Alcalá is just a short train ride from Madrid and makes a very interesting half-day trip from the capital. Even though I visited on a Monday afternoon, which meant that many sights such as the cathedral and the Cervantes House were closed, I enjoyed my walk through a city oozing with history. Most tourists come to see the Cervantes-related sights, but the town's biggest claim to fame is the university (which offers guided tours also on Mondays). The Universidad Complutense was founded in the 13th century and was one of the most important ones in the Christian world during the Late Middle Ages and Renaissance periods. When it moved to Madrid in the 19th century, the city became a bit of a backwater (a modern university was founded in the 1970s) and a commuter town. The historic university buildings are still well-preserved and make for an interesting visit. Guided tours seem to be offered only in Spanish, so I didn't catch every detail, but it was still a pleasant visit. From the outside, I also saw the neo-Moorish Laredo Palace and the former Palace of the Archbishops of Toledo, where Columbus planned his first voyage and where both Emperor Ferdinand I and Catherine of Aragon, Queen of England, were born.