El 23 de enero - Burgos [January 23rd - Burgos].

Well, hello again friends, family and whomever else may have stumbled across this and are reading it!  Today is Febuary 6th, and I'm updating you guys with a day trip I took two weeks ago!  (Sorry!)  My camera had some issues getting pictures to upload so I was unable to get them onto my laptop and include them in my blog!  But today I got a package from my parents with a way to fix this problem! 

Anyway, on Monday, January 23rd, my classes were cancelled (as well as the classes of two of my friends) and we decided to take a short day trip to a city about an hour and a half north of Valladolid, called Burgos.  It's not a very "touristy" city, but it's still a really neat place.  It was the first time I ever rode on a train, and I loved it.  I think it's easier than flying, and more comfortable than buses!  We left at 7:15am and returned around 10:00pm.

(It's my first train ride!)

Burgos is the home to the body of a famous person we've been learning about in literature class, so it was really interesting to see the city.  His name is Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar, El Cid Campeador.  Also known as Mio Cid or Ruy Diaz.  The story written about him is one of the oldest stories from Spain, and it's called Cantar de Mio Cid. It actually wasn't written, with the first versions being translated from generation to generation orally.  El Cid (the real man) lived from 1048 to 1099.  He was a legendary and historical figure from the Reconquista, (fight against Muslim's in Spain that lasted from 722 to 1492).  He conquered the city of Valencia and gave it back to the Christians in the fight to eradicate the Arabs from the country.

Okay, that's enough history for now!  Here's a photo of his tomb and the statue devoted to El Cid.  

 We basically walked around Burgos all day.  We didn't know a lot about the city, but we had a wonderful time exploring it!  Burgos has a large catholic cathedral devoted to the Virgin Mary.  Construction began in 1221 with two renovations since then, in the 15th and 16th centuries.  There are a lot of rooms in the cathedral with some really old relics.  It also houses a lot of old important Spanish artwork, and a lot of really interesting sculptures.  We spent a few hours walking around the cathedral and looking at all of these things and taking it in.

Here's a photo of the front of the cathedral (and below that are several photos of other views of the cathedral).

 Here's an example of an old chalice from the 15th century.  It was really beautiful. 

This is Sarah and I in the hallway of stained glass windows.  It was some of the most beautiful stained glass I've ever seen.  (Though, Sarah did tell  me to wait until I get to the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona). 

 
This is one of my favorite photos from Spain so far.  It's some of the stained glass in the cathedral in Burgos, with the cathedral in the background.

We also went to the Plaza Mayor in Burgos.  It's irregularly shaped (rather than being a square, it's more like a trapezoid) and enjoyed the typical European views.  The vibrant colors of the buildings were really striking, even on a cloudy day like we had! 

After this, we climbed a hill that overlooked the entire city of Burgos.  There was also a small castle on the top, but it was closed for the winter.  But this is what we got to see when we got to the top of the hill:

It was very beautiful.  We were able to see the cathedral and several monasteries, along with some really interesting architecture!

To end the trip, I'll include a picture of all three of us who went to Burgos at the top of the hill.

  It was a day full of fun and exploring.  It was also really neat because it was the first trip we took without a tour guide and without our professors.  We were on our own, and we had a lot of fun, and a lot of success as well!

I hope you enjoyed your small tour of Burgos, Spain! 

besos y abrazos,
Erin