Viveiro

This town in the Lugo region of A Mariña boasts a Holy Week that has been declared a festival of international tourist interest and stands out, among other reasons, for the artistic value of its images, some of which are articulated. The “Paso” of the Supper, created at the beginning of the 19th century by a craftsman using local sailors as models to shape the figures of the Apostles, is more than two hundred years old. The processions of the Last Supper, The Arrest, The Encounter and The Holy Burial are some of the most emotional and colourful of its usual calendar. This year it will not be possible to enjoy them in the street to avoid crowds, but worship will continue in the churches and exhibitions and virtual activities will be organised.

More information at http://semanasantaviveiro.com/

Ferrol

Since 2014, Easter Week in Ferrol has also been recognised as a festival of international tourist interest. From Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday, the five brotherhoods of the city organise a total of 24 processions that fill the streets of Ferrol with fervour and colour. The main events take place between the neighbourhoods of Esteiro and A Magdalena on Wednesday, Thursday and Good Friday. This year, these processions will be replaced by alternative events, which will take place in the headquarters of each Easter brotherhood and in the Angustias, Amboage and Contralmirante Azarola Gresillón squares, respecting the sanitary measures and the capacity restrictions established by the authorities.

More information at http://www.semanasantaferrol.org/

Santiago de Compostela

The streets of the city of the Apostle are the unbeatable setting for the development of a Holy Week of regional tourist interest that has undergone an intense revitalisation in recent years, as demonstrated by the fact that Compostela now has more than a dozen brotherhoods. Its members are responsible for organising the 17 processions which recreate the main episodes of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The events planned for this occasion will take place between 26 March and 11 April, although the processions will also be dispensed with in order to avoid the health risks associated with crowds of people. Instead, the activities organised by the confraternities will be moved to their own headquarters and other enclosed spaces where capacity can be controlled and health measures can be complied with.

More information at https://www.semanasantasantiago.es/es/inicio/

Fisterra

The traditional festivities of Easter Week in Fisterra, also declared a festivity of Galician tourist interest, add a singular recreation in this town of the Costa da Morte that year after year congregates thousands of people, becoming the main event of its extensive programme. It takes place on Easter Sunday and the locals themselves are responsible for bringing to life the protagonists of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As last year, the promoters of the activities have had to cancel the processions and the aforementioned representation, but the liturgical acts planned inside the parish church of Santa María das Areas are maintained, and to avoid that the capacity limitations prevent the faithful and the curious from taking part, the Xunta de Confrarías da Semana Santa de Fisterra will broadcast them live through its space on Facebook.

More information at https://www.facebook.com/semanasanta.fisterra/

Lugo

The celebration of alternative activities centred on the processions that should take place every day is the idea on which those in charge of the board of brotherhoods of Lugo are working to keep Holy Week alive in the city of the wall, a festival also of regional interest. Thus, the neighbours will not be able to see the procession of the Holy Sacrament (a singular event linked to the privilege that the Cathedral enjoys to exhibit it permanently) nor the colourful encounter between Jesus Christ and the Virgin, but they will be able to join, with the consequent capacity limitations, the events that will be organised on special days such as Palm Sunday, and Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. 

More information at http://www.semanasantadelugo.com/es/noticias

Mondoñedo

The processions that take place from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday make Holy Week one of the main festivities in the Mondoñedo calendar and have led to it also being considered a festival of tourist interest in Galicia. Its origins date back to at least the 16th century, and although on this occasion the locals will not be able to take to the streets to attend these acts of great fervour and solemnity, they will be able to go to the monumental cathedral to follow the different masses planned throughout this festive cycle. 

More information at https://www.facebook.com/turismomondonedo

Betanzos

Declared of regional tourist interest in 2017, the Holy Week of Betanzos stands out especially for the processions of Palm Sunday and Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, being the one popularly known as Os Caladiños the most famous of them all. For the second consecutive year, the streets will not be the scene of the traditional route of the “pasos” and the brotherhoods and Nazarenes, but the liturgical acts will keep their spirit alive and the social networks will contribute to their promotion as it happened a year ago, when they were broadcast through the YouTube channel of the Pastoral Unit of Betanzos.

