Our time in Madrid was brief, but we had a chance to rest after a long flight, enjoy a nice dinner, and scope out the most efficient route for our departure from the huge (and currently under renovation) Atocha Rail Station for the next day.
Finding our way around the station the evening before our trip made for an easy departure Saturday morning. The 3.5 hour train trip to Cáceres worked well and we walked to our hotel from the train station since attempts to find public transportation options weren’t successful.
We are staying at the NH Collection Hotel in the center of the Old Town. A good location near restaurants and sights.
Cáceres has a population of about 95,000 people and is described as “a beautifully preserved medieval city where winding cobblestone streets, stone towers, and palaces create the feeling of stepping back in time.” The city has Roman, Islamic, Gothic, and Renaissance influences that make it an intriguing place to explore. It will take some time for us to uncover all this city has to offer.
We spent Saturday evening walking up and down the hilly cobblestone streets to get oriented to the city and ended our day with a late dinner of tapas in the main square, Plaza Mayor.
It’s early springtime here, and in spite of the many tropical plants which might suggest warm temps, it’s been quite chilly and windy today.
Around town, we’ve found shops selling sausages and local products of every variety. The term “Extremena” in the photo below describes products from this central, west region of Spain called Extramadura.
There are a few colorful murals around town which are a contrast to the expanse of ancient, caramel-colored stone structures.
This isn’t a large city so if we have time, we may explore one or two of the nearby towns in the next couple of days. All is well in Extramedura!