Montserrat Photos

The fog-covered mountain at the top of Montserrat.

The view of the mountains from the Place de la Creu, Square of the Cross.

The atrium at the entrance of the basilica.

The Square of the Cross

The fog lifting in the early afternoon.

Tarragona - Ancient Rome

I was disappointed not to be able to see Rome on this trip as I had planned, but the next best thing was the Roman ruins in Tarragona.  My first view was the double row arched aqueduct built in the first century AD.  The aqueduct carried water from the Francoli River to the city.

At the bottom of the stairs leading to the Pla de la Seu (Cathedral Square), a fountain is still functioning.  The fountains were once connected to the aqueducts and provided the much needed water to the citizens of the city.  Today, water can still be accessed for free to the public.

A closer look at the wall using "recycled" stones including grave markers.

The following two photos are what is left of the Roman Provincial Forum.  Built around 73 AD, it was the largest public forum in the Roman world.  It connected the government with the people of the province.  There was a smaller forum at a lower elevation for the business of the city.

Construction in the city often finds that there are ancient Roman structures beneath most buildings.  In their process of building a library several years ago, the seating area (below) of the circus was located.

The head of he circus was also unearthed.  The chariot races would turn at this point with important individuals seated along the upper levels.

The photo below shows an artist's rendering of what the circus would have looked like in the first century AD.

The last of the major Roman structures built in the city was the amphitheater (below) built in the 2nd century AD.  It had to be built outside of the city walls because there was no longer enough space with the increased population.  The amphitheater hosted gladiator fights as well as public executions.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, the Visigoths built a church in the center of the amphitheater.  The only part of the church left is the cross-shaped foundation located in the center of the amphitheater. 

Tarragona Cathedral

The Tarragona Cathedral was built at the highest point of the city over the foundation of the ancient Roman city.

The cathedral started as Romanesque design as can be seen on the sides of the entrance.  The thick, solid walls of the sides with the small windows were common for the style.  The later transition to the Gothic style can be seen with the large rose stained glass window in the center and the pointed arch with saints statues on either side of the entrance doors.

The Gothic style continued in the back and sides of he cathedral.

When first entering the cathedral, the high ceilings of domes and vaults provided a great deal of lighting that brightened the interior.

The interior view of the large Gothic-style rose stained glass window.

While I was visiting, I was able to hear a musician practicing on the very large organ located in the center of the nave.

Barcelona Cathedral

My first view of the cathedral behind the remain portion of the Roman city walls in the front of the photo.

From he front, it becomes clear that the cathedral was built very close to the Roman walls of the city.

The highest spire was finished with the front facade in 1882.  It was designed in the Neo-Gothic style that was popular at the time.  It appears delicate and allows light to pass through it.

The interior domes and vaults allow for the open space of the nave with the chapels along the sides.

This is the choir area that I mentioned where the sovereigns of Europe met in 1519 with the Order of the Golden Fleece presided over by King Charles I.

The closer look at the exterior facade of the cathedral.

A Night of Flamenco Videos

As promised, video from the Flamenco Dancing Performance that I attended on the first night in Barcelona.

Barcelona City Photos

The view of the city skyline from the ship.  In the center is the Christopher Columbus Monument and to the right is the Torre Agbar.

The next three photos are of the Arc of Triumph from the 1888 World's Exhibition.  Made of brick to celebrate the industrial successes of the region, the arch was the entrance to the exhibit pavilion.  The rest of the building was destroyed, but the arch now stands at the entrance of a park area that now has a view of the Mediterranean Sea and the Olympic Port.

At the entrance of Port Vell, this building was the customs house at the entrance to the main port of trade for centuries.  With the renovations to the city for the 1992 Olympic Games, the commercial port was extended farther from the city.  This port because the private port of the city and is filled with private leisure yachts.

On the other side of the street from the old customs house is the Christopher Columbus Monument.  It is now in the center of a traffic circle with Columbus on top of an atlas facing Port Vell and the Mediterranean Sea.  

At the base of the monument, are symbols that represent the king, queen, and regions within Spain that supported Columbus in his voyage of discovery.

The view of Barcelona from the balcony of the 1929 World's Fair Building.  The surrounding mountains can be seen in the background and to the right, the Basilica de la Sagrada Familia.  The tallest structure in the area is still under construction with the hope of being finished in time for the 100th anniversary of the death of its architect, Antoni Gaudi, in 2026.  It was started in 1882, but is still under construction and difficult to access by bus or car.  It is on the list of places to see the next time I get to Barcelona.

In the Olympic Port, there are hundreds of sailboats ready to go out to sea.  The port has the capacity to moor 740 sailboats!  Mixed with the restaurants and sailing schools, the port has a great deal of foot traffic and access to the beaches as well.

Bullfighting was banned in Barcelona in 2012.  That decision left an arena in the center of the city with no purpose.  There is limited land available for new construction and the city wanted to preserve the Moorish architecture of the area, so they renovated the space.  The building, first built in 1900, has become an avant-garde commercial center with shopping inside and restaurants at the top to provide views of the city.

Montserrat

I started the new year with an early morning excursion to Montserrat. The name means serrated mountain and it is located about an hour drive northwest of Barcelona.  It was so early and the temperatures are so different from the coastal area that there was quite a bit of fog surrounding the mountain. We drove up the mountain on winding roads in total fog until we neared the top and we could see clear skies.

There is a monastery located near the top that was first established in 888 AD after the Count of Barcelona donated the land for its construction.  The nearly 50 monks that currently live at Montserrat have rooms in the tower at the front right of the photo below.

The monastery has been enlarged and renovated over the years. Its largest when Napoleon's troops sacked and burned it in 1811 AD, destroying many of its records.  The basilica façade (below) was completed in 1901 AD and the buildings on either side were the rooms of the monks. When the number of monks declined, they moved to the tower.

The monks are part of the Benedictine Order.  Below is a statue of St. Benedict that stands just outside of the atrium entrance to the basilica.  I was not able to enter the basilica because they had just started mass when we arrived.

During the Middle Ages, the monks maintained a library of ancient texts from thee Greek and Roman periods. The monks would work daily to reproduce and preserve these ancient texts.  The buildings in the picture below are part of that spirit of preservation. While I was not able to visit the library today. 😢 I was able to visit the art museum that contained works from Picasso, Monet, Salvador Dali, Caravaggio, Dega, and Catalan artists such as Ramon Marti Alsina and Joaquim Vayreda.  It may seem strange to find such an exhibit of artists in a monastery, but the works were donated to the monks for the purpose of maintaining the monastery.  The museum was in the building below.

To take the photo above, I was standing in the middle of the Placa de La Creu (Square of the Cross).  The arched wall below marks the second side of the square and the entrance to the basilica finishes the square.  It was designed to separate the basilica from the outbuildings that provide services to visitors.  It also frames the view of the mountain visible in the second photo below.

Once the fog began to clear, the el Llothregat River can be seen in the valley between the mountains.

On the way back to Barcelona, we were able to get a good view of Montserrat.  The distinctive look of the mountain that provides its name is caused naturally in two ways. Water erosion and vertical fractures that allow water to form caves and potholes. There are many nicknames for different formations including needles, fingers, and sometimes they see animal and people shapes in the rocks!