This Summer, Heritage in the Pyrenees and the Aran Valley

Enjoy an immersive light and sound show in a gem of Catalan Romanesque architecture, discover dinosaur eggs and footprints on a journey back in time, or delve into the riddles of keys and codes in an ancient device like the telegraph. These are just some of the unique experiences featured in the This Summer, Patrimonieja program, which transforms the cultural heritage of the Pyrenees and the Aran Valley into a living, participatory, and surprising setting.

The program, promoted by the Department of Culture, offers hundreds of activities throughout Catalonia for all audiences, many of which are free. The goal: to bring heritage to everyone through artistic experiences and themed tours in exceptional settings such as castles, monasteries, museums, and archaeological sites. The full program can be found at this link. link from the agenda of activities, on the Cultural Heritage portal of the Generalitat.

In the emblematic Romanesque church of Sant Climent de Taüll, on Tuesdays, August 19 and 26, the project Lux Mundi transforms the interior of the temple into a stage of light and sound. Four digital artists reinterpret the temple's frescoes with immersive projections while the hypnotic music of Tarta Relena envelops the experience. The result is a poetic dialogue between the 12th century and the present in which technology becomes a bridge to the future.

You can enjoy the experience at the Romanesque Center of the Boí Valley The Eyes of History: a new museography to discover the most important Romanesque sites in Catalonia, a virtual reality experience, and a new multimedia guide to delve deeper into the history, values, and interesting facts about the churches.

The immersion in the past continues in the Vall d'Aran with the exhibition The telegraph. A coded journey. It is an exhibition that explores the history of this means of communication, its keys and codes, and how it transformed the way messages were transmitted over distances. In the Àneu Valleys, the Ecomuseum hosts the 'exposure Chop fire, a tribute to the traditional uses of fire in the Alt Pirineu. The exhibition presents a historical journey that highlights the essential role that fire has played in the daily life, economy, culture, and collective imagination of Pyrenean societies.

And for lovers of prehistory, there are a couple of star activities. On the one hand, the Guided tour of the Suterranya dinosaur eggs; a trip to the site to discover authentic paleontological treasures and imagine what the area was like in the past. On the other hand, the Guided tour of the Basturs footprint site; a unique place to discover dinosaur footprints from millions of years ago.

Major festivals in heritage sites

Throughout Catalonia, you can enjoy activities that open up the heritage to the public through artistic offerings and themed tours that show these historic spaces from different perspectives. In this sense, this summer, Patrimonieja is betting on major Catalan musical events. One of the most established is the Schubertiad, in the Alt Empordà, which will once again fill the Canonica de Santa María de Vilabertran with classical music from August 16th.

This year the festival pays tribute to the centenary of the birth of baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, whose line-up includes Matthias Goerne, Florian Boesch, André Schuen and Samuel Hasselhorn. A few kilometres away, another notable initiative is the San Pedro de Rodas Music Festival, which celebrates its 25th anniversary with the premiere of The Crypt and a final opera gala on August 30.

That same day, August 30, the imposing Cardona Castle will host one of the most special moments of the summer: the concert of the singer Mariona Escoda, winner of the popular contest Euphoria. The performance is part of the Cicle Espais, an initiative that brings contemporary artists to perform in charming heritage settings.

In addition to concerts, there are workshops and games scheduled at historical monuments such as the Iberian city of Ullastret; dramatized tours of Cardona Castle, which will transport you back to the Middle Ages; a family treasure hunt at the majestic Miravet Castle, to solve riddles and discover hidden treasure; as well as creative activities at the Girona Art Museum and the MAC Barcelona, for example.

New features include the visit to the Médo quarryThe National Archaeological Museum of Tarragona, which has recently been incorporated into the MNAT, is known for its heritage. In the Este Verano, Patrimonieja program, monuments take center stage in a program that combines culture, leisure, and participation.