On one of the last Saturdays I went 30 minutes by train south of Madrid to the small, traditional town of Toledo; and for only 20euro. Being the famous “City of 3 Cultures” (Christian/Arab/Jew), Toledo is one of UNESCO’S World Heritage Cities and still maintains its Middle Ages layout. The hilly streets are cobble-stoned, the air is fresh (a grateful break from Madrid’s often muddled oxygen) and the people are extremely kind. I was lucky enough to be there two days after Corpus Christi, meaning the streets in the Christian Quarter were still decorated with old tapestries, trellised flowers, stained-glass lamps and canopies. I also happened upon a protest against the monarchy and an elderly knitting convention in the main square. No joke. Even though I’d heard Toledo called “touristy”, none of what I did see distracted me from the upbeat and authentic atmosphere of the surroundings and history of the city.
Although I visited the La Synagoga (El Transito) and El Monasterio de San Juan de los Reyes (which was very spiritual and beautifully detailed), the Alcazar and its Artillery Museum was, by far, my favorite. I actually deem it the best and most innovative museum I’ve ever been to. The museum melds around the side of and into the Alcazar fortress itself and displays so many artifacts and stories in so many interesting ways. Why can’t the States have such creative museums? We need to work on that. I spent 2 hours inside, gaping and giggling at how cool and interesting everything was. Good thing I was alone; I might’ve embarrassed anyone who’d come with me. Even the usually-intimidating security guards were kind and told me some history about the castle and some of its rooms.
I wasn’t able to go into the Cathedral due to a lack of time but I walked around it twice (because I couldn’t find the entrance) and can only imagine what it would be like inside. I wish it hadn’t closed so quickly (6:30).
However, I was able to set aside time to buy cooking knives because Toledo is famed for its amazing quality of steel. Almost all the shops have some variety of sword, knife, dagger, crossbow, pocketknife or javelin for sale; everything from historic boot knives to detailed pocketknives to Game of Thrones replicas. There’s actually a Toledano shop across from Museo del Prado that has a lot of the same products. Half of the shops in Toledo are for only steelwork. I bought cooking knives for my family and a Toledo pocketknife for myself; all finished off with the “Toledo” stamp on the blade. Yes, you can pack knives in your checked luggage for the flight home. And daggers. ‘Cause I got a dagger too 🙂 Mariano Zamorano of C/ Ciudad 19 is said to be one of the last master swordsmiths alive and is most certainly the kindest shop teller I’ve ever met. He brought a group of us back to his small blacksmith workshop and joyfully explained and demonstrated how he and his family have made swords for 80 years in this little furnace behind the shop. He answered any questions we may have had and held no mind whatsover that we could not fluently speak Spanish. It was a joy to purchase such fine steelwork from him.
I found a link before the trip (http://www.spain.info/en/reportajes/un_dia_en_toledo.html) that helped me get around the small city and gave me some tips about timing; though I still found myself lost more than once. At one point I was so lost in a residential area I could only hear the birds chirping; no cars, no people, no music. But this way I found spectacular views of the city and countryside and a Middle Ages bridge over the river that borders the Old Jewish Quarter.
What a grateful break from hectic Madrid! If I ever return to Spain, I will definitely be returning to Toledo.