Travel theme: Enlightened

8 oktober, 20168 oktober, 2016 / Leya / 14 kommentarer

Ailsa throws in a helping hand for us all who are both low and high these days. The world is so troubled and it is impossible not to get depressed by the news received every day. Let us all try to muster some hope, some enlightened thoughts and deeds – we need Peace, Love and Compassion on Earth.

In the header, two old gentlemen walking in Segovia.

Love – my son and his dog

Love – my two children

Love – parent and child

Love – drawing by my daughter of two of her friends

Love – still hiking together

Thursday Thoughts – The Fairy – Castle

29 september, 201629 september, 2016 / Leya / 20 kommentarer

We were driving along the road from Bilbao to visit Gernika this day, when suddenly, out of nowhere, without any road sign – we saw the pinnacles above the dense forest. A castle. This castle is located in Gatika, in the province of Biscay, in northern Spain

We turned left off the road and decided to have a closer look at it – and after some twists and turns of narrow roads – we found it.

The castle has a fairy-tale look about it, and as we started walking around it, we realised that the place was abandoned and nobody lived there. Further down the road we found pictures of knights and horses, together with a closed down, dilapidated café. The premises had probably been used for games or jousting.

A look at Wikipedia tells us that the present building was created as a hobby for its then owner and to create something visually spectacular rather than to produce something for people to live in. ” In fact it would be quite inconvenient as a home as the towers have little useful space and various parts of the castle have exterior connections which are not particularly apt for the wet Basque weather.”

The building is surrounded by an overgrown park which includes palms and exotic plants. We thought the forlorn castle must be totally unknown, but in fact it seems this is not the case…As any other little girl, Kate Middleton’s dream once was to get married in this fairy tale castle. (Said in a BBC interview with David Ferald.)

Back in Bilbao again in the evening, we learned from our host that the castle is named Castillo de Butrón . (He even had a painting of Butrón on the wall.) It dates originally from the Middle Ages, although it owes its present appearance to an almost complete rebuilding, inspired by Bavarian castle models, begun by Francisco de Cubas (also known as Marqués de Cubas) in 1878.

The castle fell into disuse, was later renovated and opened again, but the building was finally closed to visitors although the grounds remained open.

In November 2005 the building was purchased by INBISA (Grupo Empresarial) for about 1,6 million euros, but it remains under the general protection of Spanish law in respect of historic buildings in Spain.

Ant Invasion and a Teenage Party

20 september, 201620 september, 2016 / Leya / 7 kommentarer

At least once a year we visit Wanås, the park and the new installations. A must!

Rafael Gómezbarro’s installation ”Casa tomada” wants to portray the stream of refugees in the world, where the climbing ants are symbols for the hard working migrant. The installation comes from Bogota´and the house of parliament there.

Nathalie Djurberg and Hans Berg are the artists behind the installation ”In dreams”. You can hear the sound coming through the forest before you find it. Want to party?

The artists compares this to Alice in Wonderland…

…and I cannot but agree

you meet creepy beings…

…and feel dizzy, like in a dream…

Want to know a bit more about Wanås and the exhibition? Click here.

Film Review -”Looking For Infinity: El Camino”

18 september, 201618 september, 2016 / Leya / 11 kommentarer

Review of Looking For Infinity: El Camino (2014) Director: Aaron C. Leaman

This is a philosophical documentary, runtime 58 minutes. The text on the DVD says: ”Looking for Infinity: El Camino is an immersive voyage along the ancient pilgrimage route El Camino De Santiago.”

The film is said to be “an emotionally driven chronicle of a group of people all at turning points in their lives.” Some quotes from the walkers: “You walk and you become a humble being”; “I need to get away to recharge my batteries”; “Simplicity is the key”; “Religion and vanity takes your energy away[…] When I am in nature I recharge my energy”; ”El Camino is the best place to find people that really care about others”.

The message of this introspective movie is that we need to slow down and reflect upon our lives – and if you are at a crossroads or at a turning point, walking El Camino might give you some good answers to your questions. Those who have walked it and lived it often say it is a metaphor of Life itself. “I’m not here to get to the Goal but to do every single step”.

