ATTENTION
Tired of doing what all tourists do every time you visit a place?
THE HEART OF SPAIN
The centre of Spain is full of contrasts, undoubtedly being crossroads for the multiple Spanish cultures. It is therefore a sheltering, cosmopolitan region, open to foreigners. Yet it is also a region of power, sought and used prior to the birth of Spain as a nation, not only to acquire knowledge but also for making great projects. And there are reasons for that...
Locations are alive, they have their own personality and character, features and qualitites differentiating them from each other.
I invite you to see one of the most enigmatic sites you have ever known, an experience which will leave its impression on you to love the “heart of Spain.”
CHARMING ACCOMODATION
Our accommodations are selected with great care:
Ancient convents, great villas, charming small-sized hotels, rural houses built in a quiet natural landscape, old stone houses showing the region's typical architecture.
HOST
From the first day our host will welcome you, making your stay comfortable and pleasant.
Every day the tour will introduce a tour, the places to visit, we will explain why they were built, their history and legends surrounding it, its power as it has been throughout history .
All within an outlined scheme for you to enjoy each scene
We are going to travel through this wonderful Valley. Most probably you are feeling very well rested after a good night's sleep, it is what our guests usually tell us. It wasn't by chance, when King Carlos I (Charles V of Germany) felt sick, he came to the foot of these same mountains to rule over his Empire.
This will be a day of contrasts, visits that will stimulate your senses:
We will go up to a lake and its mountain summit, where its views and emotions blend beautifuly.
We will enter the earth´s bowels by visiting one of the most beautiful natural caves you have ever seen, full of shapes and colors.
We will visit a Medieval Castle and learn why this land is called " Castilla" and what function these castles had.
You will also visit a Celtic Village where the Vettones, the first settlers of these lands lived more than 3000 years ago.
.A visit through nature and small towns that will leave their permanent impressions on you.
Toledo is magic, mysterious.
Its history is lost in time, according to legend it was founded by Hercules himself, who built on its soil a large underground chamber to store his treasures. Can you imagine arriving here, 500 years before Christ and deciding that this was the right place to do so?
Due to its charm, this is the only city mentioned in the tales “A Thousand and One Nights".
Since then, it has been inhabited by Celts, Romans, Christians, Muslims, Templars, Kings and Emperors.
But above all, and for milleniums, Toledo has been a meeting point for wise men, astrologers, alchemists, from various cultures, who have searched this very site to gather, learn, share and also hide their wisdom.
During the Middle Ages, Jews, Christians and Muslims coexisted peacefully in Toledo, where ancient books from all over the world were gathered and translated from every language. The “School of Translators” was founded here in the XIIth century; kings treasured such wisdom not only as a source for knowledge but also as a source of power to expand their legacy.
Exuberant, Madrid does not stop growing. Despite its more than 1100 years of history, it would seem that it is still young, not for lack of wisdom (which it does have) but for its vitality, its acceptance of the new, its desire to grow, create, test, to belong to the world.
A city that welcomes everyone who comes to her, so that if you want to be a Madrid native you are already one, a city eager for projects, an ideal place to start up either a new life, an artistic project, a business...
Madrid has so much energy that it can be stressful for some persons.
It is not surprising, therefore, that over the course of history, many Madrid cities have been created inside the larger one, making up a single Madrid, in a Meccano-like assembly. So there is an Imperial Madrid with its palaces and monuments, a Cultural Madrid with theaters, auditoriums and unique international museums, a Landscaping Madrid with gardens such as El Retiro, Casa de Campo or Madrid Rio. There is also a small and humble Madrid of residents who arrived here to make their dreams, such as Lavapies neighborhood, and another Madrid aiming at the highest level of modernity and success, with great skyscrapers, stadiums and the city's projection both in Spain and abroad.
Madrid as creative energy in the past, present and future.
It is difficult to explain what El Escorial is: A Palace? A Monastery? A Library? A Mausoleum? A Museum? It is all those things and something else, because it was not built for any of those purposes.
Erected in a semi-populated area, separated from the city, in 1563 Felipe II surprised his court by raising this construction as a royal residence, after studying and applying the architectural wisdom used in the temple of Solomon, based on a geometry regarded as sacred by some, with dimensions and a mastery that only an empire could afford.
But why? Why here? Why this type of building?
Even though you have no answers now, when you reach this stage of your journey you will understand Felipe II´s reasons, since you will be aware of the Heart of Spain´s mysteries, and its growth.
VALLEY OF THE FALLEN
Not far from El Escorial and almost 400 years later, a megalomaniac construction was built.
The largest basilica in the western world dug into a mountain, around which a grandiose abbey and a hostel were constructed, the mountain's summit being crowned with a monumental 150 meter-high cross.
Again the question arises, Why here?
As I have told you THIS JOURNEY CANNOT BE FOR EVERYONE
because of the limited number of hotel beds and the characteristics of the trip.
As you know a trip like this is not to be found with any travel agency.
In Spain a tapa is basically an appetizer served in most bars or restaurants together with some beverage (alcoholic or not). This itinerant consumption (going from place to place) is called “tapeo” or “ir de tapas”. In many Spanish regions it is customary to dine or have lunch out on weekends by way of “tapeo”, also usually referred to as “picar” or “picoteo” (snacking)..
Tapas have become a sign of Spanish identity and are offered at welcome banquets to the highest VIP (the so-called tapas meeting). Thus, during the Madrid Peace Conference, Queen Sofia and the Madrid Major invited Raísa Gorbachova to a drink with a tapa during her visit to the Spanish capital. Also modern bars offer tapas specialties, a trend that has been called miniature cuisine. However, the tapa concept has been brought to high cuisine by Ferran Adrià , a chef who uses them as starters .
Spanish cuisine is on demand all over the world. A great many Spanish chefs have been awarded major international awards. This is due partly to the great variety of ways of preparing dishes, in addition to the contributions from the various regions of Spain.
This bonus-pack for tasting Spanish cuisine includes 4 dinners with our most internationally acclaimed dishes, many of which you are likely to know, such as paella, Spanish omelette, gazpacho and more….
Even though our guests who take part in this adventure usually arrive in their own cars from different locations in Spain and Europe, we foresee that coming from the UK you will have chosen to arrive by plane.
This Bonus is designed to make your trip that much more comfortable: we will pick you up at the airport on the first day and bring you back on the last day of this adventure we will share together.
Would you like to come and get to know the heart of Spain?
Would you enjoy this journey?
Please Contact us