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Salamanca
Cathedral, a visit to the tower
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There is a
separate entrance to the tower,
easy to overlook if you are not
keeping an eye open for it.
The
tower visit is well worth the
time. In addition to gaining
access to the tower and its
exhibits, you also will be able
to visit the very top of both
cathedrals' naves.
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Actually you only go halfway up the
tower before being diverted to a catwalk
that leads you to the top of the nave.
The trip up to the catwalk is relatively
uneventful; you can study the numerous
exhibits and, at the same level as the
catwalk, there is a patio offering views
from up high.
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Above-
View of the cathedral from the
catwalk.
I scaled
the tower and viewed the city
from the patio. So far, so good,
but then I set off down the
catwalk and entered the top of the
nave. At this point, I noticed a
fracture in the stonework and I
was reminded of the huge crack I
had seen on the wall during my
tour of the cathedral’s
ground floor.
Photo
right - Crack in the cathedral's
ground floor wall.
Looking
over the stone railing, I looked
down to the floor of the nave. At
this point, I realized how high
up I really was.
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Above
photo, © Don Teegarden - looking
over the railing. |
My travel
companion is exhilarated by the
height and quickly scurries off
to explore. I back up closer to
the wall and start noticing the
passageway stones; apparently,
900 years of settling have left a
number of them uneven.
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I would
learn later that out of my sight, just a few
feet above my head, was a large crack
intersecting the vaulted ceiling.
Continue
to page 2 of "A
climb up the Cathedral's tower".
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Above
photo, © Don Teegarden - That is
me, just starting to move away
from the entrance. Notice the
crack in the arch. |
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