On M.M´s suggestion, I´ll write a bit about Burgos, since I live here. It is located in the north of Spain in the province of Castilla y Leon, about 3 hours north of Madrid. The closest cities are Zaragoza, San Sebastian and Santander. It has some of the coldest weather in Spain, staying below 30 degrees from November to March. It´s claims to fame are that it is part of the Camino de Santiago, the home of El Cid and Franco´s headquarters during the Spanish Civil War, although all memory of Franco has been eradicated and all the street names and monuments bearing his (and his cronies´) names have been renamed. It has some cool medieval architecture and 12th century city wall which is still partially intact. The people are pretty friendly, although not as nice as Andalucians, and they speak a beautiful, pure castellano. There´s a good bar scene but it´s not the most cosmopolitan city in the world. There´s not a USA today to be found and very few places carry foreign news. The biggest drawback to Burgos is the cold, but I like it here. Any questions about it, please send me an e-mail!

So, how did you end up there? It sounds like you are teaching. How long have you been there?

I ended up in Burgos cause a language academy there offered me a job and a visa, so I didn't really choose Burgos- it chose me! (I wrote a bit about the teaching part on the "working in Spain" forum).

I recently spent three nights in Burgos and loved it. The people were very friendly; I was greeted with a smile in every single store, and often chatted with shopkeepers. There were few tourists, it being the off-season, and there was zero sleaze factor (maybe that changes in summer, when the hordes arrive), something I'm especially sensitive to since I'm a woman traveling alone, with two cameras.

However, one disadvantage of an off-season visit is that hours at the monuments are shorter--in some cases, WAY shorter. For example, there's a church that's been converted into a museum of retablos that's apparently a must-see. Unfortunately, it was open only on the weekend, and I was there during the week. The iglesia de San Nicolas, which contains a mind-boggling retablo, was open for exactly ONE HOUR each weekday. And a few places were closed for renovation.

That said, I thoroughly enjoyed the cathedral, and since there wasn't much else to do, I visited three times. It was worth it. There's so much to see, that for me it was TOO much to absorb in one visit. The first time I went to the museum and was admitted to the areas included in the museum entry; e.g., the coro. Anyhow, I won't overwhelm you all with details you can get from guidebooks. But note that although the exterior is being cleaned and certain entrances are off-limits, all areas inside the cathedral are open. The spectacular central dome, however, was under wraps. The most magical visit was at night, about 20 minutes before closing. The cathedral was empty except for myself and a young couple. Unforgettable.

The other highlight for me was the Monasterio de las Huelgas, about a 20-minute walk from the old city, on the other side of the river. There's a bus that goes there, but I thoroughly enjoyed the stroll--not that it's especially picturesque. I just like seeing neighborhoods that aren't connected to tourism. Anyhow, the monastery is fabulous. My only regret is that I couldn't spend more time there: Visits are by guided tour only.

The Teatro Principal has some pretty ambitious programming, and there seemed to be something going on nearly every night. It's a small, traditional old theater, with a tiny orchestra section and those semi-circular balconies that go straight up. Tickets are very reasonable. I saw a terrific concert there, but that's another post....

Don't mean to rain on your parade, Kerry, but I read in the on-line Burgos newspaper that there had been a couple of violent incidents in the wee hours during the weeks before my visit. They occurred, not surprisingly, in the party zone, where most of the bars are. I don't go to such places when I'm alone, but I will say that when I got out of the theater--around 10:30 on a Friday night, I believe--the partyers had begun to hit the streets. And I was harrassed by a number of young men. (And no, I'm not talking about flirting--believe me, I know the difference.) I didn't feel I was in any danger; it was just annoying, and the only real negative in an otherwise marvelous stay.

[This message has been edited by leuci (edited 12-13-2000).]

[This message has been edited by leuci (edited 12-13-2000).]

[This message has been edited by leuci (edited 12-13-2000).]