Fodor's Expert Review La Catedral Vieja and La Catedral Nueva
Nearest the river stands the Catedral Vieja (Old Cathedral), built in the late 12th century and one of the most riveting examples of the Spanish Romanesque. Because the dome of the crossing tower has strange plumelike ribbing, it's known as the Torre del Gallo (Rooster's Tower). The much larger Catedral Nueva (New Cathedral) went up between 1513 and 1526 under the late-Gothic architect Juan Gil de Hontañón. Controversially, a 1992 restoration added an astronaut carving to the facade as a wink to the modern era—see if you can spot it. Both cathedrals are part of the same complex, though they have different visiting hours and you need to enter the New to get to the Old.