Tourist information - Leon
The Pulchra Leonina, the "Sistine Chapel" of Spanish Romanesque architecture as well as the old Hospital de San Marcos are the key points of this former Roman encampment. During the period of time, Leon became the capital of the kingdom in the middle Ages, a historical enclave around the Pilgrim's Road to Santiago de Compostela as well as a city perfectly suitable for its inhabitants. The impressive natural landscape of this province will take us to the Picos de Europa National Park, the area of Las Médulas (a World Heritage Site) and also the winter resort of San Isidro. A cultural as well as leisure offer which is only surpassed by the quality and number of León's gastronomy.
What was the Roman Legio VII Gemina Pia Felix preserves an captivating Romanesque, Gothic along with Renaissance legacy, the result of its magnificence through the Middle Ages. The Plaza Mayor forms the centre of this city, crossed by the river Bernesga. Among this baroque collection of structures stands the City Hall, popularly famous as the "Balcony of the City", since from its galleries the nobles observed the town's activities taking place.
Next to the City Hall is the neighbourhood of San Martín, developed across the square and also the church of the same name. In this area, there are small palaces as well as large houses just like the Casa de las Carnicerías and the Palace of Count Luna. The institution which once supplied meat to the city is a 17th-century building which nowadays houses an exhibition hall. The palace has a 14th-century Gothic façade with Arab influences as well as a large dressed tower. Also worth a visit is the church of San Salvador de Palat Del Rey, dating from the 10th century and also the oldest around the city.
Dotted all around these streets are bars as well as restaurants where we could sample the very best of the region's gastronomy as well as which have made it worthy of the nickname El Húmedo. We can continue our route on to the Palace of los Guzmanes and also the Casa de los Botines. The main façade of the palace, site of the County Council, dates back to the 16th century and having prominently on the building are the lattice balconies and also the lateral façade. The Casa de los Botines, meanwhile, is the work of the architect Antonio Gaudí, who launched the modernist style around the city. León has more examples of this artistic trend within the square of Santo Domingo.
From here, we can enter the area surrounded by the Roman walls, with the city's two jewels located at either end: the Cathedral and Basilica of San Isidro. The “Pulcra Leonina”, the most striking Gothic temples in Spain, stands within the site of an old Roman baths and also a Romanesque church. Approaching it face on offers us, on its main front, a view of among the most significant series of Gothic sculptures, a richly-coloured rose window and two towers, curiously free-standing from the main façade. But perhaps what most captures the visitor's attention include the 1,800 square metres of stained-glass windows. Once inside, stopping by within the choir, the Romanesque tombs around the transept and also the chapels of the ambulatory are a must. A visit to the Cathedral Museum, one of the most complete of its kind, takes us to see the cloister as well as a plateresque stairway, along with major paintings and also sculptures.
One of the most significant sites within the whole of Europe is the Basilica de San Isidoro. Its thick walls jealously guard what is well-known as the "Sistine Chapel" of the Spanish Romenesque style. It is a series of frescoes from the 12th century which decorate the underground crypt of the Royal Pantheon and also which still preserve their original colour. We can find scenes from the Old as well as New Testament, floral motifs and also a calendar of agricultural tasks. Although the exceptional condition and also quality of the paintings mustn't distract us from viewing the architectural features. The sculptures on the main fronts are a true Bible in images. The museum is housed in its cloisters and also conserves an archive of codices, incunabula as well as a Visigothic Bible, among other works. Its prestigious collection of medieval art is enriched by the San Isidro Chest, the Ivory Chest or even the Chalice of Doña Urruca.
Walking across the city, you will discover churches of all ages and also styles. In San Marcelo there is a reredos created in part by Gregorio Fernández, the most significant sculptors of the Spanish baroque style. On the other hand, a church which recalls the splendour of the Pilgrim's Road to Santiago de Compostela as it passed through Léon is the Virgen Del Camino, a highly venerated figure within the city.
And also linked to the Pilgrim's Road to Santiago de Compostela, which has World Heritage status, is the Hostal de San Marcos. The earliest expressions of the Spanish plateresque style were a pilgrims' hospital and also shelter and the seat of the Order of Santiago. It currently houses the city's Parador, over the banks of the river Bernesga. An excellent place to stay within your time around the city and also to sit at a table well-stocked with the region's delicacies. Maragato stew, frog's legs, beef sweetbreads and mountain meats are just some of the suggestions. The vegetables, meat products along with fish can be washed down with Designation of Origin wines from El Bierzo. Rice pudding or perhaps Astorga mantecadas (made out of sugar, flour and egg) round off any gastronomic occasion.
The province of León offers us significant slices of the history, art as well as nature of the region. The river Esla will act as our guide to the villages and also historical sites which stand on its banks, like San Miguel de Escalada, a monastery at the Mozarab style from the 10th century. The northwestern end of León is dominated by the Picos de Europa National Park. Mountain villages just like Caín or even Posada de Valdeón appear in between the valleys, mountains and also forests of beech trees. The Cares gorge and also the narrow mountain pass of Los Beyos are the most breathtaking landscapes found deep within the Cantabrian mountain range. Within the central mountains of León, meanwhile, is the winter resort of San Isidro, a spot perforated by hundreds of caves, among which Valporquero stands out. Stalagmites, stalactites, lakes as well as waterfalls have formed in its galleries.
Astorga, a city of Roman origin, is the gateway to the region of Maragatería. Among its villages, we will see one, Castrillo de los Polvazares, which is a National Monument. The Pilgrim's Road to Santiago de Compostela crosses León through the region of El Bierzo, to be precise, through Villafranca del Bierzo, Cacabelos or Carracedo, whose monastery of Santa María is also a National Monument. Near here stand the clayey mountains which form Las Medulas, former Roman gold mines which have been declared a World Heritage Site. It only remains for us to travel to Ponferrada and also the Valle Del Silencio. One of the villages in the valley, Peñalba de Santiago, is a National Historic-Artistic Site. Among its slate and also quartzite houses stands the church of Santiago, a Mozarab temple from the 10th century
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