Segovia and Avila

Today we took a field trip outside of Madrid into the mountains to view The oldest cities in Spain. Segovia is over 3000 feet above sea level and is several degrees cooler. Segovia famous for the Roman aqueduct that is still functional. It is a massive structure. The town seems to be touristy since almost everyone there comes to see the aqueduct, the Gothic church, the shops or have “suckling pig”(the Segovia delicacy).  Segovia was also home to Queen Isabella and Ferdinand.  Many murals depicting Spanish rulers are present in the halls as well as armor in the palace.

Traditional Segovia lunch was part of the day.  White bean soup, roasted suckling pig, vegetables (mix peas, carrots, peppers) boiled so soft and almost purée able and an orange sponge and a almond honey mazapan base.  Definitely outside our comfort zone.

The second stop of the day way Avila.  The city known for its perfectly preserved walls and is the birthplace of St Teresa.  We were able to walk along the wall and view the cathedral and the convent.   Hard to believe that it was all built in 1500’s.

Today is the warmest day we have had so far.  Dan was in only his short sleeve shirt.  Decided tonight we would just hang out at the apartment. So off to the market to buy something to go with our cheese and some fruit for the morning but first we walked to the tour office to book a tour to for tomorrow.  Seems simple enough.  We went into a market a couple of days ago.  Well have.consulting the phone map and directions we located the market   It is like a fast food courts.  Dozens of stands but not really selling anything “to go”.  On the way out we passed a market   Success!  Enough to make dinner. Now back to the metro.  I am unsure why we can’t seem to find our way simply.

We arrive home by 7:30pm.  We probably should have stopped at the tapas bars and enjoyed the evening as we were dead tired and walked 17500 steps not counting the flights of stairs. Of course on the way to the metro I only found streets that went uphill?  This part of physics I really don’t understand.