More information at https://www.facebook.com/semanasantabetanzos

Cangas

The artistic value of its “pasos”, some of them articulated to give more realism to the celebration, its antiquity and its roots make the Holy Week of Cangas one of the most outstanding in the province of Pontevedra and also allowed it to be declared of tourist interest in Galicia. Some of its brotherhoods were founded three centuries ago and their work has contributed to the fact that processions such as the Holy Supper, the Denial of St. Peter or the Holy Meeting attract large crowds. None of them will go out this year, but some liturgical acts are maintained and brotherhoods such as the Hermandad de los Dolores y la Soledad encourage residents to decorate their balconies with commemorative flags.

More information at https://cangas.gal/es/areas/turismo/fiestas-y-festivales/semana-santa

Paradela (Meis)

The involvement of the entire parish of Paradela, in the municipality of Meis, Pontevedra, has made its Easter Week one of the most outstanding in Galicia and therefore also of regional tourist interest. The locals themselves become actors for a few days to give life to the main characters of the central episodes of the biblical story: the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, the Last Supper, the arrest of Christ, the trial, the Stations of the Cross…. All of these are re-enactments which, like a year ago, will fall out of the programme of activities on this occasion due to the covid restrictions, although the brotherhood will probably once again take advantage of social networks to organise a Virtual Holy Week.

More information at http://bit.ly/SemanaSantaParadela

Santiago de Compostela

Monuments to St. Francis and the Sacred Heart

The city where he spent a good part of his life houses several of Francisco Asorey’s works. The most visible and important is the monument to Saint Francis of Assisi on which the sculptor worked between 1925 and 1930 to commemorate the seventh centenary of the death of the Italian saint. The sculpture is located in front of the façade of the monastery that the saint himself had ordered to be built at the beginning of the 13th century in Compostela after his pilgrimage to the tomb of the Apostle. In addition, in the courtyard of the Compañía de María school there is a sculpture of the Sacred Heart of Jesus sculpted by Asorey in 1940.

Lalín

Monuments to Loriga and Aller

There are two works by Asorey in the municipality of Lalín, although in this case, unlike the ones in Compostela, they are not religious creations, but two pieces designed to pay homage to two outstanding personalities of the capital of the Deza region. The first, dating from 1933, is dedicated to the aviator Joaquín Loriga, famous for being part of the Elcano Squadron that completed an aerial travel between Madrid and the Philippines in 1926 and for being one of the pioneers of aviation in Galicia. His neighbours had started a popular subscription to give him an aeroplane, but after his tragic death in a plane crash in Madrid they decided to use the money to erect a monument to him, which was commissioned to Asorey and inaugurated in 1933. At the end of the 1950s, the sculptor’s talent was again called upon from Lalín to immortalise in stone another illustrious Lalín native, the mathematician, priest and astronomer Ramón María Aller Ulloa.

A Coruña

Monument to Manuel Curros Enríquez

The gestation of the imposing monument with which the city of A Coruña remembers the writer and journalist Manuel Curros Enríquez lasted almost three decades and was marked by various problems. The death of several important members of the Real Academia Galega (the entity promoting the tribute), doubts about the location of the monument, the fact that the first competition for ideas was not successful and the insufficient funds to undertake the project with which Asorey won the second competition were some of the obstacles that had to be overcome. It was finally inaugurated in 1934 in the gardens of Méndez Núñez, but the initial plan to deposit the ashes of Curros in a space provided for this purpose at the back of the building was never completed.

Samos

Monument to Father Feijóo

The sculpture with which those responsible for the monastery of San Julián de Samos wanted to commemorate the passing through the monastery of one of its most illustrious monks, Benito Jerónimo Feijóo y Montenegro, better known as Father Feijóo (1676-1764) and one of the most outstanding representatives of the Enlightenment, was also awaited. The project had begun in 1935, but had to be put on hold because of the Civil War and was not taken up again until the 1940s. Finally, the statue sculpted by Asorey and placed in the centre of the cloister named after Feijoo himself was unveiled in 1947.

