Every stone of walled city cries out with history

Iberian people were here 2,500 years ago, the Via Augusta ran by linking Rome to Cadiz, and Napoleon had it under siege in 1809. Still, it's been untrampled by mass tourism.

Overshadowed by its elegant Catalan neighbor, Barcelona, or bypassed en route to the isolated, sandy coves of the Mediterranean's nearby Costa Brava, Girona belongs on any short list of Spain's most enticing cities, joining Seville, Cordoba and Granada in the south, or San Sebastian in the northern Basque country.


The centerpiece of Girona is this vast Gothic cathedral. The site has long been an area of worship with a mosque and a synagogue once nearby. AP photo

The provincial capital of 73,000 is a quilt of architectural styles mixing modern and classical, but the focal point is the medieval old city, which spreads out beneath ancient walls and watchtowers on a hillside on the east bank of the Onyar river.

The old city is compact and easily walkable. The centerpiece is the vast Gothic cathedral with its Baroque facade poised above an imposing staircase. The site has long been an area of worship with a mosque and synagogue once occupying nearby ground.

Building was begun in 1292 and much of the structure dates from the 14th and 15th centuries. The belltower is Romanesque and the aisleless Gothic nave is one of the world's widest at 75 feet. But the cathedral is only one of the ancient churches, buildings and monuments that line the cobbled streets.

A few minutes walk alongside the intact medieval walls is the Jewish quarter -- known as the Call -- a maze of steep, shaded alleyways centered on Carrer La Forca. It was home to one of Iberia's most prosperous Jewish communities in the 13th century, numbering about 1,000 -- 20 percent of the city's population at the time.

A good way to view the old city is from atop the walls. It will take about 30 minutes to go from one end near the Placa Catalunya to the northern end near the cathedral and Arab Baths.

Few cities its size have more museums. Girona, originally named Oppidum Gerunda by the Romans and located just 35 miles from the French border, has a half-dozen, including Spain's only Cinema Museum, the City History Museum, the Archaeological Museum, the Art Museum (located in the Episcopal Palace) and the Jewish History Museum, located on the site of Girona's third and last synagogue.

Girona had a strong Arab presence for several hundred years following the Moorish conquest of the Iberian peninsula in 711. The first reference to Jews in Girona dates from 898, and they stayed until they were expelled with Muslims -- or forced to convert -- under the 1492 edict of expulsion.

"There is a lot of history behind every stone in the city," says Neus Casellas, who works at the Jewish History Museum. "Cross the river and you are in a modern city with a dynamic university. We are a small city, so you feel things are on a human scale where you can walk anywhere."

Her boyfriend, Roger Martinez, a Web designer, seldom forgets Girona's proximity to mountain and sea.

"The Mediterranean is an hour away, the Pyrenees are an hour away and there's Barcelona. It's really like a village, not a large city," he says.

Another good way to view Girona is from its dozen bridges that join the medieval eastern half in the space of a mile with the new city on the western bank.

"This is the river with the least water and the most bridges in all of Europe," a retired man joked over his morning coffee near Sant Feliu church. "Sometimes there is hardly any water, but that hasn't kept us from adding bridges."

A footbridge linking Placa de Independencia on the western side with the Rambla Llibertat -- a promenade of shops, cafes and shaded archways on the eastern side -- offers a postcard view.

This is where Girona shows its color.

Forearm-length carp swarm in the shallows under the bridge. Lining the river's edge are four- and five-story apartments, cubist-shaped buildings painted orange, yellow and red. Blue bamboo blinds and wash hanging out to dry add to the collage.

Placa de Independencia offers a glimpse of the day-to-day city on the western side, which houses Girona's 12,000-student university -- founded by Alfonso V in 1446 -- and the pine-lined Parc de la Devesa. The porticoed square is a good place for a coffee or snack. Try Cafe Gran-Via, a modernist French creation dating from 1922 with its curving wooden bar.

Catalonia -- along with the Basque country -- has many of Spain's best cooks. It's also known for cutting-edge design and fashion, and a love of its language -- Catalan, a Romance tongue spoken by about 6 million.

The best place to combine food and design might be up and down the Ramba Llibertat, a tree-shaded pedestrian walkway that runs parallel to the river on the eastern side. The helpful tourist office is also here, just 100 yards north of the bridge named Pont de Pedra.

Parallel to the Rambla is Carrer dels Ciutadans, which passes through the archways of the Placa del Vi -- site of the city hall. It offers places to try out local specialties such as anchovies, botifarra sausage, suquet (fish stew) or fuet, another sausage. Nearby Placa de l'Oli is another tapa area worth exploring.

For sweets, try the cream-filled, fried dough delights called xuixos (pronounced "shoe-shoes").

For a third and spectacular view, drive above the city to the well-off residential area of Montjuic (Mountain of the Jews), which was once Girona's Jewish burial ground.

"We value the monumental, the cultural heart of the city," says Isabel de Soler, who runs the tourist office. "We were once known as a gray, drab place. But now everything is very well taken care of, and of course the shopping -- but you can do that anywhere."

Girona, though it has limited hotel accommodations, is a good place for setting off to explore northeastern Catalonia. The Salvador Dali Triangle is nearby, which includes Figueras (Dali's birthplace and home of the Dali Museum), the Pubol Castle, and his longtime home on the sea in Cadaques.

The Mediterranean Costa Brava east of Girona is less than an hour away, although the twisting roads can make for longer trips and the place is hopping with tourists in July and August. It offers secluded coves, long stretches of sand and hasn't been as overbuilt as Spain's southern Costa del Sol.

Northwest from Girona in the Pyrenees foothills is Catalunya's lake and volcano district, situated between the towns of Banyoles and Olot. And the modernist, art nouveau gem of Barcelona is barely an hour away to the southwest.

If you go...

GETTING THERE: The easiest way to get to Girona is by flying to Barcelona, which is served by many major airlines. Train or car travel from Barcelona northeast to Girona will take just over an hour. Buzz, a low-cost airline, flies to Girona from London-Stansted; one-way prices range from about $70 to $240. The Web site is www.buzzaway.com Low-cost airlines Easyjet (www.easyjet.com) and Go (www.go-fly.com) fly from London to Barcelona.

LODGING: Hotel rooms may be difficult to find in July and August in Girona. The city of 73,000 has seven hotels, two 4-star, two 3-star, one 2-star and two 1-star. The tourist office on Rambla Llibertat 1. The Girona city hall also runs a welcome service and will help with hotels and guided tours. The average hotel price for a double in the summer season is about $85.

DINING: They eat evening meals late in all parts of Spain. You'll be alone if you arrive before 9 p.m. Tapas, the elaborate snacks served while sipping a beer or glass of wine, are available in many bars. Cheese, shrimp, ham, olives -- take your pick -- are often a better alternative to dinner. The best way to eat lunch is the fixed-price, two- or three-course menus costing between $8 and $12.

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