Today we invite you to a virtual tour to Spain, to the mountain of Montserrat. This place in Catalonia is considered a real shrine, thousands of believers here yearly aspire. The mountain of Montserrat attracts lovers of ancient sights and simply connoisseurs of beautiful natural scenery. Let's find out what the popularity of this place is based on people with completely different interests.
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A bit of history
This mountain is located not far from Barcelona (50 kilometers), its highest part is called the peak of Saint Jerome and has a height of 1236 meters. But we are more interested in not the top of the mountain, but rather one of its massifs that is located at an altitude of 725 meters. It was here that in the tenth century a monastic monastery was founded, which was later called the monastery of Montserrat. Although, if you understand, this place is somewhat older, because there are references to it that date back to the 9th century, namely, 888 year. It is believed that even then the monks lived on this place. Its monastery acquired its final form only by the beginning of the 12th century. This place became famous thanks to inexplicable healings near the wooden statue of the Madonna, which, according to one of the attachments, was found by the clergy in one of the surrounding caves. Since then, the mountains of Montserrat and its monastery have been thirsty for healing from all over Spain, and later from around the world.
Interesting places in the vicinity
As you probably could already understand, the most precious relic of the monastery of Montserrat is the so-called "Black Madonna" - a wooden statue of the Mother of God of a height of a little less than a meter. In addition to the gift of healing, this statue can also be asked to fulfill its most cherished desires. To make the sacrament come true, you need to touch the ball that holds the Madonna in your hand. It is believed that this ball symbolizes our universe. This figure of a black poplar is in the very place where it was found. It is believed that St. Luke carved it himself.
Certainly it is worth at least once to ride on the local cable car, because from its height is a magnificent view of the most beautiful mountainous terrain. And from its height, you can enjoy the most favorable view of famous sculptures, which are called "Madonna's Madonna." The total length of the way that you do, sitting in the booth, is 1350 meters, but since the lift is high-speed, you will spend as little as five minutes on the lift.
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The locality, where the monastery of Montserrat is located, is a real expanse for fans of rock climbing. For fans of this extreme sport, there are even several tracks of different levels of complexity.
The monastery of Montserrat sings, perhaps, the most famous in Spain, the boys' choir. The hymns begin at one o'clock in the afternoon, the beauty of the voices of young singers is simply mesmerizing, and the songs that sound here are surely familiar to you in any context.
Liqueur lovers can try for just one euro four different liquors that are made according to an old recipe. The taste, I must say, is simply stunning, but the drink is rather drunk, because its strength is about 25 degrees.
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As the best way to get to the monastery of Montserrat, we will offer a flight to Barcelona, and from there to the mountain itself with the help of one of the sightseeing buses. At the height of the site, where the monastery of Montserrat is located, you can climb with a lift.
Do not forget that the surroundings of this mountain in themselves are very beautiful, so even just walking around here is a very fascinating occupation. Only be sure to take a camera with you on a trip, otherwise you will long regret that you could not capture the local beautiful landscapes!
Monasteries on the tops of the mountains are not only in Spain, famous for its famous Meteora and Greece .