Segovia

Segovia is a very old city. It was already old when the Roman people appeared here (more than 2000 years ago) and it conserves many buildings from every era since then. Perhaps the most interesting one is the Acueducto. It was build by the Roman people to bring water to the city, and it functioned until just 20 years ago. (In fact, when I was a child, fresh water arrived to my home through the Acueducto).

The other main buildings here are the Alcázar and the Cathedral. The Alcázar is the castle. It was a very important fortress during the middle ages. It is still in very good shape. The cathedral was built during XVI - XVII centuries. It is the last gothic cathedral in Spain.

Segovia also contains about 10 small romanesque churches which are characterized by the existence of one, two or even three porticos. Under the portico, separated from the street by a line of romanesque columns, the people gathered to discuss public matters in the middle ages.

It is also worthy to mention the existence of many palaces which were built between the XII and the XVII centuries. Most are privately owned and it is not possible to visit them, but some are public buildings, and you can walk in their courtyards.

I also would make note of the roofs of the houses. They are made usually with just a single layer of tiles (half the number of tiles used in most of Spain). You will also be surprised by the fronts of the houses. They are covered by geometrical designs made with terra cotta.

You should take a walk in La Alameda along the river Eresma at sunset. You can do this (starting in San Marcos) when returning to visit the monasteries of El Parral and Santa Cruz la Real, both from the XV century, and the Vera Cruz church, romanesque, which was built by people returning from Jerusalem and contained a bit of the Holy Cross (it was retired from the church after an attempt of robbery).

There are also interesting things to visit in the area surrounding Segovia. I can suggest you the following small villages: La Granja (12Km), Pedraza (30Km), Sepúlveda (40Km),...

Finally, the cooking in Segovia is very good! I can recomend that you try roasted lamb, cochinillo asado (very small roasted pig), sopa castellana (a soap which contains garlic, ham, egg,...), judiones de La Granja (VERY big beans cooked with meat, ham,...), and, as desert, ponche, a sweet which is specially very well done in the pastry shop El Alcázar, located very near to the cathedral.

If you want a bit more information on Segovia, you can try here or, perhaps, you prefer to look at the local newspaper where news and much information is provided.

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