Languages

  • Español
  • English
ESPAÑOL | ENGLISH
  • About us
  • destinations
    • Andalusia
    • Barcelona
    • Basque Country
    • Cantabria
    • Castile
    • Extremadura
    • Galicia
    • Madrid
    • Navarra
  • Experiences
    • Treasures
    • Art in Private
    • Footprints of the past
    • Contemporary Architecture
    • The good life
    • Super Typical Spanish
    • Nature
  • journal
  • NEWS & CONTACT
  • CONTACTO
    • (+34) 91 345 12 07
    • info@therealthing.es
  • THE REAL THING is an agency dedicated to the organization of tailor-made trips and cultural experiencies in Spain, designed to meet the needs of both individuals and corporate clients.
  • The Prado Museum

    The Prado Museum

    Instituto de Turismo de España. (TURESPAÑA). Las Meninas (Infanta Margarita. detalle). Museo del Prado
    The Prado is one of the world’s most important art museums. The quality of its collection is truly singular. Comprised primarily of works collected by the Spanish monarchs since the 16th century, incredible masterpieces hang on its walls, including Las Meninas, by Velázquez, the Black Paintings, by Goya, and The Nobleman with his Hand on his Chest, by El Greco. It also houses other artistic wonders, including The Three Graces, by Rubens, Death of the Virgin, by Mantegna, Descent from the Cross, by Van der Weyden, The Garden of Earthly Delights, by Bosch, and Adam and Eve, by Dürer.

    The Prado is essential viewing—but not just any viewing will do. We propose a very special visit, savoring the museum’s best and most fascinating works. Rather than rushed, our visit will be relaxed but thorough, and so enriching that you never forget that you saw that painting at the Prado. Accompanied by guides with a unique and thoughtful understanding of the museum, we will enjoy the artwork and everything else that a visit to a place of such history and beauty entails.

    Receive more details
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest

    Share
  • Santiago Cathedral: Cathedral of Cathedrals

    Santiago Cathedral: Cathedral of Cathedrals

    Pórtico de la Gloria. Contando Estrellas. BY CC 2.0
    There are some places in the world where one is mysteriously magnified on arrival or departure by the emotions of all those who have arrived and departed before, said Cees Nooteboom on the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in his book Roads to Santiago. It is undoubtedly the most outstanding example of Romanesque architecture, marking the end of the journey which, for centuries, has led people on the most famous pilgrimage in all of Christianity.
    Receive more detail
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
  • National Sculpture Museum in Valladolid

    National Sculpture Museum in Valladolid

    Museo Nacional de Escultura de Valladolid: Alonso Berruguete, La ascensión de Cristo (ca. 1530)
    Valladolid served as the capital of the Kingdom of Castile until Philip II decided to move the court to the city of Madrid. It is here that the National Sculpture Museum is found, within the cloister of the magnificent College of San Gregorio, adjacent to San Pablo Church. Both buildings are jewels of outstanding artistry, built in the architectural style known as Spanish Plateresque, characterized by the intricate and refined sculptures that adorn their extravagant façades.

    This museum is as important as the Prado in terms of sculpture, and houses among its coffered-ceiling rooms one of the greatest treasures in the history of universal art. Unlike in the rest of Europe, most Spanish Baroque sculpture combined woodcarvings and paint, a technique with which artists created works of extreme naturalism and overwhelming beauty.

    The extraordinary collection at the National Sculpture Museum is one-of-a-kind, and the masterpieces by Juan de Juni, Gregorio Fernández, Alonso Cano, Francisco Salzillo and Pedro de Mena convey a spirituality that as sensual as it is raw, characteristic of Spain’s Golden Age.

    Receive more details
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
  • Camino de Santiago

    Camino de Santiago

    Turismo de Santiago de Compostela
    As medieval legend has it, the remains of the apostle Santiago El Mayor were discovered in Galicia at the beginning of the 9th century. The city of Santiago de Compostela and one of the most exquisite Romanesque churches in the West were built in his honor. Ever since, pilgrims have come from the world over to travel the routes that lead to St. James’ relics.
    An inner pilgrimage. A unique experience
    The Camino de Santiago is a route for pilgrims. But despite its religious origins, its intrigue goes far beyond the holy experience. Walking for several days on the Camino del Sol (from east to west), mixing with strangers along the same route, spending the night in places where you wouldn’t have stopped under normal circumstances, and following the same path that pilgrims have traveled for centuries, all make St. James Way a spiritual experience.

