Page 242 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Spain

240  EASTERN SP AIN

vaulted triple nave. The well-
preserved clois ters sprout
exuberantly decorated beasts,
heads of human beings and
foliage in the Gothic style (see
p28). The plain, dignified
chambers make a suitable venue
for art exhibitions in the summer.
Environs
In the hills to the west the small
Parque Natural de Moncayo
rises to a height of 2,315 m
(7,600 ft). Streams race through
Houses with frescoed façades on the Plaza de España, Graus the woodland of this nature
reserve, abound with birdlife.
r Graus style, can be found amid the A tor tuous potholed road leads
maze of narrow hilly streets. More to a chapel at 1,600 m (5,250 ft).
Huesca. * 3,400. @ n Plaza Mayor unusual perhaps are the former
15, 974 54 08 74. ( Mon. _ San
Antonio (19 Jan), Santa Agneda bullring, now a circular plaza u Zaragoza
(5 Feb), San Miguel (29 Sep–1 Oct). enclosed by houses, and the
∑ turismograus.com splendid Renaissance town Zaragoza. * 666,000. k £ @
hall (ayuntamiento). The town n Plaza del Pilar, 976 20 12 00. (
In the heart of Graus’s old town hall, built of golden stone, has Wed & Sun. _ San Valero (29 Jan),
is the unusual Plaza de España, a façade carved with mythical Cincomarzada (5 Mar), San Jorge
sur rounded by stone arcades giants and a frieze showing (23 Apr), Virgen del Pilar (12 Oct).
and columns. It has brightly Carlos V’s homage to Tarazona. ∑ turismodezaragoza.es/ciudad/
frescoed half-timbered houses turismo
and a 16th-century city hall. The
home of the infamous Tomás de y Monasterio de A Celtiberian settlement called
Torquemada (see p60) is in the Veruela Salduba existed on the site of
narrow streets of the old quarter. the present city; but it is from
At fiesta time, Graus is a good Vera de Moncayo, Zaragoza. Tel 976 the Roman settlement of
spot to see Aragonese dancing. 64 90 25. @ Vera de Moncayo. Cesaraugusta that Zaragoza
Open Wed–Mon. & 8 by appt. takes its name. Its location on
Environs 7 ∑ turismodeborja.com the fertile banks of the Río Ebro
About 20 km (12 miles) north- ensured its ascendancy, now
east, the hill village of Roda de This Cistercian re treat, set in Spain’s fifth-largest city and
Isábena is the smallest village the green Huecha Valley near the the capital of Aragón.
in Spain to boast a cathedral. Sierra de Moncayo, is one of the Damaged during the War of
Dating from 1067, this striking greatest monasteries in Aragón. Independence (see p66), the city
building has a 12th-century Founded in the 12th century by was largely re built, but the old
cloister off which is a chapel French monks, the huge abbey centre retains some interesting
with 13th-century frescoes. church has a mix ture of Roman- buildings. Most of the main
North of the village is the esque and Gothic features. Worn sights are grouped around Plaza
picturesque Isábena valley. green and blue Aragonese tiles del Pilar. The most impressive of
line the floor of its handsomely them is the Basílica de Nuestra
t Tarazona
Zaragoza. * 10,700. @ n Plaza
San Francisco 1, 976 64 00 74.
( every other Thu. _ San Atilano
(27 Aug–1 Sep). ∑ tarazona.es
Mudéjar towers stand high above
the earth-coloured, mottled
pantiles of this ancient bishopric.
On the outskirts of the Old Town
is the cathedral, all turreted finials
and pierced brickwork with
Moorish clois ter tracery and
Gothic tombs. In the upper town
on the other side of the river,
more churches, in typical Mudéjar Entrance and tower of the Monasterio de Veruela
For hotels and restaurants in this region see p567 and pp590–91

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