After a rocky start getting assigned seats together was a major hassle between British Airways (we booked reservations with) and American Airlines (we actually flew on), American Airlines redeemed themselves and we had a long, but pleasant flight from JFK to Madrid. Getting through immigration and customs was a piece of cake, but because we arrived much earlier than expected, we had to wait for our car rental and insurance coverage. Once in our car (a new Opel with standard transmission) we got underway and immediately got lost on the airport grounds. After wandering around the airport with no detailed map and no one who could give directions in English we finally got on the right road to Toledo.
The trip to Toledo was smooth sailing all the way. Once in Toledo, we again got totally lost and, without a map and no one who could give us directions, we spent well over a couple of hours trying to find our hotel. They don’t waste a lot of money on street signs here, (there are some on the sides of buildings, but not all and the signs there are are hard to read, especially when you are driving) so, even our map didn’t help. (We didn’t have a gps yet.) Anyway, at about 2 PM we arrived at our lodging for the night, Sol Hostal. It is very much like a hotel with an ensuite bathroom. Following check in we went out to find a European GPS. And the adventure began.
The streets are VERY narrow and unknown to us there is only one exit on our narrow street (more like an alley). After reaching the dead end of our alley way (team that we are), Wayne successfully backed up with Peggy”s directions (a real challenge). After a couple of hours driving around cluelessly we found an electronics shop where they spoke as little English as we speak Spanish! It was actually fun trying to communicate with them and and we successfully succeeded in ordering a Tom Tom (the didn’t have any gps units in stock). Apparently tom tom is universal term for car GPS in Spain. We navigated our way back to our Hostal and parked the car. After an immense dinner (they really feed you well here) Wayne got his second wind and we wandered around the old part of the city. Toledo is set on a hill and surrounded on 3 sides by the Tagus River. When the city was settled in the 7th century or earlier a wall was built around the 4th side not protected by the river. That wall is still standing. Much of the architecture is from then. It is amazing to visit these wonderfully preserved places. We enjoyed wondering around so much our first evening that we stayed an extra day.
After sleeping in this morning (7 April) we decided we would do a walk-about instead of driving. The central part of the city is very small and very walkable. The first thing we did was go pick up our gps. That was about 15 min walk versus a 45 minute drive since we knew where we were going and driving is a hassle. Then we picked up a national sim card for Wayne’s cell phone. We got a real cheap one for Spain only as the international sim cards are really expensive and Peggy has one on her phone. (That’s a story for another time.) Afterwards, we wandered around the old city taking photos and acting very much like the tourists we are. We visited parks, museums, the Circo Romano, and the Santo Iglesia Catedral Primada which dates back to the 7th century.
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The cathedral, which was rebuilt between the 13th and 15th centuries is truly magnificent. The architecture is a wonderful combination of its Moor & Christian foundations with Renaissance, Baroque & Neoclassical influences. The architecture, and art works are truly amazing. They are mini collections of works by El Greco, Rubens, Raphael, Van Dyck, Bassano & many more. We also wondered thru the the Biblioteca de Castilla – La Mancha which is in the former Castle and Palace of Carlos V. Again, the architecture is indescribable. It is considered ” one of the best symbolic buildings of palace architecture & the Spanish Renaissance”. We could easily spend another couple of days here but alas we don’t have an open return date.
Ciao,
Wayne & Peggy