Wander this Way- Spain

Segovia October, 2005

And I remember back to where the wandering, traveller in me began . . .
       “Out of my youth my memory rings to me like bells calling from distant valleys: the ecstasy of my first journey . . .” to Spain. 
       It was an idyllic day, and I was standing at the bottom of this big hill, between two rivers, gazing up at the dreamy scene before me. A huge castle. “The Alcazar of Segovia,” that Cinderella castle that Disney modeled their iconic fairy tale after. Aesthetic architecture, etched centuries of evolution; a lovely body accented by taller, domineering, rescue- the- princess- like towers. Even the clouds above it were perfectly painted puffs, across a serene, pale blue canvas sky. 
       We stormed the castle, cameras in hand, enchanted by its immensity. I had never seen anything like it. Medieval, first erected around 1120, standing tall with light, sandy- colored brick revived over centuries. Towering, thick walls amassed the halls, and slender, Cerulean blue, cone peaks adorned each roof layer like pointed top hats. The old, wooden floor sounded its aging history, as I walked the long, narrow hallways dimly lit through tiny, gothic arched windows. I stopped and stared out at an open window. Tamed courtyards appeared below, and mountains framed the distant scene. The late morning heat crept in, and the sun adorned the fortress below. I contemplated life in that moment, realizing it had been two months since I’d been home. I was hooked. A wanderer in motion. Far off lands seem closer than ever. 
       “But I smile, not only with my mouth. I smile with my soul, with my eyes, with my whole skin, and I offer those country-sides whose fragrances drift up to me, different senses than I had before, more delicate, more silent, more finely honed, better practiced and more grateful . . . The world has become lovelier. I am alone and I do not suffer from my loneliness. I don’t want life to be anything other than what it is. I am ready to let myself be baked in the sun until I am done. I am eager to ripen. I am ready to die, ready to be born again.  The world has become lovelier.”  -Herman Hesse