So, I’ve been in Madrid for a bit more than a month (with breaks to Paris and Copenhagen). I know Madrid so well that I decided to go to another city for 3 days or just for 1 day. Among my options, Cuenca won for a day trip. Another trip by myself. Solo trips are awesome! 🙂

I did my research, what to see, where to go, how to get there… And I think it might need more than one day. I’ll find out later.

Woke up by 7:30, got breakfast and ready to go to Atocha where I was going to take the train.

While buying the ticket, the girl told me that it’s a beautiful city. After looking at pictures and reading about it on other traveler’s blogs, I was sure I was going to have a really nice trip.

I was told there are busses that are usually by the gate when a train arrives, I waited for about 5 almost 10 minutes and never saw a bus. So I took a taxi to go to the Historic area. He took me to El Parador, which it was a great point to start my walk.

Usually, I walk everywhere instead of taking a bus, metro or taxi. However, this time the train station is really far from Plaza Mayor and I only had few hours to see the city.

After El Parador, I started to walk to Plaza Mayor. But first I had to cross the “Puente de San Pablo” (a bridge) over Huécar River. It looks super old and a bit scary if you don’t get a long with heights. However, the view is amazing!

From there you can see part of the old city and the famous “Casas Colgadas” or Hanging Houses of Cuenca. Beautiful! A must see.

I crossed the bridge, stopping every other time for pictures and videos, and walked up through a very narrow alley where I have to look everywhere because cars pass by, and just one at a time.

Once at Plaza Mayor, where the Cathedral was inviting me to go in, I went around to see every detail. Some guys were playing some guitar, people were arriving at the cafes for a coffee or maybe a beer. Then, I went inside the Cathedral. Of course, paying to get inside a religious building…

From the Cathedral I started to walk not knowing where to go. I just knew I wanted to see more of the city.

I saw 2 different ways. One that looked alone and interesting and the other one I saw lot of people walking to. Of course I took the lonely road :).

It was behind the Cathedral and it wasn’t that alone. Maybe 2-3 other people around. It was amazing! A narrow alley, behind what it seemed to be the main road (Calle San Pedro), by Huécar river only few feet higher. I could see the Parador, the bridge and the Hanging Houses. The view was incredible! So beautiful I decided to stop for a minute to enjoy my unique view.

Something that caught my attention, this city has lots of trails, that look awesome, and made me think about coming back to try one of those trails. A lot of bikers around and hikers.

I kept my stroll until reaching another point to see the city. The Castle (El Castillo in Spanish), is the name for the remains of the fortress. Not big deal, but the arch and the view are really nice to see.

My direction was pointing to Plaza Mayor, this time by the road I didn’t took before.

After few minutes, stopping at some areas for pictures, I was back in the Plaza Mayor by the Cathedral. This time I got closer to the City Hall to appreciate this building that let you pass underneath to see other sights as the Torre de Mangana.

I had a quick lunch/dinner before heading back to the train station, so I could go back to Madrid after a really nice day in Cuenca. I really would love to go back again for a hiking day, so maybe 2 days will be perfect to see this city.

Ohh… and the gorgeous sunset I enjoyed on my way back to Madrid… priceless! Remember, you can watch AT29’s video about Cuenca HERE