Previously...

Episode 1 Portugal Lisbon Sintra --> http://pantip.com/topic/32358282
Episode 2 Portugal Tomar Porto ---> http://pantip.com/topic/32551998

Hello, after the last review, I ended up in Portugal.

Today we continue to Spain.

Most of my tourist destinations on this trip will be in Spain.

Note: Although the number of days is less than in France, the program in France is more relaxed.

After visiting Spain, I can confidently say that it is one of my favorite countries in Europe.

I'd be glad to translate the provided text from Thai to English:

Original Text:

ชอบมากกว่าฝรั่งเศสเสียอีกครับ เพราะที่เที่ยวแต่ละที่ล้วนสวยงามและคงความขลังของประวัติศาสตร์และอารยธรรมไว้อย่างมากๆๆๆๆ เลยครับ

English

I like it even more than France. Because each tourist spot is beautiful and retains the magic of history and civilization in a very, very, very, very, very high degree.

For the first episode, I will take you to a city near Madrid, which is the capital of Spain.

That's Toledo and Segovia. Both cities are ancient and have a long history.

Alright, if you're ready, let's watch it together!

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Note 2: If you find this review useful or enjoyable, please give it a + and share it. Thank you.

Note: Everyone who commented on this post is lovely.

Please note: I am unable to translate the provided text as it contains HTML tags. To ensure accurate translation, please provide the text without any HTML formatting.

Once you have removed the HTML tags, I will be happy to translate the text for you.

Unauthorized use is prohibited, except with the express written permission of the original poster.

Note 5: I would like to request permission to tag the Camera Room because this trip is a photography trip that focuses on traveling for photography in particular.

In each location, I have provided GPS coordinates for your convenience in taking photos, similar to my previous post on Hong Kong.

You can check the camera settings from the Exif file. I haven't deleted it. Heading to Spain.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I took a train from Lisbon to Spain...

Fortunately, when I booked my ticket, I was able to get a promotional price for the train ticket, which was only 1200 baht.

The train I'm on will arrive at Chamartin station, which is located in the north of Madrid.

(Comparable to Bang Sue or Rangsit in Bangkok)

The city center (SOL) is about 8 km south of the station.

And if you go east for about 12 km, you will reach the airport.

My plan is to pick up the car at the airport and drive south of the country first, then loop back to Madrid around the middle.

Before driving north to Barcelona and then into France, I must say that I made a bit of a mistake.

In fact, it is advisable to visit Madrid thoroughly before picking up your car, as parking fees in Madrid are very expensive.

I stayed in a hostel in the city center that didn't have parking. I had to park in a public parking lot, which cost me 31 EUR per day, almost as much as the hotel room itself in Madrid.

However, there was nothing I could do as I had planned it that way. Therefore, I would like to warn my friends that if you come to Madrid, you should visit the city thoroughly before driving out of town.

Returning to my plan, after the train arrives at Chamartin station, I will need to find a train to the airport.

At first, I got information from a website that if we book a train, it will issue a free ticket that connects the airport to the train station.

http://www.accesrail.com/pdf/MAD-airport.pdf

I tried it, but it didn't work. So I'm not sure if it only works for legs coming from the airport.

Taking the train will be 1-2 EUR more expensive, but it's more convenient as it's not as crowded. I arrived in Spain at 9 am, so I chose to take the train.

Because it is more convenient and safer than taking the subway, I take a car from Madrid airport.

For this car booking, I booked the car with Expedia.

When booking, the price will be displayed along with the car brand for us to choose from. Of course, I chose the cheapest one, which was from Hertz.

The car rental for 19 days cost 211 EUR, but there was a One Way Fee because the car was returned in a different country, France, which amounted to 360 EUR.

That's more expensive than the car rental, but after calculating everything, it's still more worthwhile than driving back to Madrid to return the car.

Another reason why the car rental price is cheap is because I also rent manual transmission cars. If it is an automatic transmission, it will be more expensive, around 1xx EUR.

For cars rented from Hertz, I bought insurance from Expedia. However, it is a deductible insurance, which means that I will have to pay the first part if an accident occurs.

