Ronda - Lara museum

In the ancient town of Ronda is the very interesting Lara Museum. Situated in a former palace where some members of the Spanish royal family stayed when they visited Ronda. The museum is split into various rooms each with its own theme. Some of the themes being music, knives, bullfighting and the very spooky witchcraft collection, but the most sickening part of the museum is the torture chamber, on show here you'll find implements of torture used during the Spanish Inquisition.

Galicia, Sanxenxo

The most exclusive area of Galica is the resort of Sanxenxo. It's said that property prices here are among the most expensive in Spain and quite possibly in Europe.

The most busiest time of the year for this resort is between July and August, when many of the local Spanish who live and work out of town take their annual holidays and come to their holiday homes here in Sanxenxo. During this time is when the waters of the Atlantic are at their warmest and the southern facing beach which seems to go on forever also make it a very popular tourist resort.

Galicia - Santiago de Compostela

Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the north eastern province of Galicia. With an unspoilt coastline of more 200 kms, Galicia has a much steadier pace than the more popular holiday spots in the southern and eastern regions of Spain. Its history can be traced back to the 9th century.
The famous Cathedral here is a destination of thousands of pilgrims throughout the year, who come to visit the shrine of Saint James.
Also in the town is what is claimed to be the worlds oldest hotel - Hostal Tres Reyes Catolics.
For more information and a virtual tour of the cathedral visit the website HERE.

Thanks to Karl for the excellent photos!

Colourful Carnivals.

Every town in Spain throughout the year has a carnival time. This event is usually the most coloutful and most visited event of the towns calendar. The locals start to plan and prepare the for the next carnival as soon as the last one ends.

These photos are from the 2006 carnival in Lloret de Mar, which takes place every February.
 

Costa Brava - Tossa de Mar

Views from Tossa de Mar. Just a 20 minute bus journey up the road from the very lively resort of Lloret de Mar on the Costa Brava is a totally different resort. This small town is very quiet with hardly any disco's or nightclubs. Although there are quite a few bars, entertainment is usually found in the hotels, and not on the streets! Which makes quite a change these days, with the bad press which some European resorts are getting this year.

Tossa has been able to keep its 'small town charm'...and with the shopping area at the back of the resort and weekly market- held on Thursdays, long beach and historic castle it is still a good choice for a family holiday.

 

Spain - Bullfighting

This bullring is the oldest one in Spain, and can be found in Ronda in the province of Andalucia. Housed beneath the seating area is museum where you can see all things related to bull fighting such as these colourful costumes as seen in the photo below.

Barcelona - Chinese Restaurant

One of the most unusual buildings on La Rambla in Barcelona is the Chinese restaurant. This building can be found near the bottom of the road on the right.

Costa Brava - Santa Cristina

Santa Cristina lies just a few kilometers down the coast from Lloret de Mar. Here we have photos of the picturesque beach and small church which dates back to the 18th century.

Every year in July is the week long festival to celebrate the patron saint of the same name - Santa Cristina. The finale to this festival is the massive fireworks display which takes place on the main beach in Lloret de Mar. Photos of this can be seen in the previous post.

 

Fireworks Display in Lloret de Mar

Last night the annual fireworks display in Lloret was bigger and better than usual, here we have a few shots...but they just don't do it justice at all !

The show started at 10pm and lasted for 20 minutes. Thousands of people had come into town to watch this fantastic show which had everyone applauding at the end !

Lloret de Mar - Santa Clotilde

Photos taken at Santa Clotide Gardens in Lloret de Mar.

These immaculate gardens are a very popular attraction with many visitors to Loret. With an entrance fee of only about €4, here you can wonder round these very peaceful gardens, where the only thing you can hear is the birds and the sea below the cliffs. You also have fantastic views of the rugged coast line from the cliff tops.