The Ham Nomads

27 Jan 2015. <ES> Toledo, Castile-La Mancha —

The Alcázar in the morning

We've hit what might be a snag. Warren had a toothache last night — actually, the tooth has been niggling for a while, but last night it came to a head. We went in to the girl at the tourist information office — once again, she was most helpful. She put us on to her own dentist — who has at least a little English. She showed us how to take a bus out to the clinic, which we did straight away. We were able to walk straight in, and both of us had a checkup. The verdict — Suzie needs root canal work, which has been scheduled for February 18; Warren on the other hand seems only to have a sensitive tooth, which we are treating accordingly. This means that we will continue touring, but return to Toledo for February 18.

We then took the bus back to the Tourist Information Centre, where we again thanked our helper. We then went in to Parque de la Vega, which today is alive with a local market. You know the Hams — we can't resist a good market, so we spent a while wandering through it before going in through Bisagra Gate and in to the old city.

So today we went up to the Military Museum in the Alcázar, but not before pausing for lunch at an outdoor restaurant in the square near it.

The Alcázar is one of the most imposing buildings in Toledo. Parts of it date back to Moorish times. Alfonso VI rebuilt the Alcázar on the reconquest of the city, and tradition has it that its first governor was El Cid. Various kings have added to or modified it over time, and it was used as a royal palace until the court moved definitively to Madrid.

The building has suffered fires and siege over the years, each time being repaired or rebuilt. Two major fires were in 1710 and 1810, but the most recent trauma it suffered was in 1936, during the Spanish Civil War, when it was besieged for over 70 days, suffering grave damage. It was again rebuilt, and now is a major military museum. One room in the complex has been set up to give you an idea of its condition after the 1936 siege!

There are quite a few dioramas through the place, illustrating the progress of famous battles in Spanish history. These are of particular interest tom people who over the past year have explored battlefields in England, Ireland and Scotland! We only left the place when it was closing at 5pm!

Queen Isabel the Catholic established the first army field
hospital in 1481, and attended the wounded personally.

Señores in park on our way back to the van.

We wandered back to the van, settling in for the night.

Distance driven — today, nil; to date, 11,957 miles ( 19,243 km )