The province of A Coruna is to be found in northern Spain in the region known as Galicia.

Coruna has several claims to fame. Firstly it is home to the city of Santiago de Compostela (lit. "of the star field") whose massive cathedral holds the remains of the apostle Saint James. But another of the provinces cities, Ferrol, was the launching point for Spain's ill fated Armada against the English in 1588.

Most visitors to this area center their trip around Santiago de Compostela and with good reason. Santiago has a large medieval quarter that not only contains its impressive cathedral, but also an array of equally inspiring architectural gems including palaces, monasteries and museums. The city is also known for its pilgrimage called the "way of St. James" which attracts tens of thousands of Christian visitors every year. These pilgrims come from as far a field as France and make the entire journey on foot staying at specially designated hostels on route. Their reward, if and when they complete their journey, is a certificate and mass at the cathedral.

Santiago's pilgrims are also notable for another reason. In addition to walking with traditional long crooked staffs, they also attach a "clam" clam shell to the staff itself. It is thought that in earlier times this shell, now the symbol of Santiago, could have been used as a multi purpose utensil to scoop water from a river or act as a small dish.

Away from Santiago, A Coruna city also has a few sights of its own ranging from the worlds oldest working lighthouse, built by the Romans, to coastal forts and the regions biggest marina. Coruna is also renown for the glass fronted buildings lining its marina which have given rise to the city being known as the "glass city". In addition to its older buildings, A Coruna also has the futuristic "Domus" building which is a celebration of man - a museum of sorts!

As Galica's most prosperous province, Coruna has many towns and most of these have a location and history associated with the sea. Coruna has always derived much of its wealth from fishing and its deep water ports, including Ribeira, land vast quantities of fish and assorted seafood.

From a visitor's point of view places like Rianxo, a beautiful coastal town, along with neighbouring port town, A Pobra do Caraminal, offer an opportunity to see the less commercialised side of Coruna province. These towns have traditional central plazas called "alamedas" along with a look and feel all of their own. If you visit one of these places you will also notice that everything grinds to a halt at 2.00pm for afternoon siesta and only starts to come to life again between 4.30pm and 5.00pm. The compensation for this extended lunch is the long working "afternoon" which does not end until around 9.00pm at night!

Staying in A Coruna, but moving inland, there is plenty more to see including the ancient and once highly important town of Padron. 

Padron is a town of two halves. The new part is ugly and does not warrant a mention, but the old district is quaint, has a river running through it and also hails as the home of Galicia's most famous daughter, the author and poet Rosalia de Castro. Although not known outside Spain, Castro is a real folk hero and there is a museum dedicated to her in her former house. Padron is also famous for two other reasons, the hot chilli peppers it produces and its biblical location as the preaching point of Saint James.

To find out more about the province of A Coruna and Galicia in general, visit galiciaguide.com a 250 page tourist information portal about the region.
 

About the Author
A visitor and vacationer to Galicia.