Montserrat Monastry Museum and Flamingo Dancers Ola

For our second day in Barcelona we had chosen an optional extra which was a trip up to Montserrat. This is a rocky outcrop of mountain about 1.5 hours drive outside of the city. It looks rather like a grey Ayres Rock but perhaps not quite so large. On the way we collected our guide from the previous day (Cesear) and set off early in the morning. This was good cos the weather was expected to be very hot again and I expected a lot of vertical walking which is difficult in the heat of the day.
History: In the year 880 some shepherd boys had a vision of a descending light and angels singing their parents returned to the site and witnessed the same happenings, then a local priest had the same experience in a cave on Montserrat (meaning serrated mountain) The cave became a holy sanctuary to pilgrims and as time went by a Monastry was erected.
Benedictine monks still occupy the Monastry ( Santa Maria de Montserrat) which is also the home to the Basilica Boys Choir which is acclaimed worldwide and produced many albums of their Gregorian chants etc.
Near the carpark you can see the building used for spiritual retreats. These hold little more than a bed and chair and are no bigger in area needed for these. A short uphill walk brings you to an attractive courtyard holding statues of past priests.
But this is all in stark contrast to what you are about to behold within the Basilica. OMG ! This was astounding and I cant even think of enough words to describe it. The central religious statue is that of the black Madonna and child. Awesome. The artworks and stained glass and statues must rank amongst the world's best collection. I adored it all.
See here for more information http://www.sacred-destinations.com/spain/montserrat-shrine
Next to the Cathedral was a Museum which housed even more treasures of artworks Picasso, Dali and Caravaggio amongst lesser known artists. I am told these are donated. Imagine being a few inches away from a REAL Picasso ! There were two of them both painted BEFORE his more abstract works. One of a Choir boy and one of an old fisherman. Cesear said one was too good to sell and another not good enough. I tihnk the viewer makes the decision about which one deserved which title. :) There were more in a Rembrandt style.
Another room housed iconography of Our Lady of Montserrat the Black Madonna. Also we saw a display of Fifteenth to Twentieth Century religious items showing a collection of gold and silver work and demonstrating how styles can change over the years.
Wandering into an Egyptian exhibition room (on loan to the Museum) we were confronted with a mummy in a glass case. The bandages were removed from the head area which revealed sights I was more confortable never having seen :( This is a place everyone heading to Spain should take the time to visit.
Our afternoon was spent browsing about the shopping in Barcelona and that evening was a buffet dinner followed by a night of Flaminco Dancers.

(NB: I took video within the Cathedral so will be adding the still pictures from that at a future date)
There are more photos at the bottom of this page

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