The plan I purchased requires an initial payment of $250. The insurance coverage has a maximum limit of $35,000, which is approximately 1 million Thai baht.

The insurance cost is approximately 7,000 baht for 19 days, or about 350 baht per day.

The first car I got was a Citron C4 Picasso, which was a big car.

The reason for getting a big car is not that Hertz is kind enough to upgrade anything, but that this car is a French-registered car that the driver left here.

So he told me to drive it back to France... Huh... So, I should really charge him for driving to France, right? 5555

After picking up the car, I drove to the hotel to check in.

Today I booked a hotel that is quite far outside the city, because for the next two days I will be visiting towns near Madrid.

To avoid traffic problems, I booked a place a little outside the city.

I have booked a room at H2 Fuenlabrada, located at coordinates 40.273752, -3.755315.

Approximately 35 kilometers from the airport or about 20 km from the city center of SOL.

However, when I arrived, I couldn't check in yet because it was too early in the morning, so I used the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth a little.

Before driving all the way to Toledo, let's head towards Toledo.

After completing the mission, I set the GPS to take me to Toledo.

which is about 60 km from the H2 hotel.

It takes about an hour to drive there.

At first, I didn't drive to the tourist spot yet. Instead, I went to the business district first because I wanted to quickly get a SIM card.

However, the day I went was a Sunday and all the shops were closed. So on the first day, I had to live without internet access.

Although the trip wasn't a total loss, I did find a Chinese restaurant. It's located on the corner of a street with coordinates 39.867053, -4.032783.

It's like heaven has blessed me because I was getting tired of eating European food while I was in Portugal. 5555

Note: I have recently started using a technique to find Chinese restaurants by searching for "Chinese Restaurant" in Google Maps.

Most of the shops that come up are quite accurate, but take a good look at the names. Make it a bit Chinese, because sometimes there may be mistakes. But in general, it's accurate.

After lunch, we started exploring the old town. From this map,

The first point I want to highlight is the new urban area, which is a district with various shops and businesses.

And the part beyond Avenue de la Cava is the entire old town.

Most of the tourist attractions are located in this zone.

However, parking in this area can be a bit difficult. I will park my car near Puerta de Bisagra and then walk around.

Oh, and the last point that is on the other side of the river will be a viewpoint of the city.

Public transportation is available, but I drove there and there is parking available in the area. The historic city of Toledo.

Toledo is a city steeped in history.

This city has been declared a World Heritage Site since 1986.

Toledo is a city that is located in a good strategic position. From the picture, you can see that the palace is on a high hill surrounded by a river.

This means that in the past, it was very difficult for enemies to invade this city. At one time, this city was the capital of the Spanish Empire.

Toledo was the ancient capital of Spain until the Moors (Muslims from North Africa) conquered it in the 8th century.

They conquered the Iberian Peninsula in the early 8th century.

This makes Toledo itself a city with a blend of civilizations from 3 ethnicities: Christians, Moors, and Jews.

Due to Toledo's frequent wars over land, it has developed expertise in weapons manufacturing.

These weapons have now become a symbol of the city's souvenirs.

The image below shows that the palace is located at the highest point of the mountain.

Therefore, the people in this palace will be able to see the enemy from afar.

Toledo's old town is still well-preserved and has been transformed into a tourist destination.

As of 2012, the city of Toledo had a population of approximately 84,000 people.

Due to the fact that Toledo is an old city that has been around for a long time, there is no good urban planning in the old part of the city.

It is very easy to get lost while walking around the city.

Some websites even recommend getting lost in Toledo, which is quite funny.

Note: Both pictures were taken from the viewpoint of the city of Toledo. The coordinates are N39°51.02958 W004°1.3476 Puerta de Bisagra, the gate of Toledo.

Toledo, being an ancient city that was once a stronghold, still has remnants of its city walls.

This city gate is also part of the ruins of that civilization.

I recommend visiting here in the morning, as you will be able to capture beautiful photos with the sunlight.

The area around the city gate is now all roads.

Beyond the gate is a path leading up the mountain, which is lined with shops.

