Salamanca is a large Spanish city in the region of Castilla y León. Its history goes back several thousand years to pre-Roman times, when there was a fort here. In 220 BC Hannibal captured the city then called Helmantica, for the city of Carthage, and subsequently it became Roman before changing dominion several times until the Moors conquered the city in 712. Salamanca became Christian and Spanish again in 1085 and the city was resettled and developed so fast, that in 1218 it became home to Spain’s first university. In the following centuries, the city flourished and remains one of the country’s most important university cities.

Today, Salamanca’s old town is included in UNESCO’s list of world cultural heritage, and you easily see why when you take a walk in the neighborhood. The beautiful Plaza Mayor is the central square. Plaza Mayor was laid out in Spanish Baroque in the years 1729-1755, and it is considered one of Spain’s most beautiful squares. The entire complex was used as a bullring until the mid-1800s, which is why there are doors and balconies all around. To the north on the Plaza Mayor, the city’s town hall was incorporated into the ensemble. Just west of the Plaza Mayor you can visit the Mercado Central, which was built as a market hall in 1899-1909.

You can see Salamanca’s two cathedrals in the old town as well. Catedral Vieja is the city’s 13th-century cathedral, while Catedral Nueva was built 1513-1733. The cathedrals are located next to each other, and both are mainly in the Gothic style, but the new church received elements from the Baroque at the end of the construction period. This applies, for example, to parts of the church tower and the beautiful dome of the cathedral. In the old cathedral you can see the church’s beautiful decoration of the choir as a highlight. Opposite the cathedrals is the old bishop’s palace, which is now a museum. The mansion was temporarily used by Francisco Franco as headquarters during the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s.

From the history of Salamanca, you can see the preserved Roman bridge over the river Tormes. It was part of an important regional road in this part of the Roman Empire and was open to vehicular traffic until 1973. Since then, it has been a pedestrian bridge connecting the southern part of Salamanca. There are some lovely green areas around the bridge, and you can also enjoy other city parks such as Campo de San Francisco, Huerto de Calixto y Melibea and the large Parque de los Jesuítas. You can see quite a few beautiful churches and monasteries as well, of which the Dominican Convento de San Esteban is one of the most interesting places. The Dominicans also built the beautiful 15th-century Convento de las Dueñas, and La Clerecía is a beautiful and interesting Jesuit complex of a 17th-century school, convent and church.