Located some 3,000 feet above sea level, Cuenca City is the capital of Cuenca Province in Castile La Mancha. The city was founded in the 8th century when the Moors constructed a castle (Qunka or Kunka) in a strategic position at the top of a narrow gorge above the two rivers of Jucar and Huecar and a settlement grew around around it. The castle was completely destroyed by French soldiers during the Napoleonic Wars but the settlement continued to develop into a small city of some 60,000 people with as well preserved a medieval old town as can be found anywhere in Spain. This extremely picturesque city contains a wealth of historical religious and secular buildings; so much so, it is recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
We were checked into the NH Ciudad de Cuenca for a couple of nights with an option to stay longer such that we could properly enjoy the city. We’ve stayed with the NH hotel chain many times before and there’s nothing wrong with them. This particular NH Hotel is well placed on Cuenca’s principal thoroughfare, Calle de Los Hermanos Becerril. There’s plenty of good street parking in the area (even for a 7 metre motorhome); a large park next door on which to exercise the dogs; a small square just beyond the nearby church holding a few reasonably priced restaurant-bars and; best of all, the hotel is within easy walking distance of Cuenca’s spectacular old town.
Shortly after checking in to the hotel and seeing Vanya settled (it was her hair day), I set off down the Calle de Los Hermanos Becerril and was soon making my way up through the old town past the Torre de Mangana Clock Tower to the city’s main square (the Plaza Mayor) and it’s 12th century Cathedral (the Catedrale de Santa Maria la Mayor y San Julien de Cuenca). The cobbled streets leading up to the Plaza Mayor are steep and narrow and lined with brightly coloured four and five story apartment blocks. I love them, not least because of the shade these attractive buildings provide during a hot afternoon.
The Plaza Mayor is accessed via Calle de Alfonso VIII which passes under one of three arches of the Casa Consistorial (which building houses the City Hall) and on to the square. This was the heart of medieval Cuenca being the site of weekly markets, auctions, processions, bull fights and punishments. It remains the centre of modern day Cuenca.
On the right hand side of the square, as you pass under the arches, another line of brightly coloured buildings draws the eyes along a row of restaurant bars to the unusual but imposing front of the Cathedral. Built on the site of an old mosque at the behest of Queen Eleanor of Plantagenet (the wife of Alfonso VIII and daughter to England’s King Henry II), the cathedral facade has suffered considerable damage over the centuries; the worst of which were lightning strikes in 1837 and again in 1902 (when the Giraldo Tower collapsed, killing a number of the congregation) but, it is still a magnificent entrance.
At the far end of the Plaza Mayor, opposite the City Hall, the Calle de San Pedro leads out of the Plaza and up to the city’s high point of Cuenca Castle but, tarry a while. There’s little left of the castle while the 12th/13th century Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral of Our Lady of Grace, is even more spectacular inside than out. Indeed, I spent more than two hours inside the cathedral marvelling at it’s contents.
Just inside the entrance to the Cathedral I came upon a life size diorama of the Last Supper. I couldn’t get a decent photo of the diorama but my efforts in this regard took me up onto the Cathedral triforium where I thought I might get a photo from above. It wasn’t to be because a ledge obscured a large part of the carving. However, the views from the triforium, both along the nave towards the sacristy and outside over the Plaza Mayor more than compensated.
I spent some time in the adjoining Bishop’s Palace (where various paintings and other ecclesiastical treasures are displayed) but the real beauty for me was in wandering the Cathedral. It is monumental. The richly decorated architecture is breathtaking in it’s scale and detail and the whole comprises so many fabulous chapels, sepulchres and little niches that it blew me away.
There are 20+ chapels to be admired. The Capilla Munoz, the Capilla de Covarrubias, the Capilla de Nuestra Senora del Sagrario and the Chapel of San Julian (the city’s patron saint whose relics are interred in the chapel) were amongst those that stood out.
I took so many photos. Few of those photos will have done the Cathedral justice but take look at some of them… the place is incredible.
After tearing myself away from the Cathedral I left the Plaza Mayor by way of Calle San Pedro and headed towards the top of the town with a view to visiting one of Cuenca’s oldest churches, the Iglesia de San Pedro.
This unusual church (it is octagonal on the outside but circular inside) was built during the 13th century in the Romanesque style although there’s little that is Romanesque about the church now. The church has suffered much damage over the centuries since it was built (particularly during the Spanish Civil War) and; while it has been beautifully restored it has been repaired in a predominantly 18th century style. That style doesn’t do too much for me but the views from it’s bell tower are special.
I thought the views over the Huecar Gorge from near the Cathedral were impressive but they just kept getting better as I moved further up the Old Town. The bell tower of the Iglesia San Pedro provides some wonderful panoramic views in all directions, especially those over the rooftops towards the Cathedral and the San Pablo Bridge but then; I arrived at the Mirador de Camilo Jose Cela near the 17th century Convento de las Camelitas Descalzas and the word panorama took on a whole new meaning. The view from this particular Mirador over the Huecar Gorge is something else…
Our second day in Cuenca saw Vanya and I walk the dogs through the city to the San Pablo Bridge which crosses the Rio Huecar Gorge and connects the Convento de San Pablo with the city. Vanya wanted to see the city’s emblematic 15th and 16th century Casas Colgadas (Hanging Houses) and this bridge offers some of the best views of both the houses and the city’s skyline.
