The Parador in Avila presents a wonderful opportunity to literally walk in the footsteps of history.

There still stands an ancient mulberry tree in the gardens of the Parador that was climbed by Saint Teresa (a 16th century mystic nun) when she was a child! The story is that her mother was a relative of the Benavides family whose residence it was then - when it was known as the Piedras de Albas palace - and Teresa used to accompany her mother and play in the gardens on these visits - climbing the tree to pick its sweet fruit. Sit on the bench beneath the tree while you are here and contemplate what it might have been like in that bygone era.

Avila is completely encircled by a magnificent stone wall. Raimundo de Borgo