The Bite Magazine Issue 17

Visiting this city really takes you back to a history that although you wouldn’t have been physically there, gives you a real idea of how it would have been like during that time. Its many entrances into the city lead you to places such as the Plaza de Zocodover, which during the Arab period housed an important market as well as festivals and other social events. Today, the square is surrounded by buildings with porches and continues to be one of the busiest places in the city. There was a time when Christians known as Mozarabs at that time lived under Muslim rule and here you’ll find churches such as the San Sebastián and Santa Eulalia influenced by them, while the Mudejars (individual Moors or Muslims of Al-Anda- lus) left Toledo in a style rich with Arab decorations.You will also see horseshoe arches, lobed windows and other archi- tectural elements in buildings that left an impression of the people who once lived here. One of these is Santiago del Arrabal, also known as the Mudejar Cathedral. Its construction origins is uncertain, although it may have been in the time of King Alfonso VI, when the church was built, which took advantage of an old mosque, and its tower is an outstanding feature that recalls a Muslim minaret. Other churches with the Mudejar imprint include Santo Tomé which is famous for housing El Greco’s ‘El entirtto del Conde Orgaz (The burial of Count Orgaz)’ painting. A 14 th century Mudejar tower stands above the rest of the building, which itself dates from the 12 th century and has Visigothic elements on its main façade. El Greco’s House-Mu- seum, a palace with the atmosphere of that period, exhibits some of his best works which made the city famous the world over. Within the city, there are still remains of the Jewish community and this is found in the synagogues of Santa Maria la Blanca and El Tránsito. It is said that Santa Maria la Blanca was possibly bite travel