Cuenca and Zaragoza 27th - 31st May

 Way back in Sept/Oct when we began plotting this grand tour Cuenca came on the radar due to Noheda village mosaics being nearby. We were keen to see them. The town Cuenca still retains some of the historic walls from Moorish times, very yes very steep cobblestone streets with houses impossibly perched on the limestone spurs.  We arrived on the train from Toledo, a bus then took us up the hill depositing us in the Plaza just up from our accommodation.

Plaza Mayor.

We were in one of the apartments half way down, fourth floor. No ascendo (lift) so a narrow staircase like a turret. Backpacks come into their own as manoeuvring a suitcase would have been a struggle.

Got set up then legged down the hill to find a supermercardo. Found a wee bar for a sandwich as mid afternoon then hauled ourselves back up to the apartment with enough supplies for a couple of days.

Note how clear the water is, this is in a town of 55,000 both old and new towns.

Old town to the foreground.

Found the Turismo in the Plaza, once open again at 4pm. Spain shuts for lunch at least two hours, anytime between 12.30 to 5pm. To our dismay Noheda mosaics were a no go as they only open three days at the end of the week for individual tourists. We tried private guides but no interest so not to be. Always a plan B or C so regrouped. Went for a hike up to the town lookouts and general snooping about.  

Like Rio de Janeiro there is a statue of Jesus Christ on a hilltop looking over Cuenca and many other religious monuments/relics.

A couple of rivers run through and around so next day our hiking app shows possibilities for a hike. Was a haul to start with but then followed the valley behind Cuenca and looped back. Lovely herbal ley vegetation again in addition to  lots of poppies. 

We did GR66 and GR 11 no idea what GR stands for, maybe grade? 

Up and down, up and down. 

Cuenca also known for its hanging houses.  Whether on the edge or not it all looked precipitous to us. 

Left Cuenca after a couple of days getting the train to Madrid and then on to Zaragoza. We were dragging ourselves around at this point both harbouring stonking head colds. Not unexpected given the bed hopping, crowds and less than average sleep.  Nonetheless the show goes on.  

Zaragoza in the Aragon region in the north east of Spain is known for Nuestra Senora de Pilar Basilica, the Aljafera Palace, the Goya Museum and lets not forget Catherine of Aragon, who was Henry V111 first wife who managed to keep her head. She did die of consumption though after Henry had her banished to some damp, drafty castle but I digress. 

It is quite a big city, 700,000 pp, with the automotive industry , Opel, employing many. Germany uses cheaper Spanish labour for production at this stage.  

First impressions was the sheer size of some of the buildings and lots of construction going on. Bit of a mission initially getting off the city bus to where we believed our apartment to be only to find the street under construction. Foggy with head colds did not help but we kept our sense of humour.

Looking out of our apartment window. Does mean no street traffic noise. Both sides of the street screened while chaps work in the middle.

As it was later in the afternoon, 35C,  by then we went out to Aljaferia Palace as they advised mornings the mosque maybe closed.  It is an Islamic castle from the 11th century which was a residence of Saudi Kings. Then taken over by the various Christian/Catholic kings, became a military base then battleground of the war of independence in 1808 between Spain and France. Present day it is the parliament of Aragon.

Quite a lot of restoration work gas gone on over the centuries.

There were thousands of these ceiling panels. Artistry never to be seen again.

Next day we hit the Basilica and Cathedral in the morning.   Again the opulence was staggering. The Basilica is on one side of the Plaza de Pilar. A cavernous Catholic site where supposedly the Virgin Mary appeared to James the Apostle on a pilar which has been revered ever since. 

Mass is on every hour and we counted at least a dozen ornate confession boxes in hot demand by older folks. There were many naves off to each side filled with alabaster tombs, paintings, gold and silver.  Compared to other towns the church only begrudgingly allowed photos and there was nothing like the hoards of tourists as Zaragoza is not a hot destination like Madrid or Barcelona. Although Spain is noted as having 85% population as Catholic less than 15% actually attend church. 

The town has several bridges over the Erbo River with the usual 1st century Roman Bridge reconstructed in the Gothic style and further renovated to today's requirement.

