This is yours truly with another episode of some news from Spain !!! Lots of things going on This is Spain, let me tell you my latest news chosen by yours truly, By the way CLXXV is old Roman numeral for 176, Therefore, here is my take on some news from Spain, part CLXXVI !!! Hope you enjoy this post as I.
Hidden among vineyards and stately streets in La Rioja lies a town that is home to one of the most unique monasteries in Spain, one inaugurated by Pope Adrian VI in the 16C. Its history is also marked by a mysterious legend involving Juana la Loca or Joanna the Mad. This place is Casalarreina, a town in La Rioja Alta located just a few kms from Haro, which houses the Monastery of Nuestra Señora de la Piedad, the only monastery in Spain to have been inaugurated by a pope. Its origins date back to the 16C, when Juan Fernández de Velasco, Bishop of Calahorra and La Calzada, obtained authorization from Pope Julius II in 1509 to build the convent. Construction began in 1514, but the event that truly distinguished this monument occurred in 1522, when Pope Adrian VI visited during his journey to Rome and presided over the monastery’s inauguration. Its primary attraction is the spectacular Plateresque-style portal, designed like an elaborate stone altarpiece and adorned with religious sculptures, botanical motifs, and intricate reliefs. The monastery blends the elegance of the late Gothic period with early Renaissance elements, while the interior features a striking two-story cloister, star-vaulted ceilings, and 16C Plateresque choir stalls. For those traveling by car, the town is conveniently served by the AP-68 highway/motorway, which provides quick connections to Bilbao, Burgos, Madrid, Logroño, Zaragoza, and Barcelona. Additionally, the N-124 highway runs through the area, and the N-232 is also nearby. These routes offer fast access to several other nearby towns of great tourist interest, such as Haro, Briones ,and San Vicente de la Sonsierra. Also the LR-111, which connects to Haro, Santo Domingo de la Calzada, and Ezcaray, and the N-120, which runs parallel to the Camino de Santiago. The official Casalarreina on the monastery : https://www.casalarreina.es/lugar-de-interes/monasterio-de-nuestra-senora-de-la-piedad/
The Castilla-La Mancha region hides one of the most striking geological landscapes in Spain. In the province of Guadalajara, a UNESCO-recognized geopark brings together impressive canyons, lagoons, waterfalls, and rock formations that offer a glimpse into millions of years of Earth’s history. This is the Molina-Alto Tajo Geopark, spans over 4,200 square kilometers approximately one-third of the province of Guadalajara encompasses more than 70 villages/towns. Over millennia, the Tagus river, with its characteristic emerald-green waters, has carved out deep canyons and gorges. Notable sites include the canyons of the Tagus and Gallo rivers, the Mesa Valley, the high plateaus of Maranchón and Aragoncillo, the Taravilla lagoon,Honda and La Salobreja lagoons, and waterfalls such as the Salto de Poveda and La Escaleruela. Also featured are the unique rock formations of Chequilla and Peñalén, which showcase the region’s extraordinary geological diversity. Within its boundaries lie the Alto Tajo Natural Park and the Sierra de Caldereros Natural Monument, along with various other protected areas. The Castilla La Mancha region tourist office on the Molina-Alto Tajo Geopark : https://www.turismocastillalamancha.es/es/naturaleza/monumentos-naturales/geoparque-de-la-comarca-de-molina-alto-tajo
At no, 96 Calle de Alcalá formerly no, 102, on the corner of Calle de Narváez and next to Plaza Felipe II, stands the building where Federico García Lorca lived until July 1936. Many memorials this year marking the 90 anniversary of his assassination, See my post about him in my blog,
The Museo Sorolla Museum has expanded into a former car workshop in the heart of the Chamberí neighborhood, at 68 Calle Zurbano. Designed as a continuation of the historic property, this expansion provides the museum with temporary exhibition halls and an auditorium, as well as additional areas and facilities for the handling, storage, and management of its collections. The result is a complex comprising two buildings, one dating from the early 20C and the other from the early 21C, that together form the present-day Sorolla Museum.(see post)
