Here are three more Galician paradors. (Why some regions of Spain are thick with paradors while they are few and far between in others ia a mystery to me.) El Ferrol is a pretty harbor town close to Cape Finistere, the westernmost part of Europe and across the bay from the major city of A Coruna. The parador, a newbuild, is constructed to resemble a Galician urban mansion, some of the rooms have the traditional glassed in balconies. The harbor views are pleasing. If one arrives from Santiago a problem arises because one has to drive through all of the town and there isn't even one of the usual parador sign posts. I was told that this was the result of an ongoing dispute between the regional and national governments.
Ribadeo, on the Asturian border, is another smallish harbor town. The parador, another newbuild, is situated to overlook the estuary of the river Eo and has an impressive view of the Cantabrian sea. There are numerous beaches nearby and in midsummer the water briefly gets warm enough to swim in. There is a nearby bird sanctuary and any number of of indentations of the coast (rios), many of which remain uninhabited and present a wild, primitive aspect that eerily recall the time when cavemen roamed these lands.
Vilalba is a small inland town. The old part of the parador, a massive stone tower, was originally the keep of a large castle. There are only eight guestrooms in it and they cost rather more than those in the new part, which is built to resemble a rich merchant's residence, but if you want to experience what sleeping in a medieval castle must have been like, treat yourself to one of these. The city of Lugo, which was the capital of Roman Galicia, is nearby. It has fine third century Roman walls, Roman baths, and a twelfth century Roman cathedral.
No comments:
Post a Comment