The TRAVELER'S JOURNAL: October sixteenth, seeing Spanish Salamanca.

History has a long memory in Salamanca, a city in the highlands of west central Spain, 100 miles from Madrid. A Roman outpost when Hannibal captured it in 222 B.C., Salamanca was also ruled by the Visigoths and Moors before Christian forces prevailed in the late 11th-century. They built a cathedral and founded a university, one of Europe's first. Since then, Salamanca has been shaped by religion and scholarship. It remains a small place, relatively free of the modern piles of urban concrete that blight other Spanish cities. Its skyline is dominated by the spires of its two cathedrals, churches and university buildings, all crafted from golden stone. It creates a postcard reflection in the river's tranquil waters, still spanned by a 2000-year-old arched Roman bridge. Salamanca may be Spain's most graceful city.

Inside its old city walls, a labyrinth of narrow streets make walking easy but driving difficult. Each street is lined with splendid old Baroque buildings, many covered with elaborate carvings that often have a private tale to tell. Along with the excesses of the Spanish inquisition and cruelties of Francisco Franco, Salamanca has known King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, Columbus and Cervantes.

Prosperity has brought loving restoration of Salamanca's architectural treasures, but student energy still fills the cafes and terraces of Plaza Mayor, the grand square that is the city's heart. Four centuries ago, Cervantes sat here and wrote, "Salamanca casts a spell on all those who have enjoyed its peacefulness, awakening the desire to return." Modern visitors will find it difficult to disagree.

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