The film technique involves using the camera at walking pace to show the landscape passing by and the empty streets mixed with close-ups on people while someone is speaking – mostly not the person in focus. The sound is soft and natural for the most part: Walking on gravel, running water, birds singing, a piano and some slow drumming, a faint opera voice – or simply – silence.

The variety of people and reasons for walking are enough to show what this is all about. But, I believe the movie would have won some extra points by having a more equal combination of male and female thoughts and speakers. Both voices need to be heard.

The conclusion is simple – this is an important movie and a movie for everybody in our modern, stressed out society. Its slow pace might make it easier for you to get in contact with your inner self. In today’s society we need to question our living – planet Earth is running out of her resources and our young (in the western society at least) are increasingly troubled by mental illnesses. There is a connection and we know it.

Looking For Infinity: El Camino, is a very philosophic piece of art, and beautifully directed. I think it appeals both to those who have walked the Camino and to those who are considering doing it – as well as to those who never have thought of it before.

The movie gives you many thoughtful comments and reasons for walking, and they will stay in your mind for long. They might even inspire you to take a break from your busy life and enter on a great learning experience – El Camino.

Links to website for more about the movie, and for DVD: www.caminomovie.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/lookingforinfinity

For my own articles on El Camino, at Leya, click here:

El Camino

Buen Camino

Santiago de Compostela

Burgos – the Cathedral of Cathedrals

17 september, 201618 september, 2016 / Leya / 17 kommentarer

Burgos (founded in the year 884) in Castilla y Léon is strategically set on the main road Madrid – France and also on the road to Santiago. The city has always had a prominent position in Spain.

We entered the old city through Arco de Santa Maria.

The Cathedral of Saint Mary of Burgos is dedicated to the Virgin Mary. Its construction began in 1221, and the style of the cathedral is the Gothic, although it has, in its interior, several decorative Renaissance and Baroque elements. The construction and renovations were made with limestone.

The design of the main facade is related to the purest French Gothic style of the great cathedrals of Paris and Reims, while the interior elevation as a reference to Bourges Cathedral.

The characteristic pinnacles with crab ornaments can be seen in the header.

El Cid (Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, born 1043) was a charismatic, brave and courageous warrior who conquered the Mores and took Valencia for the Christians (and ruled the city until his death). He earned his name, El Cid, from Arabian Sidi (Lord) because of his great courage, but was made immortal by the poem El Cantar de Mío Cid (1180). His (and his wife´s) grave is just beneath the magnificent star dome. A dream place to be buried…

In the cathedral are preserved works of extraordinary artists, and the numerous architectural, sculptural and pictorial treasures inside include:

The Chapel del Constable, of Isabelline Gothic style, which worked the Colonia family, Diego de Siloé and Felipe Bigarny

The Spanish-Flemish Gothic altarpiece by Gil de Siloé for the Chapel of Saint Anne

The Sacristy in Baroque style

Under restoration

Lace…?

Serene vaults to rest under

15th century art work – now being restored

Mild colours …

…create harmony

The Cathedral could have been built yesterday…or restored the day before…that magnificent is its beauty. Every detail exquisite – I have never seen anything like it. And, I have seen many Cathedrals and churches… We enjoyed these treasures for more than two hours, and we could have stayed longer…

The Renaissance Golden staircase by Diego de Siloé, covers a whole wall – and in my opinion, this is the most outstanding gem in the cathedral. In fact, it became so famous, that it served as a model for many other famous staircases. Among others, the one of the Paris Opera.

West facade

Door of the Sarmental

The cathedral was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO on October 31, 1984. It is the only Spanish cathedral that has this distinction independently, without being joined to the historic center of a city or in union with other buildings.

CFFC: Eyes

13 september, 2016 / Leya / 16 kommentarer

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Eyes

In the header – the bluest of eyes…

How sad can you be?

Or how angry? (This is a silk worm cocoon!)

