May 19 – 21

The next morning a somewhat complex, but in the end fairly easy day, of travel awaited us as we would fly to Barcelona International, take a taxi to the train station in town and then enjoy a 90-minute ride to Girona.  Our desire to visit Girona was inspired by a couple of factors, the first being is that it is well known place to stay and train for pro cyclists and the second is that in 2022, friends Cathy and Tony retired and were to spend three months in Europe, the first in Girona, the second in Provence and the last in Lucca, Italy. 

We were to join them in Lucca, and they pulled off Girona in fine fashion, moving on to Isle-sur-la-Sorgue in Provence where we stayed a few nights in 2017 (https://3jmann.com/2018/04/03/europe-2017-provence-part-five/).  Tragically, the night or so before Tony was set to climb Mount Ventoux, an iconic traverse famous in the Tour de France, he passed away from a heart attack.  To honor his memory, we sill traveled to Lucca and thoroughly enjoyed this fine city, keeping Tony in our thoughts while there. 

Our journey went smoothly and since our Airbnb, The Wall in the Old Quarter, was located in the old section of town we had to walk about fifteen minutes to get to it.  Our host, Javier met us at the bottom of the hill and directed us to the elevator that took us up to his unit, the building indeed being attached at one end to the city’s wall.  Our unit was on the small side, but entirely usable and we thoroughly enjoyed its location, particularly as a small SPAR market was just a block away. 

For dinner that night we walked over to Bartali Pizza and seated ordered drinks, for Joanna the Limoncello Spritz (Limoncello, prosecco, soda, lemon, and basil) while I enjoyed a glass of Multepulciano.  To start we each had a mushroom croquette and then a pizza, of course, the Cotto Funghi (ham and mushroom).  An interesting presentation for that pizza, but good nonetheless and the crust was worth the 33.50 Euros ($38) we paid for another nice meal in Spain. 

The next morning, we set out on a walking tour of town courtesy of the GPS My City app we mentioned in the Mallorca posts.  Instead of starting at its start, because our apartment was attached to the city wall, we simply headed up a set of stairs onto its walkway.  Girona sits in northeastern Catalonia, and long before tourist maps and cafe terraces, Iberian tribes pitched up here in the 6th century BC.  The Romans soon followed, stamping the place with the name Gerunda-“near the river”-a practical nod to the Onyar River, which still slices the city neatly into old and new.

We spent a bit of time getting up and down the wall but eventually found a route that allowed us to walk some distance, with great views all around, of the town and surrounding countryside.  We eventually came down to ground level at the back of the Girona Cathedral, the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Girona, which we entered and spent some quiet time reflecting on the trip so far, with just a few more days of travel to come. 

The cathedral’s interior includes the widest Gothic nave in the world, with a width of 75 feet.  Its construction was begun in the 11th century in the Romanesque architectural style and continued in the 13th century in the Gothic style.  Of the original Romanesque edifice, only the 12th-century bell tower and a cloister and remain, where we spent some admiring the columns there that depict fantastic figures and animals, and vegetable motifs.

By this time we’d blown through the morning with time spent in the cathedral and our wanderings in and on the wall and so, looking around for a bite to eat, we noticed a menu in the window of a restaurant, Bau Bar, offering three courses for 18 Euros and decided to give it a go.  Seated in the bright airy dining room, we got to choose from six starters and five main courses followed by dessert or coffee and with bread and water included. 

We ordered a glass of house wine apiece while Joanna chose Bean Salad I went with a mixed one and for entrees, Joanna selected the Sausage from Girona with Beans, and I had a hearty Roast Veal with Mushrooms stew.  While this was not gourmet chow, it was all nicely prepared, hearty, filling and a welcome break after many meals in restaurants.  We’d finish with dessert, a clotted cream and honey for Joanna and a churro with sherry for dipping for me. 

We left with a total tab of 42.20 Euros ($48) completely full and not needing to eat dinner that night.  Leaving the restaurant, we continued onto Carrer de la Barcca heading to a main shopping street.  On the way we noticed the Cul de la Lleona, a column with a lioness on top dating back to the 12th century and has long been a symbol for the city of Girona.  Local tradition holds that you had to climb the column to kiss the el cul de la lleona (“the lioness’s ass”) to become an accepted citizen—or at least to ensure you would return to Girona.  Needless to say, we didn’t do any ass kissing but if given the chance, we will return to Girona. 

Continuing we branched onto Carrer de la Argenteria where an opening in the houses that line the river (Riu Onyar) bought us to the Pont de les Peixateries Velles (Eiffel Bridge).  Like a bright red exclamation mark this bridge is Girona’s most photographed walkway.  Officially, it’s the Bridge of the Old Fishmongers-locals once hauled their catch nearby-but somewhere along the way, the fish lost out to fame.  Built in 1877 by Gustave Eiffel’s workshop, it’s the same engineer who would later bolt together a slightly taller project in Paris.  We’ll stop at the bridge for now and pick up our stay in Girona in the next post. 

Links

The Wall in the Old Quarter: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/2039849?source_impression_id=p3_1772055145_P3v2T_7sTaSyWHhd

Bartali Pizza: https://bartalipizza.com/

Girona Cathedral: https://catedraldegirona.cat/

Bau Bar: https://www.baubargirona.com/

Cul de la Lleona: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/lioness-girona

Peixateries Velles (Eiffel Bridge): https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/eiffel-bridge