Stranded in Segovia

Well, it turns out I was not tied down by my 5 p.m. skype call yesterday, so I was free to go ahead with my plan to visit Segovia. I wanted to see the aqueduct, which is monumental, and as an added bonus, the castle that inspired Walt Disney in his creation of Cinderella's castle in Disneyland.

I started by researching the trains to find the times I wanted to go. I knew (I thought) that this was Cercanias - the local trains, rather than Renfe - the trains that go longer distances. After writing down the times I wanted to go and return based on their availability and price, I took the subway to the train station (I could have walked, but thought I'd use up my 10-trip subway ticket and I would be walking enough in Segovia).

I arrived at the Cercanias ticket office at about 10:15. I was an hour early. I stood in line and watched as most of the people ahead of me were sent to a different place (silly tourists) because they wanted to go to Toledo.

I confidently stepped up to the window, knowing what I wanted and where I was going and said, "Segovia?", perhaps a little doubt in my voice.

The woman in the window told me the next train was not until noon. I asked her about the 11:15 train and she said it was from Chamartin. Ah, Chamartin raised its head again! From behind me I felt an insistent pushing. Was I taking too long? I ignored it, and cointinued my questioning. Can I buy the ticket here? She said yes. I then asked about the return. She told me I could do that at Chamartin. Then the total appeared on her cash register - 1.20 euro. She was selling me a ticket for the Cercania train to Chamartin.

Just then the pushing from behind became forceful enough for the woman who was pushing me to push her way up to the window. She asked if the 11:15 train to Segovia was "rapido". The woman in the window said yes. Then the pushy woman looked at me and said to be sure I take a "rapido" or else it would take me two hours. I thanked her for her advice and chuckled at the whole scene.

I walked to the train to Chamartin which arrived within two minutes (so far, for all subways and local trains in Madrid, I have not had to wait for more than 3 minutes for any of them. Amazing!)

Within a few minutes I was back at Chamartin station. As I exited the Cercanias line, like before, there was a woman in uniform standing there to answer questions (something else I really love). I asked her where I could buy a ticket to Segovia. She directed me to the upper level, same as before when I went to Avila and Salamanca. I asked her if it was Cercanias, and she told me no, it was Regional. I guess my research was all wrong. So much for being a know-it-all.

I went up to the ticket office and there was actually a window designated for the 11:15 train to Segovia. I bought my ticket with my 18:20 return. Thinking that four hours more or less was enough time to see Segovia, have lunch and return, maybe giving me enough time to make one more visit to the Reina Sofia museum.

The trip was quick, about 30 minutes, and we arrived at Segovia Guiomar station. Was this it? I thought we were going to Segovia. What was this Guiomar? I watched and some people who looked like they were tourists were getting up. But what did they know? A lot of people who were getting up looked Spanish. I got up, but didn't want to get off at the wrong station. Maybe the Segovia I wanted was the next station. I asked a Spanish looking man if there was another station in Segovia. He brusquely answered "no". So I got off.

I exited the station and there were two number 11 buses in front of the station. For some reason people were getting on the bus behind the first one, i.e., the second bus. They were both number 11. I went for the one at the head of the line. A German-looking couple got on and said "Segovia?" the driver said yes. I thought it was a silly question, I mean, where in Segovia were you going. So I got on and asked, "al centro?" and the driver said yes. The fare was 88 centavos. Drivers provide change on buses here. Good thing. Can you imagine having to always have exact change?

We sat for about 15 minutes as the rest of the crew from my train made their way out and piled on the bus, I imagine each one of them asking the driver some questions such as "Segovia?", "al centro" and "how much"? The people who got on the bus behind ours eventually got off and came onto our bus. We were now packed in like sardines.

We started heading through this deserted landscape, nothing but brown soil and roads. In the far distance was a big yellowish building. An Italian woman sitting behind me said to her companion who was sitting next to me, "is that the cathedral?" - the guy sitting next to her said yes.

I couldn't believe we were so far from the city. Nothing I had read told me I had to take a bus to the center. I just did it because it was there and I am kind of getting tired of walking so much (and I knew I would be walking in Segovia). But on we went, through barren countryside, suburbs, and finally arriving at the giant aqueduct that signaled the entrance to the old historic part of Segovia.

Immediately past the aqueduct was the tourist information center. I had seen people getting on the bus with these nice tourist maps and I somehow missed getting mine, so I went into the TIC, which I had read was one of the most helpful in Spain and asked for a map. The woman gave me a map, opened it, showed me where we were, circled the cathedral and showed me how to get to it, and circled the Alcazar (the castle) and showed me how to get to there from the cathedral. She then went on to point out several other parts of town I might want to visit and mentioned a few other buildings worth checking out. I was going to ask questions, but she went on for some time with my orientation. Finally, when she was finished I asked about tourist buses. She said there was one that made a tour around the outside of the city, but to really see it, you had to walk. Added that it was an easy walk.