    The landscape on this “internal journey” also changes along the way: Santiago can only be reached by crossing the forests of Navarra, the rivers of Rioja, the barren plains of Castile-Leon and, finally, the mountains of Leon and Galicia.

    St. James Way is a truly unique experience for everyone who dares to lace up their boots and start walking.

    Burgos

    From East to West
    Many roads lead to Santiago, the most popular of which is the Camino francés, the French Way, which crosses the Pyrenees Mountains at two different places: Roncesvalles (Navarra) and Somport (Huesca).

    These two routes come together in Puente la Reina (Navarra) to become a single “Way” that traverses northern Spain from east to west. Centuries of continuous travel by pilgrims have made this camino one of Western Christianity’s primary economic and cultural routes.

    Over time, cities were built, trade developed and, in particular, an incredibly intense cultural and artistic exchange extended among pilgrims, who brought skills and news from very different places and backgrounds. In view of this, the Route of Santiago de Compostela was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1993.

    Christian Art
    Following identification of the apostle’s relics, Charlemagne and the Christian kingdom of northern Spain supported the development of the Camino. This led to the extraordinarily rapid development of cities and villages along the way. The Camino also offers an overview of medieval Christian art, as some of the most fascinating creations from that period can be found along the routes.

    The Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle, in Jaca, is a modest example, but it is the first major construction on the Spanish side of the Pyrenees and foreshadows the magnitude of the buildings that appear later along the route. Churches such as Santo Sepulcro in Torres del Río, San Martín de Tours in Frómista, and the San Nicolás in Portomarin; monasteries including Santa María la Real in Nájera, San Juan de Ortega in Burgos, and San Julián de Samos in Galicia; and cathedrals, like those in Burgos, Leon and Astorga, all reflect the artistic splendor that is a hallmark of the Camino which leads to the Cathedral of Santiago, indubitably one of the most magnificent buildings in the history of European architecture.

    Receive more details
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
  • Holy Week in Sevilla

    Holy Week in Sevilla

    Semana Santa en Cabra. Rafa Luna. BY CC 2.0.jpg
    Song of the Andalusian people,
    who every spring
    cry for ladders
    to climb the cross!
    La Saeta. Antonio Machado

    Compared with sober Castilian devotion and silent processions, the people of Seville surprise visitors—as they surprised the poet—with their sacred songs and overwhelming fervor, completely taking over the city during Holy Week.

    The floats of the processions, authentic sculptural and artisan gems, are worth visiting all year round, as are the city and its churches: every neighborhood has a cofradía (brotherhood), and each cofradía has a devotion whose traditions and secrets are passed down from parents to children, who will eventually act as penitents in the religious brotherhoods.

    Indubitably, the city shines brightest during the religious celebrations and, in particular, during the processions, when rows of hooded people who accompany the images, carried by costelaros (men who carry the floats), proceed through the streets filled with decorated balconies, from which people sing sacred songs, an oration which, in Andalusia, has the flavor of flamenco.

    Receive more detail
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
  • Nine Treasures World Heritage

    Nine Treasures World Heritage

    Ceiling Canopy II. Andrew Moore. BY CC 2.0
    We show travelers nine treasures, all of which have been declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. We visit the city accompanied by a specialist in modernist architecture, which allows us to show visitors exactly why we are so proud of those gems. The route includes several palaces whose owners open their doors exclusively to us. Some of them are well-known works by Antoni Gaudí: La Pedrera, La Sagrada Familia, the Church of Colonia Güell, Park Güell and the Palau Güell, Casa Batlló and Casa Vicens; others are for those in-the-know, such as the Palau de la Música Catalana and the recently-refurbished Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, designed by Lluís Domènech i Muntaner.
    Receive more details
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
  • Gaudí’s Barcelona

    Gaudí’s Barcelona

    La Pedrera
    At the start of the 20th century, Barcelona underwent a notable transformation into a modern, thriving, organized city that was suitable for the new Catalan bourgeoisie and which looked enthusiastically to its European neighbors with a desire to be seen as an equal. The architecture that lines the city’s wide streets is from the Modernism movement—visible in other European cities, but none of them quite like Barcelona, home to the movement’s greatest master, Antoni Gaudí (1852-1926).

