Welcome to Teruel
Welcome to Teruel – The city of the lovers
Teruel is the capital of Teruel province and its community is Aragon. Although Aragon is located in the north of Spain, Teruel is located in the south of Aragon. The nearest big cities are Valencia which is only one hour by car and Zaragoza which is one hour and a half by car.
Teruel is a very historical city and its main architectural style is Mudejar, from Arabic countries. Furthermore, this city was designated to one of the most romantic cities in Europe because there is a famous story about two citizens who fell in love in the environment of this city and finally, they had a dramatic end.
This city has two important festivals: One is on a weekend around the middle of February and you are able to see everybody wearing typical costumes from medieval times and there are also a lot of medieval shops and activities around all the city. The other festival is at the beginning of July and it is called in Spanish “La Vaquilla” and in English would be something like “The little cow”. There are a lot of activities in this festival in order to have fun and a lot of people from all over Spain come to Teruel to enjoy these days.
Information and Facts
Sightseeing:
You can find so many cultural and historical buildings in the city, most of them with a Mudejar architectural style like: Tower of “El Salvador”, Cathedral of “Saint Mary” of Teruel or Saint Peter Church. The last one has a mausoleum where you can find the corpses of Diego de Marcilla and Isabel de Segura, the two lovers who had a fantastic love story but with a tragic final.
But the most emblematic place in this town is its main square which is named “La plaza del torico” (The square of the small bull) where you can find a monument of a small bull on the top of a statue. This place has much value for its citizens.
Food:
The most famous aliments in Teruel province is the cured ham which has a denomination of origin because it has a different taste in comparison with ham from another part of Spain. A slice of bread with olive oil and a narrow slice of ham from Teruel on the top with a glass of red wine is the most famous dish. Other typical plates are made with other parts of the pig which is the most important animal, gastronomically speaking.
Climate:
In spite of the fact that Teruel is located one hour to the beach by car, it is 900 meter above the level of the sea. This means that the climate is totally continental with a huge difference between the highest temperature in summer, around 35 degrees, with the lowest in winter, around -15. A rainy day is not very common and we can say that it is a semi dry region.
Transportation:
Teruel is situated between Zaragoza and Valencia and you can go very quick to these cities by car or bus because of the dual carriageway which is totally free. The maxim speed is 120 kilometers per hour. Inside of Teruel you can travel by car, bus or taxi although if you are doing tourism, I recommend you walking because it is a small town with narrow streets and you do not have to walk too much.
Leisures:
People from this city have a great hobby which is bullfighting, but not only the one in the bullring where the bull finally dies. It is very common that bulls run around the streets of the town and the citizens have to try to avoid them.