Off we go to Mérida

Today we move on:  another one hour train ride south through hills and bushes to Mérida which is stiuated more or less in the centre of Extremadura on the Rivers Guadiana and  Albarregas.  It is capital of the autonomous region and in the  province of Badajoz.  It was declared a Unesco World Heritage in 1993, due to the huge historic importance of it’s Roman sites. 

Mérida was founded by Rome in 25BC by Octavio Augusto as a retreat for veteran soldiers or eméritos as they were known in latin, and from which the name of the city is derived.  The city was one of the most important in Hispania, and capital of the province of  Lusitania.

 After the fall of the Roman Empire in the fifth century AD, Mérida continued to be an  important centre as capital of the Visigoth kingdom.  We feel a bit vague about Visigoths and so do a bit of research.  We discover from wikipedia ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visigoths) that Visigoths were nomadic tribes of Germanic peoples which flourished and spread during the late Roman Empire.  Relations between the Romans and the Visigoths were variable, alternately warring with one another and making treaties when convenient. The Visigoths sacked Rome in 410 AD and began settling in Souther Europe. They had a presence in Spain from the fifth to the eigth century.

In 713 AD, the city fell to the Moors who remained until the Christian reconquest in 1230, when it came under the control of the Orden of Santiago. There has been a settlement in Mérida ever since then though the vast majority of todays buildings are modern or Roman. This creates a surreal enviroment.  Quite bizarre, quiet breathtaking.  As if Julius Caesar has come to Swindon!   

The arrival of the railway in the nineteenth century led to a resurrengence of the town and it is now an important commercial, service and light industrial area. Despite the Roman remains tourism is minimal. We see no other tourists.  Living is very inexpensive, as it is in the whole province.

The splendid Roman buildings comprise the theatre, amphitheatre, the circus, the temples, bridges and aqueducts.  For centuries an important judicial, economic, military and cultural centre. 

After settling into our spacious flat and being looked after by the owner's Mum, we head out to stop number one, El Circo Romano   

 

If this were not the first site to visit we would be underwhelmed as the others are so extensive and impressive.  As it is we are struck by the length of the race course which puts me in mind of the Newbury Showground and all the years I attended the West Berkshire show in my official capacity of Medical Officer.  I feel sure my services would have been needed here more frequently!  The chariot races sound extremely hairy according to the information displayed, the chariots were very scimpy affairs.

This oval arena was built in the beginning of the first century. More than four hundred metres in length and one hundred metres wide, the circo was the biggest site for shows in the Roman city and one of the most popular. It could hold thirty thousand spectators. 
One of the favourite shows was ‘two horses and four horses’. The drivers of the carts, which were called aurigas, were very popular figues, equivalent to modern day football celebrities and are immortilazed in paintings and mosaics.

There is a well presented centre of interpretation and you can wander outside.

On the way to dinner we discover the Temple of Diana brazenly and uncongrously sited in the midst of the non descript modern streets.  This is one of few restored religous sites.  The columns are Corinthian, with a long shaft and made of granite. It is thought that a garden with a pond existed beside the temple. In the sixteenth century a palace for the Duke of Corbos was built over the site.  The temple is incredibly well-preserved, probably due to its incorporation into the palace.

We have tea at El Trasiego bar and decide we will be back later for tapas. We then have a stroll and find ourselves by the Guadiana River.  The Moorish Acazar is shown right next to it.

The sun sets over the Roman bridge (Puente Romano) across the Rio Guadiana.  This impressively  long construction is divided into two by a central island.  It was extended several times in the Roman era and in medieval times as well.  At seven hundred and ninety two metres, it is one of the longest in existence. 

Looking east we see the Alcazar.

We wander back via Plaza de España

And happen open some stalls, one is selling beer!  Cerveza Mangurria de Cáceres

Then we are struck by a ten minute downpour.  There is only one answer!   Not a bad way to pass the time during our only rain of ten days!