This is a job where information is collected about the problem of tourism impact in some places. In some cities rational precautions are taken: But in others (very few) an alarming syndrome develops. The turismo-phobia. The turism-phobia. Here is the information that could gather, more personal experiences having personally visited four of those places.
Ada Colau shortly after taking office as mayor in 2015: “We do not want the city to become a cheap souvenir shop”. He put Venice as an example. The freezing of licenses for all the new hotels and apartments for holiday rentals, the fines for AirBnb, the projects for new tourist taxes and the studies to limit the number of visitors are the reasons that this blog uses to include in this list.
We can choose between staying in the city to visit a special place that we liked or to visit a nearby city
These are the options
One day in Madrid
Museum of Prado – Museo del Prado : For those who like Art, it will take all day. (and more if you prefer)
Queen Sofia Museum – Museo Reina Sofia : The same as the previous
Retiro Park and Bullring – Parque del Retiro y Plaza de Toros. It can include a bicycle ride (they are rented at the park entrance). Then visit the bullring that is very close to the park. ( all day). ( Book Hotels in Madrid)
Near cities
TOLEDO
If we decide to see lesta medieval city in a day we can visit the most important monuments, historical buildings and museums that welcomes inside.
It was an important medieval city that is surrounded by a wall. Toledo has a main entrance that is known as the Puerta de Bisagra and another secondary one that is called Puerta del Cristo de la Luz. Through this door the road is crossed to the Puente de Alcántara and the Puente de San Martín. These are the main attractions
Alcazar of Toledo
Built by the Emperor Charles V on the main hill of the city and facing the Tagus River, the Alcázar de Toledo is an important castle (with an imposing moat) built with the architecture of a palace and at the same time a fortified square. Currently you can visit the Army Museum there. the tickets are bought at the entrance of the castle, € 5 (free Sunday morning).
Cathedral of Toledo
The Cathedral of Toledo, is a construction of Gothic style and its size is the second largest Cathedral in the country. Its construction began in 1226 under the reign of Ferdinand III (the Saint) and was completed in the fifteenth century when in 1493 the vaults of the central nave were closed in the time of the Catholic Monarchs. The entrance ticket is 12.5 euros and you can buy it yourself
Synagogue of El Transito
The synagogue was built between 1357 and 1363. According to the inscriptions that appear in the building itself, it was built by order of Samuel Ha-Levi, member of the Jewish community. this person was adviser of the Kingdom of Castile during the reign of Pedro I of Castile. Tickets: € 3 (free Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning) .
Army Museum of Toledo
The Army Museum is located in two different buildings. The Alcázar de Toledo is one and the new one. Both buildings are linked by the remains found in the archaeological excavations carried out for the expansion of the museum. Tickets € 5 (free Sunday morning).
The building was the protagonist of important historical facts (the War of Succession, the War of Independence, the Spanish Civil War 1936-1939). The Castle was besieged. burned and bombed being partially destroyed. After the civil war began its reconstruction, completed in the early 1980s
The Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial is a complex that includes a royal palace, a basilica, a pantheon, a library, a school and a monastery. It is located in the town of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, 29 miles (48km) from the City of Madrid. It was built between 1563 and 1584 and in the Pantheon there are the tombs of the kings of Spain since 1500. Tickets: € 10
In the city of Aranjuez you can visit The Royal Palace of Aranjuez. This palace is one of the residences of the Spanish Monarchy. It is located in the City of Aranjuez about 30 miles (50 km) from the Community of Madrid. Tickets 9 €
How to get from Madrid
By Car AP6 Madrid- Tordesillas Motorway. Deviation en route A600 destination Escorial
By Train – Atocha Station ( see map) . Local Train ( Tren de Cercanias ) Line C3 direction ARANJUEZ – 70 min
On the second day we started walking along the Main Street – Calle Mayor (we passed the chocolate shop San Gines for those who have not yet had breakfast) until the Mercado de San Miguel ( see Map). This is one of the oldest markets in Madrid and is awarded as it was in its golden age.
At the end of the main street we find the Cathedral of Almudena, which is the Metropolitan Cathedral of Madrid. It began to be built in 1879 and officially ended in 1993. It can be visited every day and it is traveled in approximately one hour
Next to the Almudena Cathedral is the Royal Palace of Madrid. At this time, it is not the residence of the King of Spain, but only acts of protocol. It began to contribute in 1738 and was completed in 1764. It has 3418 rooms and is larger than the Palace of Versailles on the outskirts of Paris –France
In 2016, the Royal Palace received more than 1.4 million visitors, being one of the most visited monuments in Spain. It can be visited with or without a guided tour, every day from October to March: Every day from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. From April to September: Every day: from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Price Adults: € 10. (Guided tour € 14). Duration of the visit approx 1 hour.
Leaving the Royal Palace and crossing the Plaza de Oriente is the sober building of the Royal Theater (Teatro Real) built between 1818 and 1850 and restored in 1991. It is a very interesting building and can be visited with guided tour given time. Next to the Royal Palace you can visit the royal gardens, called Jardines de Sabatini and Jardines de Campo del Moro. this walk can last approximately one hour.
Leaving the Jardines de Sabatini, and walking north along Bailen Street, a few blocks away we reach Plaza España, where the monuments to Cervantes, Don Qujote and Sancho Panza are located
Further on, you find something surprising. A true Egyptian temple in the City of Madrid !. it’s about the Temple of debod. The temple, originally from ancient Egypt and 2,200 years old, was a gift from Egypt to Spain for its collaboration in the rescue of Nubian temples. Thanks to international aid Egypt managed to save, among others, the Temple of Abu Simbel, a temple that would otherwise have been buried in the construction of the Great Dam of Aswan.
The Temple of Debod was inaugurated on July 20, 1972 after two years of reconstruction. It was a complicated process since, in addition to not having good plans, in the dismantling and transport some stones were lost. The temple has two floors, in the upper you will find a very interesting model where you will see all the temples that were in the country of Nubia. Admission is free
If you have some time, a few meters ahead (see map) is located in the Parque del Oeste and is one of the largest rose gardens in Europe. Also in the same park there is a cable car where you can appreciate magnificent views of the city. End walking Madrid Second day
We arrived at the Adolfo Suarez Airport ( Madrid) in afligth of IBERIA, and took the Metro of Madrid (you can also take the commuter train with combinations) and arrived at the Sol station. We arrived at the hotel (3 blocks away) and then we prepared to walk the city.
In Madrid There is a very old chocolate shop near there. A classic in Madrid.The Chocolateria San Gines. There you can order the classic chocolate with churros. a delight
American Revolutionary Coins Countermarked in Philippines
A collaboration of Marty Martinez
The circulation of the Philippines at the time of Spanish domination consisted of coin minted in other regions, mainly Potosi, Peru and Mexico, with the same denominations as in the rest of the colonies.
From the independence of the American colonies, there was a retraction in the circulating in this zone. For this reason should have appealed to a very curious policy: the reselling of currencies. Potosí, Peru and Mexico were alternated several times by Independents and Spaniards between 1810 and 1828.
As a result, the independentist minted their own currencies (Potosi: Bolivia and Argentina), Lima (Peru) and Mexico. Apparently when the Spaniards occupied these places again, they also appropriated the new mints, some of which were sent to the Philippines by the Pacific route. Thus, circulated from 1828 Peruvian independence coins, Mexican and Bolivian in Philippine, with the Spanish denominations.
