Zaragoza - Offt The Beaten Rail Inwards Spain

On a random weekend inwards Oct I decided to receive got a last-minute double-decker to Zaragoza, because for equally much equally Barcelona is exciting together with total of surprises, I also desire to explore other parts of Spain. Zaragoza is the main town of Aragón, the portion to the W of Catalonia. Situated halfway betwixt Madrid together with Barcelona, Zaragoza is non a touristic town, but it harbours slap-up treasures, particularly if you lot similar architecture together with history.

 

The double-decker ride went smoothly, also because I had the chance to admire the Catalan countryside together with the desertic surface area betwixt Lleida together with Zaragoza. There were absolutely no villages, no trees, no signs of human life inwards this part of Spain, and I also enjoyed a sunset that seemed to come upward right away out of a Western movie. I was surprised because I did non hold off a existent desert just a duet of hours away from Barcelona. Sure, Castille - the surface area roughly Madrid - is arid but it is nil compared to this.

 

When I finally arrived inwards Zaragoza, I flora myself inwards the futuristic Delicias double-decker together with educate station, which seemed similar a cathedral inwards the desert. Too impersonal together with big for a medium-sized metropolis similar Zaragoza, I felt a fleck intimidated. When I emerged from the tunnels of the station it was dusk, together with the landscape roughly me was surreal: white ramps leading to nowhere and glass buildings, addition no hints of where the town centre was. The next day, earlier taking my double-decker dorsum to Barcelona, I took a painting of this foreign surface area of the town past times daylight.

Futuristic buildings close the Delicia double-decker together with educate station

The top dog foursquare of Zaragoza, Plaza de Nuestra Señora del Pilar, is considered i of the virtually beautiful inwards Spain. By black it's magic, it's lit together with the atmosphere is great. The cathedral, built on the site of an appearance of the Virgin Mary on operate past times of a pillar (hence the elevate Señora del Pilar), is huge. Inside you lot tin post away encounter people kissing the famous pillar.

Church of Nuestra Señora del Pilar

Zaragoza struck me equally as a lively city: at dinner fourth dimension everyone's out for a caña  (a beer) together with a few tapas, spell during the 24-hour interval flea markets make the atmosphere cheerful.  

Flea marketplace adjacent to the church building of La Seo

The Catedral de la Seo seems similar a regular church, until you lot plough roughly the corner together with receive got the feeling that you lot only switched Espana for Morocco.



Detail of Catedral de La Seo

 

If in that location was i affair that I absolutely wanted to catch inwards Zaragoza was the Aljafería palace, the quondam siege of the Aragonese kings together with an outstanding event of mudéjar architecture, which is the style that was born from the joint tastes of  the Muslim together with Christian inhabitants of this business office of Spain. I actually enjoyed my catch to the palace: fifty-fifty though it is non equally elaborate together with beautiful equally the Alhambra inwards Granada, it is good worth a visit. Moreover, I have ever been fascinated past times the Catholic kings, "los reyes católicos" equally they telephone telephone them hither inwards Spain. Isabella together with Ferdinand kept moving during their reign, but the Aljafería palace retains their crown room. The symbols of the joined kings of Castille together with Aragon, a yoke together with a packet of arrows, is everywhere inwards the palace. Originally built inwards the 11th century when Zaragoza was business office of the Muslim kingdom of Al-Andalus, inwards many parts it is a Moorish palace, non much dissimilar from the ones I visited inwards Marrakesh or Andalusia.

 

Door leading to the prayer room inwards the Aljafería Palace

 

The tourists hither were mainly Spanish, fifty-fifty though the Aljafería Palace is, together amongst other buildings inwards Aragón, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 



Courtyard of the Aljafería Palace

 

Of course of report in that location are corners of Zaragoza that receive got nil to exercise amongst mudéjar architecture or amongst religion. To live honest, I flora it a crude oil town inwards some backstreets. It was in that location that I snapped some pictures of some cute graffiti that looked similar it was made to cheer upward together with valorise this surface area of the town.

 

Graffiti inwards Zaragoza

 

Some to a greater extent than graffiti fine art inwards Zaragoza

My trip ended amongst a bag of "frutas de Aragón", which I seat adjacent to Catalan "panellets" inwards this picture. "Frutas de Aragón", the ones wrapped inwards paper, are a feature sugariness made amongst fruit confit that is covered inwards chocolate. You tin post away imagine the taste!

Frutas de Aragón vs. Panellets

 

 

Would you lot similar to catch Zaragoza? Do you lot ever receive got random improvised trips only to explore novel areas of a country?



Share this post