Winter Is Coming

31-Oct-23

We were lucky to book a kayak trip in Costa Brava (north of Barcelona) on the last day of the season (before it gets any colder & storms become more frequent). The weather deities were certainly on our side, as we had sunny skies up until the very end & even though the water was FREEZING, we got to see 3 octopus while snorkeling!

Playa de Sant Pol

Walking along the Cami de Ronda de S'Agaró

Seeing as how it was Halloween & all, we decided to book a haunted ghost tour of Barcelona's Gothic Quarter - the oldest part of the city. While not scary at all & really just the grim historic tales of murder & torture against whatever religious/political group was in the minority at the time, the Barri Gòtic's towering stone buildings lent the stories an air of sad, morbid beauty walking around at night.

Plaça del Rei - while initially used as a residential complex for the counts of Barcelona and kings of Aragon (Palacio Real Mayor), the square was supposedly used to hold public executions during the Spanish Inquisition

A horrified gargoyle screams as it looks down on the murderous square

Symbol of the Inquisition on the side of Palacio Real Mayor - the cross on top is surrounded by a sword (right) to represent justice & an olive branch (left) to represent clemency...the latter meaning convert or else.

"Supposedly", King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella watched the executions from this supper balcony 

Plaça de Sant Lu - After Jewish residents were expelled from the city by the Catholic Kings in 1492, gravestones from Jewish cemeteries were used to build the Palau del Lloctinent (more for cheap materials than for spite)

Hebrew lettering can still be seen carved into some of the stones

Barcelona's Gothic cathedral lit up at night

Plaça de Sant Felipe Neri - pockmarks in the walls of the church were made by bombs dropped by Franco in 1938 during the Spanish Civil War that killed 42 children & school teachers playing outside at time.

Catholics weren't the only ones to torture - the Romans had their fair share too. Going back even further into Spain's history, in 255 BCE, 13-year Eulalia refused to renounce her Christian faith and was tortured 13 different ways (1 for every year of her life) before she died. She has become a patron saint of Barcelona

State of Santa Eulalia at the corner of the street where one of her tortures took place

She was reportedly stuffed in a barrel filled with sharp objects and rolled down this street - and yet, she survived! At least until the she was finally crucified on two X-shaped wooden planks. Her name & "X" symbol can be seen all over town.

The Neogothic Pont del Bisbe was built in 1928 & legend has it the skull used in the decor is a real one. The bridge was not well received by the citizens of Barcelona & the architect was criticized for its design. Supposedly, filled with spite, the architect placed a curse on the bridge that if the dagger was removed from the skull, the entire city of Barcelona would fall - clearly his plan worked, as the bridge still stands.