Exploring history in London & abroad with my camera
There are several parks in Lugo as well as gardens and green spaces but I only spent three days in the town and so time for exploring was very limited. Nevertheless I managed to visit a few parks in Lugo. The Park of Rosalia Castro The Park of Rosalia Castro is outside the Roman walls,…
The Roman walls of Lugo date from the 4C and have seventy one towers and ten gates, and are c.2kms in circumference. Lugo is the only city in the world where the Roman walls are complete. We had been travelling in Northern Spain and had seen Roman walls in Leon, but we were particularly looking…
I particularly wanted to see the Church of St John in Portomarin and we decided to stop there on the journey from Monforte de Lemos to Lugo. Monforte is a wonderful stop for a few days, but it was time to move on - to Lugo. Monforte de Lemos in the early morning The road…
San Estevo de Ribas de Sil is spectacular! The Monastery which was first established before the 10C and stands isolated on a steep hillside above the River Sil. It is the area known as the Ribeira Sacra, a countryside of steep river gorges and numerous Romanesque Churches and Monasteries and quite close to Monforte de…
Monforte de Lemos l Maps provided by the Tourist Office are 'pretty' rather than exact. This meant it was quite difficult to find the Romanesque churches we wanted to visit. The general road maps were also not as good as the ordnance survey maps in the UK or France. And secondly the roads around the…
I am reluctant to leave Léon, which is probably obvious! I was sad to leave after staying there for a week, and I am equally sad to stop talking about it and leave the photographs alone! However, I need to move on so these are the last thoughts on lingering in Leon for a week,…
It had been a wonderful day visiting extraordinary monasteries in the countryside around Léon. As we were driving back I noticed a sign showing an historical site. In a spur of the moment decision I pulled off the road to find the ruined Monastery of San Pedro de Eslonza. Countryside around Leon Information board at…
The Monastery of San Miguel de Escalada is about 10 kms away from the Convent of Santa Maria la Real in Gradefes and it is another magical and surprising church in countryside which feels very remote. Countryside between Gradefes and San Miguel de Escalada History of the Monastery of San Miguel San Miguel de Escalada…
Le Tart Abbey in France was established in 1132 as the first Cistercian Convent for women, I believe. The first Cistercian Convent in Spain followed in 1151 in Tulebras. In 1168 Santa Maria la Real in Gradefes was founded and the first group of nuns arrived from Tulebras. The Convent, in the small village of…
The Monastery of Santa Maria de Sandoval was an interesting church outside Leon which had caught my attention. But we needed a car to visit the Monastery! The car had shown ominous messages as we drove to Leon. A very efficient garage sorted out the problem after four days and we had our wheels back!…
