Barcelona to Girona, to Besalu, to Castellfollit de la Roca

`

\We were up and out at 8AM to explore the area behind the Cathedral. There were recommendations from Amy for breakfast. She was right.  The coffee was good, and opposite was Santa Clara who had brilliant pastries...

After we had eaten we wandered round the alleyways for half an hour before heading back to the apartment to pack for our next days adventure...

 Although we couldn't resist some last minute images of the Barcelona cathedral... A side door...

And the front. First thing int he morning is a good time to do photography in Barcelona, as the tourists haven't woken up yet!

We then picked up our rental car from the airport, and headed first to Girona.  I had been there before but wanted to show Steven and Nikki.  Parking was problematic, but we finally found an uncdercover place, then walked over the bridge into the Old Historic Town..

I loved girona last time, and loved it all over again this time.  LIttle alleyways with narrow staircases linking up strets as they climbed twoards the cathredral.

We were worried about how expensive the parking was going to be, so we limited ourselves for an hour in Girona. As it was the parking wasn't that expensive, but we did get stuck in the parking building while we worked out how to pay to exit!

We then drove to Besalu. A medieval town dating back to the 10th Century of Roman Origin. Still in remarkable preservation an really interesting to walk around...

I found a grave, which I'm assuming to be a Knights final resting point.  I couldn't find any information though.

This is part of the original wall that surrounded Besalu...

After wanding around Besalu for several hours, we then hopped in the car and drove to Castellfollit de la Roca where we are staying for one night.  This villave is up on basalt cliffs and is stunning. We bought a bottle of wine for 1.10 - a tempranillo, nd had it on the deck overlooking this view!

This is just around the corner from where we are staying, Ancient!

Tomorrow we're off to Rupit and then on to Zaragoza.

PS the 1.10 euro wine was not too bad considering the price!

An Evening in Girona, Spain

We organised a pick up at 9.00am from the gate of the Medina to the airport, so we got up reasonably early, packed, and asked the Riad manager for a cart for our luggage.  He didn't seem to get the urgency (we have a plane to catch), and insisted we sit down for breakfast.  We had some Moroccan pancakes, some french pastries, and two eggs cooked beautifully Tajine style.  Downed some fresh orange juice then we insisted we needed to leave!

The poor guy with the luggage cart works extremely hard, isn't that young, and seems to have a heart condition.  He had to push all our luggage uphill for 25 minutes, and in some places it was very steep.  Anne and I both helped him in the steep parts.  We paid him, tipped him, and gave him all the rest of our fruit.  I felt sorry for him as it was a hard job for an older guy.

He was also toothless except for his molars, and reminded me of the strange man who attached himself to the four of us in Meknes, who was also toothless.  This strange man kissed my hand when he found out I was from New Zealand, and pressed his molars into my hand.  It was the most bizarre feeling, and I couldn't wait to get back to the Riad to wash my hand!!

Anyway - we managed to get to the airport on time (just), although we had to push our way forward to the front of the queue in the security area.  We landed in Girona, Spain at about 4pm.  It was still very warm, about 25C and sunny.  As soon as we landed, I left Anne to collect the luggage, and I headed out of the airport to find the bathroom.  I wandered back to the arrivals area and waited for Anne to come out.  When she did I rushed up to her, hugged her and said Welcome to Spain as if I lived there.  It was mildly funny!

We plonked our bags at the hostel, and I immediately started feeling not so good.  By this time I was certain I had picked up a bug from Morocco.  However, nothing was going to hold me back, so it was straight out the door to explore...

Girona is really pretty...

The first historical people in the region were Iberians.  Girona is the ancient Gerunda, a city of the Ausetani.  Later the Romans built a citadel here which was given the name of Gerunda.  Visigoths ruled in Girona until it was conquered by the Moors, then Charlemagne reconquered it in 785 and made it one of the 14 original countships of Catalonia.  Wilfred the Hairy incorporated Girona to the countship of Barcelona in 878. The Moors were driven out in 1015.  Girona was declared to be a city in the 11th century, and the ancient countship became a duchy in 1351 when King Peter III of Aragon gave the title of Duke to his first-born son John.  The title is currently carried by Prince Felipe, Prince of Asturias, the first since the 16th century to do so.

The 12th century saw a flourishing of the Jewish community of Girona, with one of the most important Kabbalistic schools in Europe.  The Rabbi of Girona, Moshe ben Nahman Gerondi was appointed the Great Rabbi of Catalonia.  The history of the Jewish community of Girona ended in 1492 when the Catholic Kings expelled all the Jews from Catalonia.  Today, the Jewish ghetto or Call is one of the best preserved in Europe and is a major tourist attraction.

Anne and I wandered around the alleyways of the old Jewish Quarter...

Sunset from the top of the hill by the Catholic cathedral that dominates the area...

We were getting tired, and I was getting sicker.  Fortunately the people of Girona were lovely and nearly every shop or pub allowed me to use their bathroom!

We stopped though to have a Sangria (my first) and then went to a Tapas Bar to experience a wonderful spanish meal!

Walking home at night through the streets....

I proceeded to have a terrible night which saw me spending most of it in the bathroom of our hostel.  Kicking myself that we ate breakfast at all that morning as I'm sure it was from the food we ate in the Riad that morning!