Sights in Extremadura
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Palacio de la Conquista
On the plaza's south side, carved images of Pizarro and his lover Inés Yupanqui (sister of the Inca emperor Atahualpa) decorate the corner of the 16th-century Palacio de la Conquista. To the right is their daughter Francisca Pizarro Yupanqui with her husband (and uncle), Hernando Pizarro. The mansion was built in the 1560s for Hernando and Francisca after Hernando – the only Pizarro brother not to die a bloody death in Peru – emerged from 20 years in jail for murder. Higher up, a bas relief carving shows the Pizarro family shield (two bears and a pine tree), the walls of Cuzco (in present-day Peru), Pizarro's ships and a group of Indian chiefs.
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Castillo de la Luna
Looming large above the small town of Albuquerque, 38km north of Badajoz, is the intact Castillo de la Luna. The centrepiece of a complex frontier defence system of forts, the castle was built on the site of its Muslim predecessor in the 13th century and subsequently expanded. From the top, views take in the Portuguese frontier (the Portuguese actually took the town for a few years in the early 18th century). Among many curiosities is a hole set in the wall of one of the towers. It was used by the castle’s masters as a toilet – sending an unpleasant message to hostile forces below when under siege.
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Iglesia de Santa María la Mayor
The 13th-century Iglesia de Santa María la Mayor has a mainly Gothic nave and a Romanesque tower that you can ascend (all 106 steps) for fabulous views. It also has tombs of leading Trujillo families of the Middle Ages, including that of Diego García de Paredes (1466–1530), a Trujillo warrior of legendary strength who, according to Cervantes, could stop a mill wheel with one finger. The church's magnificent altarpiece includes 25 brilliantly coloured 15th-century paintings in the Flemish style.
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Puerta del Triunfo
The 900m of walls circling the upper town date from Muslim times. Here, the newly settled noble families built their mansions and churches after the Reconquista. The western end is marked by the Puerta del Triunfo, through which it is said conquering Christian troops marched in 1232, when they wrested the city from the Muslims. About 100m inside is the El Alberca, with stairs leading down to a naturally occurring pool, thought to date from Roman times and these days looking decidedly murky.
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Concatedral de Santa María
The Concatedral de Santa María, a 15th-century Gothic cathedral, creates an impressive opening scene. On its southwestern corner is a modern statue of San Pedro de Alcántara, a 16th-century extremeño ascetic (his toes worn shiny by the hands and lips of the faithful). Inside, there’s a magnificent carved 16th-century cedar altarpiece, several fine noble tombs and chapels, and a small ecclesiastical museum. Climb the bell tower for stunning views.
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Alcazaba
This large Muslim fort was built in AD 835 on a site already occupied by the Romans and Visigoths. Down below, its aljibe (cistern) incorporates marble and stone slabs with Visigothic decoration that were recycled by the Muslims, while the ramparts look out over the Guadiana and down into the Alcazaba's gardens. The 15th-century monastery in its northeast corner now serves as the Junta de Extremadura's presidential offices.
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Granadilla
About 25km west of Hervás, the ghost village of Granadilla, overlooking the Embalse de Gabriel y Galán, is a beguiling reminder of how Extremadura’s villages must have looked before the rush to modernisation. Founded in 1170 but abandoned in the 1960s, the village is slowly coming back to life through a student project designed to restore Granadilla’s architecture; many of the students now live in the village.
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Palacio de los Duques de San Carlos
Across the street rears the solid presence of the 16th-century Palacio de los Duques de San Carlos, nowadays a convent for the Jerónimo order, but open for visits and for selling its homemade biscuits. Its treasures are the sober classical patio and a grand granite staircase crowned with a painting of the family crest: a two-headed eagle. The distinctive brick chimneys were built in late Mudéjar and Gothic style.
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Trujillo's castle
At the top of the hill, Trujillo's castle, of 10th-century Muslim origin (evident by the horseshoe-arch gateway just inside the main entrance) and later strengthened by the Christians, is impressive, although bare, but for a lone fig tree. Patrol the battlements for magnificent 360-degree sweeping views. One of the towers contains the hermitage of Our Lady of the Victory, the patron saint of Trujillo.
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Castle
At the top of the hill, Trujillo’s castle of 10th-century Muslim origin (evident by the horseshoe-arch gateway just inside the main entrance) and later strengthened by the Christians, is impressive, although bare but for a lone fig tree. Patrol the battlements for magnificent 360-degree sweeping views. One of the towers contains the hermitage of Our Lady of the Victory, the patron saint of Trujillo.
reviewed
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Palacio Juan Pizarro de Orellana
Through a twisting alley above the Palacio de la Conquista is the Palacio Juan Pizarro de Orellana, converted from miniature fortress to Renaissance mansion by one of the Pizarro cousin conquistadors. Its patio is decorated with the coats of arms of the two most famous local families: the Pizarros and the Orellanas (Francisco Orellana was the first European to explore reaches of the Amazon).
