APRIL 2006 - LA VALL D'ARAN

In april 2006 we went to La Vall d’Aran, which is in the North of Catalonia. We needed to breath fresh air of the mountains. We had the hotel in Barruera, a little mountain village with cobbled streets, stones houses and sloping roofs. It’s only to 4 km from Boí, another village and 8 from Boí-Taull, an ski floor. The name of our hotel was Farré D’Avall and is managed by a family: the mother, the father and the daughter. I recommend it because is very cozy, the meal is home made and very good and they go to treat you brilliantly. Is small. Only has 16 rooms but is very fine. Our room looked like a little apartment but without kitchen: at the entry you found the sofa, a little table, the furniture with a TV, a table and four chairs. On the right there was a door wich was the sleeping room and the bathroom and had shape of garret. We choose the half pension, so we had the breakfast and the dinner and we paid only a little more of 200 € for four nights. The breakfast was very good: toast bread, juices, butter, mermelade, sausages, milk, chocolate, coffe, tea,...At night there was always a menu, but if you didn’t like the meal, they cooked for you a hamburger, an omelette, etc.

FIRST DAY: We were to  have a walk by the village, we see some villages in the nearest, like Boí and Taüll and we had lunch here in a restaurant with a very good price and good meal. In fact all the restaurants in the area are goods. In the evening we went to Andorra because is very close. Andorra is a little country in the Pirineos wich I recommend you visit when you can.

SECOND DAY: We went from a port mountain to Baqueira, another ski floor which is famous because there goes to skiing the king of Spain. There was a few snow. We were in more villages like Salardú, Bossòst and Vielha, the biggest village in La Vall d’Aran.

 

THIRD DAY: There is a Natural Park in the area called Parc Nacional d’Aigües Tortes with two big lakes called the Saint Mourice Lakes. We wanted to go to see them, but our car it doesn’t work very well, so we did a diferent itinerary: we parked the car in a parking and we made a hike of two hours by the mountain that was very good. There were a few lakes, like Rabbit’s lake and some waterfalls, a very nice place. The path was well indicated and there was two information points, where you could find all kind of information you needed. At the end of the trip there was a lookout with impressive views. You could go by jeep but you must to pay 8 € by person. We prefered to go by feet. Once we arrived I thought the Saint Mourice Lakes were not very far, so I asked in a information point, but they told me it was more than 6 hours and it was a path for expert people. We needed special equipment, so we leave it alone. With two hours by feet was enough.

We ate the sandwitches that prepared for us the women who managed our hotel in the morning, sat in the shore of the pond and we rest for a time, but we had to come back early because a thunderstorm was forming. We were so tired, so we were all the rest of the day resting.

FOURTH DAY: We come back home!