As the main course of the trip, a visit to Cáceres, which together with Mérida are World Heritage cities.
The "Monumental City of Cáceres" was declared by the Council of Europe as the Third Monumental Complex of Europe in 1968 and a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1986.
The main square is one of the largest squares in Spain and one of the most photographed.

Cáceres is a walled city full of palaces and beautiful squares and tall towers such as the Bujaco tower that gives the entrance to the historic quarter. The list of towers in the city is extensive:

• Bujaco Tower.
• Pulpit Tower
• Town Tower
• Tower of Air
• Aver Tower
• Carvajal Tower
• Tower of Storks
• Cotaja or Cistern Tower
• Kiln Tower
• Swordsmiths' Tower
• East Merida Tower
• West Mérida Tower
• Ochavada Tower
• Tower of Wells
• Round or Mora Tower
• King's Tower
• Tower of Sande, in the House of the Saavedra family
• Santa Ana Tower
• Yerba Tower

The most noteworthy thing about Cáceres is the number of palaces in such a small space and their state of conservation. The list of palaces is long, being:

• Episcopal Palace
• Palace of the Golfines de Abajo
• Carvajal Palace
• Palace of Storks
• Palace of Weathercocks
• House of the Solís or House of the Sun
• Palace of the Golfines de Arriba
• Palace of Toledo-Moctezuma
• Palace of the Commander of Alcuéscar
• Island Palace
• Palace of Francisco de Godoy
• Palace of the Generala
• Ovando House
• House of the Becerras
• House of the Cáceres Ovando family
• House of the Sánchez Paredes family
• House of the Paredes Saavedra family
• House of Lorenzo de Ulloa
• House of the Saavedra family
• Aldana's House
• Ovando Perero House
• Monkey House
• Moragas House
• Ribera House
• House of Horses
• House of the Pereros

The first palace I would see would be the Carvajal Palace.
This palace was built between the 15th and 16th centuries. It has Gothic and Renaissance elements. Its main façade follows the typology of the palaces of Cáceres, made of granite masonry. In it is the deputation of Cáceres where you can visit the patio and gardens.



Another palace, the palace of Hernando Ovando is located in the same square as the other buildings, Plaza Santa María. It is Renaissance in style like almost all the palaces in the area.



Then I would continue to the Los Golfines de Abajo palace, which has been visitable for not many years (the one above is a restaurant). This palace has a good collection of neoclassical rooms. The jewel of the palace is the weapons room, of which the original coffered ceiling was discovered when the last reform was made, as well as a number of paintings hidden after the last reform in which everything was painted white. All the coats of arms and noble shields are collected, as well as portraits of the different marquises of the palace.





The most important churches the church of San Francisco Javier, a Baroque-style church and one of the most important and attractive in the city, whose two towers can be climbed and have the best views of the city. It is from the 18th century in the Baroque style. This church is shown in the images in the dropdown on the right.

Another of the important churches is the church of San Mateo, from the 16th century, it stands on a site occupied by a mosque, another Christian church. Gothic-style temple and whose tower would end up being built at the end of the 18th century. It has a 16th century clock in its tower. Another essential palace is the Palace of the Storks where the Cáceres weapons museum is located. The building is from the 15th century and is located in the same square as the Palacio de las Veletas, inside the Arab fortification. It is right next to the church of San Mateo.



Another essential palace is the Palacio de las Veletas where the museum of the city of Cáceres is located. This museum also occupies La Casa de los Caballos. It is of great historical importance because it occupies the site where the old Almohad fortress was, of which only the cistern remains, whose plan is irregular, approximately fifteen meters long by ten meters wide, sixteen horseshoe arches supported by twelve columns, some of Roman origin, forming the five vaulted naves of which the construction consists.
In it there is a large collection of archeology from the Paleolithic, as well as the Roman, Visigothic (where those found in the church of Santa Lucía del Trampal seen previously), medieval and more modern. It also has a temporary exhibition hall, in which there was a large area dedicated to modernist painting when you visit it.



Returning to the palatial path, it would pass by The palace of the Counts of Adanero, and next to it the shutter of Santa Ana. Old gate of the medieval wall of Cáceres.



Another of the palaces is the Palace of the Commander of Alcuescar, near the Parador Nacional de Cáceres, from the 14th century. The current appearance of the façade is in the neoclassical style of the 18th century and would have been carried out by the descendants of the Commander. In the 1980s it would become a National Parador, along with the Casa de los Ovando seen in the previous image, which is located on the other side of the building.



Nearby is the convent of Santa Ana, the General's palace and the Sanchez Paredes house.



The Jewish Quarter is one of the oldest neighborhoods in Cáceres, it is located in the San Antonio neighborhood, so called because the hermitage of San Antonio is located inside the Wall. In it is the house of Durán Rocha and an Arab house-museum that recreates the style of the Moorish houses that existed in this neighborhood.



alking around the Plaza Santa María, I come across such emblematic sites as Montezuma Palace, the Church of San Juan, the Andana Sol house.



Going east we can return to the Plaza Mayor de Caceres, where the Bujaco tower is located and gives access to the wall where you can walk a short stretch.



In the afternoon he would visit the Co-Cathedral of Santa María. The Co-Cathedral is the most important Christian temple in the city of Cáceres. José Ramón Mélida indicates that it is the oldest foundation in the city, since it was completed between the 15th and 16th centuries on a 13th century construction with Mudejar manner and a wooden roof. Its unpainted Extremaduran-style wooden Plateresque altarpiece stands out. The Blázquez or Santísimo Cristo chapel also contains the carving of the Black Christ of Cáceres, a Gothic crucifix from the 14th century.





Outside the walled enclosure there are other palaces such as the palace of Galarza and that of the Marquis of Camarena, with large shields and larger than several in the center. Both were built in the 15th century and are in the Renaissance style.
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Also nearby religious buildings such as The Church of San Juan is located nearby, in the 13th century Gothic style, which would undergo more transformations than other churches and would have just been built in the 18th century. Because it was close to the popular livestock markets, it was called San Juan de los ovejeros. Not far away is the church of Santiago.



Other churches outside the walled enclosure are the Church of Santo Domingo, which was in procession on the day I was visiting, and the Church of Santiago.



On the outskirts of the city I went up at the end of the afternoon to see the sunset from the sanctuary of the Virgin of the Mountain. This location has the best views of the entire city of Cáceres.

Day 4, from Medellin to Toledo (CLICK to continue)

October 4, 2021