Toledo


For Cervantes, Toledo was “the glory of Spain and the light of her cities”. Cossio called it “the most brilliant and evocative summary of Spain’s history”. Toledo is one of the Spanish cities with the greatest wealth of monuments. Known as the “city of the three cultures”, because Christians, Arabs and Jews lived together there for centuries, behind its walls Toledo preserves an artistic and cultural legacy in the form of churches, palaces, fortresses, mosques and synagogues. This great diversity of artistic styles makes the old quarter of the capital of La Mancha a real open-air museum, which has led to it being declared a World Heritage Site. Visitors delight in Toledo’s Damascene swords and knives, colorful pottery and delicious marzipan. Toledo is a fortified city built on a hill overlooking the Tagus River and is without a doubt one of the densest monumental cities in the world. An important city in the Middle Ages it was Spain's capital until the 16th century. In the 16th century, the city became home to El Greco, and Toledo has many of his paintings, among which is "The Burial of the Count of Orgaz", his masterpiece which is housed in the Mudejar Church of Santo Tome.

Toledo is one of my favorite cities in Spain. Since the streets are so narrow the bus will park across the river and we will walk across this bridge pictured below to enter the city gates. Great place for souvenirs (knives, swords and jewelry!)