Baiona

 This ancient town, from which many expeditions to the Americas were launched,  we stayed in and enjoyed.  The town is interesting and fully modernized yet very old, the Parador of Baiona is situated in an amazing fortress that sits on a prominence above the town and the entrance to the port.  The gardens surrounding the parador are extensive and beautiful.  The parador overlooks at the boats in the harbor protectively on one side and faces the wild Atlantic with its trade routes and foreign invaders, on the other.

The fine folks of Barcelona (and La Merce)

The city of Barcelona celebrates an Annual Festival called La Merce.  

This year celebrated its 150th official celebration. The festival is centered on the Feast day of Our Lady of Mercy, which in Catalan is "La Mare de Déu de la Mercè", and has done so since 1871 shortly after the Pope recognized the Virgin as the "Patroness of Barcelona".  (It should be noted that the city had bestowed this title on her, specifically on a revered statue in a church in the Gotica district, 200 years before.) The feast itself has been held on September 24th since the middle ages, possible as far back as 1218 with the founding of the Order of Mercy by two Saints, Saint Peter Nolasc and Saint Ramon de Penyafort, and King James the Conqueror. 

Being here in Barcelona this year, I had pointed out to a few of my Barcelonian friends that Judy's birthday is also September 24, and, to a person, they all agreed that the festival was also to celebrate Judy's birthday, and that the fireworks display that was a major part of the activities was also to honor Judy on her Birthday.  I have letters from them that confirm this. (I think these are among the most generous people I have ever met . . . )

Therefore, a small shot of "Judy's" fireworks can be seen below.

The full 28 minute movie is available here:

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipN0hdcIV06Yv5EfAisYXPuzPg_KFtO7PyOvKfX2

https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mare_de_D%C3%A9u_de_la_Merc%C3%A8

The Royal Monastery of Santa Maria of Pedralbes (Reial Monestir de Santa Maria de Pedrables)

 This Royal Monastery is beautiful and in excellent condition and well worth the visit.  We have a few pictures below but what is really interesting is a little bit of Spanish history and culture that we learn when we begin to look at it.

First the history:  This Monastery was founded in 1327 by Queen Elisenda de Montcada with the support of her husband King Jaume II.  It was dedicated to Santa Maria, and was offered to the protection of the "Poor Clares" (the second order of St. Francis), women who foreswore all worldly possessions, and was placed near Sarria, a small village just outside of Barcelona, but near enough to be available to the Queen. During its construction she also built herself a small castle adjacent to it so that she could live there in private retirement when she retired from court.  In its founding she granted it rights and privileges that it still enjoys today, but also obligations that tie it to Barcelona.  This mutual relationship, as we shall see, has been beneficial to both.

The Cloisters

A pool in the center of the cloister.

The Door to the monastery

The later added (16th century) walls and gates to the monastery can still be seen.

In short, worth a detour to visit.  It is beautiful and in perfect condition, but as I said what may be more interesting are two other bits of its history.

1) When Ferdinand II (son to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella) had a dalliance that produced a baby girl she was given a home in the the Monastery, as a member of Royalty, to protect the purity of the royal lineage by assuring that she would never have a child.  This is recorded, but how often did this happen?  (I suspect the politics in such situations as this is more common than we know.)

2) During the Civil War of 1936 (to 1939) the Nationalists (Francoists) and the Republicans (a mixture on non-nationalist groups) fought a very bloody, very brutal battle for control and many Churches were torched because the Church sided with the Nationalists.  Catalonia was staunchly Republican and it protected the Monastery from all harm.  In return just before Barcelona fell to the Nationalists the monastery became a refuge/archive for many of Catalonia's most important art and artifacts.  These were later returned to the Catalonian state when it was safe to do so. 

An interesting point in this regard is the involvement of Catalonia before the Civil war.  In 1931 the elections (held in the fall of 1931 ) returned an unexpectedly large plurality of Republican politicians (against-the-crown), and the President of Catalonia announced the following day that Catalonia was a separate state within the "Iberian Federation of States". The King of Spain responded violently to this announcement and Catalonia ultimately acquiesced to theoretically greater degree of self-governance to remain at peace.  I suspect that Catalonia was not alone in this desire to succeed, we still see this motivation not only in Catalonia and the Basque country, but also in Gallicia (and I suspect more if I knew where to look).  In Barcelona it is not uncommon to see the Catalonia flag flying from private balconies,  I have only seen the Spanish flag above government buildings. 

https://monestirpedralbes.barcelona/ca/monestir/hist%C3%B2ria/segle_xiv_fundaci%C3%B3_del_monestir

Tui (Galicia)

Tui

Tui is a charming small town in Galicia. Staying at the parador on the Minho River makes for a nice river walk into the old city. Old goes back to prehistoric times, vestiges are found from 20,000 BC. So, really old.  Later, the Moors invaded and then the Vikings in the 12th century. There are Romanesque and Gothic elements to be seen.  Now, the city seems to be very vibrant with a lot of construction.

