Montserrat

We finally arrived at the Montserrat Station funicular stop and as I got off, my older lady companion bid me farewell and said she hoped I made it up the mountain. Hmmmm.

After lining up for a few seconds, we loaded the little cart and started the ascent. I have to admit it was a little scary. It was a very vertical rise and since it was a little windy, there was some swinging. There were also maybe more people than there should have been in the cart, like it should have been kept at the conductor and I. Just to be safe .

I finally let go on the middle bar though and enjoyed the view. As we climbed up, you could see the tiny towns below, and above and on the sides of the mountain, old chapels and crucifixes.



We finally arrived, (when I say finally, the ride was only 5 minutes. It just seems longer when there's a possibility that you'll fall and your body will be eaten by spanish goats), and it wasn't really what I expected. When I hear "mountain monastery", I visualize moss and stone, and old statues. Maybe some cobwebs and mystery. And a chapel in a cave with monks chanting and popping out behind trees.

But no. It was really...neat. Very orderly and clean. I assume the existing structures came up around the monastery as tourism became more prevalent. Though it's nice to have a cafeteria and a gift shop on hand, it kinda ruined the mood.

The views however, were amazing. And the grounds on the surrounding mountain were very lush and full of religious statues. I also ran into the old lady from the train who said she was glad I had made it up the mountain.

And the church was pretty cool, situated as it was inside a courtyard with a great stone entryway.



I decided to take the tram down for a change of pace. It was a nice ride snaking down the side of the mountain, through a small town with a very blue pool, to the train station. And from there, the ride back to Barcelona for my last evening in town.