We got up at 7o’clock… Scratch that. I got up at 7 o clock, Ruth got up at 7.45 and had a cup of coffe, in order to catch the 9.20 train in Madrid. Naturally, we missed it so wandered around Atocha train station which quite frankly could have been an airport because Ruth was still so tired she needed her second coffee of the day.
The renfa train was waiting so we made our way to Check in – again what train station has check in?
Apparently it would take half an hour to get Toledo but unfortunately their commitment to punctuality had been suspended for reasons outside their control.
Upon arrival we had to make plans to meet up with a friend of David’s so we stopped in a small bar and order a coffee just to use the phone, Ruth’s third.
None of his friends would be available for a few hours so we decided to wander around for a few hours.
There seems to be a theme to this city and that is that you don’t really know what to expect when you turn a corner. The buildings are all relatively tall and the streets are extremely narrow, so even if there is a Cathederal on the next street over you can’t see it until you walk halfway ip that street,
12.30 rolled around and so did our stomachs. We stoped at a beautiful old building overlooking on of the main bridges.
A 3 Course meal for ten euros was the Menu de la Casa including beer wine and coffee. David’s friends met us here and we agreed to meet up later and he’d show us around town. Post meal we crossed the bridge again and tackled the feat of over 200 stepsat a 35-40· angle that was never ending only to reveal that there was a lift available once we’d reached the top. There was a the reward of an amazing view however of which no painting, picture r words could truly describe.
The entire city has meshed together the beauty of Moorish Architecture with modern buildings seamlessly, achieving this through the we of similar colour schemes agreeing to the laws of the land.
This is what separates this from other amazing cities. With Prague; you can stand on one square and see 6 or 7 different styles of architecture just by turning 360· but none of the styles mesh. With Toledo it’s almost like the people who built the original buildings knew what the city would look like over 1000 years later.
David’s friend Henry met us when we decided to stop for a beer and he told us about some of the more important buildings to see. He even showed us some and it soon became obvious that he partly owned a Segway guiding company. Henry told us about an amazing view that only University students ever got to see as they didn’t let tourists know so we took our own tour up there. More amazing views and another coffee – Ruth’s 5th!
We decided to head back to Henry’s, stopping at a shop on the way for some alcohol. We wouldn’t tear it up tonight but instead share a few drinks and a nice meal with our new Spanish clients Beds were then set up in the living room and alarms were set for another early start to see more of this amazing city.
11.40am – Only just now waking up; fresh, but nearly 3 hours after the agreed time. We found out that this would be somewhat of a Godsend though.
We finally got moving about 1ish and Henry showed us around some more, he also told us about some buildings that would be free to enter at about 4.
We decided to say our thanks and goodbyes to Henry and have some food to wait for this time.
The first place to see was a church we’d been refused from the previous day. Iglesia de Sto Tone. A truly beautiful place that got me thinking about why many churches (thankfully not in Britain) feel the need to charge you upon entry. Fortunately we arrived at the time and day of the week where it was free for two hours - but to attract people to religion, why charge them for the opportunity? This place was cool though mainly becuasethe back room was a shrine to bones from certain Saints.
Thenext stop was El Sunagogu de Transista. This confused me even more about religion as a whole. It was a Synagogue and these are for Jewih people yeah? Ot looked exactly the same as the Catholic Church. Now I’ve been in both churches and Synagogues before and noticed the similarities before but it makes you think that for the 1000’s of years of oppression both these religions have given each other over very small differences in what they believe – its hard to wrap my head around.
The third place proves this point completely. Quite frankly I have never cared if someone is religious or not. I am personal not but I am envious of thos with faith on times because in dark times they can look to whoever they believe in for answers or trust and guidance. Santa Maria Blanca is a Catholic Synagogue. And no you didn’t misread that.
At the age of 31 a gentleman called Abraham was told by God that he should become a Catholic even though he was Jewish. He didn’t want to turn his back on his religion however so he combined the two. The place he set this up in was perfect for it. It was originally a Synagogue between the 12th and 15th centuries but then changed to a church up until the 18th Century when it became a stable.
Then a few years ago Abraham started his religious fusion here and it is mainly a museum at the moment with an exhibition of art by Abraham which told the story of the evolution of the religion and the building we were in, we were lucky enough to meet the man himself and some of his entourage.
The final place we went was probably the most pretigious of all the buildings. Monasterio de San Juan de los Reyes is the biggest church in Toledo and often gets mistaken for the Cathedral. There was a beautiful courtyard of a Jardin del las Flores and the main church building was enormous. It has seen the marriages of famous football playuesr over the years and had some beautiful work added to it as recently as 1983.
We then proceeded to a coffee house and made the mad dash to the train situation to begin our journey home.
Toledo – Check it out Mother Fucker
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