My day in Montserrat, Spain

Traveling to the Monastery in Saint Mary's Square of Montserrat was GORGEOUS!



Nestled upon these amazing cliffs is a beautiful Monastery and Square--and the views are absolutely BREATHTAKING!











These next photos are of the walkway of the square--the actual square itself--and monastery within:











The facade of the Monastery:



And a little more up close and personal of that clock tower, window and facade:





View from within the square:



Statue on hillside of the carrying of the cross:




These next photos are some of the statues found inside the square:



















This is me--taking it all in, within St. Mary's Square:



We ate in this amazing restaurant that you can kinda see jutting out to the left of this next photo--where you could enjoy some amazing views from its vantage point:



These next photos are views taken from the walkway to and from the restaurant and along the square:







Now if you didn't happen to see enough walking around--you can always take a tram ride or a funicular. This is the station where you catch it:



One of the most famous things about Montserrat is the L’Escolania choir school which is located here in a monastery atop steep limestone cliffs. It is Europe's oldest boys choir and is comprised of boys singing soprano or alto--ranging in age from 9 to 14. (of course, when their voices begin to change--it's time to move on or join an adult choir!)

This is a photo of the dorms which house the boys:



Unfortunately the boys choir was not singing while I was there--but I did manage to find this 26 second Youtube video that gives you a little taste of what they sound like--along with the vastness and scope of the monastery here in Montserrat:



Another of the most famous things about Montserrat is the 'Black Madonna'



This statue of the Madonna and Child is known as La Moreneta. (which means the dark little one) The dark color of Our Lady of Montserrat is attributed to the innumerable candles and lamps that have burned day and night before her, but no one really knows for sure.



It was believed by some to have been carved in Jerusalem in the early days of the church--from the late 12th century. Legend has it that the Benedictine monks could not move the statue to construct their monastery, choosing to instead build around it. The statue's sanctuary is located at the rear of the chapel, where an altar of gold surrounds the icon, and is now a site of pilgrimage.









Now, for those of you who know me well--and realize that I have an entire CATEGORY of my blog dedicated to DINING and FOOD subjects--will find no surprise in the fact that I had to stop along the open markets along the way to take in the local folks fresh baked goods,nuts, fruits, cheeses and sauces:



I ended up purchasing one of these fig/nut creations to take back to my dear hubby:



And some goat cheese for him as well! (I must admit that dear daughter and I had our healthy share of the goat cheese too.) It was DELICIOUS!



Would it sound totally redundant and silly for me to say that I had an absolutely GREAT time? OK then. . . you didn't hear that from me. . .