Girona, Spain – Game of Thrones beauty
Girona is a beautiful medieval city and it is clearly evidenced by the fact that parts of Game of Thrones were filmed here. Different locations in the city were used for Bravos, King’s Landing, and Old Town.
The best way to get to Girona (pronounced jeer-oh-nuh) is to take the train from Barcelona, it’s only about a half-hour away on a high-speed train (and it’s the first stop, so super easy). It’s cheapest if you buy the round trip ticket (and you can change the time of the return at the station if you need to and there are seats left). If you can, buy your tickets in advance online to save time. Also note, there is a security scan to look at any baggage you have, so you can’t take pocket knives, etc with you (liquids are fine). Keep your ticket readily accessible until you board as it is scanned before going through the luggage scan, and again right before you can board the train. If you need to use the bathroom, note that it costs 1 Euro before security and is free afterward.
The train is smooth and quiet, and with assigned seating, there’s little hassle (unless of course your seat assignment doesn’t exist, in which case just pick a seat in the same area and hope for the best — on the train I boarded seats were 21 to 24, 31-34, … 71 to 74, for example, and my seat assignment was 76). The seats on the fast trains have nice tray tables, of a size you can actually rest a laptop on.
From the train station, it is a quick walk to the Stone Bridge, from which you can see many colorful buildings (and if you are lucky they’ll have some laundry hanging outside to add to the colors). The east side is lit in the morning, and the west in the afternoon, so don’t despair if the buildings you like are in shadow, just come back in the afternoon on your way to the train again.
The main reason people come to Girona (other than the overall vibe from the quaint medieval streets now full of cafes and shops, is the Cathedral of Girona. The massive and wide 89 stairs to the Cathedral are massive and were an attraction before they were featured on Game of Thrones. Inside there is a large creation tapestry as well as detailed carvings of scenes from the Bible, and many religious items of quality and beauty. I highly recommend going there and doing the Audio Tour of the cathedral, the cloisters, the treasury, and the sister Basilica just downslope called Saint Fileu – it’s not as fancy as the main cathedral, but it’s close by and worth the walk if you have about a half-hour. (The basilica of Saint Fileu has a beautiful alabaster reclining Jesus and several ancient sarcophagi from Christians from 230 AD to 300s AD. The building is heavily fortified, which is unusual for a basilica, but it was located outside of the Girona City Walls, so was attacked many times.)
When you leave the Cathedral, go left out the door, then left around the corner to the back of the church. Along the narrow streets there, there are several passages to the left that go up to the city wall, some through gardens, take any of these and head up to the wall. On this side of the city, there are many stairs open to the wall. On the other side of the city, there are few. By starting by the Cathedral, the wall walk is predominantly downward, which is nice.
If you want a quick diversion, you can also check out the Arab Baths in that area before going up on the wall. It’s got a beautiful octagonal pool with tons of coins at the bottom that shows great reflections of the roof on top and the ruins of other rooms for you to see.
Along the wall, you get great views of the city and the Cathedral, and there are several towers you can climb to get the best views of the city. you go around the wall, keep your eyes out, as there is even a medieval toilet just outside one tower about halfway around. when you get to the end, which is near the Stone Bridge, you can either go back to the narrow streets for more or go back to the train station easily.
