Twelve Hours in Toledo

Teaching English is a very busy job.  I spend most of my day running around the city from class to class.  I spend most of my free time between classes on the metro or lesson planning in cafes.  It’s difficult, but rewarding, to think of new ways to challenge my students.

Despite the busy schedule, free time does exist.  I found out recently that my one class on Friday had to cancel for the next two weeks.  I rescheduled him for a Monday and Tuesday class, meaning that I have a few long weekends coming up.  Travel time!

Since I found out about the cancellation short notice, I decided to keep it simple and just do a day trip to Toledo this weekend.  Toledo is a small town forty minutes outside of Madrid, you can take the bus for about 11€ roundtrip.  The former capital of Madrid retains the charm of a medieval city with its cathedrals and castle-like gates.  Spain was originally a predominately Muslim country until the Reconquista where the Christians drove Muslims out of the country. Toledo was the first city to fall.  Many of the Cathedrals there are former mosques converted into Christian churches.   There is also a strong Jewish presence as well, with a historic Jewish quarter as well as a few synagogues.   Toledo has a strong tourist economy for this reason.

I took an early morning bus from the Plaza Elíptica station.  I slept a little bit on the bus; before I knew it, we were in Toledo.  The walk from the bus station was short, but a little tiring since it was all uphill.  Everything in Toledo is close, but uphill.  The first stop I made was to the Catedral Primada, the main cathedral in Toledo.  It was about 10€ to get in and I paid an extra 2€ to go up to the bell tower.  The view from the bell tower is worth the extra 2€.  I was glad to go early in the morning since I saw huge crowds waiting to get in when we left.

Toledo is known for cathedrals as well as the artist El Greco.  There is a very well-known viewpoint which we walked to as well.  The walk was a bit grueling in the heat, so I would highly recommend looking into the bus schedule ahead of time.  The view was worth it though.  Seeing the bell tower, I had just been in a few hours ago, was awe inspiring.

Since I have a few trips planned, I chose not to stay overnight in Toledo to save money.  I was a little disappointed because a lot of people suggested I stay one night to really experience the city.  The city is full of tourists during the day, so I imagine it was be a different city at night.  I did stay long enough to catch the sunset though.  I went over to the Monastery of San Juan for a view of the rolling hills.  It looked like there was some sort of wedding celebration going on, I spotted a bride in a white dress as well as many well-dressed people enjoying the square outside the monastery.  It was a beautiful sight to behold.

I would highly recommend Toledo to anyone staying in Madrid for an extended period.  It’s a short, inexpensive bus ride away and it gets you out of the city.  I love living in Madrid, but it was so nice to get out in the fresh air.  I felt like I was going back in time to another century seeing the art and architecture I saw there.  It was a much needed break from the business of the city.