Editor’s note: I visited Barcelona in March 2019. However, just a week in – with two weeks remaining in the city – COVID 19 captured the world, and I fled back to California. Sadly, Montserrat was one of the things left unfinished for me. So it is both wonderful and a little sad to read this lovely article by Sam, but I am so glad that this amazing place can be shared with all of you, even if not by me. For more of Sam’s lovely writing, click here to visit his index page.
Barcelona has been voted the best beach town in the world at times, and I know many people who have told me it is their favorite city in Europe. It is known for its beaches, nightlife, tapas, Gaudi architecture, and also for being the pickpocket capital of the world. (Click here to read the Ultimate Guide to Barcelona!) The hustling and bustling Catalonian capital is certainly one of the more cosmopolitan and modern cities that I have been to and can feel a bit overwhelming to the senses. In case it all becomes a bit too much, there are a number of great day trips that you can make from Barcelona. While I wish I had a few more days to go up to Girona with its medieval Jewish quarter or Figueres’s Salvador Dali Museum, I only had time to do one day trip from Barcelona, and after much deliberation, I chose to go to Montserrat.
Montserrat literally means “the serrated mountain” as it is a multipeak mountain range that looks like one long mountain whose top was sloppily cut off by a hacksaw. This mountain refuge is located about an hour by car and two hours by public transport from Barcelona. Going up the winding roads to the mountain gives you spectacular views of the Catalonian valleys below. The mountain of Montserrat has been a holy place for thousands of years, with Romans building a temple dedicated to the goddess Venus in pre-Christian times. Montserrat’s holiness within Christianity is due to it being the home to the Virgin of Montserrat statue. According to legend, this 38-inch black wooden statue in painted polychrome of the Madonna and Child was created in the early days of Christianity and taken to the mountain in 718 by one account (and 880 by another); researchers, however, believe it is more likely that the statue dates back to the 12th century. Regardless, there has been a Christian presence on the mountain since about the 9th century; however, the famous monastery, the Santa Maria de Montserrat Abbey, is about to celebrate its 1000 year anniversary. Founded in 1025 by Benedictine monks, the abbey today has approximately 70 monks still reside inside.
The monastery is nestled in a breathtaking setting underneath the peak of the mountain and surrounded by conglomerate sedimentary rock. The large, smooth rocks provide a dramatic backdrop for the monastery and provide a combination of the greatest beauty of nature and humankind. The rock of the mountain was used in building both the monastery and also Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia. From the cliffs of the monastery, you can see out to the Mediterranean Sea, and on a clear day even the island of Mallorca is visible.
In the 16th century, construction began on a basilica; however, this was destroyed by Napoleon Bonaparte’s army in 1811. Shortly thereafter, the current basilica was built and was declared by the pope to be a minor basilica in 1881. It was during this same year, after the supposed 1000th anniversary of the Virgin of Montserrat statue arriving at its current location that the pope declared the Virgin of Montserrat the patron saint of Catalonia. During the era of the Spanish Civil War, the monks were oppressed and some were killed, and during the Franco regime, Montserrat became a place of refuge for dissidents of the dictator. The façade of the church is from the mid-20th century as is much of its interior artwork, but there are also still 16th century sepulcher tombs and a 15th century cross on the altar. The nave of the church is 110 feet high, 224 feet long, and 70 feet wide. The Virgin of Montserrat statue is above the altar in its own room, which you can get to by going through a back passageway into an elaborate chapel room, and then to the shrine; one of the assistants who helped build it was a very young Antoni Gaudi. You can go and take a gander at the statue but you will not be able to stay long due to the long line of visitors and those making religious pilgrimage behind you. Prior to the mountain being accessible by train or road, the faithful would climb the mountain to reach the monastery and pray before the statue.
The abbey is part of the town of Monistrol de Montserrat, a town of nearly 3000 inhabitants. Upon arriving at the abbey, you will see multiple locals with stands selling their local cheese and other treats and handicrafts. You can go around and sample the various cheeses and purchase the ones that are your favorites. At the monastery, they also make their own liquors, which you can try and purchase in the liquor store, which are very enjoyable. Also at the monastery is a museum with many famous art pieces from 15th century artists like El Greco, modern art from prominent Catalonians, and ancient artifacts from Egypt, Mesopotamia, and other places. Also at Montserrat is the original printing press of 1499, one of the world’s first, which is still functional. At Montserrat, should you have time to spend at least a whole day, you can go up a funicular to the top of the mountain and look down at the monastery, or you can take a funicular to beneath the monastery to find another chapel and shrine that you can visit.
Finally, no trip to Montserrat is complete without hearing a performance by the Escolania de Montserrat, the boys’ choir of Montserrat that is among the world’s oldest and most famous, dating back to 1307. Watching the boys, age 9 to 14, from various towns in Catalonia process into the nave, and listening to them perform as their angelic voices bounce throughout the basilica, is an incredible and moving experience. Make sure you get tickets ahead of time for their performance to ensure you get a seat.
While Barcelona is fun, if you need to get out of the big city, go to a place that combines spirituality and nature, which captures the pride, culture history, importance, beauty, and countryside of Catalonia. Even if you are not a Catholic (which I am not), you will surely be moved by a visit to Montserrat, and it will be one of your most worthwhile days in Spain’s Catalonia region.
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