To start off the first full day in Spain, after fighting off any jet lag, we visited the Royal Palace in Madrid. We learned at one point that the statues in the Plaza de Oriente were on top of the Palace, each representing a previous king of Spain. Afterwards, we went to a viewpoint on a hill to look out at the Cathedral in Madrid. It was thankfully shaded because when we arrived, Spain was in the midst of a heatwave.We then walked throughout the streets of Madrid and made our way to Plaza Mayor. We learned from the guide that the Plaza had burned down twice before, and this wall is the one original part.As we were leaving Plaza Mayor, there were many colorful and decorated buildings. At the time, I didn’t fully know what the building was photographed, but later learned that Posada del Peine is a hotel.After my first full day in Madrid, I was feeling the jet lag, but when we left for Toledo the next day, I was barely feeling it. After picking up the guide, we went to a viewpoint on the other side of the Rio Tejo and looked out at the old city of Toledo.After taking pictures at the viewpoint, we went to Monasterio de San Juan de los Reyes. It was one of the first examples we saw of the mix between Christian and Muslim architecture outside of Puente de Alcántra.We then walked to the Sinagoga de Santa María La Blanca. It is no longer a synagogue but a museum; here, you can see why Toledo is known as “la ciudad de tres culturas.” With the combination of original architecture and modifications, you can see a mix of different styles.We then went down a side street and made our way towards the Catedral Primaria de Toledo. As we approached, there was quite a bit going on in preparation for the holiday of Corpus Christi.One of the first things we saw inside the cathedral was the high altar. The thing I found most interesting about it is that the backdrop gets taller and taller as you go up, so from the ground, they all look the same size.We then went into the sacristy, where we saw many paintings with the centerpiece being one done by Greco. When it was first painted, it was not used by the cathedral because of the bright colors, but as the years went on and the cathedral was finished, it became seen as more.To finish off the day in Toledo, some friends and I got some tapas and explored some side streets. We tried to get some walking in before the hour-long bus ride back to the hotel.
