Sorry everyone. I’ve been so caught up with the excitement here in Cáceres that I’ve had little free time to write in my blog. Anyway, my first class isn’t until late afternoon today so I have the whole morning free which finally gives me time to add another entry.
The first week in Cáceres has been amazing! The food is great and the night life is so much fun. I think the best experience this past week was the tour through the old city of Cáceres. The old city contains a mix of Roman, Arabic, and Christian culture as seen in the walls that surround the city as well as the buildings, palaces, towers, churches, etc. My professor that teaches History of Islam in Spain gave us a walking tour of the old city. He was an excellent guide and I am really excited to have him as a teacher. We walked along the hilly cobblestone roads, excited and surprised at everything that we saw. While in the city, we went inside the Museum of Cáceres. There were Spanish prehistoric artifacts displayed as well as artifacts from different eras. In my opinion, the coolest part of the museum was the aljibe. An “aljibe” is a cistern that many palaces back then had to collect water. Because Cáceres is in the desert, I can see why having an aljibe would be so important. After the museum, we went up one of the towers of the old city to see an awesome view of the city! We walked around some more and then our day came to a conclusion.
On Saturday, Sept. 25, we took a day trip to Mérida which took about an hour to get there by bus. The city was amazing! It was a town built by the Romans during the time of the Roman Empire. Thanks to the conservation efforts of the people, many of the ancient Roman structures still stand in Mérida. To enter the city, we had to cross the Roman bridge. I believe the guide said it is the second largest bridge built by the Romans! We saw an aqueduct that transports water to the city, an amphitheater, and a large Roman theater. The acoustics of the theater were amazing. I heard that if you drop a coin on the stage, the whole audience will be able to hear it! We also took a tour of what used to be a Roman house and we went inside the museum of Roman art. Afterwards, we were treated with a delicious three course meal for lunch. After lunch, we were going to take a look at the race track where chariots used to race but unfortunately, it was closed that day. After a great day, we went home taking our siestas (naps) on the bus.
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