Vigo

Monument to García Barbón

The importance that the businessman and patron of the arts José García Barbón (1831-1909) had in Vigo can be seen in buildings such as the theatre that bears his name and the School of Arts and Crafts. And also in the monument with which the city wanted to show its gratitude a few years after his death to this emigrant who had prospered in Cuba and who, on his return to Galicia, after spending a few years in his native Verín, decided to settle permanently in Vigo. In this case, Asorey designed a large sculpture with the figure of García Barbón seated and the god Hermes presiding over the whole from above. The piece was inaugurated in 1927 by King Alfonso XIII in the avenue also dedicated to the patron of the arts and very close to the house he had lived in the city, but years later it was moved to a roundabout in Isaac Peral street. Another work by Asorey in Vigo is the sculpture dedicated to Eduardo Cabello, the engineer responsible for the works on the city’s port. This piece is located in the Bouzas area and was inaugurated only a year after the García Barbón sculpture.

Pontevedra

Monument to Manuel Barreiro Cabanelas

Manuel Barreiro Cabanelas (1867-1950) is another emigrant who prospered in emigration (Brazil), was noted for his philanthropic works and was immortalised by Francisco Asorey. The important donations he made to the Provincial Hospital of Pontevedra, which allowed it to expand its services on several occasions, led the Provincial Council to promote the construction of a statue in the early 1940s, which has changed its location at least a couple of times, but without ever moving away from the hospital façade. It was originally located above a fountain, but this was removed during one of these changes of location.

Mondariz

Monument to Doctor Rodríguez

Also related to medicine is the sculpture unveiled in Mondariz in 1925. Maximino Rodríguez Fornos was a doctor who died as a result of a fatal infection contracted during his intervention in a complicated childbirth. In homage to his dedication and by popular subscription, Asorey was commissioned to create a piece in which, next to the bust of the honoured man, there are figures that can be interpreted both as Greek gods and as the protagonists of the episode that caused the doctor’s death.

Lugo

Monument to Mayor López Pérez

Mayor of Lugo for four different periods between 1905 and 1931, as well as being a lawyer and president of the Círculo de las Artes, Ángel López Pérez left an indelible mark on the city of the Wall to the point of being honorarily designated “perpetual mayor”. Once again, Asorey was the sculptor chosen to turn into art a tribute for posterity, which can still be seen in Rosalía de Castro Park. The sculpture, which includes a fountain and a pond, was unveiled in 1958, but plans for a neighbourhood tribute to Ángel López Pérez dated back to the early 1930s.

Marín

Statues for the Naval School

The Marín Naval Military School can boast of housing a total of four creations by Asorey. All of them were commissioned on the occasion of the transfer of the Navy’s study centre from Cádiz to Marín and its inauguration in 1943. By that date Asorey had already completed a stone sculpture dedicated to the Virgen del Carmen, patron saint of seafarers, and a bronze statue of Álvaro de Bazán, the famous 16th century admiral. In the following years they would be joined by busts dedicated to two other illustrious mariners: Isaac Peral and José Luis Díez.

Cangas

Monument to Soage

Another of the statues that Asorey sculpted to pay homage to a philanthropist can be found in Cangas. The monument dedicated to José Félix Soage is dated 1924 and would have been placed a year before the inauguration of the market square paid for with the donations of this emigrant in Argentina. The piece consists of a bust of Soage and the image of a sailor holding an oar and is located in the gardens that also bear the name of the philanthropist.

Cambados

Monument to Cabanillas and tributes to Asorey

The town where Asorey was born could not remain oblivious to the legacy of the sculptor. In its streets you can see the monument erected in memory of another illustrious neighbour of the town and to whom he was linked by a relationship of friendship and by various parallels in their careers: Ramón Cabanillas. The so-called “poet of the race” was honoured by the “sculptor of the race” with a piece made up of a large block of stone on a pedestal on which a bust of the writer can be seen. The work, located on the Paseo da Calzada, was inaugurated a year before the death of the sculptor, who shortly afterwards would be the recipient of his own tribute. In this case it was two of his disciples, José Cao Lata and Joaquín Gil Armada, who were in charge of shaping a piece inaugurated in 1965 in the square also dedicated to Asorey and in which, in addition to the bronze face of the sculptor, a replica of one of his most famous creations can be seen: A Naiciña.

