Cereal: Salamankan

Salamanca is a 5-6-hour train ride away from us. The city has been a major university center since the 1100s, with theology (Catholic, seeing as how there is no other kind...) and law being the main attractions. Today, it is a popular destination for foreigners seeking to learn Spanish.

These extremely detailed sandstone carvings are everywhere. This one is at one of the entrances to the Plaza Mayor. I suggest clicking on the photos to get a better idea of the extremely detailed nature of these works.

Salamanca, like much of Castille, is all about the pig. Ham legs and cured meats of all kinds are everywhere, and in every food. Given the quite blunt statements that we heard on our cathedral tour (in perfectly clear, easy-to-follow Castilian Spanish) about the unvarnished good of the Muslim expulsion (over 500 years ago), the casual observer would almost look at the extreme concentration of pork goods as a talisman against the non-pig-eating brethren who used to be here...

Detail from what was the old university library, which is now a public library.

A plateresque facade at the university. It is a fairly over-the-top experience to look at this in real life. I couldn't guess how long it took to make. Among all of this, you are supposed to find a carved frog atop a skull. Originally intended to symbolize the deadly sin of lust, it is now supposed to bring you luck to find it.

The lower section of the facade.

Ok, here's the frog. There are people all over the place hawking toy frog souvenirs. There's some statement about the modern world in here I suppose. Being a UNESCO world heritage site, Salamanca is not just a tourist trap-it's a swirling tourist vortex. I've never seen anything like it.

Back when going to college was a bigger deal, students at the university had to defend their licenciatura (kind of like a bachelor's degree, but usually longer) in a doctoral defense-like ordeal. The people who passed had their names chalked on the walls, and you can still see some of the writing.

A statue of Fray Luis de León in front of the university facade. The friar was a poet and a scholar.

On winter nights, the fog comes down over Castilla and freezes, which gives everything a sculptural quality, and it doesn't disperse until the clear, cloudless afternoon, the light of which favors all this sandstone stuff. Although there wasn't any precipitation (there rarely is), the weather this time of year is fairly unpleasant and clingy. I recommend long johns and wool, lots of wool.

I'm going to admit that I lost track of all the different churches.

A Roman-era bridge that brought people from the Silver Route into the city. People from Salamanca are Salamantines. The city was, at one time, called Helmantica and was populated by Celts.

A view of the main cathedral of Salamanca. We took an exhaustive tour of the 30 or so private chapels, the chambers around the outside of the cathedral, the choir area, and the towers. It was a very special privilege to see all of the art up in there. Check out the link if you are so inclined.