Today was a day of traveling where we visited some stunning places in and around Segovia, but I experienced them through a haze of pain or the sleepy zombi-ness of pain killers.
The most frequent side effects of one of the painkillers is suicidal thoughts so being a bit depressed about the pain is to be expected I guess!
Although we will probably lose points in the Perfect Travellers Awards we decided to forgo seeing the ring of Saint Theresa as apparently it is on display still attached to her finger! She is the patron saint of Avila and rebelled against the ostentatious aspects of the Catholic Church, much to the horror of those in charge, and started the Carmelite order of nuns, who lived very simply.
In every town and even the smallest village there is at least one church. The size and amount of decoration and gold statues etc often seems to be out of proportion to the wealth of the simple peasant farmers who had to fund these churches. With only 14% of Spaniards attending church regularly most have become attractions for tourists like us to visit.
I do wonder whether some of the wealth extracted from the populace would've been better spent on welfare, schools etc than more gold statues or huge churches. But maybe the thought of securing your place in heaven by supporting the church was enough for the common man. Who am I to question?
Anyway we set off for Segovia, and in a devious plan to delay me getting to the churros con chocolat, Ewan suggested we go to the Palacio Real de La Granja de San lldefonso which is a few kilometres from Segovia itself. The very grand name is in keeping with this very grand Royal Summer Palace and superb French-styled gardens created in the 1700s.
The first part of the tour of this enormous and very ornate Palace was some beautiful enormous tapestries that were created in the 17th century. No photos allowed so I can't show you the rooms of the Palace but every ceiling had a painted frieze and every room had marble tiled patterned floors, gold baroque furniture and endless objets d'arte: just like our summer residence at Anglesea!!
King Philip was the grandson of Louis XI so he was determined to create gardens as beautiful as Versailles, and beautiful they were indeed. Fountains, a maze, statues, forests and we didn't even see half of it!
After a bocadillo at the local Bar for lunch we headed for the apartment and deposited our bags before heading out to the old town of Segovia. The aqueduct built by the Romans inthe 1st century AD and still standing (without any mortar) overshadows all of the town. It's 28m sets high and made of 20,000 bricks: very impressive.
I do remember sitting with Lauren right under the aqueduct in 2007 and saying that Ewan should be here to enjoy it. ..and so he was today 8 years later!
Which brings me to the churros con chocolat that I had been anticipating: sadly they are not sold in any Cafe near the aqueduct any more. So sad. ..ruined my day completely!
We climbed the stairs at one end of the aqueduct and wandered into the Plaza Mayor, where Lauren had ordered the specialty of the district - roast suckling pig. I remember her being astonished when it arrived: a huge slab of pork with an ear and plastic tag still attached! We resisted that delicacy and headed for the Cathedral. My memory of it being dark and gloomy was still accurate although the stone inside had been cleaned and seemed lighter.
The were lots of people in their best clothes greeting each other outside the Cathedral: it was entertaining watching some of them stagger around in their very high heels on the cobblestones!
We could hear the sound of a piano playing classical music as we wandered back down the Hill. Then we came across a young man playing Beethoven on a grand piano in the middle of a small square surrounded by people sitting enjoying the music. He was playing for five hours non stop as a fund raising event for a charity which we couldn't identify, but we donated some euros anyway.
Ewan decided to buy me a G&T to cheer me up after a hard day, and then I accidentally upended the plate of pinchos on the ground. A fitting end to a difficult day for me!
Hoping tomorrow will be better,
Your despondent correspondent
Dianne
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