Zamora

Dusty Romanesque churches of blond gold stone and warm poppy red roofs give this ancient place a strange poetry and unity of colour. For the most part Zamora is a sleepy, modern town with large, dowdy shops and pedestrianized streets that lend it all the appeal of a mid seventies shopping precinct. However, the large number of Romanesque churches sprinkled through its lanes, along with its unique Romanesque Byzantine cathedral, make Zamora well worth a day's visit.

Zamora Hotels

Rey Don Sancho Hotel - Avda. de Galicia - Zamora 49025 - Spain Phone: 980523400 Fax: 980519760
Trefacio Hotel - Alfonso de Castro, 7 - Zamora 49014 - Spain Phone: 980509104 Fax: 980509104
Rey Don Sancho Hotel - Avda. de Galicia - Zamora 49025 - Spain Phone: 980523400 Fax: 980519760
Nh Palacio Del Duero Hotel - Plza. de la Horta, 1 - Zamora 49002 - Spain Phone: 980508262 Fax: 980533722
Sol Hotel - Benavente, 2 - 3º - Zamora 49014 - Spain Phone: 980533152 Fax: 980509190
Cincuenta Y Nueve Hotel - Ctra. de Tordesillas, km. 59 - Zamora 49022 - Spain Phone: 980521437 Fax: 980518445
Chiqui Hotel - Benavente, 2 - Zamora 49014 - Spain Phone: 980531480
El Sayagues Hotel - Pl. Puentica, 2 - Zamora 49005 - Spain Phone: 980525511 Fax: 980513451
Hosteria Real De Zamora Hotel - Cuesta de Pizarro, 7 - Zamora 49026 - Spain Phone: 980534545 Fax: 980534545
Ac Zamora Hotel - Avda. Principe Asturias, 43 - Zamora 49029 - Spain Phone: 980557940 Fax: 980557941
Zenit Dos Infantas Hotel - Cortinas de San Miguel, 3 - Zamora 49015 - Spain Phone: 980509898 Fax: 980533548
Parador De Zamora Hotel - Pl. de Viriato, 5 - Zamora 49001 - Spain Phone: 980514497 Fax: 980530063

Once a walled town, Zamora stands on a rocky, bare outcrop that cuts alongside the river Duero. The centre is long, rather flat and exposed and exploring it you can get the odd sensation that you are walking across a gigantic tourist map. It was fortified in the 9th century: Zamora was the most westerly defence post along the river Duero, heavily involved in the battles of the Reconquest. The outstanding Romanesque churches that remain bear witness to the renewed confidence of Christian powers here in the 12th century.

A WALK THROUGH ZAMORA

Arrive by bus, train or car from Madrid or Valladolid and you will find yourself at the east end of town. From here Calle Santa Clara forms the spine of historic Zamora, a pedestrianized street, punctuated by occasional minor squares, which feeds into Calle Ramos Carrion and heads directly to the cathedral, lodged in a commanding position at the western end of town.

Pick up a map from the tourist office at Calle Santa Clara, 20, and it's easy enough to take in many of the city's Romanesque churches as you head west. Ile street cuts past Plaza de la Constitucion and the church of Santiago del

Burgos; in the next side street off Santa Clara the elegant Casa de los Momos comes into view, a gracious Isabelline Gothic town mansion dating from the 16th century, now used as a courthouse.

The Plaza Mayor is modestly distinguised by a restrained 16th century town hall and the weighty Romanesque church of San Miguel. A couple of medieval lanes run away from the plaza, tempting exploration beside the river: ignore them and continue straight on along Calle Ramos Carrion as it feeds into the heart of the old town.

Two stately city palaces stand facing one another either side of the desolate Plaza de Viriato: the palace of the Counts of Alba and Aliste, a Renaissance palace (now a parador hotel) that harbours a superbly sculpted double galleried courtyard, and the 17th century Hospital de la Encarnacion, now council offices. Behind the parador, lanes heading towards the river lead to the Palacio del Cordon, a stately palace with a stone Cordon, around its entrance, housing a small provincial museum. Lanes that run from the Plaza de Viriato in the opposite direction lead to the church of Santa Maria la Nueva and the Holy Week Museum, both behind the Hospital de Encarnacion.

West of Plaza de Viriato, Zamora dwindles into a backwater of dusty, insignificant lanes and low houses, barely evocative of the medieval town. Suddenly the cathedral lurches into view.

The Cathedral

A fish scale ribbed dome tops the cathedral, a suitably unusual finale to a building that musters a real hotch potch of styles. The Romanesque Byzantine dome is supported by pointed arches and surrounded by four cupolas, which all add to its eastern flavour. The cathedral was built between 1151 and 1174. Numerous fires down the ages made alterations to the whole building inevitable: the El Salvador Tower is a 13 century addition, the north front is Neo classical and the cloister dates from the 17th century. The Puerta del Obispo of the south front remains the cathedral's boldest pure Romanesque feature.

Inside, the carved choir stalls offer an earthy source of amusement, displaying rather less than spiritual goings on between monks and nuns.

Housed in the cloister, the Cathedral Museum (open 11.00 14.00 and 16.00 20.00) prizes among its exhibits a collection of superb 15th and 16th century Flemish tapestries. Especially impressive are those showing the Trojan War and Tarquinius Priscus; action packed, colourful and fantastically detailed, they are a remarkable record of medieval life.

Once you have seen the cathedral, wander along the cobbled lane that leads away from its south entrance for views over the broad river below, with its weir and 12th century bridge, and back along the length of Zamora to admire yet more ancient church buildings clinging to the side of this long narrow town.

WHERE TO STAY

Sol HsR**, Benavente, 2 3. Tel: 53 3152. Off Calle Santa Clara, just west of the tourist office. Chiqui HS*, Benavente, 2. Tel: 53 14 80. Aranda HsR*, Avenida, Alfonso IX, 5. Tel: 53 12 96. Hosteria Real de Zamora H***, Cuesta de Pizarro, 7. Tel: 53 45 45.