We arrived to the city as the sun was setting. The road from Madrid was slow, because we had to cross a range of low mountains to get there. For a couple hours after arriving we walked around the city. Although it was Friday night there were very few people in the streets. There was a brisk wind blowing through the city, so people were not out on the town.
After our walk through the citadel, we found a quiet place to park the landy and set up our bed for the night. The bed was great and the street was quiet, but neither of us slept very well. In the morning we were tired, but eager to see the city at daytime.
We started off by walking the length of the city to the tourist office. With map in hand we began our exploration of the citadel. First we visited the cathedral and its museum. This began the very religiously oriented theme for the day.
After a short walk outside of the walls (where we bought some delicious pastas - shortbread cookies), we payed the entrance fee to walk the walls. We spent close to two hours walking along the citadel wall. It was fun to see the city from a different view.
Continuing our religious theme, we went to the Convento de Santa Teresa to see her birthplace and relics. We were able to see the small room where she was purportedly born. The room is inside of the church, and at first we were suspicious of the claim that she was born inside. When we later realized the church was later built around her childhood home, we accepted that the claim was reasonable.
The convent also has a hall of relics and a museum. The relics hall had a piece of her clothing, a sole of her sandal, and her cane. By far the best part was her dried severed ring finger contained in a glass vial amongst paper flowers. The museum was filled with 16th century books with images of her teaching, as well as numerous paintings of her. It was clear from the masses of visitors that this is a popular religious destination.
Late in the afternoon we walked out of the city to the overlook on the neighboring hill. This was the last thing we planned on doing before going back to Madrid. It was a beautiful view to end our trip.
