Catching the Don Quixote express

by Rachel Webb

Not far from Madrid is Alcalá de Henares, birthplace of Miguel de Cervantes, author of the classic Don Quixote. The Spanish are proud of Cervantes and every public library across the country celebrated the recent 400th anniversary of the 1605 publication of the first part of Don Quixote. (One of my sons even had to dress in period costume, hose, and frills, and recite part of the works for his school.) But the heart of Cervantes-mania is Alcalá.

Alcalá is a quaint university town that sees thousands of visitors every year. The quiet plazas, normally used to the presence of students, become crammed with tourists and tour guides in themed costumes from September to December. The town boasts no windmills to tilt at, but rather queues that snake round the Cervantes Museum where the author was born. More lines form for a photo opportunity between the statues of gaunt Don Quixote and his sidekick, the short fat Sancho Panza. And the Plaza de Cervantes holds a statue of the author himself.

Busloads of pensioners and schoolchildren come from the capital and beyond to tip their cap at Spain's much-loved writer, but the best way to visit is to take the theme train. The special Cervantes train takes just 35 minutes from Madrid's Atocha station to Alcalá, and costs 14 euro round-trip (9 euro per child). Passengers are served traditional pastries by staff in costume, and given a guided tour around Alcalá de Henares, with the odd stop to watch mid-street theatrical mime.

A celebrated center of learning

Part of the magic of the visit is the introduction by train and the dramatic performances, but the town as a whole has a lively, young feel with a botanic garden and open spaces, making it friendly and laid-back after the bustle of Madrid.

The Cervantes Award for Literature, the most prestigious award for Spanish language works, is presented by the King of Spain every year in the university main hall on April 23, the anniversary of Cervantes's death. Alcalá has been a celebrated center of learning since the university was founded in 1498, and was declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 1998.

One of the listed buildings is now a hall of residence for students, but they are not the only lodgers in the town. Storks also stay here and have now become the town's symbol. Their preference seems to be the town's numerous churches where they construct a messy, precariously balanced nest the size of a small car, but they are made just as welcome as the students and visitors in their season.

Catching the train

The Tren de Cervantes runs Saturdays, Sundays, and Bank Holidays from the third week of September to the first week of December, leaving Madrid Atocha around 11 a.m. and returning around 7 p.m., and from the end of March to June.