Catalan Culture in Cardona

Most visitors to Catalonia hardly make it past Barcelona - unless they are package-deal beach tourists along the Costa Brava further North. Few if any tend to venture inland to explore the local charms of small-town Catalonia - it is here, however, where visitors would stand their best chance of savoring true Catalan hospitality and enjoying a first-hand introduction to local Catalan living. Among the most scenic communities in this part of Catalonia we find the small town of CARDONA, gateway to the Catalan Pyrenee mountains - located about half-way between Barcelona and the tiny nation state of Andorra.

Towering above the small town of 6000 is Cardona's Castle and Church, significant as a symbol  of the RECONQUISTA from Moorish domination. This ranks among the best preserved PARADORS in Northern Spain along the historic religious pilgrimage route of St. James' Way towards Santiago de Compostela. From the very early origins of pilgrimage to Santiage we find here Cardona's St. Vincent Church built by Visigoth King Wilfred in the early 10th century. As such, it represents a prototype of early Catalan Romanesque architecture featuring Carolingian influences in the apse, transept, lanterns and its tribune along with early Southern Romanesque "experimentation". 

In this respect, Cardona's church also aptly illustrates how architecture evolved over the centuries and even within the Romanesque style itself. In the 10th century, approaches to building were still based on roman numerals rather than arabic numbers and as such lead to rather basic and less specific constructions entirely devoid of decorations and ornaments. The main focus back then was clearly on the structural integrity of the building with only the later Romanesque style opening venues for artistic experimentation within the architecture itself.

As part of the famous pilgrimage route along St. James' way, St. Vincent Church along with the adjacent Castle and Parador of Cardona are also great examples of how the collective experience of travel is quite similar today as it was about 1000 years ago - with elements of dwelling in travel, notions of hospitality and protection and in turn, the Parador's attempt to make visitors feel welcome in order to dedicate time and funds to a longer sojourn here. Although the tradition of PARADORES in Spain only dates back in its present form to 1928, the very same venue served for many centuries as a popular overnight stop for pilgrims on their way to Santiago.

As a powerful sign of Cardona's important role as a religious site, we find the scallop shells above the Altar in the Church - the very symbol of the St. James' Way to Santiago de Compostela. Underneath the Altar we find the crypt, which is empty nowadays, as the remnants of St. Vincent have since been moved to another church in central Cardona. So following a visit to St. Vincent Church and the castle museum, a stroll from the Parador into central Cardona also beckons, enabling visitors to experience first-hand how an entire community began to evolve in the shadows of the town's magnificent Church and Castle grounds.