A History to illuminate our experiences. Fam lia, the Vel squez canvases in The Prado, the train rides through desolate countryside, the cathedrals all spoke to us in so many ways. But what struck us even more than the beauty was the history. Around every corner there stood a building older than anything standing in America. In Barcelona we stood before the sarcophagus of a saint buried 1,000 years ago.
History is what makes a place come alive.
Carr's book makes Spain come alive. Ferdinand and Isabella rule, sending Columbus to discover new worlds. Philip III expels virtually all descendants of the Moors. Empires begin to sink. Spain continues to sink and grow, sink and grow, with ebbs and flows throughout the years.