Vall de Boi

I spent this past weekend in Vall de Boi, a valley in the Pyrenees Mountains along the border between France and Spain. The excursion was organized by our program so that we could see examples of romanesque architecture, but the beautiful landscape and fresh air really stole the show. It is SO BEAUTIFUL in the Pyrenees, and the culture and atmosphere was so different from that of Barcelona that we found it difficult to believe we were still in Spain!

the view from our hotel room! look at that fog!

 A romanesque church

 the inside of the church... very small, simple and dark, not very architecturally advanced. Welcome to the Middle Ages.

I am SO jealous of the person who lives in this house.

the second church we visited

posing in front of some quaint houses.

We were eating wild blackberries as we walked between the churches

Old graveyard at the third church

First roadblock of the day: sheep!

Attractive pose on the river

the view from a mountain we hiked up

 

Second roadblock of the day: protests for better roads. The protest literally blocked the only road out of town!

(the signs read "the car can't drive on roads made of promises, only on real roads")

 
I am so lucky I got to visit the Pyrinees! They are so incredibly gorgeous!