The start of the tour proper for me when we finally left Madrid on the bus. The first two stops of the day we made was in Avila and Salamanca, Spanish towns before continuing on to the Portuguese border...
The city of Avila 1117 meters (3665 feet) above sea level, the highest provincial capital in Spain. It is built on the flat summit of a rocky hill, which rises abruptly in the midst of a veritable wilderness: a brown, arid, treeless table-land, strewn with immense grey boulders, and shut in by lofty mountains. This results in an extreme climate, with very hard and long winters, and short summers.
St Teresa's church. Avila is renouned for Saint Teresa of Avila, a carmelite reformer who supposedly lived here.
Interior of the church
Plaza mayor, centre of the city.
Outside the city walls of Avila. Avila is most known for their medieval city walls that were constructed of brown granite in 1090 with 88 towers and 9 gateways. They are still in excellent condition, but a large part of the city lies beyond their perimeter.
Roman monument called the 4 pillars. Legend has it that St Teresa wanted to leave Avila to embark on a world wide tour, but when she reached this spot with her companions and turned back to look at her hometown, the view of the city was so breathtaking that she decided that Avila was not worth leaving at all....
View of Avila from the 4 pillars
Salamanca is a university town which is known for the University of Salamanca. The university is the oldest one in Spain and fifth oldest western university. It's other popular site is the cathedral.
Plaza Mayor of Salamanca: the centre of the city.
Salamanca cathedral. This cathedral is unique in the sense that there was an older cathedral built before that became too small for the congreation. Instead of pulling it down and building a new one as was usually done, the new cathedral was built around it instead.
The University of Salamanca.
There is a legend among the university students that if one can spot the frog in the picture below, single girls will find their future loved one soon. But most people will tell you that it is easier to find your future partner than to find the frog. See if you can spot the frog!!
Casa de las Conchas (House of Shells). Today it is a library
Walking around the streets of Salamanca... cobbled stone and everything...
Last views of the cathedral, city and roman bridge as we left...
The city of Avila 1117 meters (3665 feet) above sea level, the highest provincial capital in Spain. It is built on the flat summit of a rocky hill, which rises abruptly in the midst of a veritable wilderness: a brown, arid, treeless table-land, strewn with immense grey boulders, and shut in by lofty mountains. This results in an extreme climate, with very hard and long winters, and short summers.
St Teresa's church. Avila is renouned for Saint Teresa of Avila, a carmelite reformer who supposedly lived here.
Interior of the church
Plaza mayor, centre of the city.
Outside the city walls of Avila. Avila is most known for their medieval city walls that were constructed of brown granite in 1090 with 88 towers and 9 gateways. They are still in excellent condition, but a large part of the city lies beyond their perimeter.
Roman monument called the 4 pillars. Legend has it that St Teresa wanted to leave Avila to embark on a world wide tour, but when she reached this spot with her companions and turned back to look at her hometown, the view of the city was so breathtaking that she decided that Avila was not worth leaving at all....
View of Avila from the 4 pillars
Salamanca is a university town which is known for the University of Salamanca. The university is the oldest one in Spain and fifth oldest western university. It's other popular site is the cathedral.
Plaza Mayor of Salamanca: the centre of the city.
Salamanca cathedral. This cathedral is unique in the sense that there was an older cathedral built before that became too small for the congreation. Instead of pulling it down and building a new one as was usually done, the new cathedral was built around it instead.
The University of Salamanca.
There is a legend among the university students that if one can spot the frog in the picture below, single girls will find their future loved one soon. But most people will tell you that it is easier to find your future partner than to find the frog. See if you can spot the frog!!
Casa de las Conchas (House of Shells). Today it is a library
Walking around the streets of Salamanca... cobbled stone and everything...
Last views of the cathedral, city and roman bridge as we left...
