The place is located close to Barcelona. Montserrat literally means “jagged mountain” and when you take a look at the pinkish rock, which is above the monastery and visible already from afar, you are immediately clear why. Although the mountain alone attracts many rock climbers, most people come here to visit the Benedictine monastery and see the statue of the Virgin Mary and infant Christ, also known as “la Moreneta”. The Black Madonna is made of wood and was created sometimes between the 12th and 13th century. Just like in many similar cases, even here a lot of people believe that the statue has supernatural abilities, such as cure or fulfil wishes. She was declared the saint patron of Catalonia by Pope Leo XIII in 1844.

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But Montserrat Monastery is even older coming from the 8th or 9th century, however since then it has undergone many alterations and was almost destroyed during Napoleonic wars. Today’s appearance is from the late 19th century.

Some of you who knows the music much better than just from radios would certainly be familiar with a local boys’ choir of sopranos and altos called L’Escolania, existing since the 13th century. It is the oldest institution of its kind in Europe.

The monastery also includes an extensive library with more than 200,000 volumes. But it is still not everything. The legend says that this site was a place of the castle of the Holy Grail (often identified with the dish, plate, or cup used by Jesus at the Last Supper and said to possess miraculous powers).

Montserrat monastery is situated in the mountain at an altitude of 750 meters above sea level and formerly was very hard accessible. However now it is very easy to get there, so be prepared for crowds. You can use road, but also a steep lift built in 1930 (Aerie de Montserrat) or cog-railway from 1892.

Due to a huge number of visitors (almost 750,000 people a year), there are lots of car parks, restaurants, refreshments with ice cream, souvenir shops, two museums and even a hotel.

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Blarney boasts a long history and magical charm and offers a number of beautiful sights and places to explore. One of the places that is definitely interesting for tourists, is beautifully preserved square, which today operates as the main point of village life.

The village has been subsequently developed around this square in Tudor times and was always owned and carefully managed by the owner of Blarney Castle.

Places of interest include, for example The Blarney Stone, which is a block of bluestone built into the battlements of Blarney Castle. Also thanks to it the castle attracts more than two hundred thousand tourists each year. Visitors are coming here mainly because of the known stone they want to kiss. The legend says that whoever kisses the stone will be blessed with the gift of eloquence. Blarney Castle is surrounded with more than a thousand acres of beautiful woods that are ideal for walking, rest and picnic.

Those who do not know Ireland, should know that the term “village” is not sufficient for Blarney. This place plays an important role in tourism for more than 100 years and is known throughout the world. About a century ago a tourist would probably visit the castle and take a tea in one of two hotels in the village. Along one side of the square would have seen a number of cozy cottages, which still stand here. There is also a church nearby that was built in 1766. Another great attraction was old power plant founded in 1843, which had a room with steam and Turkish baths.

Now the visitors can play golf or do shopping in a cozy little shops on the square, but of course the most important is to kiss The Blarney Stone!

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Fontana di Trevi is located at the junction of three waterways, at the place where the aqueduct was in the past, which supplied water to Rome. The first fountain was built at this place already in 1453 by Pope Nicholas V. The water was supplied from Acqua Vergine aqueduct, which was created by Marcus Agrippa in 19 BC. Fountain, which is here now, was inspired by an arch of Constantine – one of the last great monuments of Imperial Rome, standing in the shadow of the Colosseum.

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The construction of Fontana di Trevi lasted 30 years, from 1732 till 1762. The main architect was Nicola Salvi, who designed it for the Pope Clement XII. The name of the fountain is derived from three narrow cobblestone streets that are crossing here – “tre vie”, which means three streets. The fountain is carved of marble and in the middle of the fountain there is Titan of Water, Seas, Lakes, Rivers, Oceans, Streams and Ponds – Oceanus.

The dominant of the fountain is a high arch di Trionfo called “Kingdom of the oceans.” In 1998 the fountain was reconstructed and equipped with circulating pumps.

Fontana di Trevi also appeared in the film made by Frederico Fellini – La Dolce Vita, in which the protagonists Anita Ekberg and Marcello Mastroiani bathed in the fountain. The director in this postwar movie celebrated carefree life in Rome in the 50′s of 20th century.

The people use to throw coins into the fountain – one coin to fulfill the wishes and another one for their return to Rome. Another legend says that when you drop a coin into the fountain, you will meet your true love in Rome, and if you drop more, you’ll have in Rome a happy marriage.

The amount of money in the fountain is really great. The tourists throw here approximately 3,000 Euro every day. Collecting coins from the fountain is strictly prohibited. Money from the fountain is used for the benefit of charities Caritas and the Office for the Protection of Monuments.

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However the first written document of the Telč dates back to the 1315. In 1334 Karel IV. (at this time as Margrave of Moravia) paid the mortgage of this municipality, and a few years later (1339) he replaced it by the Castle of Bánov, that belonged to Jindřich of Hradec.

The family of the new owner then established a new Telč. Unfortunately, the Memorandum has not preserved, but the first written report of Telč Burgess comes from 1353. It is assumed that it was Menhart of Hradec, who in 1354 built a castle, church, water fortification and Gothic houses (originally wooden) around the perimeter of a large marketplace. Other buildings and lake were built progressively.

Telč is a fascinating blend of architectural styles, and on many houses you can see a gradual evolution from Gothic style through Renaissance to Baroque style, in some cases also the later styles. The best example are the Gothic houses on the square, some with well-preserved typical pointed arches. They have Renaissance facades with beautiful gables, decorated with frescoes and paintings on the walls, or a baroque and rococo sculptures. The square is also decorated with two fountains and the Marian column.

Until now, well-preserved are also the medieval walls and city gates, the castle and other monuments, such as the former Jesuit college from 1655 (now high school).

The town of Telč is listed on UNESCO World Heritage List since 1992.

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