Not far from here, you will find the Mosque of Cristo de la Luz, which is a Mosque.

Or a mosque built during the time when the Moors were still in power

It is currently one of the ten remaining mosques in the city.

And it has been converted into a Christian church, but I didn't go inside to see it.

This picture shows the entrance gate to the city. I didn't go inside the mosque to take pictures.

From the entrance of the Mosque of Cristo de la Luz, nearby is a hilltop offering stunning views of the city of Toledo.

I took a few photos.

Toledo Cathedral

The Toledo Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral that was built in the 13th century.

Built during the reign of Ferdinand III, it was completed in 1493.

The Cathedral of Toledo is the second largest cathedral in Spain, after the Seville Cathedral.

If you have time, I recommend going inside to see it. They say it's very beautiful, but I was very tired when I went.

Because I've been traveling around Portugal for a whole week.

And the night before, I took an overnight train across the country (to be honest, I didn't do my homework and didn't know how beautiful it was here 555)

So I sat down and played (slept) in front of the church. 55

As I mentioned earlier, this city is an old city. The city plan is not good.

Therefore, the church here will be located in the middle of the city, surrounded by buildings and houses.

It's a bit difficult to find an angle to capture the full view of the church.

Plus, the day I went, there was some kind of stage set up, so there was even less space to take pictures.

The Alcázar of Toledo

The Alcazar of Toledo, or the former Royal Palace of Toledo, is located on the highest point of the city.

The site is currently a museum dedicated to the history of war, the military, and the nation of Spain.

The Army Museum, known as Museo Del Ejercito, charges an entrance fee of 5 euros. It is open every day except Wednesdays, from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm.

When I arrived, it was already past 5 pm, so I couldn't go inside.

Here, if you have time, you should set aside 1-2 hours to walk around.

Since it was closed, I went for a walk in the park nearby instead.

From this point, you can see the view far away because it is a high place.

The opposite side that I'm looking at is the Toledo Military Academy.

Then I walked down to the Museo De Santa Cruz.

I didn't stop by either, but there is a corner where you can take pictures of the city.

Toledo View Point

After walking around the old town, I was ready to take pictures at the viewpoint.

But the time I went, it was around 9 pm when the sky started to get dark.

So we drove to the new city area to find something to eat first.

I was originally going to eat Chinese food at the same restaurant, but it turned out that the restaurant was closed.

In Spain, most restaurants are open during specific time slots.

The lunch service is open from around 12:00 to 15:00. After that, the shop will be closed for real, with the steel bars pulled down to close it.

They will reopen around 7:00 PM, or some stores may open at 8:00 PM.

At first, I didn't know, so I thought it was Sunday, so I only opened for half a day or something like that.

In the end, I went to eat Kebab instead. When I finished my workout and walked to the restaurant, it was open! Haha.

Okay, I won't complain anymore… Let's go back to the viewpoint.

At the first viewpoint before going, I saw that it was a road along the cliff, so I thought it would be quiet and deserted.

But where did you get it? The viewpoint is a real viewpoint.

It means that the store has a complete history of the place, so you can rest assured. Hehe.

The coordinates for the viewpoint are N39°51.02958 W004°1.3476.

The day I went, I was very lucky. In the evening, the sky was a little cloudy, and then when the sun set, the sky exploded beautifully.

Let's say we took a lot of pictures.

The sun is about to set, which is in contrast to the houses and palaces that are starting to light up.

I'm really enjoying the atmosphere here and I've fallen in love with this city.

The image may be from the same close-up angle as before, as I set up another camera to capture a Day to Night Timelapse.

So I had to keep an eye on the camera, I couldn't go far. But the clips I got were well worth it.

Note. I am unable to post this clip due to certain contractual reasons. I will instead provide you with a picture.

This is the last picture I took. I originally wanted to wait until it got dark, but unfortunately I didn't have time.

Because it wouldn't be completely dark until around 11:30 PM, which was a bit too late as I had to drive back to Madrid for another hour. So I had to give up.

Head to the city of Segovia.

The next day, I have a program to visit the city of Segovia. I will first stop at the Mendoza Castle.

