Zamora, Spain- June 2014

Zamora 

Zamora predates the Romanesque period and was occupied by the Celts and the Romans for much of its history.  It sits on a hilltop and overlooks the Duero River.  It is small and quaint and truly made us feel like we had stepped back in time.  There are no buildings more than 2 stories high and most are not even that.  The streets are narrow, as are most streets in Spain, but these were different somehow.  We just felt like we had entered an entirely different period.

There are 16 churches in this small town and apparently during the Holy Week it is a place that is worth while to visit just for the procession of pasos (sculpted floats).  We got to look inside a few of these churches and they were as beautiful as you would imagine.  They didn't want us taking pictures though but Ross is sneaky and got us a few anyway.

We had a traditional Spanish breakfast in Plaza Mayor which consists of coffee, juice and tortilla.  It was a gorgeous sunny day and it was nice to just watch all the people wandering around.  We met a man on our breakfast patio that was doing the Camino de Santiago (The way of Saint James).  There are routes throughout Spain to reach the Cathedral of Saint James which is in Santiago de Compostela.  It is a religious pilgrimage and is extremely popular.  You will see people hiking with their backpacks all over the roads when you are travelling here.  It can take anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months to do depending on where you start and how much you can do in a day.  This man said he planned on being there in 3 weeks but said his wife did the same trek the year before and it took her 7 weeks. 

http://www.santiago-compostela.net/  If you are interested in learning more.

Plaza Mayor

We wandered through the city and took in all the small town charm and were lucky enough to be there on a day they were having a parade.  We never know what these parades are for, they are clearly religious ceremonies of some sorts but we have no idea why.  They are interesting to see though.  There are always pasos and religious figures carrying incense burners, so the town smells amazing.  They also throw lavender and rosemary branches everywhere which not only smells great but looks really cool too.  There was a marching band and they were playing very somber music as per usual.  It was a special time to be there.  Even though we didn't know what or why it didn't matter it was just a great feeling to be involved in something they take so seriously.  Ross and I are far from Catholic but we appreciate how dedicated they are to their religion (even if it is bullshit).

The Parade 

We really enjoyed Zamora, again a small town so we were only there a few hours, but a picturesque town with some amazing old world charm.  Oh also we found a gypsy market and I got some really cool shoes for 5 euros.  Mostly the gypsy markets are nothing but garbage and they are very persistent (also watch your bags) but sometimes you can find something really neat.