On the second day of my Spain Adventure, I planned a day trip to Montserrat. Montserrat is a Benedictine Abbey located on the mountain of Montserrat in Catalonia approximately one and a half hours from Barcelona. I took a taxi from my hotel to the Placa de Espayna train station. The ticket I purchased online was validated at the train counter. As I sat on the platform waiting for the train, I met a woman and her two friends from Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Eileen visited Montserrat eight years earlier with her family and wanted her friends to experience the trip. We spent the hour-long train ride talking with each other about our adventures and what we had experienced so far in Spain.

After the hour-long train ride, we transferred to the rack railway that took us slowly up the mountain with amazing views. Once at the top, the monastery stood within the rock formation and the views were breathtaking.

I had purchased a timed ticket to see the Black Madonna in the basilica. I said goodbye to my new friends and headed toward the basilica. It was also Ash Wednesday and I arrived at the basilica just in time for Mass. It was a beautiful Mass with the boys’ choir on the altar leading the hymns. The boys’ choir at Montserrat is the oldest boys’ choir in Europe.

Ashes were distributed during the Mass, but not as I expected. In the United States, we receive ashes on the forehead. At this Mass, the ashes were sprinkled on the top of my head. I read about this years ago, but never experienced it.

After Mass, I headed toward the line to see the Black Madonna. This Madonna has a very interesting history. It is believed by many Christians that the statue was carved by Saint Luke in Jerusalem. In 1844, Pope Leo XIII declared the Black Madonna to be the patron saint of Catalonia.

The line to see the Black Madonna led to a small room with a beautiful painting of Jesus and the Blessed Mother.

A beautiful angel was carved on the door leading to the statue.

What I didn’t realize was that the Madonna and Child statue was part of the altar. The small staircase led you to the place on the altar where the statue stood.

The statue was encased in glass except for a small circular area that exposed a circular structure resting in the hand of the Madonna. I had no idea I would get this close to something so precious.

After the viewing, I headed to the market area for lunch and then back to the basilica for a closer look and the opportunity to take pictures which were not allowed during the Mass.

One of the things I did before leaving Montserrat was travel up the ***Saint Joan funicular*** for more breathtaking views.

Shortly after arriving at the basilica for Mass, I heard a helicopter close by. Throughout my visit, this helicopter was working above the monastery.

This brought back wonderful memories of my husband who was a helicopter pilot in the United States Army. Whenever I see a helicopter, I blow a kiss in the same way I did when my husband would come home from missions. I am completing the travel bucket list that we both created together. Spain was on our list. Seeing the helicopter made me feel that John was close by.

The long train ride back to Barcelona was quite interesting. The train was crowded with tourists and locals coming home from work. On the train, I met a woman and her two young daughters traveling locally from their home in Barcelona. I also met a woman and her teenage daughter traveling from Switzerland and learned that they were originally from Canada.