Tracing the path of Goya: from Fuendetodos to Madrid, via Zaragoza. We find ourselves in the Campo de Belchite ,province of Zaragoza, in the very same humble house built of adobe, wood, and stone, with tiny bedrooms where Goya was born on March 30, 1746. It was from here that he would have traveled back and forth to the Church of the Assumption in Plaza de las Reliquias, where the genius painted one of his earliest works on wooden doors. Nearby lies the Engraving Museum at 3 Calle Zuloaga, established following an auction of works by various painters, organized to bring prints by the Aragonese master to his hometown. Goya’s printed work engravings he initially began as a pastime to master the techniques of Velázquez is now regarded as a kind of intimate diary. In Zaragoza, 50 km from Fuendetodos, one is struck by the vastness of the blue sky which turns pink at sunset arching over the Goya Museum, which reopens this past Friday, October 9 2026. A few meters away, in the Basilica of the Pilar,(see post) the master’s personality is strikingly evident in every brushstroke of his two great frescoes works that also reveal a contrast between two distinct periods of his life. In 1772, having just returned from his apprenticeship in Italy, he created *The Adoration of the Name of God*. Nine years later, he painted *Regina Martyrum* in a style characterized by brushwork intended to be viewed from a distance, a technique not well understood at the time. Madrid itself serves as a museum dedicated to Goya to his life and work, his contradictions and his convictions. Key sites include (see posts) ,the Royal Tapestry Factory, where he once worked; the Basilica of San Francisco el Grande, featuring a dome painted by the master; the Royal Academy of San Fernando which he eventually directed, despite an initial rejection where more than ten of his works are housed; the Prado Museum; the Lázaro Galdiano Museum; and the Hermitage of San Antonio de la Florida. (see posts), Together, these locations allow the traveler to explore the shifting perspectives and evolution of Goya’s vision, and it is here, too, that the genius lies buried. Of the estate and house where he lived during his final period in Madrid are known as the Quinta del Sordo or Villa of the Deaf Man before departing for exile in Bordeaux in 1824, almost nothing remains, save for an inscription noting that it was here he created his *Black Paintings*. Having lived through war, endured illness, and retreated into the silence of deafness, Goya was a changed man. Following the *Trienio Liberal* (the three-year liberal period), Ferdinand VII imposed authoritarian rule, restored absolutism, and brought in French troops. Goya sought refuge in Bordeaux among intellectual friends. In 1827, a year before his death, he painted *The Milkmaid of Bordeaux*; the young woman, seated on a mule and carrying a jug of milk, appears beneath an immense sky tinged with the same shades of blue he knew in his childhood. Today, the painting can be seen at the Prado Museum.
A sanctuary for Hollywood stars on the Gran Vía, (see post) letters from Christopher Columbus at the Liria Palace, (see post) and a lost portrait of George Washington at the San Fernando Royal Academy of Fine Arts are all part of a tour through 12 locations in the city that commemorates the 250th anniversary of the independence of the United States. If there was one Madrid phone number that Frank Sinatra knew by heart, it was that of Museo Chicote, (see post) the legendary cocktail bar on the Gran Vía where Hollywood royalty drank during the 1950s. Among them was Ava Gardner; the singer of “My Way”, and her husband at the time would call in the early hours of the morning to find out where his famous wife was. A staff member at what Luis Buñuel dubbed the “Sistine Chapel of martinis” would pass the message along to the actress and, if necessary, help hide a lover. This establishment also housed the first American-style bar in Europe. Another record-breaking venue, Botín, the oldest restaurant in the world is also featured on the route; it was frequented by figures such as Charlton Heston, Jacqueline Kennedy, Woody Allen, and Bruce Springsteen. It also served as an inspiration for Ernest Hemingway, who mentioned it in his novel *The Sun Also Rises* , and always sat at the same table on the second floor. George Washington is another key figure featured in the 60,000 maps illustrated by artist Ana Rojo that will be distributed at hotels and tourist spots throughout the city, and which will also be available online. This is because the San Fernando Royal Academy of Fine Arts houses one of the few existing portraits of the first U.S. president located outside of his home country. The portrait was painted by the Italian artist Josef Perovani in 1796, commissioned by the Spanish ambassador in Philadelphia as a gift for Mariano Godoy, Secretary of State to King Charles IV. Washington also appears in an enamel miniature by the London-born artist William Russell Birch, a master of the technique which is on display at the Lázaro Galdiano Museum.