However, today I had to stop by the airport to change cars first, as the C4-Picasso I got yesterday turned out to have a problem.

If I park the car for more than half an hour, the remote key and all the electrical systems of the car will not work.

I had to unlock the car with the key and start the engine. After a while, the electrical system came back on. I guess there must have been a problem with the battery.

Fearing potential problems while being far from the city, I decided to drive back to the airport to change cars. Hertz provided excellent service.

He changed the car for me without any hesitation.

However, the new car I received turned out to be a small Compact car, as I had booked.

It's a Renault, which is a French brand. It's a diesel car that's very fuel-efficient. I average 25-30 km/liter.

The car I got was driven from Germany. France is located between Spain and Germany.

That's like I drove halfway to return it to him, lol.

Segovia is located approximately 80 km northwest of Madrid.

The road to get there is a highway all the way, which of course means the toll fees are expensive.

However, on my way there, I took a different route, stopping by the city of ...... first to visit Mendoza Castle.

Then go to Secobia, but if you go this way, the GPS will take you through the mountains between Mendoza and Secobia.

However, if you look at Google Maps, it will take you via the highway.

Castle of the Mendozas

GPS coordinates N40°43.61922 W003°51.73302

Mendoza Castle is a fortress that was built in 1475.

This is considered one of the best-preserved castles in Spain.

The castle has now become a museum about various castles in Spain.

And it is a storage place for hanging carpets that are used to decorate the walls.

However, the day I went was a Monday, when the museum is closed. But I didn't mind.

As I'm mainly going to be taking photos from the outside, if anyone has the chance to go, please share your photos with us.

As I had a lot of time to spare because the castle was closed, I took a walk around the town. It was quite quiet.

The cityscape here still retains its original Spanish architecture.

Segovia

After walking around Mendoza Castle, I drove to Segovia.

The first thing I did was eat, haha. I happened to find a Chinese restaurant while driving in the city.

So I stopped by. The coordinates are 40.939604, -4.115704. You can find parking nearby.

After finishing my meal, I drove into town to buy a SIM card.

But the shop is closed…..

One of the cultural practices in Spain is taking a midday nap.

Many shops will be closed between 2:00 PM and 5:00 PM, so avoid shopping in Spain during this time.

P.S. When I was in Spain, I seemed to absorb the culture very well. Because every 2 pm, I would get sleepy every time. 5555

Segovia currently has a population of around 60,000 people in the municipality.

Secobia is considered a strategic military point.

A fortress and a palace were built at the confluence of the two rivers, namely:

The Eresma and Clamores rivers

The Alcazar Palace here is a beautiful building that resembles a ship.

And it is said to be the prototype of Disney Castle.

Vera Cruz Church

Then I went to Vera Cruz Church.

Coordinates N40°57.33852 W004°7.94472

This church is very old. It was built in 1208 by the Knights Templar.

Does the name ring a bell? I mentioned the Knights Templar when I took you on a tour of Tomar in Portugal in the last episode.

The church is a 12-sided building with a tower on the south side.

Modeled after the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.

Actually, I didn't come here to visit the museum, but to take pictures of the Alcazar.

This is one of the most beautiful viewpoints of the Alcazar, but it's best to come in the morning.

I came in the afternoon and the backlight was gone.

Alcazar of Segovia

GPS coordinates N40°57.15456 W004°7.95354

I then went for a walk inside the Segovia Royal Palace, or Alcazar of Segovia.

Here, just like in Toledo, the Royal Palace is located at the highest point of the city. There isn't much parking available near the palace, so I had to park in the middle of town and walk up.

The palace is open to the public from 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM.

This palace is similar to many palaces in Spain, in that it was originally built during the Moorish occupation of the area.

and was modified during the Christian occupation around 11xx.

This picture was taken from the front of the Royal Palace, looking towards the Segovia Cathedral.

And this is a monument of some sort in front of the palace.

Inside the palace, there are various rooms of the palace for you to explore, including those related to warfare.

This peninsula has historically been a land of power struggles and has changed hands many times.

