Segovia Sunday

On Sunday we headed out to Segovia a midieval town about 100km from Madrid. Like the Escorial, it is to the north of Madrid, beyond the Guardarama Mountains. We met at the bus station, and caught a bus which got us to Segovia at about quarter to 12. The three main sights in Segovia are the 1900 year old roman aqueduct, the Cathedral and the Alcazar.

The roman aqueduct was built during the time of the Roman Emporer Flavius. It brought water 18km from the Guardarama mountains to the Alcazar de la city. It contains 188 arches and at it´s highest point in the main plaza in Segovia it reaches over 100 meters in height. It is a dry stone structure meaning that there is no type of cement used in its construction. Although it still functions, it was closed for use in the mid 1980´s due to the fact that it is open to the air and animals.

The Alcazar is a "fortress residence" which makes it different from a "palacio" or a "castillo". The word is moorish and the building is one of the most specatcular in Spain. It was used by Isabel la Catolica to receive Christopher Columbus when he came in search of money to fund his venture to the new world. Segovia is also the city in which Isabel la Catolica was crowned Queen of Castilla and Leon. Although the buidling suffered a fire in the 19th century and was partially reconstructed, it houses an amazing array of items from the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, including the thrones of the Catholic Kings, armour and armadura of the period and excellent examples of the mudejar style of interior design. The students were also able to climb up to the tower (I didn´t do it this time - I´ve done it SO many times!) but I enjoyed waving to them as they leaned over the ramparts!

I showed them the Church of St. Michael where Isabel la Catolica received her crown and they had the opportunity to go inside a church that has changed little in more than 500 years. I sometimes think the magnitude of the length of time is lost on the students. I am in awe of all these historic sites, but they seem to take it all in stride.

The last building we visited was the Cathedral. It is a baroque structure, but with elements of the gothic style. It is typical of Spanish cathedrals in that the choir is in the center of the church, which means that the main altar cannot be seen from the main doors. Built in the shape of a cross, the various chapels were all open so the boys got to go in and see the various works of art and decoration up close. We also got to see the cloister and the treasure rooms. It was a warm afternoon and the coolness of the interior of the cathedral was a nice respite.

Out in the Plaza Mayor, there was a festival going on! Music, street performers and mimes were everywhere. There were a ton of tourists (did somebody say there was a recession somewhere???) from all over the world. I think all the American students came to Spain this summer. And with them came the Japonese! By the time we walked back to the bus at 5:30 the boys were ready to nap all the way back to Madrid. Ready for week 2!