I then asked her about going to the top of the aqueduct and she told me just to go up the stairs to the left of the entrance and then showed me on the map how I could walk from the top of the aqueduct to the cathedral without having to come down the stairs again. It was true, this was by far the most helpful tourist information center in all of Spain, perhaps in the world!

And so I started my exploration, first climbing to the top of the stairs to see the aqueduct from the top. The thing was gigantic! Really a true wonder of engineering. It was built without mortar and has stood for about 2,000 years. And at one time actually transported water! How is it that it has not fallen down? I read that the Moors destroyed a part of it and parts have been restored, but I could still see many sections that looked unrepaired. Quite amazing!

From there I walked to the cathedral, noticing the interesting patterns on the buildings, which were quite different from other cities I've been to in Spain. It was a lovely day. Perfect temperature, sunny, and quite fresh at this high elevation.

The cathedral was not terribly interesting to me, so I didn't go inside. I wanted to see the castle. So I continued my walk, stopping along the way to take photos.

I finally arrived at the castle which looked out over the fields and village below. Trees were just beginning to change color. Most were yellow or yellowish, but some were turning red or orange. In a few weeks, it would be a vibrant burst of color. Too bad I was early, but still it was lovely, with the trees below giving way to brown fields which stretched out to the mountains in the distance.

The castle itself was not a disappointment either. It sure did look like Cinderella's Castle (or is it Snow White's?) at Disneyland. Not that I've ever been to Disneyland, but I've seen pictures. As I approached, I was walking next to three Asian girls I thought might be Japanese. Suddenly a wind blew and one of the trees on the path let go of a flurry of leaves, which fell gently to the ground like cherry blossoms. "Aaaaaahhh...oooooohhh, sugoi!!!!" cried the girls next to me. Yep, they were Japanese.

I know I've been complaining a lot about my fellow tourists. I need something to complain about, but I have to say, the Japanese have been a delight to find out the tourist trail. Their reactions to things are priceless, they are always polite and unobtrusive, and surprisingly they don't travel in large groups (or at least I haven't seen them in groups). The most I've seen have been groups three or four. In Belem, a cute older Japanese woman in line behind me at the pastry shop asked me in English what was good. I told her I didn't know, and she got quite a chuckle. Then when she got to the counter she pointed to the pastry she wanted and said two in Portuguese. I was very impressed. As a foreigner in Japan, I found them a bit unwelcoming, but as tourists, I think they are among the best!

Anyway, back to the castle. It was quite impressive. Everything a castle should have, dungeons, shining armor, towers, cannons, the drawbridge was stone (I imagine at one point it was a real drawbridge). I climbed to the top of the tower through a very narrow winding staircase that was very claustrophobic and because of the high altitude I began to become very breathless and felt like I could have a panic attack when I realized I was encased in this stone tower with quite a distance to go up or down to get out. So I stopped and caught my breath, and slowly went up to the top where I was treated with a fantastic view.

I was enjoying myself immensely. Segovia was not as beautiful as Sintra with its lovely woodsy setting, this was a city with cobblestone streets, buildings, etc., and the trees were outside, but still, it was lovely.

I walked through the Juderia, the old Jewish quarter, because I have always found them to be among the most interesting parts of old Spanish cities. But I found I wasn't really sure where it actually was. If I was in it, it didn't look the same as in Toledo or Seville, where it was very distinctively different.

It was 2 p.m. and school was letting out. Parents were going to pick up their kids to take them home for lunch. There was a flurry of activity around me, children running in all directions as I made my way back up to the cathedral and then began looking for a place for lunch. I figured I would eat lunch, take another short walk and then head back to the train station for my 4:20 train.

And then it hit me. My return train was 18:20. That was not 4:20. Somehow I had bought a return ticket for 6:20. What was I going to do for another 4 hours?!!!

I found a place to eat lunch and it turned out the Italian couple from the bus was there. It was funny because in Italy I kept comparing the shabby, dorky tourist outfits to the chic and elegant (even if they were casual) Italians. And I looked over at this Italian man who was wearing tan travel pants (they are those quick dry, non-wrinkle type), sneakers, bright blue fanny pack, travel shirt (another no-wrinkle, quick dry thing) and baseball cap. He looked like all of the dorky tourists I saw in Rome. I guess it doesn't matter how they dress at home, when they hit the road, all tourists shop at the same store - REI, or some equivalent.

My lunch was okay. The menu was weird. They had raciones, large plates of tapas, but no half raciones or tapas. That meant I could get something like garlic shrimp and pretty much have that be my meal, unless I wanted to pay more for a salad or some extras. I didn't want to do that. They had some combination plates that all came with fried eggs. I was not sure why. Finally I decided on pork tenderloin with two fried eggs and fried peppers. I figured I haven't eaten many eggs lately and even though I am not a huge egg fan, it would be an okay lunch.

