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[6/23 Madrid -- Toledo -- Alarcón]  [6/24&25 Alarcón -- Valencia]  [6/26 Valencia -- Peñíscola]  [6/27&28 Peñíscola -- Barcelona]
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Map of Itinerary

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June 29 ...

• Montserrat
  Montserrat is a unique mountain in the world.  It is a place that is not only spectacular from a geological point of view, but because there is a Benedictine monastery with more than a thousand years of history.  The sanctuary of the Virgin Mary of Montserrat has its historical origins in the hermitage of Santa Maria in the year 888.  The monastery of Montserrat has gone through many historical events with growing, reform, destruction, and abandonment in the past.  Today, Montserrat has been modernized to continue attending to the needs to pilgrims one thousand years after it was originally founded.  
  At Montserrat, you might visit the sanctuary to learn its history and discover its artistic heritage and visit the basilica to venerate Our Lady of Montserrat (popularly known as La Moreneta "the Dark One", due to the dark colour of Her skin) and then have a look around the Museum, or take Funicular down to Santa Cova, or up to Sant Joan, or choose one of the many walks around the mountain and through the forest. 

After a long day at Montserrat (from 10AM to 4PM with "Tot Montserrat" tickets which offer combined admissions to the museum and exhibitions, unlimited Funicular rides, and self-service lunch featuring typical Catalan dishes at the restaurant on Montserrat), we started the 270km drive toward Zaragoza, the capital of Aragon.

• Aljaferia, Zaragoza
  The Aljafería Palace is a fortified medieval Islamic palace built during the second half of the 11th century in the Moorish taifa of Zaragoza of Al-Andalus.  The palace reflects the splendor attained by the kingdom of the taifa of Zaragoza at the height of its grandeur, and the structure holds unique importance in that it is the only conserved testimony of a large building of Spanish Islamic architecture of the era of the Taifas.  After the capture of Zaragoza in 1118 by Alfonso I of Aragon, the Aljaferia became the residence of the Christian kings of the Kingdom of Aragon and the Christianization of Aljafería began.
  We arrived at the Aljafería Palace at ~ 7PM (after circling a few times to find a parking space), and were asked to visit the upstair museum first because it would close soon.  When we went back down to the court yard, there was almost no one there, so I was able to take long exposure pictures without being disturbed by others.

• Plaza del Pilar, Zaragoza
  After checking in to the hotel, we walked to the Plaza del Pilar for dinner (it was quite normal to have dinner at 9PM in Spain...).

>> Next Destination           

[6/23 Madrid -- Toledo -- Alarcón]  [6/24&25 Alarcón -- Valencia]  [6/26 Valencia -- Peñíscola]  [6/27&28 Peñíscola -- Barcelona]
[6/29 Barcelona -- Zaragoza]  [6/30 Zaragoza -- Ordesa]  [7/1 Ordesa -- San Sebastián]  [7/2&3 San Sebastián -- Madrid]

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