The architectural style still retains the influence of the Arabs or the Moorish people.

If I remember correctly, this room was the king's chamber.

Other rooms, please take a look.

A view from the window inside the palace, with the Vera Cruz Church also visible.

You can also walk outside from the castle.

After finishing my walk in the palace, I drove leisurely.

I found 2-3 spots by the river that are good for taking pictures.

This photo was taken at coordinates N40°57.1716 W004°8.0487.

The other point is a public park.

The coordinates are N40°57.24738 W004°8.05548.

Parking in Europe and Tickets

After taking photos of the Alcazar to my heart's content, I drove into the city to get a SIM card.

I then parked my car in a spot where I tried to find a coin slot when I got out, but I couldn't find one.

As a result, I mistakenly believed that parking was free there. (In Portugal, parking meters are very common.)

It turned out to be a big deal. I came out and found a ticket. The fine was 80 EUR.

I was kind of surprised, but I had to accept it because I didn't actually put any money in the machine. I found out that

The vending machine is located at the head of the street, which is about 150 meters away from where I parked my car.

That was such a bummer, it completely ruined my mood for the rest of the trip.

At that time, I also tried to find information on how to pay the fine.

From what I have researched, the sooner you pay, the more discount you will receive, which can be up to 30%.

There is a website with information provided by people, but everything is in Spanish, so I can't pay.

At that time, I tried to find the police. However, many of the police officers couldn't speak English.

But after meeting someone who could speak a little, they said that

1. The police do not issue the tickets, but rather the municipal police (in Europe, private companies issue the tickets, which is a way of distributing non-essential work).

Hearing this, I was stunned... Like, wow, this country really does things like this?... I'm still not comfortable with it.

At that time, I tried to find more information and found out that if we don't pay in the end, and the municipal police collect the fine from the car rental company, they will charge it to our credit card again.

However, the issue is that the car rental company will charge an additional processing fee. In one case, I was charged 150 EUR, which I would like to avoid.

I tried to find a way to pay by driving to the police station. It turned out that everyone said the same thing as the first policeman who told me that

..Don't Care, Let's have fun with your trip.

And then tell me again that in Spain the procedure is to collect data and send it to the central office in Madrid, which takes about 1-2 months.

The information we sent by post was returned to us because you had already left the country by then. So don't worry about it, just throw it away and continue your trip.

(I understand that this is partly because the car I was driving had German license plates.)

In the end, when I couldn't find a place to pay, I took it easy, just like the police officer said, and continued my trip.

When I returned the car, I informed the company. They said that if a ticket was actually issued, they would charge me for it themselves.

It has been half a year since I returned, and I have not received any invoices for this ticket.

To avoid any confusion about fines, based on my research,

Normally, parking spaces are marked with a frame to indicate where you can park. If the frame is blue, it means that you have to pay for parking at that spot.

However, if the frame is white or there is no frame, it means that parking is free in that area.

You can check the rough information from this website. It is the rule of Italy. But overall, it is similar.

http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/driving/parking.htmAncient aqueduct

After clearing the ticket, I took myself to visit the ancient aqueduct bridge of Segovia.

This water pipe has been built since the Norman era.

This bridge was built to transport water from the Freeo River, which is 18 km away from the city.

The point where you will enter the city will be a point that is raised from the ground as seen in the picture.

This is another angle of the picture.

There might not be many pictures because at that time my mind wasn't really focused due to getting a ticket. 5555

After finishing my visit here, I went back to the same restaurant I had lunch at earlier in the day.

I wasn't able to take any evening photos today because I had to drive to Seville the next day, which is about 600 km from Madrid.

I can't take it anymore, so I'm going to drive back to my accommodation to rest. To be continued...

That's all for the first part of my trip to Spain.

How are you guys doing? I hope you guys like it.

For the next episode, I will take my friends to travel down south.

The south is the part closest to the African continent.

Therefore, it is a part that has been heavily influenced by the Moorish guests.

The architecture will be very different from the original.

Please find the translation below:

Stay tuned for more. For now, I bid you farewell.

Thank you for watching and goodbye.