Does the floor of your train station look like this? No? Mine neither, because I don't live in Toledo, the former capital of the Spanish empire and the adopted home of El Greco.

This station is just so lovely - tiled floors, arched windows, stained glass - I could hang out there for hours.

It is a good preview for the rest of the town. While not as ornate as the inside of the station, it is none the less beautiful, so much so that the entire center of town has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Toledo has a long history of multiculturalism, dating back 2,000 years. Christians, Muslims and Jews have all left a mark, which is reflected in the architecture and the food. 

Marissa and I had spent two days and a night there 13 years ago, and this time we just had the day. But a 45 minute train ride (a few minutes admiring the beautiful Toledo station), a quick zip up the hill in a taxi and we were winding our way through the narrow cobblestone streets of this ancient hill town.

Like many lovely old European cities, Toledo has a lovely old cathedral, and this one has been a mosque, a synagogue and now a Catholic church. I love visiting these old cathedrals - hundreds of years in the making and filled with unbelievable treasure (by the way, the visitors' center across the street has  awesome bathrooms. Go there.)

We also went to Santo Tomé, a simpler, smaller church, where one of El Greco's most famous works is housed: The Burial of Count Orgaz. El Greco has a spiritual quality, his figures stretching heavenward in elongated shapes, and seeing this one here in this church only amplified that haunting feeling. 

After all that churchgoing, it was time for snacks. So off to the Santo Tomé bakery to eat too many of  the local treats for which Toledo is famous, marzipan and yemas (a great history and description of these delights can be found here.) Finally we headed back through the lovely train station and home to Madrid.

Next time we will stay longer. Maybe we will sleep at the station.