Gets hot working on a hydralift here so needs must, the trusty sun umbrella.

The bakery, a baguette for just over a euro and pana chocolate for not much more.

Some serious dressmaking, sewing goes on here. Incredible range of colour and fabrics.

The fresh market, we like looking at all the different types of fish here and the pricing. The chaps are so quick on the knife fulfilling orders.

On the left silverbeet and right borage. Yes borage, what you and I would use the flowers for salads or ice cubes the Spanish cook up the stalks with potatoes. 

In the afternoon we went to the Goya Museum, artist famous for print making, engravings and romantic old master painting. Some of his prints reflected pretty dark times in Spanish history, almost macabre. The disasters of war etc but showed the strength of his feelings.  Well worth the opportunity to visit.

Zaragoza has got a very large well known tapas area in the old town called El Tubo. We had booked a tapas tour as it cuts to the chase to find the most interesting and best.

Met the guide 6pm at the Cesar Augusto statue in a plaza along with another couple, escapees from the USA to Mexico. We endeavoured to keep a straight face as they advised  us they are both teetotal, vegetarian and he was barely mobile. Felt sorry for the guide.  Notwithstanding it was really interesting and fun.

One of the older tapa bar Bodegas Almau since 1870. Sweet anchovy a specialty.

Next was El Champo which has only one tapa, triple stack of mushroom topped with one prawn and drowned in pesto garlic.

At each stop there was the opportunity to try Spanish wine for the Sewells. Reds are ok but Marlborough Sauv Blanc has ruined our palate for European whites.

The escapees from Mexico and I on our way to Montal, opened in 1919,  which favoured tapa is artichokes stuffed with goats cheese, Jeffs favourite. Then to El Calamar Bravo for miniature calamari sandwiches.

Last stop was an ancient pasteleria called Fantoba Hermanos, established 1854. Sweets heaven, just so beautiful looking. Hens were a favoured decoration as homage to meringues.

Through the generations.

Our guide Jorge and Kim of Mexico trying a chocolate jelly.

Even though we probably only had three or four mouthful of various tapas we did not feel inclined for dinner by 9.30pm so content to end back to the apartment.

So final day in Zaragoza thought we would check out a 25ha site that had been where the Expo Zaragoza 2008 had been held. Billed as a showcase for water and sustainable development. Must have cost billions to set up for the 3 months it was on and then the theory was this futuristic place would become a the business hub, shopping and housing area for Zaragoza. Huge buildings, out there in style and now in realityhu a ghost town!!. Empty save two kiwis and the odd river jogger. It was really eery and sad. The sheer waste was gobsmacking.

So vegetarian cafe found for lunch, most satisfying and few more sights while ambling.

Tomorrow we get various trains, buses to San Sebastian in the north as a base to get to Bilboa and the famous  Guggenheim museum.

Toledo and Madrid 23rd-26th May

 Took the train from Cordoba to Madrid where we had the change for Toledo. Atochas station in Madrid is the hub for high speed trains in the south and as you would expect very large but actually easy to negotiate.

Zips along at 266kph. Onboard information screen.

Toledo is an old city on a hilltop with medieval monuments in the old walled city.  We had decided to base ourselves there rather than Madrid due to the town size, only 85,000 as against Madrid 3.5 million. One of the novelties of Toledo is that it has "mechanical stairs" so called that takes one from the bottom of the hill up through a gap in the medieval wall into the old city. The lift is in six sections of 36mtrs. Idea 25yrs ago was to build a monster carpark at the bottom of the town to relieve car congestion in the old town, which has the usual narrow cobbled streets. To be honest seeing some of the folks waddling about they would never make the hill unaided.

This is the Bisagra Gate built in the 10th century with city wall to the right.

Our accommodation was at the bottom of the hill in a run down neighbourhood but the apartment was fine and so much quieter than Granada.

Yes not applealing but around the corner renovated or "reformed" housing. Jeff always intrigued by the amount of vegetation growing on the roofs but then it barely rains. Water for most of this part of Spain comes from artesian wells, we understand there are huge volumes under the ground. The Targas River provides agricultural irrigation.

