Costa del Sol? - Pah! Head north and see the real Spain...

Nowadays the majority of Brits visiting Spain tend to head south to the sunny Spanish Riviera to enjoy the bright lights of Benidorm or Marbella, but the Costa del Sol concrete wonderland is a far cry from the real Spain. Even Barcelona is quite removed from native Spain due to its metropolitan and cosmopolitan culture. Yes, to discover the real Spain you have to trek northwards to the historical heartlands of the Reconquista.

The history of the Reconquista is too detailed to extol in such a short post, in-fact its narrative is so lengthy and convoluted that one could spend a lifetime studying it, so I won’t digress, but essentially the European Christian culture now associated with modern Spain is a direct result of that era. The unification of Spain took hundreds of years; one of the major developments throughout that process was the eventual reunification of the kingdoms of Castille and Leon in 1230.

The kingdom of Leon was created in 910AD after the area was repopulated by King Alfonso III. The city soon expanded under the royal patronage of King Alfonso V, becoming a major hub for traders and travellers around Europe. In the 12th century the Kingdom of Leon was officially established and the city became the capital of a thriving and prosperous region.

Today Leon is the largest municipality in the region, with nearly a quarter of provinces population living within the city limits. Positioned near the Cantabrian Mountains, Leon enjoys a hot yet temperate climate. During the summer period days regularly hit a steady average of 20 - 27°C, the temperature is often cooler around Leon due to the proximity of the mountains.

Getting to Leon is relatively easy, the city has an airport which is currently being revamped, but is still at present operational. Others may choose to fly into Santander or Madrid and then pick up a hire car in Spain and drive to Leon – one short note, Santander is on the other side of the Cantabrian Mountains which makes getting to Leon a slightly more arduous task and will certainly add to travel times.

Once in Leon there is plenty to see and do. The city contains numerous works of art and architecture, one of the most dramatic sights is the Santa María de León Cathedral, otherwise known as the house of light. The cathedral was built in a wonderfully graceful Gothic style during the 13th – 16th centuries; the cathedral itself contains over 1,500 works of sacred art including many Romanesque sculptures.

LeonCathedral

Another must for history buffs is the Basilica of San Isidoro, once a Roman temple and converted in the 10th Century to a Benedictine monastery. The Basilica later became a mausoleum for the Kings of Leon known as the Royal Pantheon. Fantastically preserved, the Royal Pantheon contains 11 Kings and relatives in a columned vault containing some of the greatest works of Romanesque and Visigoth art in the whole of Europe. There is also a museum on site which holds a number of rare and unique medieval works including the Caliz de Dona Urraca – a chalice once owned by Infanta Urraca, daughter of Ferdinand I the Great.

Basilica of san isidoro

As well as having a whole host of historical monuments, Leon is also the capital for the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Castilla y León, a museum of modern and contemporary art. The gallery was described in the New York Times as "one of the most astonishingly bold museums to hit the Spanish cultural landscape in years." The building itself was designed in an avant-garde style with a large wall of multicoloured panels resembling a stained-glass window.

The city also contains numerous parks, squares, restaurants, cafes and nightclubs as you would expect from a large and vibrant cosmopolitan Spanish city.

Castilel leon

Comments

Gorgeous!

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