Explore Zamora

Zamora is the museum of silence. It sits on a rocky hill overlooking the Duero River, a city of stone that holds the world record for the highest concentration of Romanesque art per square meter. The air here is heavy with history and smells of the damp river fog and burning incense. It is not a city that shouts; it whispers. The light is filtered through the narrow medieval streets, hitting the rough-hewn stone of the 24 Romanesque churches that dot the map like spiritual checkpoints.

This is the heart of “Deep Spain.” During Holy Week (Semana Santa), the silence is so profound that you can hear the wax dripping from the candles of the penitents. The atmosphere is austere, noble, and deeply moving. But turn the corner, and you find a lively tapas scene where the wine (Toro) is as dark as ink and the cheese (Zamorano) is sharp and salty.

Zamora is often bypassed by the high-speed train rushing to Galicia, which is a tragedy. To walk its walls at twilight, watching the storks return to their nests on the church towers, is to see a Spain that hasn’t changed in centuries. It is a city for the melancholic, the historian, and the eater of hearty things.

To enjoy Zamora, walk across the Stone Bridge. Look back at the cathedral dome—it looks like fish scales made of stone. And eat the Arroz a la Zamorana; it’s not paella, it’s a pork-heavy hug in a bowl.