Montserrat

An hour north of Barcelona lies a breathtaking mountain range that only intensifies your appreciation for the Catalan region of Spain. It is as though Montserrat was strategically placed there for all those who passed by it to stop and smile... and to have yet another confirmation that God not only lives, but most definitely loves us.

Granted, I'm not the only one who has felt this way. In 880 a small group of shepherd children saw a bright light descending from the sky in the Montserrat mountains. In the same moment the children heard angels singing and the music filled their hearts. They ran home to tell their parents, who sceptically went to the mountains to see for themselves. They had the same experience. Now on the top of the Montserrat mountains sits a Benedictine monastery which is where the vision the shepherd children had took place.

You can't help but stand in awe at the beauty of the mountain range. And in that awe you find yourself wondering how a monastery was ever constructed there since it takes a death defying cable car ride up just to reach it.

The best way to get there, so we learned, is to buy an all inclusive ticket at the train station in Barcelona. The 36 Euro ticket includes the round trip train ride, the round trip cable car ride, free lunch, round trip rides on the funicular to go further up the mountain or down into the caves, and free entrance into the museums. It was definitely well worth the money, and a great way to spend a day.

The views were phenomenal. The basilica was stunning. The hikes you're able to take will make you want to stay there forever. And every day at 1:00pm visitors pile in the basilica to sit in admiration as the boys choir sings for 10 minutes.

The boys are from the boarding school at the monastery and for a few months when their voices are at the right pitch they are able to sing in the choir.

Suffice it to say,... I really liked the place.