Cáceres – A lovely surprise

Medieval and beautiful.

The medieval town Cáceres, in the province by the same name, is yet another hidden gem. It wasn’t a town we had heard about, but by coincidence, it was the random dot, that we had set on the GPS heading north. Well, we actually don’t believe in coincidence and we were proven right once again. What a beautiful medieval town.

World cultural heritage

In 1986 the old part of Cáceres was declared a part of the world’s cultural heritage by UNESCO. It is one of the most complete towns from the Medieval Age and the Renaissance. We totally agree with UNESCO. Although the town is restored, it is kept in the Medieval style and many buildings are still standing and fully functional, even though they are more than 1500 years old.

The town is also a part of “The silver road path” of the Camino de Santiago. So if you are into walking The Camino, you might plan on stopping by Cáceres.

We parked just outside the town, at a site we had found on Campercontact. From here we walked through the small beautiful streets, up to the square where the castle is, between restaurants and small shops.

Life back then.

As so many times before, we enjoyed thinking about life, that people were leading back then. The rather simple life, that in many ways speaks to us. Back then it was all about protecting the town from enemies, get food on the table, do things that benefited the town in general, carry on the succession, and have a good time with friends and family. No discussions about equality, craving for money for an extra car, or a more beautiful kitchen. Neither thinking about how the politicians rule. A town had its own life back then. Sometimes it was hard, but they worked for themselves.

Iglesia de Santiago

The church of Santiago is an incredibly beautiful church, in the middle of Cáceres. It is built in the 14th century, even though documents in the church states it a few hundred years older.

We were actually stopped by one of the locals, who told us to go to and see the church, because of its beauty. She was absolutely right. A lot of the religious figures in the church, have real clothes on, made by colorful velvet. The clothes are completed to the smallest detail with belts, jewelry, and other accessories. Especially the scenery of Jesus and his disciples, is an amazing piece of art. Besides that, the church must have had one of the most skilled sculptors on the payroll. The carved figures and the engraved images behind the altar were incredibly detailed. All in all one of the most beautiful churches we have visited.

The beauty of simplicity.

We continued our walk through the protected part of the medieval Cáceres and even though buildings like these are actually just simple houses made from stone, they hold a beauty like no other. They are also durable in a way, we don’t see anymore. Decorations and construction styles are like pieces of art and show forgotten craftsmanship.

To make everything perfect, there were stork nests on almost every tower and storks were flying in the air above us, in search of food. For Danes like us, a sight like that is amazing. In Denmark, there are only a few couples of storks every year and it is on the News when they arrive in spring.

Everything comes to an end.

After hours of walking, our feet were sore and we found a small café, with some delicious pastry. We rested in the sun for a while and then we returned to Mr. Hymer, the caravan, where we ended an eventful day by feeding some homeless cats and digest the day’s many beautiful impressions.

E&M

– Text: Eva. Supplement, caption and image editing: Malthe