Toledo

Before Madrid was built, Toledo was the dominant city in Spain. It's a lovely hill town, tucked into a bend in a river.

In Toledo, things often appear around the uneven corners of the narrow, winding streets.

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The knife-like cypresses cut into the blue Spanish sky. The dry hills are visible in the distance.

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Half the streets in Toledo seem to be climbing steep hills. It makes for great views, though.

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We found a small park and rested for a while. It was October, and the weather had started to turn cold.

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The name "Zocodover" comes from its Moorish roots as a souk. The arch here goes down to one of the bridges. This is an interesting combination of a round Italianate arch and the Moorish horseshoe style. I can't remember seeing a Moorish-type arch anywhere that wasn't conquered by Islamic armies at some point, which is a shame becuase it's really quite beautiful. It's amazing how much ideology can be carried by architecture.

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Toledo has some great fortified bridges. It makes for a very striking entrance to the city. The train station is over the hill in the distance.

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We brought both a digital camera and a Canon Rebel G film camera. Jen is taking a picture of the bridge.

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Another view looking down towards the river. The site of the city was clearly carefully chosen for its outstanding natural defensibility.

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Some kind of building.

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Looking out towards the low part of the city. Like Perugia, there are covered escalators running up the side of the hill at its most steep part.

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Toledo has several well-preserved gates.

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A squarish gate.

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I was very taken by this gate.

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The Cathedral was a dominant presence on the West side of the city.

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After a long day siteseeing, it's always nice to sit down on a narrow street and take it all in.

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