Over the top like most churches in Spain but of course this one is on a much grander scale. There…read more is so much to see in this huge Cathedral (second biggest in Spain) a guide would be helpful. Beside the main altar the most impressive item was the silver and gold Monstrance of Arfe that gets paraded around Toledo during the Corpus Christi procession. We spent an hour wandering around. 12 euros general admission 8 euros for seniors. This is the must see attraction in Toledo.

This Gothic monster was started in 1226 and finished sometime after your great-great-great-great…read moreancestors were born, it's all arches, stained glass, and gold that glows like it's powered by divine Wi-Fi. Fun fact: The bell tower of Toledo's Cathedral leans slightly to one side. Yep, that majestic Gothic spire is giving off subtle Pisa vibes. Historians think the tilt came from unstable ground or foundation settling over centuries. The clock on the tower was installed in the 18th century and has just one hand. Apparently, telling time precisely was optional when you had eternity to think about it.

Had a little extra time walking around Madrid and saw photos of this church online and wanted to…read moresee the beautiful paintings on the ceiling. The colors were absolutely breathtaking and the church itself is stunning.

Right beside the palace it's a free place to check out. Built over a century ago this is an…read more"unusual" gothic cathedral. The colored striped ceiling and modern looking stained glass. worth seeing but not my favorite. Yet do like that it's unique at least like nothing I've seen before.

San Antonio de los Alemanes was on my list and the hotel my partner and I were staying, it was…read morequite close to this as Well. Plus it was on my check list. So it didn't take us long, we were already on our way to this place. But the first time when we were here, the church was closed that day. So we checked the schedule and came back here the second time about 12:00. Finally, this time is opened. It was 2 euro for the admission free. It might only required to the tourist. It wasn't much anyway. Right after I walked in, I just saw this endless painting all over the wall inside. It wasn't much decoration or instruments inside the chruch. It was quite interesting, I also saw a painter, who was painting the paintings on the wall insde. We were there for awhile, Just looking and admiring the amazing works on wall. The church isn't so big, actually. But the painting does made it more interesting. It got Baroque style and it was designed by Pedro Sánchez. As it name already tell, this place is dedicated to St Antony of Padua. I think this sure is one of the unique places I have visited so far. It isn't as popular as other city attractions in Madrid. But it is worth to visit.

Have you ever seen a divine vending machine that spits out cookies? Monasterio del Corpus Christi…read moredoes just that. I felt like I was going into a drug deal. The cloistered nuns don't speak, but they do bake. You buzz, leave your order in the Lazy Susan, and like magic, the Lazy Susan spins and cookies appear. I'm like

A great hidden secret here in Madrid. Nuns cookies you must find the hidden doors that take you to…read morethis establishment. Have your euros ready if they let you in to purchase they'll have a different selection to choose from enjoy.

Now this was hard to find…read more Toledo in general was the hardest Spanish city to navigate for us. And this was the hardest place for us to find. We started asking random people if they knew where to find the Convent and Museum, but most people had not even heard of it. Finally, a kind university student informed us we were basically standing around the corner from it. For a nominal admission fee (~2 Euro) a nun switched on some lights and there we were -- just us, the nun and several beautiful El Greco paintings. The whole time we were there (~1 hour), only one or two other visitors showed up. Having come from over-crowded Madrid, it was nice to be able to enjoy the art in an uncrowded environment, but I do wish that a few more visitors would come to support the convent and experience this religious art in its original location as it was intended to be seen. The altarpiece here was El Greco's first commission when he came to Toledo. Years later, he was buried here in a simple tomb beneath the church. There is also a small but very interesting museum filled with bric-a-brac. Only in this case, the bric-a-brac is often hundreds of years old and contains fascinating items including some of the original contracts that El Greco signed to create paintings for the church. And also what I believe were some ancient royal documents authorizing the founding of the church and convent. I believe this is still a functional convent after all these years! The nun offered to sell us some marzipan treats, which is one way that religious orders support themselves in Toledo. We had already bought some treats from another convent (saw a sign on a wall, rang a bell, mentioned the magic password 'marzipan', was buzzed in and bought a bag of slightly-sweet muffin-type baked goods from a young nun. The bag of sweets was only 3 Euro and it served as for breakfast and snacks on several of the following days.) So we turned down the offer to buy more marzipan goods from the nun at Santo Domingo el Antiguo, but then later I felt bad about turning her down and wished I had at least looked at what she was selling and the prices. So if you go to visit this convent -- and you should if you like visiting off-the-beaten-path places with world-class art -- do please at least give the nun a chance to sell you her marzipan. PS - No photos here. Don't even try it. The nun has ears like an owl and eyes like a hawk. (Metaphorically of course.) My wife tried to snap a photo and the nun reprimanded her instantly. I think we were lucky that the nun wasn't carrying a ruler or someone's knuckles might have gotten rapped. PPS - It really is cool to have a place like this mostly to yourself. The whole time we were there - perhaps 1 hour - I think only one or two other visitors stopped by to see the El Grecos, pay their respects at the painter's tomb and tour the small museum. Probably other people *wanted* to visit but gave up when they were unable to find it! Or maybe other