Rianxo

The town of Rianxo saw Castelao’s birth in 1886 and was his place of residence during most of his childhood and adolescence, as well as after completing his studies of Medicine. It is therefore not surprising that his trace is particularly vivid there. The writer, cartoonist and politician gives his name to the municipal library, located in an old manor house, and to the square where the town hall is located. This is the starting point of the route designed in his memory, which covers many of the places related to Castelao’s life. There are more than 30 different spaces, twenty of which are located in the old town of Rianxo and are easily accessible on foot. The rest are in other parishes of the municipality. Those who follow the Castelao Route can visit places such as the Casa Cándido, which houses the bookshop founded by his friend Cándido C. González; the chapel of San Xosé de Floresta, one of whose coats of arms inspired Castelao to design his coat of arms of Galicia; the bust in his honour located in the Paseo da Ribeira, or his birthplace, acquired by the town council to turn it into a house museum.

Pontevedra

In 1916, the job he obtained in the Geographical Statistical Institute took Castelao to the city of Pontevedra, where he settled and developed an intense intellectual and political activity. He took an active part in the activities of the Museum of Pontevedra from its creation, becoming a member of its first board of trustees and contributing his own materials to its collection in 1931. Thus began the Castelao Collection, which was considerably expanded after his death with the works donated by his widow. Nowadays, the Museum of Pontevedra holds and exhibits an important legacy of more than 2,000 works and pieces by Castelao, to which the original illustrations of the Álbum Nós have just been added. Also recently, those responsible for the institution have decided to baptise with Castelao’s name one of the six buildings that make up the complex, which until now was known simply as Sexto (Sixth). Moreover, the intellectual’s trace in Pontevedra goes beyond the limits of the museum and can be seen in many other parts of the city. The most visible are those where the two sculptures erected in his memory stand. The first of these, the work of Buciños, was placed in 1983 in the Plaza de Santa María. More recent (2006) is the sculptural group created by César Lombera and placed in front of the Café Moderno in homage to the intellectuals who participated in the gatherings that took place there in the 20th century. A bronze Castelao shares the space with Alexandre Bóveda, Ramón Cabanillas, Valentín Paz Andrade, Carlos Casares and the musician Manuel Quiroga.

Santiago de Compostela

The Galician capital was the city where Castelao studied medicine and where he began to develop his artistic interests. And it is also the place where his mortal remains rest, after being transferred to Galicia in 1984 from Buenos Aires, the city to which the exile caused by the Civil War had taken him and where he died in 1950. Castelao now occupies a place of honour in the Pantheon of Illustrious Galicians, located in the old church of the convent of San Domingos de Bonaval, alongside other great figures of Galician culture such as Rosalía de Castro, Domingo Fontán and Ramón Cabanillas. There, the foundation created to preserve his memory celebrates an annual floral offering on the anniversary of his death. A sculpture by Francisco Leiro placed in 1995 in the Alameda in which Castelao’s silhouette appears on a large map of Galicia is another of the tributes that can be seen in Santiago de Compostela.

And also…

But the memory of Castelao is not only present in Rianxo, Pontevedra and Santiago. The intellectual gives his name to streets and educational centres all over Galicia and there are dozens of sculptures, busts and plaques in his honour in cities, towns and villages. One of these monuments can be seen in A Coruña, a city that reserved one of the most prominent spaces in its Plaza del Humor for the rianxeiro. A life-size sculpture of Castelao on a stone bench presides over that place next to another similar piece dedicated to Álvaro Cunqueiro. Ourense, where another statue of the intellectual made by Buciños seems to walk through its streets, Padrón, Lira (Carnota) and Redondela are other localities in which they also pay tribute to the rianxeiro with sculptures, and their number keeps growing. At the end of 2020 and coinciding with the centenary of the magazine Nós Lugo inaugurated a sculpture so that the city of the Wall can also remember Castelao. In A Estrada, the town where Castelao married and in whose cemetery the remains of his wife and son rest, it can be seen in the Manuel Reimóndez Portela Museum the Castelao’s bedroom in the Argentine capital, donated in the 1980s to the municipality by the emigrants in Buenos Aires. 

