Tag Archives: La Coruna

12 June 2018:
La Coruna, Spain:
Seeking Enlightenment

By Corey Sandler, Destination Consultant Silversea Cruises

We have crossed the border from Portugal into Spain, and many Spaniards call this interesting, somewhat remote port La Coruña.

But we are also in the autonomous community of Galicia, and there the official name of the port is A Coruña.

If you want to venture into the obscure, the English called the place Corunna and you will see some reference to that name in history books.

And if you want to go from the obscure to the archaic, then let’s throw in The Groyne.

You can’t go wrong with any of the first three.

La Coruña is sometimes called “The Crystal City.” That nickname is derived from its many galerías, or glazed window balconies, said to have been adopted from the windowed stern of warships.

They help bring a lot of light into the homes here, in a place where the sun regularly seems to be absent. Here are some photos I took today in grey Galicia.

All photos by Corey Sandler 2018, all rights reserved.

SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA

About an hour away from La Coruña is the city of Santiago de Compostela, a handsome place that had its origin in the establishment of the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the city’s cathedral.

The shrine was the destination of the Way of St. James, a leading Catholic pilgrimage route begun in the 9th century.

According to legend, the remains of the apostle James were brought to Galicia for burial.

In 813, according to medieval legend, the light of a bright star guided a shepherd to the burial site. The shepherd quickly reported his discovery to the bishop, who declared that the remains were those of the apostle James and immediately notified King Alfonso II in Oviedo.

To honor St. James, the cathedral was built on the spot where his remains were said to have been found.

The story ties in with one possible explanation for the name Compostela, which would be from the Latin Campus Stellae, “field of the star.”

Modern scholars think the name may have a less lofty origin, from the Latin, composita tella, “burial ground.”

The Way of Saint James, the Camino de Santiago, has seen a resurgence in recent decades

And today tens of thousands of people make the pilgrimage each year.

You are supposed to start from your own doorstep, although many follow a path from the French border.

That trip is about 800 kilometers or 500 miles, and the trip usually requires about one month.

Some people make the pilgrimage in a single trip, while others perform portions of it stretched over several years.

All photos and text Copyright 2018 by Corey Sandler, all rights reserved.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PURCHASE AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF ONE OF MY BOOKS, PLEASE CONTACT ME.

SEE THE “How to Order a Photo or Autographed Book” TAB ON THIS PAGE FOR INSTRUCTIONS

————-

Now available, the revised Second Edition of “Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession” by Corey Sandler, for the Amazon Kindle. You can read the book on a Kindle device, or in a Kindle App on your computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone.

If you would like to purchase an autographed copy, please see the tab on this page, “HOW TO ORDER A PHOTO OR AUTOGRAPHED BOOK”

Here’s where to order an electronic copy for immediate delivery:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IA9QTBM

Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession: The Tragic Legacy of the New World’s Least Understood Explorer (Kindle Edition)

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PURCHASE AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF ONE OF MY BOOKS, PLEASE CONTACT ME.

SEE THE “How to Order a Photo or Autographed Book” TAB ON THIS PAGE FOR INSTRUCTIONS

27 May 2017:
A Coruña, Spain:
Crystal City

By Corey Sandler

La Coruña was the political capital of the Kingdom of Galicia from the 16th to the 19th centuries.

Spain has 17 autonomous communities, a first-level political division that came out of the Constitution of 1978 which was intended to retain the autonomy of the nationalities and regions of the Spanish nation.

Today, La Coruña is in the autonomous community of Galicia. The place has other versions of its name, in Galician and British English: A Coruña and Corunna respectively.

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La Coruña is sometimes called “The Crystal City.” That nickname is derived from its many galerías, or glazed window balconies.

LA CORUŇA MAY 27, 2017

Naval architects adopted the design of the windowed stern of a warship and applied them as balconies to many places in northern Spain, including Galicia and the Basque region.

The first settlement was believed to have been on the peninsula that extends out from the present city, probably established by the Artabrians, a Celtic tribe.

Then came the Romans in the 2nd century BC.

They were attracted to the strategic position at the edge of Iberia, and they called the region Finis-terrae, the end of the world.

Its name in the Galician language evolved from that to Fisterra.

Under the Romans, the settlement they called Brigantium became important in maritime trade, and even drew the notice of Julius Caesar who visited in 62BC.

Commerce in metal and other materials grew, with connections what is now France, England, and Portugal.

Brigantium reached its peak in the 1st and 2nd centuries, but declined after the 4th century and especially with the incursions of the Normans, which forced the population to flee towards the interior of the Estuary of O Burgo.

It was in the 2nd century that the Farum Brigantium was built.

Farum is the Latin version of the Greek work pharos, meaning lighthouse.

The other name for the farum was the Tower of Hercules.

That tower, restored and elaborated a bit over 1,900 years, still stands on the peninsula about 2.5 kilometers or 1.5 miles from the center of La Coruña.

It has been in more-or-less continuous use since first built, and may well be the oldest lighthouse still in existence.

