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| The skyscrapers of Madrid just outside of the Chamartín train station |
The first is the Acueducto de Segovia (Aqueduct of Segovia) which is kind of hard to miss since it's giant and the bus from the train station drops you off practically right in front of it. It was built by the Romans when Spain (and Portugal too) were part of the Roman Empire. So it's been around for a long time and still standing strong, which completely baffles me.
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| Acueducto de Segovia |
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| I don't even want to know how they got that flag up there (hopefully a ladder and not by climbing on the aqueduct) |
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| Plaza Mayor |
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| Catedral de Segovia |
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| The Cathedral's bell tower |
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| The main altar |
Then I finally, I visited the Alcázar de Segovia, the third most popular tourist place in Segovia. I have wanted to visit the Alcázar since my high school Spanish teacher, and a CMU alum (shout out to Mrs. Christensen!) told us about her study abroad experience in Segovia. It's so beautiful and I know I already used the word breathtaking, but the Alcázar truly is. After taking a ton of pictures of the entrance, I went inside and began my tour. My favorite parts were the throne room and the dining hall which contains all of the rulers of Castilla until the unification of Spain into what we know it as today. The Alcázar was where Queen Isabella la Católica (the Catholic), considered one of the greatest monarchs in Spain's history, was corinated as Queen of Castilla. It was also one of the castles used as the inspiration of the Cinderella Castle in Disney's Magic Kingdom. I took a ton of pictures throughout the day of the Alcázar (like I said, I fell in love) from various vantage points.
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| King Fernando, Queen Isabel and their daughter, Queen Juana |
After visiting the inside of the Alcázar I climbed 152 stairs to get to the top of the Torre de Juan II (Tower of Juan II) to get a great view of the city and the back end of the Alcázar from above.
After all of the stair climbing I was pretty famished so I had lunch. I'm not exactly sure what I had because I forgot the name, but it was some sort of ham and mashed potatoes with sweet onions on top. I'm not sure if that is a local dish or not, but either way it was delicious and I'm upset I can't remember the name because I can't even Google it now! After I was full, I went to the Cemeterio Judío (Jewish Cemetery) just outside the city on a hill. From there not only was I able to see some of the grave sites from before 1492 (that's when the Jews were forced out of Spain), I also was able to take some really nice pictures of the city (and the Alcázar of course) and afterwards, as an Earth Day activity, I hiked up a mountain (albeit small and with paths) to get a view of the back of the Alcázar.
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| Lunch! |
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| Puerta de San Andrés - one of the gates in the city wall |
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| My favorite photo I took today I had to lay down in the grass to take it, luckily there was no one around to see me acting like a weirdo. |
After a while of just staring at the Alcázar, I headed back into the city and went to the Museo de Segovia (Museum of Segovia) to check out the history of the wonderful town (and the province too).
All in all, an extremely delightful day, and don't get me wrong, I love Alicante to death, but I am now super jealous of all of the CMU students that have had the opportunity to live in Segovia.
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| One last picture of the aqueduct as I left Segovia (hopefully not for good) |