Ethnoludic Museum of Galicia (Melga)

Ponteceso

In the town of Ponteceso, in the Bergantiños region, you will find this authentic paradise for lovers of games and toys. More than 4,000 pieces from all over the world make up the collection of this center in which millenary cultures, traditional Galician games and examples of how sports have evolved coexist. Visitors will also have the opportunity to participate in some of the activities organised there, such as plasticine workshops, origami or toy construction. More information here.

Grobit Village

O Grove

The Hobbits, characters created by the writer J.R.R. Tolkien, have distant relatives on A Toxa, the small and famous island located in the Pontevedra municipality of O Grove. Their place of residence, the Grobit Village is a children’s park formed by small houses that seem to sprout from the ground (one of them can be visited), play areas and multicoloured logs. The space is located in a forest park of great natural value inhabited also by a couple of gentle donkeys, always ready to interact with visitors. More information here.

Illa do Covo

Pontevedra

This small river island located in the waters of the Lérez River combines culture, leisure and fun to become another ideal destination for families. There you can find the pieces of the artistic project called Illa das Esculturas, areas for walking and a space for family leisure. It is also the setting for an original proposal called Discovering the Illa do Covo, which encourages participants to discover the artistic and natural heritage of the place through a route guided by eight videos. More information here.

City of Culture

Santiago de Compostela

The complex built on Mount Gaiás offers numerous proposals to enjoy a day of games and fun with the family. The climbing wall and the skate track in the Theatre Garden and the play area in the Parque da Balea will delight children and young people, while those who prefer to walk or relax in green surroundings can do so in the Parque del Lago, the Literary Garden or the Galician Forest. More information here.

Domus

A Coruña

Its more than 150 interactive modules make this museum in A Coruña an ideal place to learn and reflect on human beings in a fun and playful way. At present, because of the covid, it offers three activities (maker@domus, atapuerca@domus and mission@domus) with prior reservation of places for groups of people living together. More information here.

Galician Museum of Toy

Allariz

Among the wide range of museums in the town of Allariz, there is also a place for the world of toys. The Galician Museum of Toy, located in the pazo of the old courthouse, houses a collection of games and toys from very different periods. More information here.

Fernández Pacheco Train Collection

Ourense

The history and evolution of the world of railways is condensed in the more than 4,000 pieces of this collection, which ranges from the first steam engines to high speed. Among its scale replicas there is no lack of mythical trains such as the Orient Express or the machine used by Buster Keaton in the film “The General”. The collection can be visited at the Marcos Valcárcel Cultural Centre. More information here.

Briz Farm

Marín

Lakes, slides, games integrated into nature and spaces for walking come together in an enclosure that until the beginning of the 19th century was part of the possessions of the monastery of Oseira. The place also includes a space called Park of the Senses with five different areas to stimulate the touch (with different textures), the ear (with large musical instruments), the eyesight (with the panoramic views offered by the place), the smell (with aromatic plants) and the taste (with fruit trees). More information here.

Kiko Pastur Magic Museum

Santiago de Compostela

Since November 2020, the world of illusionism has its own monographic space in the old town of Compostela. The magician Kiko Pastur is the driving force and director of this museum where it is possible to observe historical articles and pieces, see reproductions of some of the numbers of the great magicians of history and be surprised by optical illusions that will challenge our minds. More information here.

Emblematic places, such as the Plaza del Obradoiro, accesses to religious buildings and even the balconies of some centrally located buildings are some of the places in Santiago where it is still possible to see small holes carved in the stone and joined together by elaborate grooves of the same way. They form figures that quickly bring to mind popular game boards like tic-tac-toe. And that is precisely what they are: the play places in which the inhabitants of the city gathered to spend their leisure time several centuries ago.

Almost two hundred of these boards are visible throughout Compostela, as the members of the cultural association Colectivo A Rula have been able to verify. His is the merit of having studied, accounted for and cataloged this historical and ethnographic heritage that goes unnoticed by many residents and visitors, but which draws the attention of the most careful observers. Along with the chains that adorn the façade of the Hostal de los Reyes Católicos and on the benches on one of the corners of Obradoiro, on the façade of the San Martín Pinario monastery and the Santa Clara church, in the Pazo de Xelmírez, even on the balcony of the Casa do Cabildo you can see these boards whose origins date back to the 17th and 18th centuries.

