Girona, Provincial capital in northeastern Catalonia, Spain
Girona is a city in Gironès in northeastern Catalonia where four rivers meet and the Onyar riverbank is lined with multi-story houses featuring balconies. The old quarter sits above the river behind walls, while newer neighborhoods spread on both sides of the water and are connected by several bridges.
Romans founded a settlement on a hilltop here in the 1st century BC, which later became a hub on the route between Rome and Iberia. During the medieval period the city grew under different rulers and kept its walls, which were reinforced and expanded several times over the centuries.
The stone bridges spanning the Onyar connect both sides of the city and show how public spaces are used for daily movement. Along the riverbank, the colored facades of the houses shape the cityscape and give the center an open and lively character that residents and visitors experience every day.
The airport south of the city is connected to the center by buses, while trains from the main station run directly to Barcelona and other cities. Walking around the old quarter is manageable on foot, and most points of interest lie within walking distance of each other, though steep streets lead to the higher part.
The cathedral has the widest Gothic nave in the world at 23 meters (75 feet) span, which was an extraordinary engineering achievement for its construction period in the 14th and 15th centuries. This width surpasses even Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome and makes the interior feel especially wide and open when you enter.
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