Saragossa okazała się być pozytywną niespodzianką naszego wyjazdu do Hiszpanii. Wiele przestronnych placów, idealne warunki do robienia zdjęć i bardzo ciekawa architektura. Co więcej, budynki były oświetlone przez całą noc i długo rano, a turystów o tej porze nie było nigdzie. Sen absolutny!
Pałac Aljafería jest jedynym ufortyfikowanym pałacem islamskim, który pochodzi z czasów średniowiecza. Budowa pałacu została zakończona w drugiej połowie XI wieku. Będąc bardzo dobrze zachowanym miejscem, dziś służy jako siedziba Parlamentu Aragońskiego.
There are so many open spaces and big squares in Zaragoza. Moreover, it’s not overcrowded, and you can find really nice angles and perspective for photographing panoramic views. The architecture of El Pilar Basilica in Zaragoza, as well as the oriental style of the city, makes you feel like in a 1001-night story but in Spain.
In the Aljaferia Palace, I enjoyed the connection of the styles the most. Though the Islamic palace has a very characteristic interior, with mixtilinear arcs and arabesque on large surfaces, this courtyard reminded me of a more gothic style. As I learned later, the name of this courtyard is Patio de San Martin.
On both sides of the road, there are lion columns that are very distinctive for the Zaragoza buildings – The El Pilar Cathedral and The Cathedral of The Saviour of Zaragoza (La Seo). The Lions are the symbol of the town and from the bridge you can enjoy the best views on El Pilar. I was fortunate enough to enjoy sunsets during my visit and it was wonderful to see the locals stopping on the bridge after returning from work and truly enjoying the moment, even though they would have seen the area various times.
The Cathedral of The Saviour of Zaragoza (also known as ‘La Seo’) is another pearl of the city. It is less popular than its counterpart El Pilar but offers an equally unique history. Like so many other places in Zaragoza, its architecture takes you through the past by combining Roman, Gothic, Mudejar, Renaissance and Baroque influences in a very unique way.
The full name of this structure is The Cathedral-Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar and in Spanish – Catedral-Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Pilar. The façade which you see was built between 1681 and 1872 in Baroque style. When I looked at the lights warmly enlightening this building and the decorative couples, I had a rather One Thousand and One Night Tales moment in my mind, rather than the European Baroque Church.
Right away, The Fuente de la Hispanidad fountain in Zaragoza attracted my attention. Water and photography always work together very well, but there was something odd about this installation. I circled the fountain several times wondering what it could be, all the while questioning why someone would build such an odd fountain?
On this photograph I took, I captured a path showing The El Pilar Basilica-Cathedral with The Ebro River in front (and yes, the results brought muddy shoes yet again). When I went under the bridge to head direction to spot the blue hour, I thought that this composition of the bridge, with the warm reflections of the setting sun and the Cathedral in the background created a truly unique view.