It is not a unique phenomenon, since the existence of this type of stone engraved panels has also been found in other diverse parts of the planet and in ancient cultures, such as classical Greece and Rome, but Compostela stands out for the large number of examples that have survived to this day. And the figure could increase even more.

The nine holes grouped 3 by 3 and joined in many cases by grooves is the most repeated design on the streets of Santiago. These figures were used as a tic-tac-toe board or, as it is popularly known in Galicia, the “pai fillo nai” (father son mother). It is, therefore, a game that has survived to this day and that in the Galician capital enjoyed great popularity until the middle of the last century, a time when championships were even held using some of these public boards.

Finding any of them only requires a bit of a keen eye or following in the footsteps of the A Rula Collective and to make them come to life just improvise a few pieces. So when you walk through the streets and squares of the city, do not hesitate to enjoy as its former inhabitants did.

The program will take place between September 14th and 18th with guided visits to a dozen spaces and buildings in Santiago and its surroundings: the Gothic House, the Pazo de Amarante, the San Roque Hospital, the Colexio dos Irlandeses-Pazo de Ramirás, the Colexio de Fonseca, the SGAE headquarters, the Hostal dos Reis Católicos, the Construction Labor Foundation, the old Fonte Branca and Ponte Mantible springs and the Capela das Ánimas. Thus, in this offer there are buildings with several centuries of history that recreate the ecclesiastical, university and stately past of the city, with buildings that evoke industries that have disappeared and others that immerse us in modernity.

The visits to each of these spaces will be guided by specialized and accredited personnel and the participating groups will be small in size to guarantee security measures, facilitate access to explanations and ensure the protection of the cultural asset. Participation in the visits is free, but it is necessary to register in advance (as of Wednesday, September 9th) and each interested person can only book a maximum of three visits for two people. It is thus intended to help the activity reach the largest number of visitors possible.

Visits to the Hostal dos Reis Católicos, the Gothic House and the Compostela springs are scheduled for Monday 14th. On Tuesday 14th the Labor Foundation, the Capela das Ánimas, the SGAE headquarters, the Pazo de Amarante, the Hostal dos Reis Católicos and the Hospital de San Roque will open their doors. On Wednesday 16th it will be the time of the Colexio de Fonseca, the Gothic House, the Labor Foundation and the Pazo de Amarante. On Thursday 17th, you will be able to access the Colexio dos Irlandeses, the Capela das Ánimas, the SGAE headquarters, the Hostal dos Reis Católicos and the Hospital de San Roque. And on Friday 18th the Invisible Heritage Week will come to an end with visits to the Labor Foundation, the Gothic House, the Colexio de Fonseca, the Pazo de Amarante and the San Roque Hospital.

You can consult all the information about visits and schedules, and request a place through the web https://patrimonioinvisible.gal/

Mount Pedroso

Mount Pedroso is the viewpoint par excellence of Santiago de Compostela. It is just three kilometers from the town center and can be climbed on foot through a route that crosses an environment of great natural value. Ideally, go at sunset on a clear day, when the last rays of the sun illuminate the facade of the cathedral. If you have your own vehicle, it is also a good option to go at night to see all the lights of the city. At the foot of the mountain is A Granxa do Xesto, a recreational area with a children’s playground, a lake and a hotel establishment. At this point a pedestrian route starts to go up to the viewpoint. You can easily reach A Granxa do Xesto on foot or by car through Calle Casas Novas. Line 9 of urban transport reaches Santo Ignacio do Monte, half a kilometer away.

Cidade da Cultura

At the top of Mount Gaiás is located the Cidade da Cultura, a complex made up of four buildings (and a fifth under construction, the Fontán Building) that constitutes one of the best examples of contemporary architecture. Designed by the American architect Peter Eisenman, the floor plan of the buildings simulates the shape of a scallop through which the streets of the historic center of Compostela run. The Cidade da Cultura offers the visitor a wide range of activities: from leisure to nature, passing through gastronomy, culture or art. In this last area, the Gaiás Center Museum stands out, which behind its 43-meter-high facade houses exhibitions of all kinds. Close to it are the Hejduk Towers, whose night lights are an icon of Santiago as they can be seen from many points of the city. Currently they host the artistic intervention Uncultivated Landscapes, by Cristina García Fontán, which turns them into a miniature Galician forest.

