Madrid & Segovia..

Having quite a few days of leave to take from work and desperate for a holiday I decided to visit my parents in Madrid for a week, while Blair stayed in London.

The weather was glorious and the food was, as always, fantastic (especially the one my mum made!). It was very nice spending a bit of time with my parents and catching up with some good friends I have in Madrid.

Apart from the usual shopping and eating expeditions my parents and I decided to take a day trip to Segovia, a beautiful Castillan city 54 miles away from Madrid.

A bit like Toledo (see blog http://blairjgray.blogspot.com/2006_06_01_archive.html) but on a smaller scale, it is full of small alleys and beautiful buildings. Indeed, UNESCO declared “Heritage of Mankind” in 1985.

Segovia was a city of great importance during Roman times and the ancient Roman Aqueduct, the largest and best preserved of its

kind anywhere, still spans the old market square, Plaza del Azoguejo. It has 118 arches, was constructed out of granite and reaches a height of 29 meters. The Aqueduct now forms part of the old fortification walls surrounding the historical town centre of Segovia.

On the north-west extreme of the wall is the famous Alcázar castle (http://www.alcazardesegovia.com/), apparently the source of

inspiration to Walt Disney, and where Queen Isabel promised Columbus the financial backing he needed to discover America. The castle dates from the 12th century, but a large segment, which contained its Moorish ceilings, was destroyed by fire in 1862.

The tallest building in Segovia is still the 16th-century Cathedral, a prominent landmark as one approaches from any direction. Constructed between 1515 and 1558, this is the last Gothic cathedral built in Spain.