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Of palaces, castles and cathedrals
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This Sunday's stop was the old city of Segovia. I had been here before once with my Dad when I was 11 years old and I had a few vague memories. Like the medieval tavern-like restaurant with a front view of the Roman Aqueduct where he ordered suckling pig and I refused to eat it because I was so sad for the baby pig. He made me eat it anyway and I loved it.
This time, Mom, Dad, Sophie, Ed and I went together to relive my old fading memories. Our first stop was the Palacio Real de la Granja de San Ildefonso. This was the summer palace for the Spanish monarchs of the 18th century. We didn't actually go in the palace as we decided to take the time to visit the gardens which were much more attractive.
White marble statues and Neoclassical vases adorned the main gardens together with the beds of perfectly selected flowers. The gardens were a never-ending maze of avenues leading to dazzling pompous fountains with lead statues painted with auburn bronze-like paint. Unfortunately all of the fountains were turned off; since they use up too much water, they are made functional only three times a year.
All of the fountains were dedicated to some pagan god or goddess, or mythical figures and animals such as Poseidon, Diana, Apollo, Andromeda, Saturn, dragons in half moons, cherubs riding swans, dolphins spewing water, half-horse-half-fish creatures, wind deities in the form of human-like clouds; all of them within a very Baroque aesthetic.
The garden-tour was quick and expeditious due to our hunger. We ran by a few more fountains, including the largest and more spectacular one called the Fuente de las Ocho Calles (Fountain of the Eight Paths) dedicated to Amphitrite, Poseidon's wife.
We made it to the Plaza Mayor of Segovia, where the majestic Cathedral overlooked the entire city. We chose an outside table and sat down for our "cochinillo" meal. Now, I know Ed and I are vegetarians, but one thing we did agree on before we started our traveling was to taste the specialty of the country we are in. And since piglet is Segovia's specialty, we had to try it. We didn't have too much though, although my mom served Ed the head which he was more than happy to take a look-at-me-I'm-pretending-to-eat-the-head-of-a-suckling-pig picture.
After lunch we crossed the square to the cathedral. Built in the mid 16th century, this is the last great Gothic cathedral of Europe. My wonderfully trained eye (cough, cough) told me the crossing tower and dome were more Renaissance in style than the rest of the late-gothic building. Inside, I found the church to be kind of creepy, although the decorative work on some of the arches and vaults was colorful. My favorite part though was the Cloisterz. The perfectly intricate gothic work on the stone of the arches and the doorways created amazing shadows on the old tile floors, bathed by the only sunlight that entered the Cathedral.
After I almost got locked up in one of the small chapels by a wandering priest, I found the rest of my family members and we exited the cathedral and started walking toward our next stop: the Alcazàr of Segovia. I could tell this was the big tourist attraction of the city, since the amount of people started to get denser as we approached the castle. The little downhill cobblestone street we were in suddenly gave way to the edge of the city where the Alcazar fortress-castle stood surrounded by a high misty landscape.
A guided tour was about to start so we quickly crossed the stone bridge over the dried up moat. I imagine the amount of horses and carriages and knights and armors that crossed over this very same bridge over the centuries.....and a few thousand arrows and spears.
The guided tour was so very interesting and given by the sweetest most amicable man whose amazing knowledge of history and pleasant demeanour made me review my generalized idea of tour guides. There weren't many of us in the group so it made the guide more intimate.
I quickly learned that even though the castle looked medieval and there were plenty of documents placing the building in the 12th century, there was also proof of the foundations existing as early as Roman times. Besides being of military origin, this was also the medieval royal residency of the monarchs of Castilla (Castille) before the rich Baroque palaces of the 17th century came into the map. Later on, the Alcazar was used as a state prison and eventually as the Royal School of Artillery until the 19th Century, when a fierce fire destroyed most of the Alcazar. Now, being restored, it's open to the public with both old and new art work, furniture, ceilings and walls.
Some of the details in art were exquisite such as the tapestries, the medieval furniture, the gilded mudèjar ceilings, all in perfect harmony in the centuries-old building whose stones breathed Spanish history. But the most stunning part of the castle was the view. No wonder this was Alfonso "The Wise's" favorite residence. The windows, archways, balconies and towers gave way to a 360º view of the surrounding valleys, hills, villages, and churches.
After the tour was over, the guide suggested we all take the 182 30cm's steps up the Tower of Juan II, into the watchtower for an amazing view of Segovia and its surroundings. My mom, who had already climbed the stairs, chickened out of her second opportunity and said she would wave to us from the courtyard.
The snail-like stair case was enclosed in a circular tower which was dark and crowded, and as I panted up the stairs, I couldn't help but feel a bit claustrophobic. Before I knew it we all reached the top, completely out of breath and weak at the knees, just like everyone else that came out. I admired the elderly people who came out of the stair case, looking as if they were about to collapse, but so happy they had made it and were now able to rest and enjoy the view.
We spotted my mom in the courtyard where she said she would be as a small orange dot. We took plenty of pictures and started or long descent down the tower.
We left the Alcazar ready to leave Segovia, but Ed and I really wanted a glimpse at the Aqueducts so my dad drove around so we could take pictures. One of the greatest monuments of Roman engineering, more than 2000 years old, it was until a few years ago still in use, taking drinkable water from the Frio River to the city. I was astonished. Those Romans really knew their mathematical calculations.
On our way out of Segovia, we passed a lone little church we had heard about. This was the Romanic Church of Vera Cruz de Zamarramala. Now owned by the Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Malta (also known as the Knights Hospitaller), it is said to have been built by the Knights Templar in the 13th century. Its floor plan is a 12-sided polygon, extremely uncommon in Romanic constructions. It is also said to have esoteric presences within it, as some people's accounts tell of strange things seen inside. Ed and I were dying to go inside the old Templar church and take a look around, but it was already closed. We had to content ourselves with observing the virgin structure, without a hint of preservation on it.
As the sun started going down, we hurried back in the car to beat traffic towards Madrid after a perfect day of sightseeing, history and strolling.
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| 11. | Of palaces, castles and cathedrals - Segovia, Spain Jun 11, 2006 (  94 ) |
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