Toledo – Semana Santa

Toledo holds a special place in Spanish history and even in modern times provides a wonderful and unique opportunity to see and experience culture. Toledo was added as a UNESCO World Heritage Cultural Asset in 1986 and is often referred to as The Imperial City and the City of Three Cultures. The rich, multi-millennia history can be seen and felt walking through the streets with it’s mix of art, religious establishments and layered architecture.

 

The incredibly ornate main facade of Cathedral of Saint Mary of Toledo.

Holy Week (Semana Santa) is the major religious event in Spain, and in Toledo is an incredibly special event. Toledo, as well as the rest of Castille La Mancha, tend to hold sober and traditional nighttime processions compared to the rest of the country. The different Brotherhoods dressed in capirote parade from their churches through the narrow, winding streets to the Cathedral. Festivities on Thursday and Friday provide a chance for the public to visit the many churches, great and small, ornate and modest and the art treasures kept within. The city is very welcoming to visitors at this time.

I highly recommend visiting Toledo, as it offers meaningful experiences for all travelers, whether it be tasting the nun-baked cookies or mazipan, viewing art, learning the complex history or even hiking along the Tagus River. Several shops selling knives, swords and other metal and steel items are scattered throughout the city, which has always been known for it’s metal work.

Wherever you are, enjoy the holiday weekend.

Thank you for reading,

Ruby

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Steets of Los Angeles: A Wonderland of Public Art

Los Angeles is a wonderland of street art and state-commissioned public art pieces. The city hosts world-class art museums such as The Getty, LACMA and Hammer Museum. However, one could spend an entire weekend discovering public art treasures and the ever-changing street art scene (particularly around Alameda Street and the Arts District).

One of my favorite public art pieces from a recent trip to Los Angeles is this mural by internationally known Chicano artist Frank Ramero, created for the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. “Going to the Olympics,” about 100 ft. in length, consists of five pastel cars driving against a background of hearts and trees.  It is located on Highway 101, near Alameda Street, and it brings incredible brightness and beauty to the dull concrete. This piece, along with many others along Highway 101, has an interesting history and was restored in 2013, just in time for the 30th anniversary of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.

Going to the Olympics by Frank Romero

Los Angeles is a must for any art lover.

Thank you for reading,

Ruby