THE MARE DE DÉU VINEYARDS ROUTE IN THE PRIORAT REGION

Gratallops

GRATALLOPS

MORERA DE MONTSANT, LA

VILELLA ALTA, LA

Today is a fantastic day for hiking. You are looking for a half-day trip that children can enjoy, which takes place between natural sites and towns of great beauty. To be able to walk slowly after a good glass of wine ... Well you have found it! Address: the Costa Daurada (Golden Coast). Do you want to complete the Mare de Déu Vineyards Route in the Priorat refion, right?

The legend says that "a shepherd found the Virgin of the Consolació in a cave and that people wanted to erect a chapel right there. Unlike other virgins, that of the Consolació Virgin escaped to the mountain mountain. She wanted to be at the top of the mountain and look and look at the steeples that rise between the slate hills, the licorella, the typical stone of the Priorat. Thus, the image ended in a beautiful hermitage on a hill, guarded by the vineyards, in the municipality of Gratallops. You can get there by taking a leisurely two-and-a-half-hour round trip from Vilella Alta. These are 7 km in total with a slight slope that will take you to the foot of the Ermita de la Consolació, the most beloved hermitahe by the villagers of Vilelles, Torroja and Gratallops ... Some of the most charming prioratenses will tell you how to get there. In any case, you can download the map of the route from here.

El itinerario puede ir acompañado de la placentera resonancia del vino en el paladar. La bodega Buil & Giné de Gratallops patrocina el trayecto y organiza visitas y catas en sus instalaciones. Con vino o sin, no te puedes olvidar de la cantimplora porque durante el recorrido no hay puntos de agua. Disfruta del camino entre viñedos, bosques y construcciones de piedra seca (unas barracas históricas hechas de piedras y sin cemento muy presentes en las zonas rurales de la Costa Daurada).

Etiquetes:

Costa Daurada, Vinyes, Escaladei, Priorat

SEARCHING FOR PEACE IN THE RUINS OF THE ESCALADEI CHARTERHOUSE

The first of the precepts to be followed by a Carthusian monk was to seek God separated from the world, in absolute solitude. You can imagine that at the foot of the Sierra de Montsant mountains, surrounded by a breathtaking landscape, thiswas a little easier. The Scala Dei Chaterhouse is one of the must-sees of the Costa Daurada (Golden Coast) inland and is very close to the first stop of this TripIdea.

Here the monks founded the first monastery of the Carthusian Order of the Iberian Peninsula in the 12^th century. A peasant (why in all the legends there is a peasant playing the main role?) dreamed that in this place the angels ascended to the sky by a stairway over a pine branch and this is why the plave is named name "Scala Dei" or "God´s ladder".

After the confiscations of the 19^th century, the monks suddenly fled and the farmers revolted after centuries of vassalage. Today you can make a visit - you can take a guide – to the ruins of the three cloisters, the church or a rebuilt monastery cell. Note that in winter they only open until noon. Imagining this place in times of plenitude is really fascinating!

The majesty of the charterhouse, which operated in a self-sufficient manner, was completed by the cellars, warehouses, stables and mills built by the monks around the monastery. A civilization that lived isolated and that has put its footprint on the etymology of the region. The Carthusian monks lived under the guidance of Pater Prior. It is not difficult to guess, therefore, why this land of vineyards wild and full of history today is known as Priorat region.