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Cultural
wealth
The quality of the water and the pleasant temperatures
this Catalan region enjoys all year attract many visitors
every year. The variety of accommodation is another
of its attractions, as well as the large number of leisure
opportunities. One of these is a walk round the historic
centre, where the layout of an old seaside village awaits
you.
The Promenade brings together nineteenth century and
modernist houses, while elsewhere, the church of Sant
Romà, the hermitage of Santa Cristina and the
monument to the Woman Sailor, by Ernest Maragall, await
you. Sant Romá dates from 1522 and boasts Romanesque
and Gothic elements in its structure. For its part,
Santa Cristina stands above the beach showing the character
of buildings in transition between
Baroque and Neoclassical.
Modernism has other beautiful examples in the municipality
of Lloret de Mar, like the works of Puig i Cadafalch.
The hermitage of La Verge de Gràcia, the transept
that leads to Sant Pere del Bosc and the pantheon of
the Costa Macià in Lloret cemetery bring you
closer to the first Modernist works of this Catalan
architect.
On the way out of the town, where the tourist developments
begin on the shore beside the beach, like Cala Morisca,
Platja de Fenals or Santa Cristina, stands a Roman sepulchral
tower dating from the imperial era.
Regional cuisine
The position of Lloret de Mar between the sea and the
mountains means its cuisine combines raw materials from
very different spheres. Fish and shellfish add their
flavour to game and to products from the fields. Broad
beans, peas, cod salad ("esqueixada") or cold
roast aubergines, onions and peppers ("escalivada")
are some suggested starters. Chicken or rabbit with
seafood, sea bass, gilt-head bream or prawns make up
interesting second courses. Cold meats with "pà
amb tomàquet" (bread with tomato) round
off any menu. Among the desserts, we should point out
seasonal fruit like strawberries, peaches, oranges or
water melon. And, to bring out the flavour of such delicious
food, there is nothing better than wines with the Ampurdán-Costa
Brava Denomination of Origin.
This excellent regional cookery can be tasted both in
Lloret de Mar and in other nearby places, like Tossa
de Mar. Here you can see the harmonious juxtaposition
of the walled town beside the sea and Vila Nova, the
area with the most modern buildings. Blanes, for its
part, is another important coastal tourist centre that
adds to its range of beaches a beautiful historic centre.
The castle of Sant Joan, the Gothic palace of the Counts
of Cabrera and the Carrer Ample fountain are some of
its main monuments.
Also on the Mediterranean is San Feliu de Guíxols.
Excellent beaches, a marina and a town centre full of
entertainment coexist with the hermitage of Sant Grau,
the church of Porta Ferrata and natural viewpoints like
Cap de Mort. And, as the culminating point of any tour:
Girona, the provincial capital. The cathedral, the Jewish
quarter, the Arab baths and the Archaeological Museum
are sights not to be missed, as well as the walls and
the churches of Sant Nicolau and Sant Feliu.
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