What follows is my attempt to chronicle and recreate a few of experiences in Spain and France this summer for those interested. Focus primarily will rest on history and religion, and in particular the history that lives in the churches and castles that line the pilgrim roads to Santiago Compostella in Spain.

The Muslim conquest of the Holy Land in the Seventh and Eighth centuries caused the traditional pilgrimage to Jerusalem to become increasingly dangerous. As the Middle Ages unfolded, the journey across the Pyrenees and into Spain to the traditional burial place of St. James became the dominant pilgrimage route. The results were dramatic. The first great wave of Christian churches in the Middle Ages sprung up along the pilgrim roads - the age of Romanesque was born. Architecture, spirituality, culture and politics would all be dramatically affected by the great mass of Medieval Christians on the road to Compostella.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Friends

Isabel was responsible for another beautiful chance meeting. During mass she kept smiling at these two little girls in front of us. After mass they continued to play with her. We began talking with their parents and they invited us over to their summer home for drinks.

The grandfather turned out to be the French ambassador to Vietnam. They were an extremely engaging family and we had a wonderful time

They are Parisians and this is their family home. During WWI the allies were camped only 4 miles from their home. They aquired this stove when the war was over. What a beautiful collector's piece.
Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)