We had been told not to miss Montserrat, and now we know why. It is more than a church and monastery perched up in the mountains; it is an entire village perched up in the mountains. The complex includes the school for choir boys (many but not all live up here); the monastery itself, which is not open to the public; the library, which the monks rebuilt to more than 300,000 volumes after its destruction by Napoleon’s troops in 1814; the basilica, which contains the famous Black Madonna; a museum of art and artifacts; a separate audio-visual experience explaining the history of the place; two funicular rides, one up, opne down to the caves; one tram car and of course the obligatory shop and cafeteria.
Our tour left Placa Catalonia before sunrise, and our most attractive tour guide explained that we would arrive before the large groups so we could enjoy a more private experience. The ride up to Montserrat takes about an hour on the freeway, thankfully against the rush hour inbound traffic, which stretches on for miles after miles. For a city of only 1.5 million, Barcelona is the center of commerce second only to Madrid in Spain. You can’t appreciate that until you see the traffic pouring into the city on a workday morning.
Alekxina our guide was right about avoiding the crowds–ours was the first bus in the parking lot. The entire valley below was blanketed with thick clouds that she said would burn off by mid-morning.
The guided portion of our Montserrat tour was limited to a walking history of Montserrat and the basilica, leading to stairs up close and personal with the Black Madonna. By the way, the Madonna was originally white. Scientists have determined that a coating of either metal or wax gradually turned the face and hands of both Mary and the infant Jesus a deep brown, which reportedly has now been stabilized.
The sanctuary of the Virgin Mary dates back to 888, and the monastery itself was founded in 1025. The monks built a massive library and their own publishing house, so that over the centuries, Montserrat became known as a center of culture.
Events for the next near-millennium went along just fine more or less. However, the 19th century was not so kind, as Napoleon’s troops sacked the place and burned all the books in the library in 1814. By the end of the 19th century, the monks were able to reclaim Montserrat, but it was threatened with destruction again during the Spanish Civil War and was abandoned. The monks took it back again, and after World War II began to restore and revive Montserrat as a religious destination.
Interestingly, Montserrat is also the center of a major national park operated by the Catalonian government. Hiking trails and camp sites dot the terrain, and we could see cars parked obviously overnight as our bus approached the entrance to the monastery.
The guided part of the tour went only through the basilica and the Black Madonna, and we were left with about two hours on our own to explore until meeting back for a liqueur tasting in the shop. Determined to maximize our time, Lynn and I bolted for the first ride up the funicular San Joan.
The first ride was crowded, and we barely made it on the train. Lynn, who does not do well with heights, just refused to look until we reached the summit a few minutes later.
Five different hiking trails lead off from the funicular station, some for as little as 15-30 minutes, others as long as two hours up and two back. Our goals were more modest. We were interested in the views but intent on getting back down to the main level for the museum and a snack before the liqueur tasting.
We fairly raced through the museum to see the major paintings by Caraveggio, Renoir, Degas, Monet and other luminaries. It’s a small museum, and the art collection is organized chronologically, so we were able to get through the high points and stay on pace. We were on a schedule. Liqueur tastings are not to be missed.
By the time we finished our stay in Montserrat, the big tour groups had pulled in. Our guide explained that the off-season had just started the day before. Their big seasons are September-October and May-July. Since we were part of a group of nine, we were most thankful for our lucky timing. Still, the bus parking lot was full, and the crowds of tours filled the courtyard in front of the basilica. We got in and out in the nick of time. The selfie sticks were out in force.