The surroundings of the Cidade da Cultura offer green spaces, ideal for sports or simply taking a relaxed walk. The Galicia Forest, with its 34 hectares of extension and its 5 km of pedestrian and cycling paths, is one of the best options to go to the Gaiás. The Lake Park has almost 5,000 m2 of extension and is equipped with benches and sports equipment for a running circuit. The lake area stands out, as its name suggests, for its beauty with the silhouette of the Eisenman buildings in the background.

The Cidade da Cultura can be accessed either on foot or by bike (through the Galicia Forest or Manuel Fraga Avenue); by car (along Manuel Fraga Avenue or through the direct exit of the AP-9); and by urban bus, through line 9. Although the site is open every day, the museum closes on Mondays.

Galician Center for Contemporary Art and Bonaval Park

Located next to the Museo do Pobo Galego (on Valle Inclán street), the Centro Galego de Arte Contemporánea (CGAC) is another of the symbols of modernity and love for art and culture in Compostela. Designed by the architect Álvaro Siza in 1988, the building combines the modernity of its lines, shapes and volumes with the Galician tradition, represented through the granite that composes it, the most common stone in Galicia.

At the moment there are three exhibitions that can be visited at the CGAC: Crebas, by Francesc Torres; Caosmos, by Antón Patiño; and Wonder Women, a compilation of the works of various artists. In addition, there is a permanent collection with more than 1,200 pieces acquired with the museum’s annual budget or thanks to donations from individuals, institutions or artists. It is open from Tuesday to Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

The CGAC building was built in such a way that it serves as access to the Bonaval park. This green place is one of the most cared for in Compostela. It offers surprising views of the rooftops of the city, and from the highest point the majesty of the cathedral towers stands out. It has an old cemetery and many fountains, which causes the water to be heard running at all times. It is ideal for a picnic or to lie in the shade of one of its trees to read a book or listen to music. It is easily accessible on foot from anywhere in the city, but there is also a car park nearby.

Santiago de Compostela

From June 13 to 21

The central walk of the Alameda of Santiago de Compostela is once again filled with booths to show the latest releases and the wide catalog of bookstores, and to allow readers to enjoy encounters with writers and other diverse proposals such as musical performances and shows for the children.

Vigo

From June 25 to July 4

The Vigo Book Fair, which last year left its usual location to move to Calle Príncipe, will be the second stop on the calendar prepared by the Federation of Bookstores of Galicia.

Ponteareas

From July 9 to 12

For the fourth consecutive year, the town of Ponteareas will have this meeting point between the public and the authors. There will be 4 days of activities and presentations in Plaza Maior.

Redondela

From July 16 to 19

The town of the viaducts also becomes for a few days the town of books. The literary and cultural environment will take the Alameda from the town in mid-July.

Rianxo

From July 23 to 26

Cradle of illustrious writers such as Castelao, Manuel Antonio and Rafael Dieste, the town of Rianxo could not miss one more year to the appointment with the books that is celebrated in the square dedicated to the author of works such as Sempre en Galiza.

A Coruña

From August 1 to 10

About to celebrate fifty editions, the Book Fair of A Coruña will reopen the doors of its booths coinciding with the start of August to encourage the public to incorporate reading among their summer leisure options.

Foz

From August 20 to 23

The oldest book fair in A Mariña and Lugo, and one of the most veteran in all of Galicia, will bring some of the most outstanding authors of Galician literature to Foz in the second half of August.

Monforte de Lemos

From August 26 to 29

Without changing the province, the next appointment of the literary tour of the fairs will be in the capital of the Terra de Lemos region to celebrate an event that this year will reach its twenty-third edition.

