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Saint Michel de Cuxa, our destination on a very hot day, is an early Medieval monastery nestled in the Pyrenees mountains. Our train brought us to Prades, a town not far from the monastery. It should have been an hour walk to the important religious center, but we wandered all over a mountain before we found the path/canal that lead to St Michel. Founded in 883, this abbey demonstrates both Visigothic and Mozarabic architectural influences and was one of the very first Romanesque complexes ever constructed. Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa is a active monastery, and the monks continue to devote themselves to the daily routine of the Benedictine Rule -- tending flocks, keeping bees, pruning orchards, and conducting divine services.
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Western Europe
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