Toledo Marzipan

When I go away on vacation, I aim to avoid deliberately seeking hobby opportunities and visits and try to absorb the (non-military) history and culture of the place.  So, being away in Madrid and especially Toledo has been the perfect tonic.  Nonetheless, as so often and inevitably happens, matters closer to my wargaming pursuits present themselves.

Staying in Toledo was a must.  It is one of the most beautiful cities, but for me the association has always been its famous marzipan (true)... 

A shop front where nuns sell their marzipan.  They have dolls shwoing the different stages of marzipan making.

Yum!

...it's damascene craftwork, and the world famous Toledo steel that provided the cutting edge to the growth of Spanish power in the 16th and 17th centuries.

So, no surprise that around every corner was an opportunity to purchase a sword.

There were an amazing number of shops selling Toledo steel.  I checked and they were all made in Toledo. 
There was a nice sign outside of one such shop that said,
"Everything inside is made with AI.  Artisanal Intelligence"
and that is so easy to underestimate.

We had an hour or two to spare before having to get the train back to Madrid after our couple of nights there.  So, we quickly popped into the Army Museum housed in the Alcazar.

For those who like the Reconquista.

A close up on the tunic.

Always nice to see some armour from the late 15th and 16th centuries.

The horse didn't look pleased to be wearing the armour.

Ka-Boom!

Great bust of Cordaba.

Before going my better half and I read Captain Alatriste.  It's been on my list for a long time.  So, it seemed right to read it before going to Madrid.

It's a great read and what I found particularly good was that Perez-Reverte brought together great research of history, fact and culture (music, poetry and art) to produce this superb piece of fiction.

It writes about places around cultural events around Madrid of the 1620s.  Allowing us to see the city through Alatriste's eyes.

The area closely associated with Alatriste included some murals.

Of course, all this tourist work requires vermouth and tapas en route.

I could show you so much from what we saw and did in Madrid and Toledo, but that is for me and my family to enjoy... I'll already spent too much time just putting this quick post together.