What's to see in Spain beyond Barcelona?

the Spanish countryside and me

Emerald lakes

Siefko on fields blanketed with spring blooms

Spanish countryside

Emerald waters cutting through sandstone mountains

Medieval town

a break from our drive way up the mountains

Mountain scenery

vineyard

countryside scenery

red poppies

countryside scenery

Pyrenees

a reminder to be on the lookout for the brown bear

Pyrenees

Pyrenees

Pyrenees

Pyrenees

Pyrenees

Pyrenees

Pyrenees

Medieval arch bridge

Medieval arch bridge

Besalu

Besalu

Besalu


Balaguer

Balaguer

At the grounds of Parador Tortosa

Beyond Barcelona, there's more of Spain to see. While I do love the hustle and bustle of a very cosmopolitan city, escaping to the peace and quiet of the countryside is also a welcome relief. On a trip to Spain in the spring of 2002, we decided to see more of Catalonia, headed for the Pyrenees and saw the Principality of Andorra on the side.

Flying to Barcelona via EasyJet, we leased a car from EasyJet at a very attractive deal which consisted of a big free mileage and very low daily rate plus a competitive rate per kilometer on the extra distance on top of the free mileage.

The nice thing about this trip was that we were able to combine arrangements for our stay with a night at the posh Parador Tortosa to staying at pension houses or small hotels in places where nightfall caught us up in our trip.

From Tortosa, we headed to Balaguer, a lovely town on the banks of the Segre River, a tributary of the Ebro River. The most prominent feature of this Catalan town was the church perched on the hilltop. This church illuminated on a cloudless night sky was a sight to behold.

Traveling through the Spanish countryside in spring was awesome. Sceneries that we passed by were simply spectacular -- rolling hills blanketed by spring blooms exploding in hues of reds, whites, yellows, and blues; gorges and mountains, emerald lakes and waterfalls. Oh, what a sight!

As we ascended the Pyrenees, the sights just became more and more astounding as the patches of snow provided additional charm.

The principality of Andorra did not appeal to me that much. Maybe its the influence of Spain in me... Nonetheless, it was nice to do the shopping here because it was tax-free for all luxury stuffs.

One place which I loved so much from our holiday was the town of Besalu which has the best well-preserved Romanesque architecture in the whole of Spain. Stepping into this town was like going back in time to the Middle Ages. Time stood still in this town as I walked through its cobbled streets and admired its most famous feature, an 11th century fortified bridge which spans the Fluvia River.