The time in Soria was good, and friends were generous, but it was time to move on, from Soria to Ejea de los Caballeros. I took the painkillers, strapped myself into a belt, and we set off on what proved to be wonderfully scenic drive.
Soria to Tarazona
Soria is situated at c.1,000 metres above sea level, c.3,500 feet, so no wonder we were tired! The first part of the journey was through yet more wide expanses of open countryside, stretching forever, and always with mountains on the horizon. And gradually we dropped in height, because Tarazona is at half the height and this was to be our coffee stop, and walk. Google maps offered several options but we followed the N122 all the way.
The main crop around Soria is grain – wheat, barley, rye, but also sunflowers. Soria is also known for its truffles and mushrooms. The drive towards Tarazona took us through harvested fields, miles and miles of golden flatness, punctuated with brown ploughed soil, trees, and distant mountains.
Tarazona, a very brief history
Access to Tarazona1 was easy and we parked in the car park at the entrance to the town, close to the Cathedral.
The town of Triaso became the important town of Turiaso under the Romans, and the oldest remains in the town are Roman.2 It was controlled by the Visigoths and taken over by the Arabs in 714, but in 1119AD it was conquered by Alfonso I of Aragon,3 during the reconquista. Amongst the other towns he retook were Ejea, Tudela, and Calatayud. In the following centuries it was the site of many battles.
Cathedral of Nostra Señora de la Huerta
The construction of the cathedral started in the 13th century, but it was destroyed in war in the 14th century, and rebuilt. By the 1990s it was apparently almost derelict, and causing damage to surrounding properties. The huge restoration project, 1985-2011, included archaeological investigations which uncovered a Roman necropolis, a public building with mosaics, and an earlier religious building.4 Today the Cathedral is quite overwhelming in the richness of its decorations. And oddly, the cathedral has always stood outside the town walls.
A lesson in architecture and art
Tarazona Cathedral has art and architecture from the Mudejar, Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance periods and styles, and you really need hours, and many visits, to explore thoroughly. We should have bought a book…. I don’t pretend to understand it all, so all I can do it give little glimpses into the richness of the site.
The restoration project uncovered traces of Renaissance frescoes, so there must have been a time when large parts of the building were painted. What a sight!.
The tombs of Don Lope Conchillos, Dean of Tarazona and Jaca, who died in 1486, and his nephew Gonzalo Conchillos, Canon of Tarazona and also Jaca, who died in 1519, are apparently examples of Aragon’s Mudejar art.
The photos below were taken in one of the side chapels, but I can’t as yet find any further information – wish I had bought a book…
The Cloister
The Renaissance cloister was rather grubby, which was surprising, but there was an exhibition in the passageway around the cloister, giving details of the restoration work.
In the town
The cathedral was an overwhelming display, and didn’t really have the atmosphere of a religious building. We retreated into the town to find a cafe.
First things first! I was hungry, and the tortilla was VERY GOOD INDEED!
Suitably refreshed, we then set off to walk through the Juderia, the old Jewish quarter of the town. It was a small area of narrow streets, stretching up the side of the hill. I was particularly impressed by the many information boards and thought of Southwark, an important and historical part of London, where there is no information at all. Boards like these could easily be displayed…
Tarazona to Ejea de los Caballeros
And then back to the car. There are many more interesting sights in Tarazona, but we still had a long way to go. It was a brief visit and I would recommend a longer stay. From the little we saw, this was not particularly ‘touristy’, but a well-cared for Spanish town, with layers of history.
The road between Tarazona and the Ebro River and Tudela went through miles of cultivated fields – orchards, olive trees, and vegetables. Grain crops – barley and wheat – are also cultivated – the Spaniards eat a lot of bread, and some of it is very good indeed.
We negotiated the outskirts of Tudela, crossed the Ebro, and were shortly on the NA-125, across the Bardenas, to Ejea. We have driven this road before and were looking forward to the views. As before, we pulled off the main road for a short walk, and to look round.
The road dropped down to the plains and took us straight into Ejea. The outskirts were heavily industrialised, something we had not expected, but we wound our way up the hill and into the old town, where we were able to park the car outside the hotel, the A Corona del Reina.
Dinner
The hotel in the old part of the town, in the Juderia to be exact, did not have a restaurant and so we had to walk down the hill into the town to look for supper. It was a long day!
It had been a long day and it was good to collapse into bed that night!
Sources
- https://www.turismodearagon.com/en/ficha/tarazona/
- https://www.fascinatingspain.com/articulo/what-to-see-in-aragon/que-ver-en-tarazona-historia-de-tarazona-turismo-en-tarazona/20140421171146066506.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfonso_the_Battler
- https://www.exposicion.hispanianostra.org/premio-europa-nostra/cathedral-of-tarazona/?lang=en
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