(see post), Next, we head to the Liria Palace, (see post) built around the same time as the American Revolution. It houses an important collection of letters by Christopher Columbus, as well as various coats of arms granted to explorers and newly founded cities in the New World ; fundamental documents for understanding the history of the Americas and the cultural impact across continents. The collection also includes a previously unknown portrait of Philip III, attributed to Diego Velázquez, which had been lost for centuries until it was discovered by Nashville-based historian and philanthropist William B. Jordan, who donated it to the Prado Museum in 2016. Meanwhile, the Naval Museum (see post) holds the 1500 *Carta Universal* by Juan de la Cosa, the first world map to feature a depiction of the Americas. The Geominero Museum (IGME-CSIC) showcases remarkable fossils and minerals discovered on U.S. soil, including a replica of the skull of “Stan” the *Tyrannosaurus rex* from South Dakota, and beetle specimens preserved in tar from the Rancho La Brea site in California. We then move on to the Royal Botanical Garden, (see post), which is home to Carolina allspice, American persimmons, and orange trees associated with the Osage Nation of Oklahoma, among many other trees and plants native to the United States. We also visit one of the most intriguing sites on our route: the 19C *Beti Jai* frontón, a Basque pelota court. One of the oldest of its kind in Europe, the building served as a factory for Studebaker vehicles and a Harley-Davidson dealership after it ceased hosting Basque pelota matches in 1919. Our final stops are the Casa de la Moneda or Royal Mint (see post), which has released a commemorative series highlighting the Spanish contribution to American independence,and the International Institute, established in 1892 by Boston-born educator Alice Gordon Gulick, it was modeled after women’s colleges on the East Coast. Between 1944 and 1950, it also served as the site of the U.S. Embassy.
From Aranjuez to Chinchón by bike: two historic towns connected by pedal power on the first stage of the Gran Tour de Madrid. This is the opening leg of the CiclaMadrid “Gran Tour”, a 432 km circular route divided into 17 sections that allow cyclists to explore the four major regions of the Comunidad de Madrid region, that is Sierra Norte, Sierra de Guadarrama, Sierra Oeste, and the Las Vegas/Alcarria area. We depart from Aranjuez (see posts), along the right bank of the Tagus river, cycling until we reach a turnoff toward Villaconejos. Along this stretch, it is well worth visiting the striking charca rosa or pink pond known as Laguna Seca or Dry Lagoon, which remains waterless for most of the year. You can also visit the Melon Museum ;the only one of its kind in the world, and the Cueva del Fraile or Friar’s Cave, a 300-year-old cellar carved into a small hill; inside, there are nineteen alcoves where friars of the Discalced Carmelite Order once stored their large wine jars. Leaving Villaconejos, we take the path next to the Hermitage of Santa Ana to begin the ascent toward Chinchón.(see posts) A visit to its world-famous Plaza Mayor is a must; it is considered one of the most beautiful squares in the world and, in 2008, was named the “Fourth Wonder of the Community of Madrid.” After all, who could forget Cantinflas (famous Mexican actor/comedian) practicing his bullfighting passes there in the film Around the World in 80 Days, After the effort of cycling this first leg of the “Grand Tour”, and, while we’re at it, try to recall some of the many other films shot here. These include Orson Welles’s The Immortal Story, which through the magic of cinema transformed Chinchón into Macao; Circus World, which brought John Wayne and Rita Hayworth to a Plaza Mayor reimagined as the American West; and, more recently, Wes Anderson’s Asteroid City. It’s a cinematic conclusion to an engaging and leisurely bike ride between two of Madrid’s region historic towns. The official ClicaMadrid Gran Tour : https://cyclemadrid.com/fr/gran-tour-ciclamadrid/
There you go folks, another dandy tour of my dear Spain. It is time to enjoy my some news from Spain once again, Remember,Spain is everything under the Sun ! A very special post, always remember where it all begin, it is you ! Again, hope you enjoy the post on some news from Spain, part CLXXVI !!! as I.
And remember ,happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
