Making my way back to Spain from Portugal I was able to make an overnight stop in the beautiful city of Segovia. I arrived late in the afternoon, but as Madrid is only about an hour south of Segovia, I would still have the bulk of the following day to visit the city before returning to Madrid for my flight.

The Cinderella Castle of Walt Disney fame was inspired by many different castles in Europe and the Alcazár in Segovia was one of them.

The castle was the former residence of Spanish royalty but now serves as a Royal and Military Museum.

It contains beautiful antique furniture and tapestries and even the royal thrones but the beautiful stain glass windows really caught my attention.

Next....a night view of the beautiful cathedral. This was the last Gothic cathedral built in Spain from the 16th Century.

Something that really impressed me was seeing the place where Isabella was declared Queen of Spain in the San Miguel Church in 1474.

BUT....the highlight of Segovia, and of course it is UNESCO related....the aqueduct that was constructed by the Romans in 50AD to bring water from the nearby mountains to Segovia.

Yes, I was totally amazed by this aqueduct especially to learn that the 25,000 or so granite blocks were constructed without any kind of mortar! It is 850 meters long and its height from the lowest point to the top is 28.5 meters.

No visit would be complete for me without tasting some of the local fare and Segovia is well known for it gastronomy which includes roast suckling pig and lamb. And I did try both but this soup called Judias de la Granja or Farm Bean Soup was the winner.

And finally, the hand of Fatima, which has great significance for Islam, Jews and Christians alike and is important in the history of Segovia denoting a time when all three cultures lived in peace and harmony.