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Barcelona and Northern Spain This is the third page of my travelogue of our mid-September 2001 trip to Northern Spain with Tauck World Discoveries. If you somehow missed the first page, click here: Barcelona and Northern Spain Page 1. How to use this page: All of the pictures can be enlarged by clicking on them. When you click, your browser will open the enlarged picture in a separate window. To return to this page, close the window that has the enlarged picture in it. Underlined text are links that take you to other web sites with more information on the subject. My pictures and graphics are copyrighted and cannot be used or reproduced without my permission.
Leon to Santiago de Compestela - Day 10 Our morning stop was Astorga which was originally founded as a Roman Town. The town was situated on the Via de la Plata, a Roman road linking Andalusia and Northwestern Spain. Later, it became an important stop on the Road of St. James, the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compestela. |
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Our morning stop was Astorga which was originally founded as a Roman Town. The town was situated on the Via de la Plata, a Roman road linking Andalusia and Northwestern Spain. Later, it became an important stop on the Road of St. James, the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compestela. |  |
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Astorga's two principal monuments are its cathedral and the Palacio Episcopal (the bishops palace), which was designed by Antonio Gaudi. Today, the bishops palace houses an exhibit of medieval religious art, mostly focused on the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compestela. Storks' nests were perched both on the cathedral and on the bishop's palace. |
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Above and left are views of the interior. | ||||||||
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From Astorga, we stopped at a fair in the small town of Sarria, where there was a fair in progress. The most popular thing to eat at the fair was octopus. The octopus is boiled, cut, then sprinkled with salt and olive oil. The fair also had a cattle auction. | ||||||||
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| Santiago de Compestela | |||||||||
We arrived in Santiago de Compestela late in the afternoon. As you can see from this picture of the cathedral, the sky was spectacular. This was a very unusual day, because Santiago usually is cloudy and rainy. We were very lucky. In the middle ages, Santiago de Compestela was Christendom's third most important place of pilgrimage, behind Jerusalem and Rome. Around Santiago's Praza do Obrdorio is a collection of historic buildings with few equals in Europe. Pilgrims continue to walk to Santiago today; some of them walking from Paris, 900 miles away. According to legend, the bones of the apostle St. James were found in Santiago de Compestela, and the great Cathedral of Santiago was built to house his bones. In the middle ages 500,000 pilgrims per year, from all over Europe, made the trip to Santiago. |
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This is literally the view from the main entrance of our hotel. The parador Hostel De Los Reis Catolicos is a five star deluxe hotel. A landmark itself, it is one of the oldest operating hotels in the world. It was originally built in the 15th century as an inn and as a hospital for sick pilgrims. It's located next the the cathedral on the Praza do Obradoiro. Below are some pictures of the facade, lobby and public rooms of the Hostal de los Reyes Catolicos. |
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We noticed that when we had this picture developed, we were not alone in our room. This seems to be one of the former pilgrims, in the traditional attire of a cape, staff, and curled felt hat. The scallop shells are a symbol of St. James. If your afraid of ghosts, don't worry, this one is friendly and didn't bother us. He hangs out in the square during day, and you can have your picture taken with him for a small donation. |
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| Obradorio square, one of the most famous squares in Europe, is the one of the focal points for pilgrims arriving in the city. The two buildings are the Pazo de Raxoi, the town hall built in 1772, and the Hostal de los Reyes Catolicos, built in 1492. The cathedral sits to the right of this picture. |  |
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St James rides atop the Pazo de Raxoi, and a view of the cathedral from the Pazo de Raxoi. | ||||||||
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| With its Baroque Towers, added in the 18th century, soaring high over the Praza do Obridorio, the Cathedral is a monument to St. James and one of the great shrines of Christendom. The present cathedral dates from the 11th and 12th centuries and stands on the site of the original 9th century basilica. Through the famous Portico da Gloria (The Doors of Glory) is the same interior that welcomed pilgrims in Medieval times. |  |
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The Interior of the Cathedral |
