Hello Walls (Hello, Hello) -- Congrats To Willie Nelson

After lunch, we climbed/walked the first of the two sections of the Avila city walls that are open to the public.  

It costs money to go up the walls, but it’s money well spent.  Carol and I love walking city walls (except maybe Obidos, Portugal – those walls are downright scary) dating back to our love of the walls of York, England, which Carol first walked in 1983 and I first walked in 1984.

Since then, we’ve never passed up the chance to walk city walls.  As these are a UNESCO World Heritage site, we absolutely had to do it.  As faithful readers know, UNESCO means “you must go.” 

(Editor’s Note: Yeah, we know, you’ve only said it 1,000 times.  It’s not that catchy.  Writer: Say it aloud.  It rhymes! Editor: Oh, maybe it’s a bit catchier than I realized.)

The first section we went up is the shorter section, just over 300 yards long.  On one end it dead ends at the apse of the Cathedral, while at the other end they are reconstructing.  We climbed up few of the towers.  There were a goodly number of people enjoying the walls and the wonderful weather.  The heat of the previous day had broken, so it was quite bearable to be exposed to the sun atop the walls.

(My dad used to call great weather days “a top tenner” even though there were more than ten days fitting that description.  I never called him on it, because it was fun. Every so often I’ll be enjoying a wonderful weather day and think of it as “a top tenner” in his memory.  That day in Avila turned from cloudy into a top tenner.)

The views over the new town into the farmland and beyond, including affording spectacular mountain views, was well worth it.  

Oh, I suppose a little history belongs in this post. . .the walls were built starting around 1091, added onto already ancient remains.  The walls completely encircle the old town, and consist of 88 towers and six gates. The walls are considered the oldest, most complete, and best preserved in Spain.  Don’t just walk them, cross through gates, get a little bit away from the walls, to give yourself a perspective on just how intimidating the walls would have looked to opposing forces.  After the walls were built (post-Reconquista of Avila), the city was never taken. 

We then took a break for some Yemas and water, and then popped into Basilica of San Vincente.  For clarity’s sake, that’s written about in another post.

Then we popped back up the second, longer section of the wall, which is approximately 1.3 kms long.  As the day was moving on, we didn’t go the whole route, but went most of the way before heading down at some stairs that let us out on the northwest side of the city.  I wouldn’t say the walls were crowded, but there was steady stream of people enjoying the walls and the weather.   

Be sure to walk through a gate at night to see the walls all lit up – it is quite a beautiful sight.

(By the way, not only did Willie Nelson turn 90 this week, he also got selected for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  The headline of this post is a reference to the song that caused Willie Nelson to kiss Faron Young on the lips in appreciation.)

Okay, that note done, here's a WHOLE bunch of pictures of stunning city walls:

One of the city gates in the morning sun.

On the wall, with the 

Cathedral apse behind us.

The mountains in the distance,

as selfie'd from the walls.

A tower with the setting

sun shining on it.

From close to the river.

A beautiful fountain from the walls.

If you haven't figured it out yet,

I love fountains.

Carol and the mountains, both

shining brightly in the sunshine.

A street on the outside of the walls.

There are at least two places 

that make and sell Yemas 

on this block.

"The Flying Buttresses" would

make a great name for

a rock band.