It was a cold January morning in Madrid, and my boyfriend and I felt adventurous. We wanted to go to a city nearby. After researching online, we decided Segovia was our best option. It was close, a must-see, and we were both craving the famous suckling pig.
We rode a MOVO, a bike-sharing service, to the Atocha Station. We wanted to take the train to Segovia but arrived too late. We saw a few car rentals at Atocha and decided to go by car. We went to a few places and found a good deal on an electric car and off we went.
Segovia is only 60 miles away from Madrid, like an hour and fifteen minutes drive. The view was beautiful and filled with mountains. We blasted music and time passed by fairly quickly. I really enjoyed the road, but arriving in Segovia was breathtaking.
Segovia is historic and considered a World Heritage City by UNESCO. Located in Spain’s Castile and Leon region. It has a rich architectural legacy, Roman churches, a former royal palace, and a Gothic cathedral. It’s a very small but memorable city.
What impressed me the most was the iconic ancient Roman Aqueduct built under Roman emperor Trajan, who reigned 98-117 CE and is still in use. The Aqueduct carries water from the Frio River to the city of Segovia and has more than 160 arches and measures 813 m in length. It's considered the heart of the city.
Roaming the city, the streets are hilly and small. Segovia for me seemed like an ancient fairy tale. It was like traveling back in time. We visited the part named Old Town, where the Aqueduct and historic monuments are.
The Segovia Cathedral was very remarkable too, located on Plaza Mayor. The Segovia Cathedral was built on the highest point of the city in 1525 during the reign of Carlos V. I really liked the Gothic-Roman style of the Cathedral.
When the sun started to fade and the weather dropped more and more degrees, we decided it was time to finally taste the famous roasted suckling pig and unwind on a bottle of wine. We went to Meson de Candido, which was right next to the Aqueduct in the center of Segovia.
Meson de Candido is a traditional gourmet restaurant that has been around for three generations. It was founded in 1931 and they quickly became very famous for their roasted sucking pig and other dishes.
We had “chorizo” to start and then the roasted suckling pig. It was out of this world. The staff was also very friendly. We even got free souvenirs to take home.
After dinner, we walked around for a while more, we didn’t want to leave. Everything was magical and impressive. Like how did the Romans build that Aqueduct back in the day? Truly magnificent.
When it was time to go, we walked to the nearby hotel where we were charging the electric car. You can’t imagine the hassle of finding an electric car charger in such a small city like Segovia. But I will leave that story for another time. The good and important thing is that we found a way and had a fantastic day.
We drove back to Madrid and returned the car safe and sound. It was a short and sweet trip and I can’t wait to go back to Segovia. I would love to return and stay one or two nights in order to explore more in-depth all the wonderful things we saw in such a short time. I would also love to continue exploring all the small ancient cities in Spain.
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