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DAY
1 DEPARTURE FROM NORTH AMERICA
Enjoy full meal service on your scheduled wide-bodied flight
to Madrid.
DAY
2 ARRIVE MADRID - TOLEDO AREA (2NIGHTS)
We will be met at the airport by our Tour manager/guide,
where we will board our own private coach and travel to
historic Toledo, picturesquely sited on a hill above the
River Tagus. Our day commences with a Walking Tour
to explore central Toledo, with streets barely wide enough
for a man and his donkey. During our walk, we will have the
opportunity to visit spectacular shops that produce and sell
Damascene gold jewelry, as well as medieval swords. Our
afternoon will also include a visit to Toledo Cathedral,
the spiritual heart of the Spanish church, and the seat of
the Primate of all Spain.
DAY
3
TOLEDO
Our day commences with a brief visit to the Iglesia de
Santo Tome, where we will view El Greco’s masterpiece,
The Burial of the Count of Orgaz. Toledo is the
capital of Sephardic Judaism and we will visit the
Sinagoga del Transito, which features the most elaborate
Mudejar architecture in Toledo. Our visit will also include
the adjoining Museo Sefardi, with fascinating
tombstones, costumes and sacred objects.
· Your First Concert Performance will be today
DAY
4 TOLEDO AREA - GRANADA (1 NIGHT)
We continue Granada today, one of Spain’s most beautiful and
important cities. This evening we will take a stroll
through the old Moorish quarter, the Albaicin, where
we will be rewarded with a magnificent view of the floodlit
Alhambra from St. Nicholas Church.
DAY
5 GRANADA - SEVILLE AREA (2 NIGHTS)
This morning we begin with a tour of the Alhambra,
Spain’s finest display of Moorish architecture. Set high
upon a hill overlooking the city and shadowed by the Sierra
Nevada Mountains, the Moors built this city within a
fortress as a symbol of power and strength on the outside,
and of “Paradise on Earth” on the inside. Our visit will
also include the Generalife, the country estate of
the Nasrid Kings, where they could enjoy tranquility high
above the city, a little closer to heaven. We continue to
the Seville area for the night.
DAY 6 SEVILLE
Our morning commences with a Walking Tour through
Seville’s Barrio Santa Cruz, a tiny quarter of narrow
streets and whitewashed houses, with flower-bedecked patios
and iron bound windows. We continue with a
view of the city from the Giralda Tower, originally a Moorish
minaret and later used as the bell tower for the cathedral.
The ramps of the Giralda were designed to be wide enough
for a horseman to ride to the top! We will then explore
Europe's third largest Cathedral where we will
visit the Treasury, and view the Capilla Mayor
and the Tomb of Columbus.
· Your Second Concert Performance will be today
DAY
7 SEVILLE AREA - CORDOBA - MADRID (3 NIGHTS)
This morning we travel to Cordoba, an important town in
Roman times and a city of kings during the Muslim domination
of Spain. We will visit the exquisite Mezquita-Catedral,
originally built as a mosque and later transformed into a
Christian cathedral. The hundreds of carved arches, pillars,
grillwork and mosaics dazzle the eye in this 1200 year old
building. We will also explore the Juderia, Cordoba’s
ancient Jewish quarter, with a nest of tiny streets with
interesting shops and cafes, as well as uniquely designed
synagogues and houses with beautiful flowered patios. We
continue on to Madrid where upon our arrival we will take a
stroll down the bustling Gran Via, one of Madrid’s
liveliest streets and finest areas to shop. This evening we
will explore Madrid’s Old Quarter including the
Plaza Mayor, Madrid’s most famous square, and the
Puerta del Sol, where we will view the Kilometer Zero
marker and Madrid’s symbol, the Madrono.
DAY
8
DAY TRIP TO SEGOVIA & EL ESCORIAL
Our day begins with a journey to Segovia, a city of delicate
spires and graceful towers. Our Walking Tour will
take us through Spanish history as we view the 2,000 year
old Roman Aqueduct, made with no mortar and still
functioning today, and then continue through the winding
streets of medieval Segovia to view the Cathedral, the last
Gothic building constructed in Spain and resplendent with
pinnacles and flying buttresses. Our next stop will be the
fairy tale fortress of the Alcazar where Columbus elicited
funds for his journeys from Ferdinand and Isabella. We
continue with a tour of El Escorial, the massive
monastery-palace commissioned by Philip II, which is an
impressive monument to 16th century Spain. We will visit
the Royal Apartments, many decorated with fine
tapestries, and the austere rooms that once belonged to
Philip II. The king was so religious that he had his
quarters designed so that he could see the high altar from
his bed. We will see the Pantheon of the Kings,
which contains the mortal remains of all of the Spanish
monarchs from the time of the emperor Charles V, and the
Pantheon of the Infants where royal children were buried.
DAY
9 MADRID
Our day will begin in the Plaza de Espana, where we
will view the monuments to Columbus and Don Quixote, before
walking past the gardens and statues that lead up to the
richly decorated Palacio Real, the home of Spain’s
Bourbon monarchs until 1931. We continue with a visit to the
Prado, one of the world’s finest art museums,
featuring works by Raphael, van der Weyden, Bosch, Rubens,
Titian, El Greco, Caravaggio, and a fabulous collection of
works by the Spanish masters Velazquez and Goya.
· Your Third Concert Performance will be today
DAY
10
DEPARTURE
FROM MADRID
Our enjoyable and rewarding tour will come to an end as our
tour manager/guide accompanies us to the airport for the return
flight home.
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