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The relics of St. James and two disciples are said to be housed in this silver tomb in the crypt beneath the high altar. | ||||||||
| We were very fortunate to see a Botafumeiro Ceremony. The botafumerio is a giant incense container. During medieval times, this ceremony had a practical purpose. The incense from the giant container masked the body odor from the many pilgrims who visited the cathedral. |  |
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| Completed in 1188, Santiago Cathedral's Portico of Glory is a famous Romanesque sculpture, by the Master-Sculptor Mateo. In the portico, a sculpture of St. James stands on top of a column. Pilgrims touch the front of this column, then go around to the back, lean over and gently bump their heads against a figure, known as Santo dos Croques (Saint of the Bumps). The figure is said to impart intelligence. This is a picture of me touching the column, and I can tell you that the finger holes in the marble were very deep, worn down by the millions of pilgrims touching it before me. | |||||||||
Madrid - Days 11 - 14
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| We stayed at the Westin Palace Hotel. The Palace is a great hotel, and one of the best in Madrid. It's literally across the street from the Prado Museum, and within a short walk from the Plaza Mayor, Madrid's famous square. The rooms are very quiet, which is much appreciated, because Madrid is a fairly noisy city. | |||||||||
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One of the great museums in the world, the Prado Museum contains an unequaled collection of Spanish art; especially collections of works by Velazquez and Goya. It also houses collections by some of the world's greatest artists. | ||||||||
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| Above right, is the monument to Columbus in the Plaza de Colon, and below are two pictures of the Plaza de Canovas del Castillo, with its sculpture of Neptune on his chariot. | |||||||||
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Built in 1929, the Plaza de Toros
de Las Ventes replaced Madrid's original bullring.
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| The Plaza de Cibeles, with its sculpture of the Roman goddess Cybele. The Puerta de Alcala was a ceremonial gateway that marked the city's eastern most boundary. Sculpted from granite, this ceremonial gateway was completed in 1778. | |||||||||
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| One of the many street cafes in Madrid. The second picture is the Royal Palace. First time visitors to Madrid should definitely plan some time to see the palace. I took this picture on our first visit to Madrid. | |||||||||
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These pictures were taken walking
from out hotel to the Plaza Mayor
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| Cured ham is a popular food in Spain. Here are some pictures of the Museo de Jamon, which is a has a large selection of Spanish Hams. Those are all hams that you see hanging from the ceiling. | |||||||||
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If you like to shop, El Corte Ingles is a large department store chain that has branches all over the city. This Corte Ingles is located near the Puerta Del Sol, which is considered the center of Madrid. | ||||||||
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| One of the great squares in Europe, The Plaza Mayor was built by Philip III in 1619. There are nine arched gateways leading into the square, which was the hub of life in Renaissance Madrid. In the square's early days, bulls were fought on horseback The square was also the scene of "autos de fe", the public punishments imposed by the Inquisition. | |||||||||
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| Used privately by the royal family from 1632, the Retiro Park became the scene of elaborate bullfights and mock naval battles. In the 18th century, it was opened to the public | |||||||||
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My pictures of Madrid only scratch the surface of this city. If you're planning a trip there, you probably would need about two full days to see the major sights and to do some shopping. If you're going to be there longer for some reason, I would suggest a day trip into the countryside. Our tour guide Matt, suggests taking a day trip on a high speed train to Cordoba.
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The
World's Greatest Tour Guide A big part of reason why our trip was so successful was our tour guide, Matt Curran. Matt is a very experienced professional with a genuine interest in Northern Spain. He also has a sense of humor that rivals most professional stand-up comedians. He has some great travel stories that will leave you reeling with laughter. If you take the Tauck World Discoveries tour of Northern Spain, there's a good chance that Matt will be your guide. Thanks Matt, for a great tour! |
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| Matt Curran - World's Greatest Tour Guide | |||||||||
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I hope you enjoyed my pictures of Northern Spain. It's a pleasure to share them with you! | ||||||||
Steve
getting crowned by an angel in Astorga |
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