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| View of Toledo from the Mirador del Valle overlook |
Monday, November 4, 2019 Toledo
We arrived at Toledo around noon, and stopped at a belvedere overlooking the cityfor a photo stop (the Mirador del Valle). It’s a beautiful view, wrapped around by the Tagus (Tajo/Tejo) River – with white swans and cormorants down in the water. Our bus drove us past the main gate to the city, to a location that allows one to enter via a series of escalators. We walked by a man playing the accordion – so fun to hear. We arrived at the Plaza de Zocodover and we were free until 1:30 for lunch, site seeing and shopping. Toledo is known for marzipan, so I went first for the marzipan shops and bought some to take back home. Mike was interested in a pizza, so we stopped for lunch at a place on the plaza, and sat with Carolyn and Rock for our lunch. I had a typical egg and potato torta (omelet) with ham – which was delicious.
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| The spire of Toledo's cathedral is in the center, with the Alcazar on the right, all surrounded by the Tagus River |
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| Toledo's Plaza de Zocodover is one of the highest points in the city; used in Moorish times as a horse market |
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| Toledo is famous for its marzipan (mazapane) and every corner had a confectionary with delicious choices |
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| Perfectly packaged for tourists to bring home the goods! |
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| Examples of the damasquinado craft that Toledo is famous for - jewelry, dishes, clocks, mirrors. |
After lunch, we found a shop with damasquinado – the steel and gold ornamentation on jewelry and fine objects – and bought some souvenirs to bring back. We thought about buying a small sword for Liam, but the miniature letter openers looked positively lethal. We met our guide in the Plaza, which was used as a big horse market during Moorish times. It has long served as a location for concerts, general markets and was the location for the Auto-de-Fe during the Inquisition.
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| Our tour guide in the Plaza de Zocodover |
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| Toledo Spain, meet Toledo Ohio! |
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| The beautiful Plaza del Ayuntmiento |
Our tour took us walking from the plaza to the Cathedral – including past the Calle de Toledo de Ohio. The Plaza del Ayuntamiento is the square where Toledo’s Cathedral meets its town hall (El Ayuntamiento de Toledo) and the Archbishop’s palace (El Palacio Arzobispal de Toledo). We stopped here to tour
Toledo's magnificent Cathedral.
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| The Town Hall (Ayuntamiento) on the Plaza del Ayuntamiento |
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| El Palacio Arzobispal (Archbishop's Palace) next to Toledo's Town Hall |
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| Town Hall in the late afternoon |
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| The Puerta Nueva de Bisagra - Toledo's "new" town gate built in the 1600's displays a double headed eagle |
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| Another view of Toledo from the Mirador overlook |
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