Ourense

From October 9 to 12

Originally planned as is the tradition for late spring, the Book Fair of Ourense had to be postponed because of the covid, but readers will not be left without their ration of news and activities. It will be finally in October when this meeting will take place that fills the O Paseo Street with animation.

FAIRS OF OLD AND OPPORTUNITY BOOKS

In several of these cities, in dates close to the Book Fairs, sellers and readers will meet again, but not to consult the latest releases, but to look for the discontinued copies, the old volumes and the bargains that the Fairs of Old and Opportunity Books offers us. In this case there are five appointments to keep in mind: Santiago de Compostela (from June 27 to July 12), Vigo (from July 18 to August 2), A Coruña (from August 14 to 31), Lugo (from September 5 to 20) and Ourense (from September 22 to October 4).

Magosto in Ourense

November 11th. Ourense

After several days of festivities, the Magosto ourensán comes to an end on Monday 11th with chestnut tasting, animation in the streets and the music of Os de Abaixo. It will be the last opportunity to enjoy this year a party declared of tourist interest.

More information here

San Martiño

November 11th. Moaña

The celebrations in honor of San Martiño extended last weekend throughout Galicia, but the central day of the events will be Monday 11th. Religious acts, musical performances and other various proposals will occur throughout the day in locations such as Moaña, where this celebration is considered a festival of tourist interest.

Magosto no Gaiás

November 16th. Santiago de Compostela

The City of Culture will celebrate on Saturday 16th its own “magosto”. The traditional tasting of chestnuts (both roasted and in different “tapas”) will give way to the performance of bagpiper Anxo Lorenzo.

More information here

Lugo Jazz Festival

Until November 16th. Lugo

The concerts of the twenty-ninth edition of the Lugo Jazz Festival will continue this week: Carola Ortiz Quartet and Airelle Besson Quartet (Monday 11th), Karrin Allyson (Tuesday 12th), The Dirty Dozen Brass Band (Wednesday 13th), Ron Carter “Foursight” Quartet (Thursday 14th), Larry Goldings, Peter Bernstein & Bill Stewart (Friday 15th) and Naughty Professor, Wealman and Paris Monster (Saturday 16th). 

More information here

Mushrooms and chestnuts

November 16th and 17th. Various municipalities

Chestnuts and mushrooms continue to prove that they are the queens of autumnal cuisine in Galicia. This weekend “magostos” and mycological conferences will be held in numerous municipalities in Galicia. Check the event agendas in your area and join these tasty proposals.

Cineuropa

All week. Santiago de Compostela

The projections of the Cineuropa festival will continue this week at various places in Santiago de Compostela such as the Teatro Principal, the Salón Teatro, Cinema Numax, the Compostela Multicines and the Pilgrimage Museum.

More information here

Magosto in Ourense

From November 8th to 11th. Ourense

The Magosto is one of the most emblematic celebrations of the city of Ourense. In fact, it has been declared a Festival of tourist interest. This year the program includes about twenty activities, among which are the concerts of Brañas Folk, Susane Seivane, Leilía and Os de Abaixo.

More information here

San Martiño in Moaña

November 9th, 10th and 11th. Moaña

The people of Moaña are now ready to honor its patron, San Martiño, with a party declared of tourist interest. The big day will be next Monday, but during the weekend various events will be held, including those dedicated to the Virgen del Carmen. There will be musical performances and magostos.

More information here

Cineuropa

From November 7th. Santiago de Compostela

The 33rd edition of the Cineuropa festival will have some organizational and content news. The documentaries will have a greater presence in the programming, the animated films will have their own section (Animeuropa) and the percentage of works directed by women will grow up to 40%.

More information here

Lugo Jazz Festival

From November 9th to 16th. Lugo

Jazz returns this week to Lugo with the starts of a festival that is about to turn three decades old. Andrea Motis Quintet (Saturday 9th) and Projecto Miño, the group headed by Baldo Martínez (Sunday 10th), will put the music on this weekend.

More information here

Outono Códax Festival

November 9th. Santiago de Compostela

The ninth edition of this festival devoted to black music offers a double session this Saturday. In the morning there will be a talk and a vermouth session and at night it will be the turn of The Reverend Shawn Amos & The Brotherhood and Los Torontos.

More information here