Had a good walk about the town starting out early in the morning to beat the droves of tourists that start arriving from 10am. Leaders have flags or umbrellas with their flock ambling behind.  Another cathedral which was amazing. Frescoes with the early morning light were something else.

The 12 apostles and the Last Supper.

This is gold on wood.

This cathedral is like others we have seen thus far, Initially a Muslim mosque which was destroyed in the 11th century and a gothic Christian church constructed in the 12th century. The various religions/civilisations Romans, Visigoths, Muslim and then Christians all cannibalised each other buildings to build their visions.

Here is a mix of three.

Toledo is well known for metal works. Many of the tourist shops will sell you a full set of armour and matching sword, dagger. Impeccable craftmanship.

Streets are kept  very clean by many workers in all the places we have been to other than the scourge of cigarette butts. At least 20% population smokes, whereas NZ down to 6% I think.

Tagus river flows around three sides of Toledo. The longest river on the Iberian Peninsular at 1,000 km and empties at Lisbon, Portugal. We had intended to do a walk on some of it but afternoon temp of 31C we flagged it.

So next day 8am we set out for Madrid. A 45min bus ride from Toledo at 6 euros each. Once into Plaza Eliptica in the south of the city we took 2 metros, 6 euros for the day, into central Madrid. Popped up at Plaza Calleo to start  a walking tour of Madrid history. Gave us an insight into why Madrid had taken over from Toledo as the capital, why it is such a liberal (LGBT) city and the general feel of the place. We found it was very well looked after with 200yr+ buildings very smartly kept, wide boulevards, many parks, not too crowded and actually cooler than we expected, seemingly they get " a lot of wind".

Famous buildings are the Royal Palace, Cathedral, Plaza Mayor and a multitude of museums and art galleries. We gave the sights a far go and were grateful to sit back in the returning bus at 6pm.

Immigrants trying to earn a living selling sun glasses, hand bags in the Plaza. They lug around these huge sacks from place to place as they get moved on from the Policia, who are armed.

Plaza Mayor is a huge publuc space from 1580 by Phillip 111, gentleman on the horse.

Said Policia that you would not want to trifle with. We have been constantly amazed at how many Policia there are everywhere we go; in cars, walking, on horses. They do the usual roles, aggressively it is said. They also undertake intelligence gathering. We have been surprised how when booking train, bus tickets you need to provide Nationality, passport details etc.  One wonders where all this info goes? Interpol, Langley.

Plaza in front of the Cathedral. The queue in the middle is for the Royal Palace opposite.

Royal Palace is said to have been based on the Versailles Palace as when the Borbon dynasty took over on the 1700's they felt the city was ugly, it needed grace and beauty. It has 3,400 rooms at 135,000 sqm. Usual story there had been a mosque from 880AD until 11th century, then a defensive castle, Alcazar, until it burnt to the ground in 1734.

One can certainly see the French influence in the buildings.  Below is the Madrid gardens by the palace and cathedral famous for roses, unfortunately taped off for " reformation".

A stroll around Gran V and the Cuenca area evidences why Madrid is known to be liberal. An area dedicated to all things gay had some very unique shops.

Getting along in those shoes requires a medal.

Not sure why you would tattoo your head and not your legs. Pyjamas the latest look.

This plaza was like Times Square, all huge billboards flogging sun protection.

A vegetarian restaurant we got quite excited, it was packed. But being resourceful Kiwis we had taken Jeff's famous filled baguettes with us. Do start dreaming about anything green as Southern Spanish cuisine, tapas wears after a while.

So back on the bus past typical countryside. The photo below includes a chemical plant in the middle of a cropping plain.

Today is Domingo so very quiet with supermercardos closed, church and buying pastries for Mama. We got some laundry done at a laverteria and were happy to sit at a local cafe for 40mins watching Sunday in Toledo. Had a look at the military museum and decided not to queue at Trebol for lunch. We had dined there previously and enjoyed it. The plastered exterior walls are painted with murals of windows and brickwork.

Tomorrow we take a couple of trains to Cuenca where we had hoped to see the Noheda mosaics but murphys law not open Monday, Tuesday but the town is also known for its hanging houses clinging to the mountain side.