Upon leaving Segovia, we headed for the second city on our list, Toledo. Reaching Toledo, we had the pleasure of driving through the medieval and curving streets of ancient Spain for the first time. It was a harrowing adventure, and with relief we reached the car park close to our apartment in one piece. I’ve not been so happy to get out of a car in a long time.
In Toledo, our apartment was housed within the Judería, or what was traditionally the Jewish Quarter, at least before most of the Jewish population was forced out during the Spanish Inquisition. All of the winding alleyways seemed to lead us back to the imposing cathedral square, so naturally that’s where we started our exploration.
A Holy Morning
The Capilla de San Blas / Catedral de Toledo is enormous, and takes a bit of time to get through. But both my husband and youngest love to do audio tours, while my eldest and myself are content to wander around. So we paired off and explored our way through another rainy day in Spain.
A Torturous Afternoon
Right near our apartment we came across the Museo de la Tortura, a museum specializing in the Spanish Inquisition and outlining its heinous methods of torture and execution. This had not been on the top of the list of where to take an 8 and 9 year old, but boy did they want to go. And they found it both fascinating and rightfully disturbing. (Photos borrowed from my husband’s phone).
A Sweet Evening Snack & A Traditional Dinner
After a thorough education on torture and the Spanish Inquisition, we switched gears and searched out some sweets from a very adorable nun-themed bakery, El Café de las Monjas. Marzipan treats and churros with hot chocolate are the specialties here, which means we of course tried both, and we were not disappointed.
Later on the weather cleared up, and we walked around town, looking for dinner possiblities, stumbling upon Mesón La Orza, a Castilian restaurant with a homey atmosphere and a Michelin star. The food here was excellent, the service friendly, and the price very reasonable for a Michelin spot. I recommend it if you’re looking for a somewhat fancy dinner in Toledo.
The next day we spent an hour or so inside the Alcázar fortress – it houses an army museum. Kids liked it, not much more to say.
Once we finished up there it was time for us to head on to Córdoba. On our way, we decided to do a little windmill-spotting, Spanish style. Which means we detoured to Consuegra.
Tilting at Windmills
Consuegra is a town in Castille-La Mancha and, high above it on the Cerro Calderico ridge, sit 12 windmills and a castle, the Castillo de Consuegra. The windmills were moved here to create sort of a ‘windmill museum” and to commemorate Miguel De Cervantes’ The Ingenious Nobleman Sir Quixote of La Mancha (or just Don Quixote for short). It was a lovely, sunny day, and perfect for checking out the windmills.
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