Quaint with Splendour | Girona

Girona is the often known as the budget flights airport, just merely a gateway into the almighty popular and intoxicating city of Barcelona.  If you are hopping on one of the countless transfer buses on the Girona-Barcelona via Autopista 7, I hope you would heed my advice and spend a day or two in Girona.

No, it doesn’t have a dazzling array of Modernist architecture, Gaudi didn’t make his mark here and the Costa Brava is some drive away.  So it isn’t the dynamo that Barcelona is.  But it is indeed has its own magic to draw you in.  It’s also a good escape if you, like me, might need to take a breather from Barcelona’s never-ending buzz in the senses.

We went to Girona on a whim with an overnight bag packed just in case we stumble onto a nice, medieval castle to sleep in as we explored northern Catalunya by car.  Well, there were no castles on the way and only rooms in 300-year old buildings which our pockets were not big enough for.

A few hours strolling in Girona, we headed towards the coastal town of Tossa Del Mar, one hand hoping maybe we might stumble onto an interesting place to sleep.  Al fresco lunch by the beach under the sun is quite a luxury in winter.  Satisfied with our meals but not with the rooms, we drove along the coast northwards to San Feliu de Guixols.  Five minutes drive through and we were out, nothing quite attracted our attention.

We were tempted once again by Girona, so we headed back to spend the night, having dinner at a French bistro I spotted earlier in the day.  Only today, I looked the Girona’s tourism website and realised there was more to see.  Turning another year wiser means I prefer to speak less, plan less and fret less.  We went with no maps, no clues and no plans.  We had a great time.  And now there’s another reason to return.  Things don’t always end with a fullstop.