maddieoboe's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Porto, Portugal

Livraria Lello

One of the most beautiful bookstores in the world hides a neo-Gothic interior behind an art nouveau facade.
Paracuellos de Jarama, Spain

Paracuellos Massacres Cross at the Madrid Airport

The mysterious large white cross visible from the runway is a memorial to a massacre during Spanish Civil War.
Seville, Spain

Hospital de las Cinco Llagas (Hospital of the Five Holy Wounds)

The current seat of the Parliament of Andalusia was once the epicenter of the Great Plague of Seville.
Carrascal del Río, Spain

Hermitage of Saint Fructus

Medieval ruins nestled within a breathtaking swath of Spanish nature.
Santander, Spain

Magdalena Peninsula

This beautiful spit of land was once the summer playground of the king of Spain.
San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain

Silla de Felipe II (Phillip II’s Chair)

According to tradition, King Phillip II supervised construction of the seat of his empire from this seat carved into rock.
Salamanca, Spain

Cave of Salamanca

A hidden medieval crypt where a famous legend says the devil used to teach black magic.
San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Spain

Valley of the Fallen

This underground church is topped with a 500-foot cross that is seen by many as a beacon of fascist hubris.
Segovia, Spain

Alcázar de Segovia

This magnificent castle grew from a small Moorish fortress, and reportedly inspired two iconic Disney castles.
Granada, Spain

Muslim Gravestones of the Alhambra

Spanish architects used seized Muslim gravestones to rebuild parts of the fortress.
Córdoba, Spain

Mezquita (Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba)

Spain's unique Mosque-Cathedral has been a place of worship for both Muslims and Christians throughout its history.
Córdoba, Spain

Cross of the Captive

A curious carving hides on a marble column in the Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba.
A Coruña, Spain

Tower of Hercules

The oldest Roman lighthouse still in use.
Barcelona, Spain

Mirador de Colom (Columbus Monument)

A vista of the city and sea from atop the little-known viewing deck on an unassuming Columbus statue.
Madrid, Spain

Juan de la Cosa Map

The earliest known map to show America, discovered by accident at a Paris bookshop.
Seville, Spain

Metropol Parasol

The world's largest wooden structure.
Porto, Portugal

Sao Bento Station

Elaborate tile work in this railway station tells the story of Portugal.
Cornwall, England

Dobwalls Bypass Bat Bridge

These "bridges" help confused bats cross the road.
Cambridge, England

The Eagle

The Cambridge pub where Francis Crick announced that he and James Watson had discovered the DNA double-helix.
Madrid, Spain

Air Crash

A whimsical brother of the nearby Fallen Angel statue takes the falling part quite literally.
Toledo, Spain

Sinagoga El Transito

Once the grandest synagogue in medieval Spain, it now stands as a memorial of the 15th-century Jewish exile.
Oviedo, Spain

Culis Monumentalibus

Two large posteriors in one giant statue.
El Campello, Spain

Illeta dels Banyets

The legendary bathing site of a Moorish queen is actually part of a Roman fish farm.
Alicante, Spain

Central Market Building

This magnificent market stands as a poignant symbol of the suffering caused by the Spanish Civil War.