Spanish Road Trip Part 2: Toledo, Mérida, Seville and Cadiz
Spanish Road Trip Part 2: Toledo, Mérida, Seville and Cadiz
This post follows the next week of our month-long Spanish road trip (see this post for Part 1). We’d spent 11 days exploring Asturias and Cantabria from a single base in San Vicente de la Barquera. Now we were to head out on the road, hopping from town to town down the length of Spain, with only one or two nights in each location.
First up was the ancient city of Toledo, south of Madrid, then down to the region of Extremadura to the old Roman town of Mérida. Stunning Sevilla and calming Cadiz in Southern Andalucia were the final stops for the week.
There were many logistics to organise in this section as we moved between the Air B&B rentals, but the children and I soon settled naturally into our individual travelling roles. Rosie became our chief road navigator and translator. Harry was responsible for the luggage and packing up each morning. They both navigated us through the streets of each city (since I have a complete blind spot with Google Maps whilst walking!) and I was driver and chef. Amazingly the children were religious in their tidying of each flat, leaving them spotless, very much unlike their bedrooms at home… Finally, together we agreed on the itinerary for the day and most importantly, where we’d eat in the evening! So, here’s how we spent days 13-19 of our road trip.
Day Thirteen of Our Trip: Toledo’s Cathedral
We arrived in Toledo mid-afternoon, after a five-hour drive from the North. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is quite simply stunning. City walls enclose the town built on a steep rock above the Tagus River. Inside are narrow winding streets, honey-coloured buildings and an air of peace. It’s known as the ‘City of Three Cultures’ as in the Middle Ages the Christian, Muslim and Jewish communities lived side by side with, for once, no sign of conflict. Now in this compact space, you can wander around impressive tenth century mosques, Sephardic synagogues and a Gothic cathedral.
Our first port of call after settling into our new flat (The Baking Little House – with a super friendly owner and its own parking spot in a safe garage) was the Cathedral, only a five-minute walk down the cutest of cobbled streets.
This illustrious and sacred space is majestic, filled with intricately detailed yet spectacular architecture.
Rosie was particularly drawn to the magnificent stained-glass windows.
The sacristy is also packed with paintings from old masters, such as El Greco, Veláquez and Goya.
The whole experience is a feast for the eyes: it’s worth ringfencing a couple of hours to allow you to absorb it all.
We emerged after all this visual stimulation into the bright sunshine and happily explored this special city.
Later, we found our first tapas restaurant of the trip and shared some delicious selections.
Day Fourteen: Toledo and Plasencia
We spent another morning discovering this beautiful spot, this time focussing on the Jewish quarter.
The Sinagoga del Tránsito is another outstanding building, which now houses the small Sephardic Museum, offering an insight into Jewish culture in Spain.
We also popped into the Santo Tomé church to see El Greco’s most famous masterpiece: The Burial of the Count of Orgaz.
In the afternoon, we waved farewell to Toledo and drove west a couple of hours to Plasencia in Extremadura. This was to be our base to explore Monfragüe National Park the following day. Plasencia is a pretty town on another steep hill with an excellent tapas restaurant (La Casuca). It was however much lower key than the other places we visited, and unless you’re visiting the park, probably not worth the diversion.
Day Fifteen: Monfragüe National Park and Mérida
Monfragüe National Park
We set off early the next morning for the Villareal de San Carlos entrance to the Monfragüe National Park. This park is not especially well-known, except amongst the bird-watching communities, but it’s impressive, nonetheless. With cragged peaks, deep gorges, oak forests and plentiful animals, such as wild cats and boar, it’s a gorgeous spot. We only had a short time there, so stopped at the Salto de Gitano viewpoint to check out the colony of Griffin vultures flying overhead. We then went for a gorgeous walk up to the hilltop Monfragüe castle.
Mérida: Spain’s mini-Rome
In the afternoon, we drove to our next accommodation (Casa Rural Los Mayorales) in the little town of Esparragalejo, a quiet little spot with parking outside the property. Esparragalejo is only 15 minutes’ drive from the ancient city of Mérida: once the capital of the Roman province of Lusitania. Once we’d settled into our new house, we drove into the city, parking at the José Fernandez car park.
First up was the Teatro Romano, another UNESCO World Heritage Site, built around 15 BC to seat 6,000 spectators. After all that hard work in battle, the Roman soldiers needed somewhere to unwind and relax. This theatre would have provided such respite. It’s incredibly well-preserved and a great place to explore with kids.
The stage was covered in rings of chairs, clearly set up for an evening’s entertainment. My curious daughter, using her newly honed Spanish skills, asked one of the organisers what event was planned. It was a free concert to be held that very evening. Everyone in the town was invited! Both children begged to stay and attend. So, rather than see Mérida over two days as planned, we did all our sightseeing in one afternoon, to fill in the time before the concert that night.
The adjacent amphitheatre, a place for more bloody, gladiatorial contests, was first on the list.
Next, we walked to the enormous Circo Romano, built to hold Roman chariot races.
The children ran the circumference of the arena, pretending they were being cheered by the 30,000 Roman spectators!
We also saw the remarkable Puente Romano (one of the longest Roman bridges), the Temple of Diana and the arched Aqueduct of Miracles.
The Free Concert
At 7pm, we re-entered the Roman Theatre to find our seats for what turned out to be the top experience of the entire trip. Listening to the enchanting music in such an evocative setting with colourful lights illuminating the ancient columns, I felt incredibly blessed.
