The Alcazar of Toledo
The Alcazar of Toledo is built on the highest point in the city. Couple
this with the fact that this is a very large and grand building with four tall
towers, and you can understand why it dominates the city's skyline.
Throughout the centuries the site has been used as a palace, a fortress, a
military academy, a jail etc. The building has been destroyed and reconstructed at least half a dozen times.
Inside you can tour old dungeons, a hospital room, dining room etc. My kids
especially liked the dungeons and pits some of which you can enter. Upstairs
there is a grand courtyard and many rooms where there are displays of swords,
armor, guns, army uniforms, artwork, etc. It's interesting enough to take
young kids because of the variety of different exhibits.
The oddest exhibit is one of model army men - there must have been tens of
thousands of miniature army men on display - very odd.
You can get an excellent view of the city and the countryside from the
windows of the Alcazar. There is also a large library within the Alcazar but I
believe it belongs to the University and it didn't seem to be open to general
public.
Just a note about public libraries.... I did notice that
some public libraries in Spain have computers with internet access set up for
anyone to use. This may be a way to use internet for free while in
Spain.