MADRID AND TOLEDO
This morning it was a more relaxed because we are staying another day in Madrid and didn't need to have our suitcases outside our rooms by 7:00. After breakfast, we returned to the Crypt at Almudena Cathedral for Mass. The chapel was totally decorated in mosaics and gold reminding me of Italy. After Mass, we walked to the Royal Palace with 2800 rooms for a photo op.

Our new tour guide, Manuel, joined us and explained the sites as we traveled by bus to the Prado Museum. There are more than 9000 paintings. The most famous artists we saw are Greco, Rubens, Goya, Velazquez, and one painting by Rembrandt. We only had one hour so our guide showed us the most famous paintings with interesting stories about each one.

We are now headed to Toledo, one of the most popular cities in Spain. The Romans occupied Toledo for over 500 years. It was important because it was half way between the north and south and was the communication center. They bought the language, culture, and built a castle in the center of town. They named it Toledo because of the mountains surrounding it. Eventually, the Moors came, and then finally the Christians. Toledo was the capital of Spain until King Phillip II changed the location to Madrid.

Toledo is famous for hand carved jewelry made by etching intricate 24k gold designs In earrings, pendants, bracelets, and other jewelry. We were able to stop and see one master at work. We also have some time to shop at their store. Many started their Christmas shopping early!

Since Toledo is at the top of a mountain and the buses are not allowed up the narrow streets, we climbed to the top of the city using escalators. It was a beautiful Saturday and we saw several brides and their bridesmaids entering churches for their weddings. Of course, we saw the grooms, too! Toledo is a medical city with Roman, Moor, and Jewish influences in architecture. The most amazing site was the Toledo Cathedral. It contained a monstrance with 240 kilos of gold and precious jewels inlaid around it. Once a year on Corpus Christie, it is taken out of the cathedral and carried into the city in procession. There were many chapels, stained glass windows, sculptures, and paintings in the cathedral. One could easily get lost! We walked around seeing the other sites for about 2 hours before finally navigating our way down the mountain. When we crossed a famous bridge built by the Romans, visitors were zip lining across the river! Unfortunately, (or fortunately) there was no time for us to try it.

We had a leisurely ride back to Madrid. I think most pilgrims were napping after walking about 10,000 steps and 4 miles. If my activity tracker is accurate.