Teachers'
Travel Leisurely Touring
Castles in Spain
Itinerary
Oct
5 - 18, 2008
Sunday
Oct 5
- Day One : Depart overnight from Toronto to Madrid
on Air Canada.
Monday Oct 6 - Day Two : Arrive in Madrid and transfer to
a lovely four-star hotel located in the Old Quarter on an
historic plaza where there is little traffic (a rare
location in this busy city). In the late afternoon we have a
short orientation walk before relaxing over a welcome drink and
having dinner
at the hotel.
Welcome dinner.
Wednesday Oct 8 - Day Four : Today, with a local expert historical guide, we travel by bus to see one of most fascinating Spanish towns, Segovia. This old city is Spain and Castile at its best with twisting alleyways, Romanesque churches and medieval walls as well as the famous Alcazar Castle. We return to the Parador at Avila for the night and have dinner at an atmospheric restaurant.
Thursday Oct 9 - Day Five : From Avila we drive to Toledo, the old city of El Greco. Toledo is the jewel of La Mancha and our sightseeing tour is led by a local expert. It includes the old quarter with its Arabic, Gothic and Renaissance buildings, the Museum of Santa Cruz filled with masterpieces by El Greco and the jaw-dropping Cathedral which is one of the most opulent in Spain and set in a maze of streets that have hardly changed since the 16th century. Few cities live and breathe their history like Toledo. Captured by the Romans in 192 BC and later conquered by the Visigoths, Toledo became the capital of Spain in 1085 as well as a melting pot of Moors, Jews and Christians. It set an example of religious and cultural tolerance which unfortunately did not last. Five hundred years later the Moors and the Jews were expelled from Spain but Toledo remains a showcase of their achievements.
In the late afternoon we continue to the fantastic castle Parador at Oropesa. This 14th century castle was once the ancestral home of the Álvarez family of Toledo, the Counts of Oropesa and it has exceptional panoramic views of the Gredos mountain range. Dinner at the Parador included.
Friday Oct 10 - Day Six : We have a late morning start to head south through western Spain to Seville. There is a stop in Merida to see the Roman ruins and then we continue to Seville and check into our hotel in the heart of the historic district. (We stay two nights). Seville has inspired many writers and artists - the stories of Don Juan, Carmen and the Marriage of Figaro originated here. During the city's Golden Age the city's great wealth produced beautiful baroque palaces and many famous artists. Its old quarter is a pretty jumble of narrow streets with tiled portraits of saints, potted plants and glimpses through wrought iron gates into the cool interiors of secret Andalusian courtyards. Dinner at a restaurant included.
Saturday Oct 11 - Day Seven : The morning is free and in the afternoon we have a guided tour with an expert guide which includes the magnificent cathedral where lies the body of Christopher Columbus and the adjacent Moorish Giralda Tower with spectacular views from the top and which is said to have been designed by the Arabic mathematician who invented algebra. We also see the Gold Tower where the fabulous wealth from the New World arrived in the days of the Spanish Main. We tour the Royal Alcazar (King’s Palace). It is a Moorish palace associated with many stories of treachery and intrigue and is still used by the King of Spain when he comes to Seville. The gardens of the Alcazar are a vast oasis filled with fountains and pools where the scent of jasmine wafts among fruit trees and flowering arbors. From here we walk through the old quarter with its narrow streets. Seductive Seville was home to the legendary lover Don Juan and also the opera heroine “Carmen” who worked in Seville’s tobacco factory (now a museum). One can almost hear the Barber of Seville as we explore the romantic old passageways of the Santa Cruz district.
Sunday Oct 12 - Day Eight: Today we continue to fabled Granada (We stay for two nights) where our hotel is a lovely old convent converted to a five star hotel in the heart of the fascinating old town. Granada is steeped in history. It was home to the last of the Moors before they were expelled from Spain in the 1400’s by the Christian armies of Ferdinand and Isabella. In the afternoon we have a guided walking tour to explore old Granada where Arab sultans lived a fairy-tale life ruling for 250 years. When the last Arab ruler, Bobadil, surrendered Granada and thus the final Moorish stronghold in Spain, the monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella registered their great victory by choosing Granada as their own burial place. Today, the cathedral contains their tombs along with their daughter Joanna the Mad and her husband Philip the Handsome. The Royal Chapel Museum contains Isabella's crown and many lavish court accoutrements. We stroll through the Albaycin, the Old Arab district where we find "carmenes" (Moorish villas) as well as "teterias" which are Moroccan-style tea rooms where one can enjoy fragrant spiced tea Arab-style. Dinner is at a Moroccan restaurant
Monday Oct 13 - Day Nine: Morning at leisure. In the afternoon we have a guided tour of the Alhambra, the legendary fortress and palace complex of the Arab Nasrid Dynasty which was begun in 1238. The Alhambra includes palaces, mosques, spectacular gardens and a royal summer estate built by the caliphs to create an earthly paradise with quiet elegance and bewitching beauty. The complex overflows with tales of harems, intrigue and murder. We see the cypress tree in the garden beneath which a sultan caught his favorite wife with another man thus causing a problem with succession - the son by that wife was spirited away to keep him from being killed but the strife that followed led to the weakening of the regime and its eventual downfall. The American writer Washington Irving recorded many of these stories in "Tales of the Alhambra". We also visit the Generalife (the garden palace) where the romantic imagination of visitors is captivated by a combination of the slender columnar arcades, fountains, and light-reflecting water basins. The palace was designed to fit descriptions of Paradise in Islamic poetry. This evening we attend a flamenco performance in the gypsy caves of the Sacremonte.
Tuesday Oct 14 - Day Ten: This morning we head south across beautiful Andalusian countryside to the White Village of Ronda. Here we check into the Parador at Ronda which overlooks a spectacular canyon. This Parador was once the town hall of Ronda and featured in Ernest Hemingway's novel "For Whom the Bell Tolls" set in the Spanish civil war. In the afternoon we have a stroll through this interesting town with its old quarter. Dinner at the Parador included.
Wednesday Oct 15 - Day Eleven: We travel a short distance to Cordoba where we check into our lovely hotel which is located in the old quarter of the town. During the Arab domination (711-1263) Cordoba was the artistic and cultural center of the "Al-Andalus" empire. People of different cultures and religions - Jews, Muslims and Christians - lived peacefully together, and many important philosophers, scientists and artists emerged from here. With an expert local guide we visit the spectacular Great Mosque that has a cathedral built within its interior, the Alcazar and the old Jewish Quarter.
Thursday Oct 16 - Day Twelve: This morning we head north through La Mancha, Don Quixote country. It is about three and a half hours to Madrid but we stop at Aranjuez to see the Royal Summer Palace. In the afternoon we reach Madrid and check into our hotel.
Friday Oct 17 - Day Thirteen: In the morning we have a guided city tour of Madrid including the interior of the lavish Royal Palace. The official state residence of King Juan Carlos, the palace is richly decorated by artists such as Velazquez, Caravaggio and Goya. Several royal collections of great historical importance are kept at the castle, including the Royal Armoury with its weapons dating back to the 13th century as well as priceless collections of furniture, tapestries and other objets d'art of great historical importance. We continue to to the Prado Museum for a guided visit to see some of its unique collection of paintings by Spanish Masters. The tour ends at the Prado so those who would like more time there can stay longer. Tonight we have a farewell dinner at a restaurant.
Saturday Oct 18 - Day Fourteen - Transfer to Madrid Airport for the return flight.
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