They had posters of saints including this of the shepherd children of Fátima:
Also, there’s a relic of the beloved Pope John Paul II with some of his blood on a vestment - here’s the chapel that holds the reliquary and the altar that sits over it:
We left the underground basilica and made our way to the 3rd and last basilica in the sanctuary - The Immaculate Conception. It’s actually on top of the Our Lady of the Rosary basilica - the 1st one we visited. Here are some photos from the outside:
And some photos from the inside including a reliquary of St. Bernadette where we lit some candles for loved ones:
The basilica itself:
We found a commemoration of missionaries to Korea as well in one of the chapels:
We then walked up to the Way of the Cross which was situated on a hillside next to the basilica. We couldn’t walk the whole way as it was uphill and extensive, but we had done the last few stations in Fátima, and here we did the first few:
We then crossed the Ousse river where there was a great view of the basilicas and a statue of Bernadette praying facing the Grotto:
Also across the river was St. Bernadette church which apparently is multi-purpose and also used for conferences:
We then headed back to the hotel and picked up the car which had been packed with our luggage. We headed to the center village in search of lunch and we found Café Barcelonne after checking out Les Halles market. We enjoyed omelettes, goat cheese salad with the cheese drizzled in honey, and hamburger steaks while we watched French President Macron on the news:
Here I butchered my French, but we got by with the lovely waiters who didn’t speak English at this family-run establishment. Then we piled into the car with the radio turned on and planned to drive 2 hours before stopping. Here are some views from the road and ski village chalets thanks to co-navigator Mary Ann and as we officially entered Spain, our 3rd country:
We planned to stop in Vielha in Spain which had several restaurants in the Michelin guidebook, so I figured it was built up as a city. It was clearly a destination for skiers and gave me Deer Valley, Utah vibes. We found a bakery where we drank coffees in a booth and chatted with the owners who loved hearing about our itinerary. They also asked how we knew each other as I think they were surprised to see Koreans and Indians together:
Here’s the roundabout where Google Maps pinned the center of the city:
We then drove on for another 2.5 hours, anticipating the hairpin turns on the GPS and admiring the ski resorts and snow-capped mountains of the Pyrenees:
As the sun set, we entered Andorra, the 4th country of our trip and the 6th smallest state in Europe, with an area of 468 square kms or 181 square miles. Located in the eastern Pyrenees, it’s a micro state and is technically not a member of the European Union. The official language is Catalan, but Spanish, Portuguese, and French are also commonly spoken. Approximately 10 millions visitors come annually and I figured on our unique trip with a car rental, this would be an opportunity and we could be one of the 10 million!
We arrived at the Hotel Mercure Andorra, located in Andorra la Vella - the highest capital city in Europe, at an elevation of 1,023 meters or 3,356 feet above sea level. After checking in and parking the car, we walked to Bar Saldana, a tapas restaurant. I suggested we have rosé wine as Andorra was not quite French or Spanish, and rosé is not quite red or white. We enjoyed grilled meat, bread with tomato, sausage and peppers, calamari, Spanish omelette, eggplant with honey, potatoes, and a cheese plate. A collage below:
A taxi was called after the meal, but since everyone couldn’t fit, Tresa and I walked home and she humored me by posing in front of the La Valira River:
Then the daughters enjoyed our welcome drinks at the Mercure sister hotel which is the Novotel and coincidentally where our car is parked. We enjoyed the conversation while chatting about the day and about our final 4 nights together!
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