    The construction of buildings began—inspired by shapes from nature—appealing to an unusual sensuality and offering new ways of living. Gaudí, a leading artist of his time, shaped Modernism by devising a way to charm the city’s wealthy bourgeoisie families, creating fantastic places for them, such as La Pedrera and the magical Güell Park. However, his magnum opus is indisputably the Sagrada Familia church. Though he died before it was completed, he left behind instructions for everything from the tips of the towers to the candelabras on the altar. Incredible Gaudí. A truly special way to get to know Barcelona.

    Receive more details
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
  • 3 Days

    JAÉN, ÚBEDA AND BAEZA. LITTLE-KNOWN WORLD HERITAGE SITES

  • Holy Week in Castile

    Holy Week in Castile

    La Oración en el Huerto (III) en procesión. Zyllan Fotografía. BY CC 2.0
    One of Spain’s most spectacular, authentic traditions is Holy Week, which is based on commemorating Christ’s death and resurrection through religious processions and acts which highlight Spain’s Catholic tradition. Every region has its own individual customs, but all of them have processions, during which, over the course of the week, religious images —of virgins, or scenes from the New Testament, including the Passion of Christ— are paraded through the streets among the crowds.

    The dazzling artistry of the castillian images, together with intense mass participation, makes this nationwide celebration an extremely important cultural event.

    Receive more details
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
  • San Lorenzo de
    El Escorial

    San Lorenzo de
    El Escorial

    Juan Vaquero, San Lorenzo del Escorial
    King Philip II established Madrid as the capital of the Kingdom of Spain in 1561. He had to create a political and administrative center from which to govern all of the kingdoms he had inherited from his parents, which extended across all continents. To commemorate his victory in the Battle of Saint Quentin, he ordered the construction of the Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, far from the capital.

    Architecturally inspired by the mythical Solomon’s Temple, in Jerusalem, this impressive building functioned as a palace to serve the court, and included a basilica worthy of a Catholic monarch; a royal pantheon, where all the Spanish kings and queens are buried; and one of the most interesting and beautiful libraries in all of the European Renaissance. It is one of Spain’s most fascinating buildings and reveals the Spanish monarchs’ immense power during the modern period.

    Receive more details
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
  • The Alhambra

    The Alhambra

    Ayuntamiento de Granada, La Alhambra, Patio de los Leones
    Ever since the Catholic Monarchs conquered Granada in 1492, the Alhambra, qa’lat al-Hamra, or the Red Castle, has fed the fantasies of travelers and visitors alike. And ever since the publication of Washington Irving’s book, Tales of the Alhambra, the site’s spectacular gardens, the sounds of its fountains, and its mysterious, sophisticated rooms have inspired travelers to imagine exotic scenes, transporting them to a fascinating world, far away in time and space.

    The Alhambra, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984, is a truly singular place in Spain, representing more than 400 years of Islamic heritage, which affords it historical originality with respect to the rest of Europe. There’s no other crossroads in the world as important as this Nasrid palace, no place as spellbindingly beautiful, where a sunset over its battlements alone makes the journey worthwhile.

    Receive more details
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
  • Dalí, Cadaqués
    and Figueres

    Dalí, Cadaqués
    and Figueres

    Fundació Gala-Salvador Dalí
    Of all the great 20th century artists, perhaps Salvador Dalí inspires the most curiosity. His extravagant personality and artistic genius led him to create fascinating works of art which were ahead of his time, mixing references of high culture and popular culture, as pop culture artists would later do. Cadaqués and Figueres are two small, typical Mediterranean cities where Dalí lived and worked, creating his most outrageous and magnificent works: his home and the Theater-Museum.

    A visit to the Theater-Museum, where many of Dalí’s most emblematic works are on display, provides the full experience of what his work meant to him. If we are to follow his journey throughout the Mediterranean, essential viewing includes Portlligat, where famous artist guests included Picasso, Duchamp and Lorca, and the medieval Púbol Castel, an homage in every way to his wife, Gala Dalí.

