A Day in Toledo

This is so late…it’s almost midnight, but I do want to quickly give a rundown of our day. We had tickets for the train to Toledo at 11.20, but thought we’d get tickets for the return when there, not sure when we’d feel like coming back….so we met Omnia at Sol and walked down to Atocha…only a half hour ride, but not having a return was a mistake, as all the trains were completo till 8.40….this was later than we’d planned, but no problem really…we could eat there, and it is light till 10.

Anyway, we had a lovely day. The train station, which is very moorish in architecture, like quite a lot of buildings especially in southern Spain, think Granada! Anyway, beautiful and exotic, and from there you walk (or you can get a bus) across the river and up,up into the city. It is full of many narrow streets, all winding and nothing flat, and nothing smooth…so we climbed up and down all day, but it was worth it. Amr and I had been there after the camino in 2018 (and also in 1994) and Omnia had also been there, but we really enjoyed the feel of the city. There were banners on many buildings everywhere and we never really found what they were in aid of, but it added to the feeling of festivity.

We first made our way to the enormous cathedral…very beautiful and as always with lots of history. That took quite a while with an audio guide and after we sat in a square and had a bit to eat…Omnia and I had gazpacho, delicious, and Amr a salad, and we shared some croquetas and calimari…then we made our way to the El Greco museum, which we did by circuitous route, but finally found it via the Jewish quarter and the synagogue and Sephardic museum. The El Greco museum is in the house and garden where he lived and is very charming, and the best paintings we thought were his portraits of the apostles…

Then we wafted back vaguely in the direction of the station and stopped for a drink at a bar right up high looking down at the countryside…so beautiful . By the time we got back I was actually tired…and Amr and I got the metro back to our hotel, and we stopped at the bar on our corner, our local, and had a drink - I had a tonic - and we shared a salad…just what we needed, as we hadn’t eaten before we left as at the bar they said the kitchen didn’t open till 8…stupid at such a touristy town! Now after midnight and must go to bed…Read more