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Montseny Natural Park:
The Park is
an easily accessible mountainous area located to the
north-east of Barcelona, approximately an hour’s journey
from the city. It has been recognised as one of the most
valuable geographical areas in Spain for its landscape
qualities.
Santa Pau:
Located in a volcanic region, is an interesting
historical site built around a square castle, a
church and an arched square.This site was declared an
historical-artistic area in 1970. Built in the 13th and
14th centuries, the castle has square shaped floor,
gothic windows, a master tower and court of arms. The
church of Santa Maria is gothic and it has a single nave
with arches that still bear the shield of Oms and
Parapetusa-Oms, ancient lords of the barony. The arched
square, or cattle market, forms a sort of triangle with
the houses and porches which shelters the market that
was assigned to the town in 1297.
Castellfollit de la Roca:
An interesting small town to visit which has 1,000
inhabitants aproximately in an area of less than a
square kilometre, making it one of the smallest towns in
the region. Being bordered by the confluence of the
Fluvià and Toronell rivers, between which the town's
spectacular basalt cliff rises, it is a magnificent
natural viewpoint overlooking the valleys of the two
rivers. The church and the houses high on the edge of
the basalt precipice has become one of the most
photographed and painted images in Catalunya.
Sant Joan
de les Abadesses:
A beautiful villaged founded around a monastery.
At the beginning, the village people lived dispersed in
farm houses. As the inhabitants kept on increasing, it
was necessary to construct a village within city walls,
which is now known as the Old Town. The construction
took place on terrains known as "El Vinyal" due to the
fact that there were vineyards planted there. The Old
Town welcomed the medieval guilds, among the most
important ones the tanners and the dyers, at the Main
Square, a centre of commercial interchange and beautiful
buildings of which, even nowadays, reminiscences are
left in the shape of some Gothic window or some
monumental portal.
Castell de Montesquiu:
Standing
between the Osona and Ripollès districts on the
River Ter, is where we will find Montesquiu, a medieval
castle. First documented in 1285, and once a part of a
defensive triangle that includes the medieval castles of
Besora and Saderra, it today presides over a national
park perfectly suited for a quiet day away from the
hustle and bustle of the city.
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