Toledo Spain

I decided to do a little day trip from Madrid and Toledo is one of the best options for day tripping. It also happened to be during the Corpus Cristi celebrations. In all fairness, Toledo deserves more than a day trip. It is such a great city to explore and it has several architectonic gems. I hope you enjoy these pictures from Toledo, La Mancha, Spain. The picture to the right is of one of the atlar pieces in the cathedral; in all its baroque glory.

Welcome to Toledo! - View from main gate

Banners on balconies in Toledo, Spain

Cathedral in Toledo, Spain

My favorite window and ceiling in the Cathedral in Toledo, Spain

Chairs waiting for the Corpus Cristi procession

Museum in Toledo with view of the Castle in the background

Street in Toledo, Spain

Supra - busing in style and comfort

I'm blogging while in a bus going to Madrid! I love the 21st century! :) I don't have any pictures to share, but the view is very pretty traveling through Northern Spain. Wish you were here to see it with me.

Oviedo at night

One of my favorite things to do is to walk around Oviedo at night with my camera. Here are a couple new pictures of Oviedo at night. Let me know what you think.

Noche de San Juan - Oviedo Spain

Cathedral - Oviedo Spain

Plaza de la Constitucion with La Iglesia de San Isidoro

From the Mercado looking towards San Isidoro

Oviedo Spain - Noche de San Juan

Oviedo - This is the third summer that I've spent in Oviedo. It is beginning to feel very much like home. One of my favorite celebrations here is La Noche de San Juan. It has some wonderful Celtic roots and I find it very interesting with its bonfires, mythical creatures, changing of the seasons, nature worship, dancing and new beginnings. It also seems to be a great night for photography. Here are a few pictures I took that night. It is rare to get so many pictures I really like all in one night. I hope you enjoy.

La Gorda - Oviedo, Spain

Parque San Francisco - Oviedo, Spain

Statue in Parque San Francisco - Oviedo, Spain

Noche de San Juan in Oviedo Spain

Santillana del Mar - Comillas

As far as medieval charm goes you can't get much better than Santillana del Mar in Northern Spain. It is just such a charming village with an incredibly large quantity of old buildings, houses, shops and religious structures. A couple highlights are: the flower boxes on the balconies and windows (Charming!), the covered alley ways and cob stone streets (Charming!), and of course the Torture Museum (Charming! Ok so it really isn't so charming, but the suit of armor in front of the museum is pretty cool.)

Medieval Alleyway - Santillana del Mar

Armor at the entrance to the torture museum

Palacio de Sobrellano - Comilla, Spain

The Sea

The northern coast of Spain has some wonderful spots. There are lots of beautiful nature rocky beaches. There are charming sandy beaches. There are quite beaches, busy beaches, rainy and sunny beaches. Here are two places (among many worthy places) worth visiting. Cabo de Peñas (to the right) is one of the northern most points of the region of Asturias Spain. Llanes is a pleasant seaport town and I really like the Cubos de la memoria a collection of massive painted cement blocks.
Cubos de la memoria - Llanes Spain

Cubos de la memoria - Llanes Spain

Cabo de Peñas

Leon

One of the best cathedrals in Spain is in Leon. It is massive, beautiful and has some of the best stained glass outside of France. Here are a few pictures I took this year in Leon.

Cathedral of Leon

Stained Glass in the Cathedral of Leon

Tomb in the Cathedral of Leon

Stained Glass in the Cathedral of Leon

Cathedral of Leon

Stained Glass in the Cathedral of Leon

Interior of the Cathedral in Leon

Statue of Gaudi in front of his La Casa de los Botones - Leon, Spain

Casa de los botones - Leon

Santo Domingo de Silos

Santo Domingo de Silos

Spanish Countryside near Burgos

Spanish Countryside near Burgos

Santo Domingo de Silos

Peñaranda

Puente Reina

Burgos

Burgos – Spain has so many wonderful cathedrals and churches. One of my favorites is the Cathedral in Burgos. The first time I went to Burgos (2004) they were finishing cleaning the exterior of the cathedral. I had seen pictures of the cathedral before the cleaning and it had 700 years of dirty and pollution from top to bottom. After the restoration the Cathedral looks at beautiful as it did the day they finished it. There are two other things that interest me about the Cathedral. First, El Cid is buried here. Ever since I read the epic poem about El Cid I have been interested in his history (both the legends and the reality). His tomb is in the floor under the main cupola. (see photo below) Basically, He and his wife, who is buried next to him, have a wonderful view to look at forever and ever. The second thing that interests me is the Cathedral’s collection of art, artifacts and books. They actually have one of the best collections of Don Quixote de La Mancha in all of Spain (it was donated by a wealthy family when the family’s patriarch died). It would be fun to see what treasures they have stored away in the hidden recesses of the cathedral.

Cathedral of Burgos

Cathedral of Burgos - Cupola above El Cid's tomb

Cathedral of Burgos

Lower Claustro - Cathedral of Burgos

Painting by one of Da Vinci's students

Hondarribia Spain

Honarribia is a beautiful little fishing village. It is across the river and bay from France. We enjoyed some great Basque food and an evening stroll around town and along the waterfront. Here are a few pictures. I hope you enjoy them. To the right is one of the typical buildings in the "downtown" area. Below are pictures of the river and port.

Hondarribia Spain

Hondarribia Spain

Hondarribia Spain

An interesting building in Hondarribia

País Vasco - Basque Country

After spending the first week or so staying in city centers, I thought it would be a fun surprise to stay in a rural bed and breakfast in Basque Country. The house, Arotz-Enea, was built in the early 1500’s. It is nestled in the foothills near Hondarribia and the Cantabrian Sea. After being in the city for so long the beauty and peacefulness of the house and landscape was very impressive. Everything was fresh, cool and wholesome. The rooms were simply charming and it was an intriguing experience sleeping in a house that is about 500 years old. In the morning we had breakfast in the “new part” of the house. The “new part” was built in the 1640’s!

Arotz-Enea

Window in my room - Basque Country, Spain

My room in the 500 year old bed and breakfast