SALAMANCA
Salamanca is an important city of Spain, and it is
located in the south-west of Castilla y León; 800 metres above the sea level it
is built on three hills by the right shore of the river “Tormes”
Salamanca is a very ancient city which remains dating
back in the Paleolithic, Celtic and Romanic ruins. It was conquered by the
Arabs and it was rebuilt in the XIIth century.
Salamanca stands out mainly because of its University,
which was the first in Spain, the ancient cathedral and also the modern one,
the Roman bridge, the house of shells or the Main Square. We can also find many
other important Romanic and gothic monuments and Arabic architecture.
SALAMANCA CATHEDRAL
The St Maria’s Cathedral is one of the two cathedrals
of Salamanca and it is usually known as the old one. It was founded by a bishop
in the XIIth century. Bearing in mind Salamanca´s border role, the cathedral
was used as fortress. However, the towers disappeared and nowadays it is
considered as a Christian temple. 
On the other
hand, Asuncion de la Virgen´s Cathedral, the new one, was built next to the
other. It is a mixture of several styles and it´s the second biggest cathedral
in Spain. The main reason of its construction was the increase of the
population in Salamanca as the university attracted many students. Therefore,
the old one was seen as small and dark, so King Fernando el Católico ordered
several architects to build this last one.
HOUSE OF SHELLS
It was built at the end of the
XV century by an important knight, who was a member of the order of Santiago.
It is a mixture of gothic, Moorish and Italian styles, which in fact, looks
amazing. This palace is decorated with 300 scallop shells! Some people say they
are either a symbol of love or a decorative one to the outside. Nevertheless,
other believe they referred to the Order of Saint James. Today, the House of
the Shells is the Public Library of Salamanca.
ROMAN BRIDGE
The roman bridge is really
famous in Salamanca. It stands 356 meters over the Tormes River. It was
reconstructed in the 17th century since it was damaged by a huge
flooding. Moreover, the bridge is very
large, about 192 m long, but it was even longer before being destroyed.
Finally, it forms part of the Silver Roman road that linked Merida with
Astorga, cities of Extremadura and León.
SALAMANCA UNIVERSITIES
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| Salamanca University |
Salamanca is mainly known because of its university
tradition. Here, in Salamanca, you can find two different universities, a
public one and the pontifical one which depends on the church.
Salamanca University, which was the first in Spain, is
located in the most ancient universitarian area of Spain and is the only one
which is nowadays still in use.
Both universities count with a university population
of 32000 students, which make Salamanca the University City par excellence in
Spain and Europe. But Salamanca is more than a university, Salamanca has a
great historical legacy; as the first Spanish grammar or the first
universitarian woman.
At the end of the first term of the school year, at
Christmas, is typical the “Universitarian New Year”. This is a party in which
the under graduates eat the 12 lucky grapes a few days before they return their
homes to spend Christmas holiday.
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