Or how tricky? (Peacock eye is the Swedish name: Påfågelöga)

SL-WEEK 2-01 : Selfie

11 september, 201611 september, 2016 / Leya / 25 kommentarer

You know I am no selfie fan…but , well, here it is. For Sylvain Landry.

The photo was taken at an outdoor exhibition in Denmark. It really is enough with only one me…I bet you are thinking the same…

Thursday Thoughts: Cool Indoors – Guggenheim, Bilbao

9 september, 20169 september, 2016 / Leya / 9 kommentarer

Unfortunately we were not allowed to take photos of the exhibitions – except the Andy Warhol one. The permanent collection ”A Matter of Time” by Richard Serra, I took photos there before realizing this – but I will have to keep them to myself on my computer…

This morning promised the same kind of heat as the day before, but we went early to catch some more photos from the surroundings as well.

A clash of new and old but very much of the new.

A walk up the steps and a

tour around the building once more

Almost 20 years ago this museum for modern and contemporary art was inaugurated, and I have wanted to visit ever since I read about it many years ago. Arkitect: Frank Gehry

The entrance hall is impressive. The exhibitions are just as many as you manage without getting exhausted. Not many great museums can boast that…Le Louvre or Prado or Reina Sofia for example, are not easy to visit properly in one single day.

When you walk out of the elevator and look down, you are even more impressed.

A totally unprecedented visit. If possible, just go there and enjoy!

Buen Camino!

6 september, 2016 / Leya / 21 kommentarer

”Buen Camino”, is the word following the pilgrims along their walk. I guess there is no real good word for this in either English or Swedish. Can you find one?

Astorga and its Cathedral is on the pilgrim road to Santiago

The golden altar piece by Gaspar Becerra is considered a masterpiece in Spanish renaissance style

The pilgrims pass many glorious cathedrals on the Camino, and Leon and Astorga are only two of them.

They also pass Rio Arga over Puente la Reina, built for the pilgrims in the 11th century.

In this little town I found my favourite pilgrim church, Iglesia del Crucifijo. This is almost a tiny chapel, very serene, rather dark and undecorated. But, here they have an unusual wooden crucifix in the shape of a Y, with a sad looking Christ with raised arms. The cross is said to be a gift from a German pilgrim in the 14th century.

Every pilgimage has its own story. I guess many Camino walkers are religious, but the majority of pilgrims I talked to were not – they walked for other reasons. One middle aged man had lost his wife, and he needed to collect his memories and get a closure. Another man, a young man, followed his girlfriend here. She had always dreamt of walking the Camino. Now they were both smitten.

The Camino is well signposted, just follow the shell, and the pilgrims themselves. Not all of the pilgrims want to tell their story, but some do. A young American IT-engineer told me he wanted to be ”grounded”, wanted to connect body and soul and Mother Earth. Our western society do not allow us to do so, unless we go looking for it ourselves.

The North route…

…and an early wanderer

This sign was among the more unusual ones

Along the road the crossings were well marked

Resting place

You can walk, bike or ride the Camino

The stories. Yes. A friend of mine has got a niece walking the Camino this summer. Her story tells of 19 years’ struggle to raise her autistic boy. This spring he finally graduated high school. Walking the Camino is for her a relief and a way of trying to find her old self again – after a great mission accomplished.

At Monasterio de Nuestra Señora bodega, there is a tap in the wall where pilgrims can have a glass of wine for free…This hot summer day I assure you it tasted just fine. And there are two taps – in the right one you get water. That tasted even better.

And when evening comes, hopefully there is a place for you to sleep and prepare for another strenous Camino day. Whatever your reasons to walk are – I am sure you are doing the right thing.

Buen Camino – see you in Santiago!

WPC: Mirror

2 september, 2016 / Leya / 24 kommentarer

Mirror, mirror on the wall…Which is the best representation of them all?

This is a challenge where I think most people have many options in their archives – interesting…which ones do we choose?

In the header is a Bilbao photo from opposite the Guggenheim museum. There is this house mirroring a bridge with a red car passing. The other three photos I guess you have seen before – if you are following my blog.

For more of mirrors, click here.