It was just that. Okay. The pork was tasteless, the fried peppers were okay, and actually the eggs were really yummy. I also had a beer, which hit the spot.

I was starting to get tired and thought about having a coffee and maybe desert, but decided since I had time to kill (more time than I thought), I would walk and see if I could find another place for desert.

Before I knew it, I was back at the aqueduct. Segovia was not a very big place. I decided to stop into the very helpful tourist information center to see if I could get my train ticket changed. They told me at first that if there were seats it was possible, but then they said there were no seats on the 4:08 train. It looked like I was stuck there until 6:20.

I walked through the newer part of town looking for a place to sit and have a coffee or a chocolate and hoping I might find a place that served that delicious Moroccan mint tea I had in Ceuta and in Morocco. No luck. It was basically a pretty boring pedestrian shopping mall with a view of an amazing aqueduct.

I walked back and settled on a cafe right at the foot of the aqueduct. I ordered chocolate con churros. They were out of churros and offered me from their selection of donuts and breads that did not look very appetizing. I settled for just the chocolate.

As I was sitting there in the shadow of this amazing monstrosity in awe of its size and the fact that it was still standing after all these years, the tourist bus appeared at its base. Perfect timing!

I walked over, paid my 5.70 and climbed aboard. Even though it was going to go around the outskirts of the old city, I thought it was a perfect way to kill 50 minutes. And it was.

We rode around the base of the wall that surrounds the city and then went further out into the countryside for views back at the city, the castle, the cathedral. It was lovely. The sun was beginning to fall down in the sky and there was a beautiful afternoon glow set over the fall landscape of brown fields and trees beginning to change color. It was one of the most pleasant open-air bus rides I've had on this trip. I felt like I was riding in a convertible (well, I was sort of). It felt great having the cool, fresh wind blowing in my face, the sun shining, and circling around this majestic city on a hill.

After the tour, I took one more walk up to the top of the aqueduct, took a few more photos with the shadows of the aqueduct now stretching long on the city below, walked up towards the other end and found a chocolateria! It was now after 5 and a quick snack of churros and chocolate was the perfect thing before I made my way back to the train station.

A French family from my original train (I remembered seeing them in Chamartin station and in my coach on the train) was sitting outside of the chocolateria. The father went inside to order, so I followed his lead.

The guy working inside looked kind of like a young Pavarotti. He was wearing a red and white striped apron that reminded me of a barbershop quartet. He seemed very busy, even though there were only a few people there.

Finally, he recognized me and said, "diga". I have to say, this is one of the most annoying things I have found on my trip. Waiters who say "diga". Literally it means speak. I just find it really rude, even if it is culturally acceptable in Spain. They don't say it in any other Spanish speaking countries I've visited. I want to bark like a dog when they say it.

Anyway, I spoke, and said "churros con chocolate" and was about to say "on the terrace" when he cut me off with the price.

He did not look happy. I felt like I had done something wrong.

I paid him and stood waiting for further instructions, such as, "okay, go sit down, and we'll bring it to you". I thought maybe I was supposed to wait, and carry it out myself, since that is what I had done at the place I had the chocolate earlier. Mr. Pavarotti-lookalike just ignored me as he sighed and grunted while doing things with his fancy computerized cash register. I looked at the different selections of chocolates. Read the sign that said "do not touch" which made me want to touch the things on display, but I didn't.

Finally, he looked at me indignantly and said something like, "is there something I can help you with?!!" I told him I was waiting for my churros and chocolate. He said, "Huh?" I thought maybe he had forgotten, so I explained that I had ordered churros and chocolate. He said brusquely, "go sit outside, we'll bring it".

I muttered "asshole" under my breath and went outside.

In a few minutes a waitress appeared with a cup of steaming, thick chocolate, threw an ashtray on the table and said the churros were coming. Mr. Pavarotti lookalike came out with the churros. I did not like the atmosphere at this place at all, even if their chocolate was good and the churros came as close to the ones I had in Granada yet (they were a bit greasy).

I only had enough time to gulp down the churros and couldn't finish the chocolate because it was too rich before heading over to catch the number 11 back to the station. It turned out the extra time in Segovia was a blessing. Aside from the grumpy service at the chocolateria, I had had a really lovely time and was really happy I had the opportunity to experience Segovia on such a beautiful day.

Today it is supposed to go up to 78 in Madrid. Good thing because I washed my one pair of jeans last night and they are still drying. I can wear shorts today. Perhaps I will take a walk in El Retiro park after I finish my morning chores and have lunch. Tomorrow Barcelona. This part of the journey is almost over.