Thursday, July 5, 2012

Day 5 - A walk in the park

Living in New York, I am spoiled to have two wonderful and large parks nearby, Central Park and the even greater and closer Prospect Park in Brooklyn. That does not mean that I can't enjoy and appreciate other parks, and that is exactly what I did yesterday.

After the afternoon session of classes a few classmates and I went for churros and chocolate (yes, in the afternoon, so???) and then for a walk in one of Santiago's parks. This particular park is not the largest in Santiago - that would be Alameda on the western side of the city - but another, smaller, but by no means tiny, park - Parque de San Domingos de Bonaval - on the eastern side of the city.

From my understanding this is a relatively new park. It's not that the location hasn't existed for many years, but it was only officially made a park in 1994. The park is divided into three different parts. The first belongs to the Convento de Boneval where the monks continue to cultivate various fruits and vegetables.

The second part is an old cemetary where there are incredible views of the city (see pictures). This cemetary was particularly interesting because it was not like any cemetary I have seen in the United States (this of course does not mean no such cemetary exists, just that I haven't see one!). I have included a picture of this as well because I felt it was quite unique for someone who is not from around here. I haven't asked if it is typical of cemetaries in Spain, but I am curious to know. It seems a bit like a masoleum, but outdoors.

The final section of the park is an oak grove which is separated from the rest of the park by a stone wall. This final section I did not have much time to investigate, but I do plan on returning to check it out.

Galego words of the day:
Os dias da semana
Luns - Monday
Martes - Tuesday
Mércoles - Wednesday
Xoves - Thursday
Venres - Friday
Sábado - Saturday
Domingo - Sunday




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