It is right on the river Minho which is also the border with Portugal and, thus, has been fought over through much of its history.  The fortress below is on the Portuguese side of the Minho and the two cities were often at war.

Walking across the river on the "friendship bridge", one enters Valenca, Portugal in less than one half hour. There are 2 bridges between Tui and Valenca, one was inspired by Eiffel works.  One of the walks is also on the Camino, called the Portuguese way.  With its well preserved fortress, Valenca is a very busy tourist town, Full of activity and little shops. The village patron Saint, Sao Teotonio was the first Portuguese saint.

The walk into the old city of Tui can be done on the Camino if one desires.  There is another walk right on the river which gives one a great water view.  When you arrive at the old city, there is a long steep staircase, which means you can skip the gym that day.  you will find both a lovely modern town, 

and a very well maintained, very old town. I wouldn't be surprised if movies were made here, but most of these old towns are well maintained.  We don't really see much decrepitude anywhere. 

This Spanish frontier town, it should be no surprise, is in a isolated flat area in the midst of the Iberian mountain ranges that run all along the Atlantic coast of the Iberian peninsula.  It is mostly rural, quite green and beautiful.  A very pleasant place to visit.  As with the rest of Galicia, while everyone speaks Spanish, their native tongue is Galician.

Tui is inland from the coast by about 25 km (~15 miles) yet it is deep in the mountains. While on a walk in one of the Tui Parks. (below)

We saw wild saffron growing (in pink - below).  It was quite special. 

A Coruña

This modern city with ancient roots is charming. It has a large working harbor, and appears to be financially strong, with lots of resources from the mountains and sea.

It appears to be enjoyed by local Galicians, however, in general, it is not tourist destination either for the Spanish or international travelers.

Before the Romans established their foothold (and parts of this foothold are still present in a 2,000 year-old lighthouse in town - below), A Coruna was a strong Celtic community, speaking Gallego (their native tongue) which is more closely related to Irish, and Scottish than English, Spanish, or Latin. It is quite different both linguistically and socially here from the rest of Spain (or rather Spain of the plains south of the Pyrenees, i.e. Spanish); most likely because it is a productive seaside territory isolated from Spain by vast mountain ranges that cover the eastern extents of the Iberian peninsula.  Because of this Galicia has a lot more more in common with Portugal, it's southern neighbor, than with Spain.

As in so many other places in Galicia, it marks the point of entry for pilgrims to Santiago de compostela from England and Ireland who come across the sea.

Santiago de compostela

I think we have been most impressed by the spontaneous mirth that seems present in Praza do Obradoiro, the huge square in front of St. James Cathedral in Santiago de Compostela.

As I write it is almost midnight and there are hundreds of people out in the plaza singing together at the top of their lungs, cheering one another on. Since we arrived two days ago it has been like this nonstop; last night after midnight when we went to sleep and still going wearily when we woke up. In addition, there is usually a bag piper playing all day and through the night. Galicia was originally settled by people from Scotland, Ireland and England. As we listen to the exuberance outside we share their joy but also feel very fortunate for the extremely thick walls of the parador. 

It is easy to understand.  These pilgrims have been walking the Camino usually between a month and several years. For instance, a few years ago we met a group of Germans who have for several years done a few hundred miles a year. Then they go home and come back the next year to continue their pilgrimage. We met them in southern France; they had started in Germany. In 2019 some 348,000 pilgrims, nearly 1,000 per day, officially finished their journeys at this site. The majority of them probably covered the distance from Leon, where all the major routes come together, to Santiago (192 miles). To receive the Compestela certificate one must complete a minimum of 100 km on a Camino route.  So yes, they are friends, and exuberant, and will celebrate for days until they finally tire.

It is truly an honor to stay at this Parador that forms one end of the plaza. From the terrace one can not only gaze at the beautiful St. James Cathedral, but also enjoy watching the pilgrims as they have reached their goal and finished the Camino. The Parador is a former hospital for the pilgrims, and has housed them since 1499 when it was first built.  There are four cloisters inside the parador, each one more beautiful than the previous one.  The Cathedral itself is much older, originally built in 898, with the current structure started in 1075 after the moors destroyed the original. The Cathedral has grown continuously since then as pilgrims, including kings, popes, lords and commoners add to its riches.  Indeed, at this point it is a little gaudy.

Barcelona

The ceiling arch dome of the Cathedral of Familia Sagrada (designed, and originally built by Gaudi) shows the organic structural detail that Gaudi put into everything he did.  In this case the normal cylindrical pillars (above) that hold up the roof are designed as trees which naturally carry a lot of weight.  The result is a light-weight, bright and airy building that is a pleasure to be in.  The photo below is all natural light.

Almost playfully Gaudi put this puzzle on the outer wall of the cathedral.