    Receive more detail
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
  • The Mezquita of Córdoba

    The Mezquita of Córdoba

    Consorcio de Turismo de Córdoba, La Mezquita de Córdoba 
    In 929 DC, Abd-al-Rahman III, of the Umayyad dynasty, the family of the Prophet Mohammed, proclaimed himself Caliph of Cordoba, declaring independence from the rest of the Islamic empire. Al-Andalus became the primary Muslim power in the Western Mediterranean, and the Mezquita, or Mosque, became the most important in the entire West.

    It was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984 and is the best-preserved building from its period. It increased in both size and beauty as the city gained more political and social importance, and was even spared during the Christian Reconquest. It was converted into a Christian cathedral in 1238, and its Byzantine mosaics and the extraordinary system of two-tone horseshoe-shaped arches underwent several expansions, emulating both Renaissance and Baroque styles.

    Receive more details
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
  • Monastery of Guadalupe

    Monastery of Guadalupe

    Real Monasterio de Santa María de Guadalupe. Caceres. Extremadura. España. Enrique López-Tamayo Biosca. BY CC 2.0
    Built in the mid-14th century, the Royal Monastery of Santa María de Guadalupe is a splendid combination of diverse building styles and techniques. Located in Caceres, Extremadura, this monastery played a key role in Spanish history: this is where Christopher Columbus convinced the Catholic Monarchs to support his expedition to the Indies, which ended in his discovery of America in 1492.

    Queen Isabella I of Castile was profoundly devoted to the Virgin of Guadalupe and she visited on several occasions during her reign. The monastery houses many valuable works, such as paintings by El Greco and Luca Giordano as well as beautiful manuscripts produced in the monastery’s own scriptorium; however, its most spectacular attraction is the Sacristy, adorned with paintings by Francisco Zurburán, who was commissioned by the monks. The painting of Saint Jerome preserved there is considered to be one the most outstanding works of his career.

    Receive more details
    Share via emailShare on TwitterShare on FacebookPin it on Pinterest
    Share
Previous page 

©THE REAL THING   Legal notice | (+34) 91 345 12 07 | therealthing.travel | info@therealthing.es

THE REAL THING on Connect with us on

LEGAL INFORMATION

© 2013 THE REAL THING – All rights reserved

The website THE REAL THING is an internet domain (www.therealthing.es) owned by Wayfaring Spain, S.L., which has its registered address at Avda. de Manoteras, 38. Local A-204. 28050 Madrid, Spain, and is bearer of VAT No.: B-86659950 and email address info@therealthing.es

Legal Registration: it is a company recorded at the Mercantile Registry of Madrid in Tome 3,770, Folio 87, Section 8, Sheet M-553708

PRIVACY POLICY

In accordance with the provisions of Organic Law 15/1999 of 13 December on the Protection of Personal Data (Ley Orgánica de Protección de Datos de Carácter Personal), ("LOPD"), Wayfaring Spain, S.L. hereby informs you that the data obtained through its website, www.therealthing.es, or the forms contained therein, will be included in an automated database, recorded at the Spanish Data Protection Agency. Wayfaring Spain, S.L., with VAT No . B-86.659.950 and registered address at Avda. de Manoteras, 38. Local A-204. 28050 Madrid. Travel Agency License (CICMA) No. 2808, issued by the Autonomous Community of Madrid, is responsible for the database.

You hereby provide express consent to the processing of this data in order to supply you with information on our products and services.

We hereby inform you that pursuant to the LOPD you may freely exercise your rights of access, rectification, cancellation and opposition by sending notification in this regard to the address indicated above. In order to properly carry out our services, Wayfaring Spain, S.L. may be obliged to share certain client data (name, telephone number, etc.) with other companies or professionals that collaborate with Wayfaring Spain, S.L. in the provision of services (such as transport companies, hotels, etc.). In such cases, Wayfaring Spain, S.L. will only supply information that is strictly necessary to correctly provide the service and in respect of said data will require such collaborators to maintain a policy of privacy, custody and confidentiality, similar to that of Wayfaring Spain, S.L. Wayfaring Spain, S.L. guarantees the confidentiality of the data provided.