On the Road: Zaragoza Mercado Central to Palacio De La Aljafería

September 13-14 Zaragoza, Spain 

Based in a major city and spend a 2-day trip at a nearby location is always on my travel-to-do list, such as London versus Bath, or from Madrid to Toledo. Zaragoza city tour is the great idea from Jenny, and the hotel booking and sightseeing plan belonging to my execution.

RENFE from Barcelona Sants Station to Estación Zaragoza-Delicias takes approximately 95 minutes; before the departure, we buy salmon salad and a bottle of smoothie then enjoy our chatting time on high speedy train. Arriving Zaragoza at 11:12, we check-in at Eurostars Hotel, leave the luggage, take the essentials, hop on the city bus and start our mini tour.

MERCADO CENTRAL

Built in 1903, the Central Market of Zaragoza (Mercado Central) is the perfect place to see the local’s life and the vivid of the city. The building is a modernist style with a decorative façade and an iron frame, not upon the doorway it is a mixture of fishy and chlorine, certain storefronts close after 13:00 for siesta hours, still there are a bunch of elderly happily socializing in groups. Along the aisles, we spot Spanish ham hanging around, a mini counter full of just cheese, and some mutant vegetables awaited in the wooden boxes. Crossing the hallway of Mercado Central, we arrive at the old town within 5 minutes.

Passing through Torreón De La Zuda, where the tourist centre locates, Basílica Del Pilar stands elegantly along River Ebro. Jenny and I stroll at Plaza Del Pilar, La Seo and La Lonja, experience the emptiness of the streets due to the siesta. After we have lovely late lunchtime at Bar Santiago, Placio De La Aljafería is the next highly expected destination.

Beyond our astonishment, our unexpected hop-on and hop-off tour begins. The first Bus 34 broke down on the busy shopping area, therefore we passengers are forced to switch the next coming one, which not until it takes us to a mysterious uphill cemetery, that we realize the second Bus 34 has the loop tour rather than the simply round-trip concept, then this very one suffers engine malfunction, again we must wait for the third Bus 34. We are lucky enough that the second Bus 34 driver communicate with his younger colleague that these two poor tiny Asian girls need to get to Placio De La Aljafería. By 19:00, we hop-off again at Plaza Europa, toward to the large park and arrive at the gates of Cortes de Aragon.

PALACIO DE LA ALJAFERÍA

The Aljafería Palace is a fortified medieval Islamic palace built during the 11^th century in the Taifa of Zaragoza of Al-Andalus. After the taking of Zaragoza by Alfonso the Battler in 1118, the Aljafería was habilitated of the kings of Aragon Kingdom, but not substantially modified until Peter IV of Aragon “the Ceremonious” in the 14^th Century. The Aljafería Palace is the only conserved testimony of a large construction of Spanish Islamic architecture of the era of Taifas, declared World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2001, now currently serves as the Cortes parliament hall of the autonomous community of Aragon.

The oldest construction of the Aljafería is called Troubadour Tower, which receives from Antonio Garcia Gutierrez’s 1836 romantic drama The Troubadour. The Tower with a quadrangular and five levels, contains vestiges of the beginning of the heavy walls of alabaster ashlar bond masonry, and continues upwards with plank lining of simple plaster and lime concrete, which is a thinner substance for reaching greater heights. The exterior does not reveal the division of the five internal floors, while its initial function is military for all purposes.

The unique of ornamentation of the palace, is in the use of springer in “S”, the extension of the arabesque in large surfaces of the outlining and progressive abstraction of the yeseria of vegetal character. The general layout of the whole palace adopts the archetype of the castles of Syria and Jordan of the 8^th century, that is square-shaped, with central tripartite space, where leaves three rectangular spaces of which the central one with a courtyard garden and at the northern and southern ends of the palatial rooms and social halls.

Jenny and I never miss any chance to have audio guide to know more of the history about Aragon. At the entrance, the gift shop staff (finally we can communicate in English!) is friendly introducing us the route to the palace, and showing a bit this lovely Patio of Santa Isabel.

Its name comes from the birth of Elizabeth of Aragon, the later Queen of Portugal. The arcade that is contemplated looking towards the south portico was restored; therefore; the whole patio and garden are spacious, clean and organized. The orange trees and clean-cut grass create a calm and lovely atmosphere at the first impression.

Take a turn, the palace switch from Islamic Era into Catholic Age. Continuously proceeding, the Palace of Peter IV of Aragon “the Ceremonious” consists of Church of San Martín, the Mudéjar Palace, the Palace of Catholic Monarchs, and the Throne Room. Although there are none furniture, rug or paintings remaining, the most valuable elements of these constructions are their floors and ceilings. The floors are originally hexagonal ceramic glazed in colours, forming capricious borders, and the ceilings present geometric reticules of wood later carved, painted and gilded with gold leaf, whose moldings show the well-known heraldic motifs of the Catholic Monarchs: the yoke, the arrows and the Gordian knot knitted to the classic motto “Tanto Monta”.

The magnificent of the Throne Room, its dimensions are 20 meters in length by 8 in width. Under the Artesonado coffered ceiling there is an airy gallery of passable arches and with open windows, from which we can contemplate the royal ceremonies, inside the coffins are inscribed octagons with a central flower of curly leaf that finish in large hanging pine cones, symbolize fertility and immortality. This ceiling is reflected on the floors, which reproduces the thirty squares with their respective octagons inscribed.

Exiting the Throne Room, we reach the south nave portal, built in the time of Martin of Aragon “the Humane”, is articulated by an arch very recessed, covered by another pointed of greater dimensions. I always love to capture the different kinds of door or gate, imagine how’s residences’ live behind the shadow.

It’s 21:00, Zaragoza has the layering sunset colours along a yellow dune hills. We do not need any hop-on or hop-off service anymore, walk toward to the direction of Estación Zaragoza-Delicias, where also our hotel locates, Jenny and I have empty stomach but fulfilled hearts.

Special Thanks: Jenny

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