Category: Catalonia

Ruined Statuary

Today, for Leanne’s Monochrome Madness, Sarah of Travel with Me invites us to photograph ruins. I could so easily take you (yet again) to my favourite ruined abbeys: Fountains Abbey, Jervaulx, or Rievaulx. But Sarah herself has shown Fountains Abbey off in her post. I could take you to ruins all over this country and beyond. Instead, I thought that I’d show you not buildings, but their statues, often ruined by weather, by warfare, or quite simply the passage of time.

Best start in Rievaulx though, where carvings in its museum gave me the idea.

Off to North Eastern France, where the churches and cathedrals of Rheims, Laon and Tournus (to name but a few) have all mightily suffered from the weather eating into into the local limestone from which these were built.

And in Troyes, wooden buildings have taken a weather-beating too.

A church in Bamberg has suffered mightily from having been contructed from limestone.

But even more recent buildings have been ruined a bit. Come to Hartlepool with me.

Let’s finish off by disobeying the challenge completely, at Sant Julia church, in Argentona, Catalonia. Its gargoyles were so ruined they pulled them down. And replaced them. Like this.

By the time you read this we will be at least half way down England, in transit for eastern France – Alsace. So you won’t get prompt responses to any comments I’m afraid, as we shan’t finish travelling till Friday. But I will send a postcard before the weekend is out!

Benches near Beaches

I have chosen to stay in Premià this morning, perhaps because here it is grey and gloomy, even though warm enough. A beachside path leads all the way from Barcelona, through Badalona, Montgat, El Masnou, Premià and beyond – all the way to Mataró. Between the beach and the path is scattered a series of benches- wherever there’s a tree or two to offer welcome shade. Here are a few.

That’s Barcelona in the distance.

For Jude’s Bench Challenge.

A Morning in El Masnou

El Masnou is the nearest town to Premià de Mar, and somewhat nearer to Barcelona. Probably because of this, it has a slightly grander recent past. In the 19th century, wealthy families looked from Barcelona to its wide sandy beaches and the hilly countryside beyond, and commissioned Modernista architects to build them a residence away from the bustle of the Big City. Over in Premià they just got on with fishing and a spot of market gardening as usual.

One day last week, during my Spanish stay which was emphatically NOT a holiday, but Granny as housekeeper, au-pair and what’s the next job? I nevertheless awarded myself a day off, and walked the 6.5 km. there along the seaside path.

I wanted to track down a few neo-classical and modernista buildings, and I did. but they were hard to photograph, being – often – in narrow streets.

Click on the images to reveal the captions.

I wanted to track down street art. It’s often assertively political here, defending Catalan independence, the rights of the dispossessed, and celebrating female pioneers of the last couple of centuries.

Click on the images to read the captions (on some of them).

Then there are the charming details every town must have: the mosaic of St. George, Catalonia’s patron saint (and also of England; Aragon; Georgia; Lithuania; Palestine; Portugal; Bulgaria; Ukraine; Malta; Ethiopia; Russia; Bosnia; Kosovo & Serbia. To name but a few). The little cats painted at pavement level. The gaping mouth letter box (but how to get a letter in?). The door knockers.

Then there are the ordinary streets, with ordinary houses. Or not so ordinary houses.

And my favourite. The house with the matching car parked outside. In this image, they don’t seem quite to match. Trust me, they did.

I left the town, walking through its industrial quarter. Even industry seems pleasant enough when every street is lined with jacaranda trees in flower.

After that, it was a drink in the quiet square I showed ten days ago, and a walk home inland through the market gardening area. A morning well spent.

PS. The featured photo of the busy port wasn’t taken last week, but on a greyer day last spring. My walk was on a strictly bright blue sky day.

For Natalie’s Public Art Challenge.

And Jo’s Monday Walk.

Two Handy Benches Outside the Museum

Passing Premià de Mar’s Museum of Textile Printing the other day, this is what I saw. Two benches: three people. Three readers: two on their phones, one with a good old fashioned book. Only the young woman, I think, was waiting for the museum to open.

Maybe you’d prefer it in colour?

For Jude’s Bench Challenge.

Two Benches: One at Home, One Abroad

I am going to give up any pretence of regular blogging for a while. Maybe a scheduled post or so, maybe the odd Virtual Postcard. Daughter-in-Spain never asks for help, but for most of this week and next, she needs some. So I’m off to Catalonia. I’ll leave you with two benches. One 5 minutes walk away in our local Beatswell Woods: the other just down on the beach near Daughter’s house. Very different. But both have their charms.

Premià de Mar

For Jude’s Bench Challenge. And I think I know which one Jude will go for.

Geometry in Museu Blau

Our last day in Catalonia. Malcolm and I took ourselves off to the Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona, commonly known as the Museu Blau. It’s in a really new part of town, Diagonal Mar. As the name suggests, it’s a thoughly geometric sort of area. Look.

And many of the museum’s contents are pretty geometric too. These fossils for instance …

… or shells …

… or butterflies & moths …

… or arachnids.

It’s a pretty fine museum. In an interesting area. And not on the tourist circuit. Yet. Recommended.

GeometricJanuary