Burgos Cathedral took its time. Work began in 1221 under Bishop Mauricio and King Fernando III, and the building grew in stages for three centuries, which is why it contains a French-inspired Gothic nave, a Renaissance golden staircase by Diego de Siloé, a Constable's chapel of astonishing complexity and, above the crossing, an octagonal lantern whose star-vault, rebuilt in the sixteenth century, is a masterpiece of Renaissance ornament. The two openwork spires of the façade were added in the fifteenth century by a craftsman from Cologne, Johann, and they give the building its unmistakable outline. UNESCO listed the cathedral in 1984, one of the first Spanish sites to be added.
Under the crossing lie the remains of El Cid, Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, the eleventh-century warlord whose life turned into a legend of the Reconquista, and of his wife Jimena. Inside the cathedral there is also a mechanical figure called the Papamoscas, the fly-catcher, who opens his mouth when the bell strikes the hour, and children and adults alike wait for it. The city is on the Camino de Santiago, and in the streets near the cathedral you can pick out pilgrims by their scallop shells and tired steps.
Riding into Burgos from the plains of Castile, you pass through a country of wheat fields, pale villages and big skies, and the roads are straight and fast, with good surface and long views. The city lies at about 860 metres, so winters are cold and spring mornings can be frosty. Park the bike in one of the public car parks and walk to the cathedral square, since the old centre is often restricted.
Fuel is no problem, since Burgos has stations all round the ring road. Eating here is a pleasure: morcilla, the rich black pudding made with rice, roast lamb from the wood oven, and the fresh white cheese of Burgos are the staples. A short ride to the east, the Sierra de la Demanda and the monasteries of La Rioja are an obvious excursion, and the great prehistoric site of Atapuerca lies just outside the city.