After a variety of classical pieces, a famous singer Soraya, who represented Spain at the 2009 Eurovision contest, came on to huge applause. The audience sang along as she belted out well-known numbers such as Qué Bonita and Soy Una Mujer.
What an evening: the children had encouraged me to be spontaneous and I’m so grateful they did!
Day Sixteen: Las Setas, Seville
The next day we needed a slower pace. We took our time checking out and drove two hours south to Seville. I love this city, but it marked a complete change of feel for the trip. Prior to this, we’d often been the only non-locals around, and our Spanish skills were needed. Seville was packed with tourists, and everyone spoke English, which made me a little sad! I’d enjoyed being fully immersed within the Spanish culture. Nevertheless, despite its bustle, this small city with its tiny, cobbled streets is an extraordinary place, full of passion and beauty.
Parking here can be an issue, but we’d managed to find a flat with a parking space on the -6th floor of a secure underground car park. Logistically, this proved complex, as the garage was 1km from the flat. Once we’d accessed the flat, got the keys for the garage, moved the car into its parking spot and returned to the flat, we were exhausted! So, we spent the afternoon relaxing before heading out for some delicious Tapas at La Santa.
After this, we took a trip up to Las Setas: the largest wooden structure in the world. Standing at 29m tall, its design incorporates six large mushroom-shaped parasols. You can buy tickets to walk over the top of the structure, giving you breath taking views over the city. In the evening, this experience is set to a light show, which makes it even more special.
Day Seventeen: Seville & Flamenco!
The Cathedral
First on the agenda this morning was a trip to Seville’s famous cathedral. This vast gothic building – the largest church in the world by volume – is majestic and packed full of splendour.
Highlights include Christopher Colombus’ Tomb, a giant 475kg silver monstrance and the Capilla Mayor (Main Chapel), which is the biggest altarpiece in the world and must surely be the most beautiful. You could spend a long time soaking in the thousands of intricate details and biblical figures carved into this magnificent sacred piece of art. This theme of beauty continues throughout.
There are exquisite sculptures and paintings wherever you look, some by masters such as Goya and Murillo.
Our favourite part was the 104m tall belfry, known as the Giralda. This was initially the minaret of the 12th century mosque the cathedral was built upon. There are no steps up, just a series of ramps, so that the guards could ride up on horseback! The view from the top is outstanding, although the height of it did make my legs wobble!
After this, we spent an hour strolling through the pretty little streets of the Barrio de Santa Cruz, looking in the shops and trying out the freebies on offer: caramelised sunflower seeds were a particular favourite.
The Alcazar
Then it was onto the Alcazar. Packed full of Mudéjar architectural features, it’s a historic royal palace, parts of which are still in use today. It is yet another UNESCO World Heritage Site, this time crammed with beautiful geometric tiles, intricately carved arches, domes and Islamic art.
I first visited this with the kids when they were 7 & 8, so they recreated some of the pictures I took of them on that first visit!
The highlights for us were the gorgeous Patio de las Doncellas, with its central sunken garden, and the main Alcazar gardens.
It’s worth noting that both the cathedral and Alcazar should be booked online well in advance of your visit as slots fill up quickly. That goes for most things in Seville – it’s a popular city!
We wanted to visit the María Luisa Park and Plaza de España, to row boats on the mini canals. Sadly though, our energy levels failed us, and we needed a relaxing, book reading afternoon to recover from our morning’s sightseeing!
Flamenco
With our energy renewed, we headed out to another highpoint from our trip: watching a Flamenco dance performance. There are many great options, but we decided on La Casa de la Memoria, and it was exceptional. You need to book ahead as this is a very intimate performance with only a few seats around the central stage.
Harry was transfixed by the flamenco guitarist and evocative singing, Rosie and I by the incredible dancing. We’ve both spent many years learning to Flamenco dance so we could appreciate the phenomenal skill of the dancers. It comes highly recommended.
Day Eighteen: A Cookery Course in Triana Market, Seville
This morning, we headed across the river for the Triana district. Our destination was the Triana food market and specifically a cookery course, run by Taller Andaluz de Cocina. It was another key experience of the trip. The market was one of the best I’ve ever visited; I wanted to eat everything in sight! The course started with a tour around the market, which provided an interesting in-depth insight into Spanish ingredients.
Next, a group of 10 of us walked to an immaculate kitchen for our cookery course. The entertaining chef then guided us step by step through the process of making a three-course meal: first salmorejo (a cold, creamy tomato soup); second a spinach and chickpea dish to go with our delicious Valencian paella; and to finish, lemon sorbet.
They also showed us how to make a proper Sangria! It was such a fun afternoon, making friends, learning new skills and eating yummy food.
In the afternoon, we set off on the road again to our next destination: El Puerto de Santa María. This quiet seaside town is super close to Cadiz, the oldest continuously inhabited settlement in Europe.
Day Nineteen: Cadiz
By this point in the trip, we were somewhat overstimulated! So, we relaxed, filmed a self-tape audition for Rosie, ran along the beach and across the beautiful Los Toruños park in my case, and lunched in Cadiz. It rained a lot in Cadiz, so we explored the ancient city by car, and decided to return another time!
This marked the end of the somewhat hectic part of our road trip. In the final part, we stayed longer in each place and finally met up with the fourth member of our crew – James – in Málaga!