According to some, it may have been modeled after the great Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

SANTIAGO DEL COMPOSTELA

About an hour south is the town of Santiago de Compostela, a place of pilgrimage for Christians for centuries.

We visited the cathedral on an earlier visit, watching vendors offering walking sticks topped by a carving of a scallop shell–proof to some of the accomplishment of their peregrino or pilgrimage,  and topped it all of with tapas and a music and dance performance by a Galician folk troupe: Celtic bagpipes of northwest Spain.

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2873

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2871

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2863

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2855

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2908

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2904

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2893

Text and images copyright 2017 by Corey Sandler. All rights reserved. If you would like to purchase a high-resolution image, please contact me.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PURCHASE AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF ONE OF MY BOOKS, PLEASE CONTACT ME.

SEE THE “How to Order a Photo or Autographed Book” TAB ON THIS PAGE FOR INSTRUCTIONS

————-

Now available, the revised Second Edition of “Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession” by Corey Sandler, for the Amazon Kindle. You can read the book on a Kindle device, or in a Kindle App on your computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone.

If you would like to purchase an autographed copy, please see the tab on this page, “HOW TO ORDER A PHOTO OR AUTOGRAPHED BOOK”

Here’s where to order an electronic copy for immediate delivery:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IA9QTBM

Henry Hudson Dreams cover

Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession: The Tragic Legacy of the New World’s Least Understood Explorer (Kindle Edition)

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PURCHASE AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF ONE OF MY BOOKS,  PLEASE CONTACT ME.

SEE THE “How to Order a Photo or Autographed Book” TAB ON THIS PAGE FOR INSTRUCTIONS

9 September 2015
La Coruña, Spain: The Crystal City at the End of the Earth, and Santiago de Compostela: The Way of Saint James

By Corey Sandler, Destination Consultant Silversea Cruises

La Coruña is in the autonomous community of Galicia.

In recent history, La Coruña was the political capital of the Kingdom of Galicia from the 16th to the 19th centuries.

Spain has 17 autonomous communities, a first-level political division that came out of the Constitution of 1978 which was intended to retain the autonomy of the nationalities and regions of the Spanish nation.

On this visit,  we ventured about an hour south to the town of Santiago de Compostela, a place of pilgrimage for Christians for centuries.

We visited the cathedral,  saw the vendors offering walking sticks topped by a carving of a scallop shell–proof to some of the accomplishment of their peregrino or pilgrimage,  and topped it all of with tapas and a music and dance performance by a Galician folk troupe: Celtic bagpipes of northwest Spain.

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2873

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2871

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2863

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2855

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2908

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2904

BLOG Compostella Spain 09Sept2015-2893

La Coruña is sometimes called “The Crystal City.” That nickname is derived from its many galerías, or glazed window balconies.

Naval architects adopted the design of the windowed stern of a warship and applied them as balconies to many places in northern Spain, including Galicia and the Basque region.

The first settlement was believed to have been on the peninsula that extends out from the present city, probably established by the Artabrians, a Celtic tribe.

Then came the Romans in the 2nd century BC.

They were attracted to the strategic position at the edge of Iberia, and they called the region Finis-terrae, the end of the world.

Its name in the Galician language evolved from that to Fisterra.

Under the Romans, the settlement they called Brigantium became important in maritime trade, and even drew the notice of Julius Caesar who visited in 62BC.

Commerce in metal and other materials grew, with connections what is now France, England, and Portugal.

Brigantium reached its peak in the 1st and 2nd centuries, but declined after the 4th century and especially with the incursions of the Normans, which forced the population to flee towards the interior of the Estuary of O Burgo.

It was in the 2nd century that the Farum Brigantium was built.

Farum is the Latin version of the Greek work pharos, meaning lighthouse.

The other name for the farum was the Tower of Hercules.

That tower, restored and elaborated a bit over 1,900 years, still stands on the peninsula about 2.5 kilometers or 1.5 miles from the center of La Coruña.

It has been in more-or-less continuous use since first built, and may well be the oldest lighthouse still in existence.

According to some, it may have been modeled after the great Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Text and images copyright 2015 by Corey Sandler. All rights reserved. If you would like to purchase a high-resolution image, please contact me.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PURCHASE AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF ONE OF MY BOOKS, PLEASE CONTACT ME.

SEE THE “How to Order a Photo or Autographed Book” TAB ON THIS PAGE FOR INSTRUCTIONS

————-

Now available, the revised Second Edition of “Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession” by Corey Sandler, for the Amazon Kindle. You can read the book on a Kindle device, or in a Kindle App on your computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone.

If you would like to purchase an autographed copy, please see the tab on this page, “HOW TO ORDER A PHOTO OR AUTOGRAPHED BOOK”

Here’s where to order an electronic copy for immediate delivery:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IA9QTBM

Henry Hudson Dreams cover

Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession: The Tragic Legacy of the New World’s Least Understood Explorer (Kindle Edition)

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PURCHASE AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF ONE OF MY BOOKS,  PLEASE CONTACT ME.

SEE THE “How to Order a Photo or Autographed Book” TAB ON THIS PAGE FOR INSTRUCTIONS