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Teatro Romano
The Teatro Romano, built around 15 BC to seat 6000 spectators and set in lovely gardens, has a dramatic and well-preserved two-tier backdrop of Corinthian stone columns; the stage’s facade (scaenae frons) was inaugurated in AD 105. The only Roman building in Mérida to be used for its original purpose, the theatre hosts performances during the Festival del Teatro Clásico in summer.
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Museo de Cáceres
The excellent Museo de Cáceres in a 16th-century mansion, built over an evocative 12th-century aljibe (cistern), is the only surviving element of Cáceres’ Muslim castle. It has an impressive archaeological section and an excellent fine-arts display (open only in the mornings), with works by Picasso, Miró, Tàpies and other renowned Spanish painters and sculptors.
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Museo de Queso y el Vino
Cheese-and-wine aficionados may enjoy this museum where you can have a taster of both and take a look at the informative display (in Spanish) of wine and cheese in Spain. Set in this fine former convent, the 4m 3-D picture of a jolly Don Quijote is the stunning work of local artist Francisco Blanco. It's just a short walk down the hill south of Plaza Mayor.
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Circo Romano
Northeast of the amphitheatre are the remains of the 1st-century Circo Romano, the only surviving hippodrome of its kind in Spain, which could accommodate 30,000 spectators. Inside you can see brief footage in Spanish about Diocles, a champion auriga (chariot racer) who served his apprenticeship in Mérida before going on to the big league in Rome.
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Iglesia de Santiago
Coming up from Plaza Mayor, you pass through the Puerta de Santiago. To its right is the deconsecrated Iglesia de Santiago, founded in the 13th century by the Knights of Santiago (look for their scallop-shell emblem). The ground level has displays of mainly Bronze Age and Roman artefacts found locally and you can climb the bell tower.
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Circo RomanoR
Remains of the 1st-century Circo Romano, the only surviving hippodrome of its kind in Spain, which could accommodate 30,000 spectators. Inside you can see brief footage in Spanish about Diocles, a champion auriga (chariot racer) who served his apprenticeship in Mérida before going on to the big league in Rome.
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Castle
Granadilla is a picturesque village complete with its own turreted castle. Located in a lush green setting amid pinewoods but abandoned in the 1960s after the creation of the reservoir that laps around it, Granadilla is gradually being restored thanks to enthusiastic student projects.
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Iglesia de San Martín
Overlooking the Plaza Mayor from the northeast corner is the 16th-century Iglesia de San Martín, with delicate Gothic ceiling tracing, stunning stained-glass windows and a grand organ (climb up to the choir loft for the best view). It's one of the few churches in Trujillo still functioning as a place of worship.
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Pizarro statue
A large equestrian Pizarro statue by American Charles Rumsey looks down over Plaza Mayor. Apparently Rumsey originally sculpted it as a statue of Hernán Cortés to present to Mexico, but Mexico, which takes a dim view of Cortés, declined it, so it was given to Trujillo as Pizarro instead.
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Casa del Mitreo
The Casa del Mitreo is a 2nd-century Roman house with several intricate mosaics (especially the partial but beautiful remains of the mosaico cosmológico, with its allegories and bright colours) and a well-preserved fresco.
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Museo Nacional de Arte Romano
On no account miss this fabulous museum, which has a superb collection of statues, mosaics, frescoes, coins and other Roman artefacts. Designed by the architect Rafael Moneo, the soaring brick structure makes a remarkable home for the collection.
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Templo de Diana
The Templo de Diana stood in the municipal forum, where the city government was based. Parts were incorporated into a 16th-century mansion, built within it, and it now stands surrounded by modern Mérida along a quiet street. The restored Pórtico del Foro, the municipal forum's portico, is just along the road.
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Palacio Toledo-Moctezuma
The domed Palacio Toledo-Moctezuma was once the home of a daughter of the Aztec emperor Moctezuma, who was brought to Cáceres as a conquistador’s bride; the palace now houses the municipal archives.
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Centro de Interpretación Las VII Sillas
The Centro de Interpretación Las VII Sillas has the remains of a noble mansion and a sizeable hunk of Roman, Visigothic and Arab wall. A 13-minute DVD in Spanish takes you on a virtual tour of the Roman city.
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