Girona, day 2

In the morning, Jeanne and Caroline wanted to do some shopping, so Jon and Chuck went to see some of the city. Our first stop was the Jewish "call". The call is the area where the Jews lived pre 1492. There were thriving Jewish communities all over southern Europe in the medieval times. As Christianity ascended in power, they began to designate areas where the Jews could live. The were named "calls". In Girona, the population was several hundred in the 1400s. They were important parts of the community and contributed  intellectually and economically. The Christian establishment pressured them to convert, and forced their scholars into long debates that focused on the truth of Christianity or Judaism. Many Jews did convert, some undoubtedly just to avoid persecution. In 1492, the ruler of Spain at the time gave the Jews 3 months to either convert or leave. Many chose conversion, but many also left and undertook a difficult trip to areas in Europe where they could live. Some the Girona communities existed in other places until the 1900s. There is no active Jewish community in Girona today.


Our next stop was the Cathedral. We thought we had visited the cathedral the day before, but that turned out to just be a lovely church. The Cathedral is basically just up the hill from the church we visited--they are almost next door to each other. The lead picture is the step leading up to the Cathedral. When we went in the door that said "Visit the Cathedral", we were greeted with a ticket booth which was a bit of a surprise. Most Cathedrals and churches are free to visit. They might ask for a donation, but I don't remember being charged a fee. And, it was 5 Euros (about $7), pretty pricey. But, we paid, got our audio device, and started the tour. It soon became obvious why the $7 was well worth it. The Cathedral was full of amazing art. It i impossible to do justice with pictures that I took, but here are a couple.

We met the gals and had a nice lunch. Then, we headed off to walk the

ancient defensive wall which has been preserved in spots and rebuilt in other spots. You can see a few walkers on the wall in this picture. You get great views from the wall of the city of Girona and the surrounding countryside. I didn't realize how big Girona really was until I got up high and observed the city.

A better picture of the walkway.

Jon & Jeanne

on the wall.

The mountain in the background is a bit like Pikes Peak.


On the way back from the wall, there were many shops open. That meant that Jon and Chuck got to find places to get out of the way, and off our feet. I need to clarify a bit. We are having some fun kidding about the amount of shopping. In reality, there is lots of looking, and not all that much buying going on.


We had a very nice supper in a small restaurant and called it a day.

© Charles Eklund 2012