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May 28 - 29, 2002

Small is Beautiful?

Not Always

Manfred Pfluegl

Keywords: Andorra, Spain, Segre Valley, Balaguer, La Seu d'Urgell, Andorra la Vella, Les Escaldes, Encamp, El Serrat, Noguera Valley, Sort, Gerri de la Sal, Tremp, tourist, travel trip report, travel log, travelogue.

Andorra

Andorra is a tiny country. All I knew about it was that it is small in size, that it lies high in the mountains, that it is famous for skiing and shopping and not much more. Based on that I had this idyllic image in my mind: Andorra as a tiny country with tiny tranquil villages high in the Pyrenees Mountains, cows on the meadows and plenty of room to hike during summer and ski during winter.

I have been badly wrong with this mental image or expectation. It was a fantastic day. The sun was out; it was hot, maybe 25 degrees (77F). As soon as I crossed the border I was shocked though. Andorra, the whole country, only has about 50,000 inhabitants. It looked like all 50,000 people where out on the road driving their cars around because it was stop-and-go traffic starting at the border line. Traffic jams and massive parking problems were the most obvious first impressions. There are only two roads in the whole country. One road crossed from south to north and thereby connects with Spain and France. This road is 33km (20 miles) long. This also gives you the full length of the country. The other road is a dead-end road that leads into the mountain village of El Serrat and ends there. I had the impression that 50,000 vehicles were on these two roads at the same time.

The second observation was that this is not a tranquil place. The main road, the one running north-south, is lined with 5-story buildings and shopping centers. The whole valley is jam packed with houses and people. This is not a country of meadows with cows where agriculture is of primary importance. This is a country where there are more tax- free shops than anything else.

As I strolled down the road in the capital, Andorra la Vella, every other store is an electronics shop. The remaining stores are perfume outlets and anything else that is expensive. The prices are very good and I buy a replacement camera and zoom lens for my girl friend to substitute for the one stolen on our last trip to Guatemala. Other than duty free shops there is not much else to see in Andorra la Vella.

Just north is the town of Les Escaldes. The houses line the road without break since the Spanish border. I wouldn't know that I have left Andorra la Vella and entered Les Escaldes hadn't it been for the street signs. Les Escaldes holds the most famous landmark of the country, a modern glass structure that imitates the Pyrenees peaks. This building is actually a spa with various pools and all sorts of water relaxation themes. I missed the photo of the month for not having a camera or film. The tall towering glass peak was being cleaned by a single person, hanging on a security rope and climbing this towering, sun reflecting, and modern crystal structure. In the background of this were the real peaks of the Pyrenees. It was such a good contrast of the modern glass peak with the rocky mountain peaks and the climber being the dot on the "i".

The next town north is Encamp. Here is a cable car that leads to the mountain top and here are also opportunities to get away from the crowds. Various little trails lead into the mountains. Some buildings from the Middle Ages spice up the trails. There is one trail that starts at a medieval chapel and lookout tower. From the top of the tower is a great view into the swimming pools of the villas of the rich but also into the mountains, exposing some slightly snow covered summits on both sides.

North of Encamp the road keeps climbing and then crosses into France through a tunnel. But I didn't make it that far. Honestly, I had enough with the constant traffic jams. It took me a complete hour to drive the 10km (6 miles) from the capital back to the Spanish border.

Andorra. What a disappointment for me. Instead of a set of tranquil mountain villages I found traffic jams and a culture driven by shopping malls. Andorra is like Monte Carlo without the sea or like Lichtenstein. A tiny rich country with a high standard of living. A place where many people want to live but with a limited geographical area and hence crowded.

Spain - Segre Valley

A lot more to my liking is the countryside just south of Andorra. The Spanish valley of the Segre River runs all the way from the border crossing between Spain and Andorra to the town of Balaguer in the south. The highlight of the villages along the valley is La Seu d'Urgell, some 20km (12 miles) south of Andorra. The culture is the same here, the language is the same (Catalan), but La Seu d'Urgell has a lot more open space and less cars. It was once an Olympic village but the interesting part is the historic center of town that dates back into the Middle Ages. The church is a gem. It is from the 12th century and the best conserved Romanic church in north eastern Spain. The church is very appealing. It is extremely simple, all made in stone without any additional decoration such as paintings or wooden statues. The walls and columns are thick as you would expect from a church 800 years old. The columns however also have interesting masonry work and stone carvings of a pattern that I never have seen before. The transept was architected with a second faked floor formed by a row of small man-sized columns and round arches. Behind this row of arches is a series of windows letting lots of natural light in, making the church a well lit and energetic place.

Balaguer is also worth a stop. The medieval town walls can be seen from miles in the distance as they are built on a small hill overlooking the wide and flat valley. The narrow alleys are charming and the river runs right through town with ducks and geese on the shore.

Spain - Noguera Valley

One valley to the west is the Noguera Valley named after the Noguera River. From north to south are villages like Sort, Gerri de la Sal, and Tremp. Getting to Sort is half the fun. It is a 50km (30 mile) drive through the mountains with gorgeous views and I had the road all to myself. On these 50 km I might have seen five cars in all. Sort also dates back to the same time as all the other villages, 12th century, and the castle is under reconstruction. The main attraction of Sort is rafting. I had no time for that but I watched a few kayaks gently glide down the rather calm river. The lack of white water action at this time of the year is made up with other sights. The valley is lined with beautiful small villages, narrow gorges, medieval chapel and castles.

In the past this was a rich area. The money was made in salt. From the riches of the salt the castles and churches were built. Even today the name of a village "Gerri de la Sal" reminds us of that. "Sal" is Spanish for "salt". Gerri de la Sal is a small village; home to a total of 84 inhabitants I was told. Here are trailheads for various hikes that can be made of foot and short stroll leads to a medieval monastery right on the river.

The white gold "salt" was synonym with money those days. Even in the present salt stands for money. "Salary" comes from the word "salt". Workers were paid in salt (sal) and that payment was called "salary" ("salario").

Like in various other places in the world one set of gorges on the Noguera River is called Hell's Gorge ("Garganta del Infierno"). There are gorges with the same name on Tenerife and elsewhere. These can also be hiked on foot, no kayak necessary. As a special effect a waterfall falls directly from the vertical cliffs into the river below.

As the valley widens towards the south the river is dammed in various places creating large reservoirs. Even here the landscape is still interesting although flatter. Some ancient, little castles overlook the artificial lakes and add to the charm.

Summary

Opinions are by definition not objective. My biased view is clear. I prefer without the shadow of a doubt the Spanish valleys with their wide openness, their emptiness and their calmness over the tightly packed, higher and steeper valleys of the tiny country of Andorra. Small is beautiful? Well, not always as we see.

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