guadalupe – Mygeopark.com

Geopark place named the most beauty and good village of Spain

17/12/201719/04/2018Posted in NewsTagged Cáceres, extremadura, geopark, geoparque, guadalupe, pilgrimage, spain, villuercasLeave a comment

Guadalupe, in the heart of the Villuercas-Ibores-Jara geopark, has won the national contest “Luce tu Pueblo” being named “the most beauty and good village of Spain”. The second pilgrimage site of the country got the first place in an online polling organized by the chocolat chain Ferrero Rocher, rewarding Guadalupe an imposing Christmas illumination.

PLAZA GUADA — Installing the Christmas ilumination at the main square

KODAK Digital Still Camera — Interior of the Royal Monastery of Santa María de Guadalupe

The recognition comes after being announced this historic village of the Caceres province is going to become new member of the prestigious Association of the Most Beautiful Villages in Spain from 1 January 2018 on thanks its architectural beauty, cultural heritage, valuable traditions and natural enviroment.

BALCON GUADA — Popular Architecture. Traditional balcony. Light bulbs installed

The Royal Monastery of Santa María de Guadalupe is the crown jewel of the village. I have already wrote about it in “Guadalupe: an appealing Spanish pilgrimace place”. Tourists are not just astonish by the Monastery, but also the local gastronomy and the geopark Villuercas-Ibores-Jara. La Villuerca (1.600 meters high) and The Ark of Water are some of the must-see geosites just a few minutes driving or some hours hiking from Guadalupe.

Guadalupe: an appealing Spanish pilgrimage place

15/09/201719/04/2018Posted in Articles, SitesTagged extremadura, geopark, guadalupe, hiking, spain, villuercas-ibores-jara, virgin of guadalupeLeave a comment

It would be a deadly sin to be around the Villuercas-Ibores-Jara Geopark and not to visit Guadalupe. This holy village is the most important pilgrimage center of Spain, along with Santiago de Compostela in Galicia. Thousand of pilgrims get to its imposing Royal Monastery of Santa María de Guadalupe – especially on September and October- to venerate the image of the Virgen de Guadalupe.

My last visit to Guadalupe was on 8 September, day of Extremadura -the Spanish region where this village is located-. It is said that September 8th is “The Big Day” of this village due to the anual procession of the image of Santa María de Guadalupe throughout the basilica and the cloister of the Monastery of Guadalupe.

Apart from the Monastery, Guadalupe is an appealling touristic place where enjoying its picturesque streets, full of colourful plants, and its traditional food (based of pork products) with cheese and wine elaborated in the Geopark.

Finally, to complete the visit to Guadalupe, I recommend going up “La Villuerca”, the highest place of the Geopark (1.600 meters) or going for a hike to The ark of water, another geosite of wich I already wrote in this blog.

The Ark of Water, a journey back to the Middle Ages

21/04/201719/04/2018Posted in ArticlesTagged ark of water, extremadura, geopark, guadalupe, hiking, routes, spain, villuercas-ibores-jaraLeave a comment

The Ark of Water is an hydraulic construction dated from the 14Th Century. It is still operated with its original pieces and works to lead water to the Monastery of Guadalupe (Extremadura, Spain).

Although this instalation is not opened to visitors yet, the council of Guadalupe has already prepared a draft report that includes a touristic route inside the Ark. However, it is worth getting there due to the amazing landscapes that surround it. In fact, this place is one of the “geosites” in the Villuercas-Ibores-Jara Geopark.

This is my report on The Ark of Water for Canal Extremadura TV, the TV station of the Spanish region of Extremadura (subtitled):

PHOTO GALLERY:

LOCATION:

Drive along the EX 118 road until “Hermita del Humilladero” junction. Take the only rural road you come across. Drive carefully until getting to the next junction. Leave the car and keep on walking along a path for over ten minutes. The problem is that there are not any indication to locate the Ark of Water.