There was a time when almost all of the town side of the Gorge was filled with hanging houses but only three remain and these had to be restored and reinforced early in the 20th century. Two of the houses now form the Museo de Arte Abstracto Espanol while the third has been converted into a restaurant (Casas Colgados Restaurante) by the Michelin recognised chef, Jesus Segura. This restaurant may not figure amongst the cheapest of Spain’s Michelin recommended restaurants but I doubt there are many restaurants that command better views.
The original 16th century stone bridge over the Rio Huecar Gorge is long gone. The current 100 metre long iron and wood ‘beam bridge’ replaced it in 1903 and; it makes a great platform from which to take photos of the Hanging Houses on the city side of the Gorge and the former Dominican Convent (Convento de San Pablo) on the far side of the Gorge although; with it’s 60 metre drop to the river, you were never going to get Vanya onto it.
The 16th century Convent closed in 1973 and was falling into ruin until it opened as the 4 star Parador Cuenca Hotel in 1993.
There’s a great deal else I could write about Cuenca (it’s that interesting a place) but, I’m aware I’ve already written far more than would ordinarily be the case. So, I’ll write about just one other aspect of the city namely, the Cerro del Socorro.
The Cerro del Socorro (the Hill of Help) is the highest point to the east of the old town. There’s a good path a little way behind the Parador de Cuenca which winds it’s way to the top of this hill. It’s an easy 2 kilometre walk along what is known as a via crucis because the way up is marked by 14 stations of the cross. It leads to a huge statue of Jesus Christ (the Sacred Heart of Jesus) overlooking the Rio Huecar Gorge which was built on or near the site of an old hermitage. Nothing remains of the hermitage but there’s a viewing platform (the Mirador del Cerro del Socorro) at the foot of the Sacred Heart of Jesus which offers unrivalled views over the city and surrounding countryside.
There’s a road which leads to the top of the hill but to drive up is to miss out on a really delightful walk.
I will cease writing now but if ever a city deserved to be revisited, it is this one. There is so much more I would like to see. Every time I visited the old town I stumbled upon something new and exciting (and I still haven’t been inside the Casa Cogadas Restaurante or been to the Mirador de la Celosa or the Tunnels of Alfonso VIII) but; my biggest oversight was to miss out on visiting some of the more natural wonders in this part of the world -the Devil’s Window, the Molino de Herminio Waterfall and, especially the Ciudad Encantada. The Ciudad Encantada or Enchanted City is a geological site which has been described as a forest of limestone rock formations (which include the Hammer, La Tortuga, the Convent, the Bridge, the Sea of Stone and many more besides) and it is a must-see for me.
FOOTNOTE: Prior to our arrival in Cuenca, Vanya tried to get us into a different hotel, the Posada San Jose, but their only groundfloor room (which we needed for Nala) was already booked. It is an unusual boutique hotel in the heart of Cuenca old town on Calle Julian Romero and you know how Vanya is about boutique hotels? This one started as a 17th century palatial home and then became a College for Cuenca Cathedral’s choirboys before being abandoned in the early 20th century and then converted into a hotel in 1953. The current owners, Jennifer Morter and Antonio Cortinas took on the hotel in 1983 and have transformed it into something quite special.
It’s a truly unique building, built as a family home by the grandfather of a certain Juan Batista Martinez del Mazo. Mazo was a disciple of Diego Velazquez, one of Spain’s greatest ever painters and chamber painter to the Spanish royal family. In 1633 Mazo married Velazquez’ daughter, Francisca, and took her to live in the family home. In turn, Velazquez appointed Mazo his understudy and Mazo eventually, after Velazquez died, succeeded him as chamber painter to the royal family. Whilst the paintings of Velazquez are well known, those of Mazo are not; perhaps because he chose not to sign his own paintings and, instead pass them off as being works by Velazquez?
It was a different Mazo, a canon and archpriest of Cuenca Cathedral, Diego Mazo de la Vega who was behind the family home being transformed into a college for the Cuenca Cathedral Choir (the Colegio de Infantes de Coro San José). It opened as a college in 1668 and stayed open until the end of the 19th century when it was forced to close for financial reasons.
A certain Fidel Garcia Belanga converted it into a hotel in 1953 but it was Jennifer Morter and Antonio Cotinas who in 1983 transformed it into something resembling the Pasado San Jose of today.
During our stay in Cuenca, I popped into the Posada for a look and was lucky enough to meet one of the hotel’s two owners, Jennifer Morter. Sod’s law, the downstairs room would be available the day after we were to leave Cuenca and she was willing to offer it to us for just 70 Euros per night. Next time??
I’ll end this blog with an image of Velasquez’ Los borrachos (The Triumph of Bacchus)…
