son Emilio Estevez. This was a good preview for our stay in Santiago de Compostela.

While we had been on an excellent guided tour of the Prado during our Insight visit to Madrid, we were eager to go again. We also visited the nearby Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, which was featuring a traveling exhibit, Gauguin and the Voyage to the Exotic, in addition to its own large collection of 13^th to 20^th Century masterpieces. Madrid has an amazing amount of really great art!

I have no words for the feeling of awe and reverence I experience when entering great cathedrals, many of which were built over a thousand years ago. This trip provided opportunities in all the cities in which we stayed: Madrid, Burgos, Segovia, Salamanca, and Santiago de Compostela.

We had visited Salamanca on our Insight tour, but it was fun to return and see how much we remembered of this center of learning. The University of Salamanca was founded in 1134 and given the Royal charter of foundation by King Alfonso IX in 1218. According to Wikipedia, it is the oldest founded university in Spain and the third oldest European university in continuous operation.

It seems that on every European trip we encounter evidence of the Roman Empire and this was no exception.

MADRID

Catedral de Santa María la Real de la Almudena in Madrid is located opposite the Royal Palace. The cathedral is relatively modern, but like the others its construction took more than a lifetime. It was started in 1883 and not completed until 1993.

The 18^th Century Royal Palace had several predecessors on this site

Madrid’s Opera Plaza

Market in the Plaza de San Miguel

Inside the Market in the Plaza de San Miguel

Big Monkfish in Market in the Plaza de San Miguel

I have eaten and enjoyed monkfish tail in the past. It’s delicious. I always wondered why “tail” was specified on the menus; why not just “Monkfish?” Now that I have seen the head, I think I have my answer. We saw quite a few smaller monkfish in markets, but no more like this giant.

Plaza Mayor, a hub of activity in Madrid

Flamenco Show in Madrid

Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum

The Prado

PENAFIEL, VIVAR, AND BURGOS

Penafiel Castle--Long and Narrow Like a Ship

View of Penafiel Castle from its Tower

Bodegas Portia (Portia Winery), Gumiel de Izan, Spain, Near Burgos

A number of wineries in Spain have enlisted famous architects to build modern facilities. This one was designed by Lord Norman Foster and Partners of London. Steve, Bill, and I spent a day doing what Steve called “the day tour of closed wineries” but we finally found this one open and were able to enjoy their wine bar.

Stork Nests on a Bell Tower

We saw many of these nests, but no storks.

Monument to El Cid in Vivar, his birthplace

A Street in Vivar

El Cid’s Tomb in Burgos Cathedral

Cathedral of Santa Maria in Burgos

Burgos Cathedral Altar

Sword in Museo de Burgos, believed to be El Cid’s “Tizona”

Avenue of Plane Trees in Burgos

Santa Maria Gate in Burgos

SEGOVIA

Casa Mudejar Hotel and Sephardic Restauran

The Alcazar in Segovia

Ferdinand and Isabella Sat Here!

The Kings and Queens of Castile Crown this Room

Ferdinand (Center) and Isabella (Right)

A Painting of El Cid in the Alcazar of Segovia

Window in the Segovia Alcazar showing Moorish Architectural Influence

Bartizan and Wall Decoration are also Moorish architectural styles

The Family: Steve, Maria, Anna, Jean, Kate, Bill

We climbed many steps to the top of the tower. It was worth the effort as the views of Segovia and surrounding countryside were breathtaking.

Segovia Cathedral, built between 1525 and 1577 and dedicated to the Virgin Mary, dominates the cityscape.

Cathedral in Segovia

Segovia Cathedral

Segovia Cathedral Choir

The four copies of the book in the center provide music for the monks.

Close-up of Choir Music

Roman Aquaduct in Segovia

SALAMANCA

The great University of Salamanca dominates this city of golden architecture. Its 30,000 students give the city a vibrant, energetic atmosphere. In 1929 the university added a Spanish Language and Cultural Studies program in which 3,500 foreign faculty and students currently participate.

Anaya Plaza, part of the University of Salamanca

Fr. Luis de Leon at Salamanca University

Father Luis was a teacher at Salamanca University who was imprisoned from 1572-1576 on charges under the inquisition. His major offenses were translating the Song of Solomon into Spanish and criticizing some text in the Vulgate Bible. He is said to have begun his first lecture after being released from four years in prison with, “As we were saying yesterday...”

Salamanca has a New Cathedral and an Old Cathedral, which are next to each other.

The New Cathedral is on the left, with a bit of the Old on the right.

I couldn't get far enough away to take a picture of the Old Cathedral.

This image is thanks to Wikipedia.

New Cathedral Door

Our Room at Hotel Placentinos in Salamanca

Plaza Mayor in Salamanca
The Cameos over the arches are of famous Spanish heros and legends.

Roman Bridge in Salamanca
Madrid and Salamanca were the only cities on the trip that Bill and I were revisiting. We had walked across the Roman Bridge in 2006. This time I walked it with Steve and Maria.

SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA AREA

Ponferrada, a Castle of the Knights Templar

Zamora Castle

Zamora Castle and Cathedral

Plaza of different wineries at Cambados

The Beach at Illa de Arousa

This was Kate’s favorite day. She didn’t notice that the air was cold and the water frigid.

The Beach at Illa de Arousa

This was Kate’s favorite day. She didn’t notice that the air was cold and the water frigid.

Shell Symbol Marking The Way of St. James

As we drove toward Santiago de Compostela, we saw many of these markers where the path crossed the road.

Pilgrimage Routes (from Wikipedia)

Major starting points in France are Paris, Vezelay, Le Puy, and Arles.
Thanks to Wikipedia for the map.

Backpacks and Walking Sticks Distinguish People Walking The Way of St. James

Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela at Sunset

City Hall on the West Side of the Plaza Opposite the Cathedral

Botafumeiro, Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela

This is an incense burner that swings from a pendulum. It was especially useful during the Middle Ages to dissipate the body odors of pilgrims who ate and slept in the Cathedral.