La Granja Palace

 Hello!

 After a pleasant afternoon in Segovia we set off for the final destination of the day: La Granja Palace, in the small town of San Ildefonso. 

 When we arrived it was only about five in the afternoon but the sun had vanished and there was an air of greyness everywhere. As we walked through the town we noticed that most of the trees were orange, though it was mid-August. It was like San Ildefonso existed in a bubble of autumn, with Spanish summer trapped outside. It was very odd.

 We arrived at the Palace and I was impressed by the masses of beautiful flowers in front of it.

 There was also a strangely-shaped tree.

 I'll give a potted history of the Palace. Carlos II, the last of the Habsburg dynasty and a very interesting man, died in 1700, heir-less. It was decided that Philippe d'Angou, his grand-nephew and the grandson of Louis XIV, would become Felipe V of Spain. 

 In doing so he began the Spanish branch of the Bourbon dynasty - the Borbón line. It has lasted all these years - albeit with interruptions from Joseph Bonaparte, The Duke of Aosta, the First and Second Republics and Franco - up to the current King, Felipe VI and his nine-year-old daughter Leonor de Borbón who will most probably be Queen one day.

 Back to Felipe V, who ordered the building of a huge Baroque palace. And so La Granja ("The Farm/Country Estate") was created - designed, in effect, to be the Spanish Versailles. It is scarily big and grand and the Baroque style is not one I am particularly attached to. However, I was keen to see the scene of so much history.

 We entered and had to go through security and put our bags in lockers. Photographs were forbidden and it would have been difficult to take a good one anyway, on account of the whole place being very dark. I found it rather cold - in the emotional sense, not physically - and just didn't feel at ease there.

 With long, narrow rooms all communicating with each other in a line so you could see all the way down, it reminded me of Hampton Court Palace - or a Tube train. The thing is, I love Hampton Court and find it very welcoming. Maybe it's because of all the activities they run and the historical re-enactments - there was none of that at La Granja, at least not while we were there.

 There was art from all over the world and all kinds of riches. Of course, it was amazing to walk where so many kings and queens and princes and princesses had walked. But at the end of the day I just didn't like its vibe and I was glad to get back out again.

 The sun had come out a little bit and the town was very pretty. There's something very French about it; maybe it's the species of tree there are. Philippe did a good job of creating his little bit of home away from home.

A booted eagle! (I think!)

  I hope you enjoyed my photos of La Granja from the outside; it's a shame I couldn't get any of the interior. The outside is a lot prettier, though, and more chilled - you'll have to take my word for it.

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

Segovia: The Alcázar and some sweet treats

 ¡Hola!

 My first Segovia post saw me visit the Aqueduct, Casa de los Picos and Cathedral and enjoy the general quaintness of the Old Town. Now we stood at the gates of the park which would lead us to the Alcázar, our final Segovian destination.

 We arrived at the entrance to the Alcázar. As you might guess, Alcázar comes from an Arabic term and it means a building which is a cross between a palace and a castle in that it was used as both a royal residence and a military post.

 We entered and admired some suits of armour. I really loved the circle pattern in the stained glass windows.

 We visited the dining room...

 ...and then went through to the Throne Room, which is highly impressive and ornate. This is where Fernando and Isabel would sit and rule side by side.

 The very Arabic ceiling is stunning.

Mean horse!

The pomegranate represents the city of Granada (Granada means pomegranate)

Gorgeous ceiling

What is it with these horses?

Queen Isabel I

Kids with weird black eyes

At last, a horse that isn't standing on anyone!

Another nice ceiling

 We visited the Chapel which was small but elaborate.

Not again...

 We stepped outside and enjoyed some nice views of both the building and the countryside. I threw a coin in the wishing well.

 We passed through the armour room...

 ...before coming full circle and leaving the Alcázar. I really enjoyed the visit: Isabel and Fernando were fascinating people and the architecture is so sumptious and elegant.

 I headed back across the park to the city. We were to make our own way back to the Aqueduct to allow us to buy some lunch.

 I would have liked to sit down have one of the nice three-course lunch-menu meals I occasionally had in Salamanca and which I had enjoyed on the Toledo trip. 

 However, whereas the Salamancan menus would generally be in the region of ten euros, the Segovian ones I saw were all in the region of twenty which I couldn't justify, plus they tended to be meat-heavy and while I'm not a vegetarian, I don't really eat a lot of meat.

 So, I had various bits and pieces rather than a proper lunch. I had a cheese and ham "crêpe" - more of a galette, really - in a bar. It turned out to be tiny, so I allowed myself some sweet treats as well. First I chose this lattice pastry from a bakey. It was very nice.

 Then, when I arrived at the Aqueduct, I indulged in a Smöoy dessert. Smöoy is a chain of frozen yogurt shops in Spain which I really like - there's one on the Plaza Mayor in Salamanca and I got used to spotting their bright pink and white shops wherever we went. 

 My signature Smöoy is peanut butter and granola but this time I branched out and had chocolate. It was nice for a change but I prefer my peanut butter!

 The rest of the group gradually appeared and when we were all present we set off back to the coach for the onward journey to La Granja Palace. I'll tell you all about our tour of that magnificent but - to me - slightly scary building in the next post.

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x