Camino de Santiago
The Camino de Santiago is also known as the “Way of the Saint” and is a pilgrimage to the Cathedral in Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain, where pilgrims walk tracing the route of Saint James. It is believed by the devout that the remains of the apostle Saint James are buried at the Cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, and the event of participating in the Camino de Santiago is seen as a spiritual undertaking by many people throughout the world.
The Camino de Santiago was a popular pilgrimage throughout the Middle Ages and was considered to be one of the ways to earn a plenary indulgence. A plenary indulgence was a way for the pilgrim to earn a remission from the punishment of a sin after guilt has been forgiven. Each pilgrim on the walk could start at different locations, although the main route was considered to be the actual Camino de Santiago. In current times many thousands of pilgrims make the trip every year, some traveling by foot and others by bicycle, while still others make the trip either by horseback or donkey. (more…)
October 18, 2007
Costa del Sol
The Costa del Sol is best known for its beaches – and that should be no surprise to anyone. They are some of the best beaches in Europe, and enjoy a wonderful climate for almost the whole year. They also have very well developed infrastructures and safety systems in place, which means that everyone in the family can find something, and it’s safe even for small kids to enjoy the sand and water.
he Costa del Sol stretches for about 150 kilometers from Nerja in the east to Manilva in the west. Most of it is in the province of Malaga, which is blessed with over 300 days of sunshine per year and a year-round average temperature of 22º C.
But the Costa del Sol does, in fact, have much more to offer. First there are all kinds of sports, from the obvious water sports, to golf, tennis, and many more. And for the whole family, there are now a number of theme parks.
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Tags: andalusia, costa del sol, regions-of-spain
October 1, 2007
Regions of Spain
Spain is not only a large country, but a very diverse one. Its regions reflect that diversity very well, in many different aspects: from scenery to gastronomy, from traditions to climate and from culture to industry. Perhaps one of the most exciting features of a trip to Spain is the opportunity to experience for yourself the vast differences between the different regions of the country.
One of the first things most visitors notice about the differences between Spain’s regions is the landscape – after all this is the first thing they see. It varies from the desert landscape of parts of Almeria to the lush green of the north and northwest, in the Basque Country, Asturias and Galicia. But there are many other differences that, all together, have acted to forge the destiny of the different regions and to produce the Kingdom of Spain as it is formed today.