Inquisition | schwingeninswitzerland

We took a daytrip from Madrid to Toledo*. I have always wanted to see it. Now, I want to go back.

Holy Toledo it was beautiful. It is is well-preserved, filled with history and contains a rare mix of religious influences.

See what I mean…gorgeous.

When you read that something is “well-preserved” in a guidebook, translate that to “a confusing maze of streets whose difficulty in navigating has only increased over the past few hundred years”. We had a great time getting lost. It took us longer than normal to get around because I was constantly taking pictures.

Still love dogs

Cervantes wrote Don Quixote in Toledo; both are in La Mancha. Swords have been manufactured there since Roman times and there were swords everywhere. He wanted one, but I didn’t think we could get through security with it.

The large steeple in the middle of the town is the cathedral. It is enormous and amazing with an incredible collection of art. The church is rolling in it. He was more impressed by this by St. Peter’s in Rome.

Each of the seats has carvings like the one shown below. They commerate Christian victories over the Muslims with each seat showing a different town.

I’ve been to more than a few churches traveling in my day, but I’ve never seen a skylight. This skylight behind the altar adds more light and allows sunbeams to fall on the altar during mass. The red hat belonged to a cardinal. When they die, their hat is hung from a spot of their choosing in the cathedral. They stay there until they disintegrate. If you look thought the pictures from the cathedral, you can spy another one or two.

Franco’s sword. He got a lot of support from the church.

Believe it or not, this puppy holds communion bread. I guess that helps you to put the size of the cathedral into perspective. Unfortunately, photographs were not allowed in its most impressive part, a massive art collection.

Although I don’t have good pictures, one of the most interesting things about Toledo is its history of religious tolerance. In Toledo’s heyday, Muslims, Jews and Christians lived side by side in the city. That is until they were expelled from Spain in 1502 and 1492 respectively. Oh yeah, and this little thing called The Inquisition came along.

*We have been to Toledo, Ohio many times.

Last weekend, we met our friends, Boris and Natasha, in Madrid. We did a walking tour from Rick Steves‘ book.

Boris and Natasha (names were changed to protect the not so innocent)

We started at Puerta del Sol. The building below was Franco’s headquarters and people tried to escape from questioning by jumping. Others claimed to have been thrown from the windows.

The square is also the place where Napoleon’s troops shot Spanish protestors that was commemorated in Goya‘s painting, The Third of May.

The Third of May 1808 by Francisco Goya, showing Spanish resisters being executed by Napoleon’s troops. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

These days, it is a hugely popular public area where the biggest dangers were the huge lines to buy lottery tickets for the big drawing (the king won once) and the hordes of fashionistas at Topshop.

The guard’s hats are flat in the back so they can lean their head against the wall while smoking. He says they wouldn’t catch anyone in a footchase.

Reading that page in the guidebook was so exhausting that we had to stop for sustenance…at a confiteria.

Sorry, they were so good that I we dug in before taking a picture.

We walked to Plaza Mayor, a huge public space that was used for bullfighting, royal showboating, the Inquisition and its subsequent “bonfires”. We saw it filled with a Christmas market.

We needed a cafe con leche, so we popped into a cafe. They came with churros, so of course we had to eat them. Properly fortified, we were ready to hit the market (Mercado de San Miguel).

Stuffed as we were, walking through was enough to make us hungry. The food was so beautiful that I couldn’t stop taking pictures.

We went to a convent and bought some cookies (we didn’t intend for it to be a food tour even though it clearly turned into one).

In 1906 there was a royal wedding procession past this spot. Someone threw a bomb along with the flowers. It killed 23. The statute below memorizes the dead.