{"id":10,"date":"2009-09-28T07:32:42","date_gmt":"2009-09-28T12:32:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tomharack.com\/?p=10"},"modified":"2009-09-28T07:32:42","modified_gmt":"2009-09-28T12:32:42","slug":"costa-brava-a-surreal-destination-man","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/golf\/courses-and-travel\/10\/costa-brava-a-surreal-destination-man","title":{"rendered":"Costa Brava a surreal destination, man"},"content":{"rendered":"

The veneration of local heroes often says as much about the locals as about the heroes.\u00a0 Would Elvis be the King, for example, if Graceland were on Long Island?<\/p>\n

The matter of a cultural icon\u2019s stature among the faithful occurred to me in prepping for a golf trip to the Costa Brava<\/em> region, on the northeastern tip of Spain\u2019s Iberian Peninsula.\u00a0 Part of the Catalonian province of Girona, which is also the name of the capital, the Costa Brava\u2019s<\/em> favorite son \u2013 Salvador Dal\u00ed, best-known of the Surrealist artists and writers \u2013 made me curious as to what a visit there would reveal.\u00a0 Wild-eyed, with an outrageous handlebar mustache and strange headgear, Dal\u00ed undeniably exuded the larger-than-life aura required of all heroes.\u00a0 The thing is, what exactly should one anticipate in the old stomping grounds of the creator of \u201cSoft Self-Portrait with Grilled Bacon\u201d?<\/p>\n

Thankfully, the answer proved simultaneously simple and otherworldly:\u00a0 Costa Brava<\/em> is, as Monty Python might say, something completely different, especially when juxtaposed with, say, Andalucia\u2019s Costa del Sol<\/em> to the southwest, a more \u201ctouristy\u201d destination much better known to Americans.<\/p>\n

Apart from year-round golf, there is snow skiing in the neighboring Pirineu de Girona<\/em>, or Girona Pyrenees, in easy striking distance to the north, and sprawling beaches on the Mediterranean coast.\u00a0\u00a0 Catalonia\u2019s cultural traditions draw on Romanesque, Gothic, baroque, and modern influences, and many visitors from the Continent consider the area, coterminous with France directly to the north, the current epicenter of creative cuisine.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would be difficult to find such a delightful coastline anywhere else in the world,\u201d Dal\u00ed noted, \u201cwith this mineral and geological grandeur.\u201d\u00a0 Even the atmosphere looks different, largely because of the region\u2019s prevailing tramuntana<\/em> winds, which also bend the indigenous cypress, plane, cork, and olive trees into intriguing shapes.<\/p>\n

\"The

The Costa Brava has dozens of secluded coves and inlets<\/p><\/div>\n

\n
<\/dt>\n<\/dl>\n

The distinct Catalan dialect reinforces the sense of a world apart and, congruent with the exotic physical environment, the populace seems, entirely apropos of Dal\u00ed, avowedly iconoclast.<\/p>\n

In fact, his surpassingly vivid visual sense seemed to pervade our whirlwind tour, organized by the Spanish Tourist Board and the Golf Travel Company, based in Atlanta:\u00a0 So colossal is the range of activities that at some point I began to feel like one of the melting, dripping watches that constitute recurrent symbols in his work.\u00a0 Still, I can\u2019t wait to return.<\/p>\n

American idol<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Our arrival in Costa Brava<\/em> reinforced golf\u2019s preeminence as the ideal recreation \u2013 just vigorous enough but not exhausting — after a long travel day.\u00a0 (Girona has an international airport serving certain European points of departure, but Americans will otherwise have to fly to Barcelona, the capital of Catalonian culture and history, approximately an hour\u2019s drive from Girona.)\u00a0 And Empord\u00e1 Golf<\/strong> (www.empordagolf.com) \u2013 tough enough, certainly, but not overwhelming — turned out to be an excellent place to start, though the region\u2019s dozen or so pitch-and-putt courses would also be suitable candidates.<\/p>\n

First opened in 1990 and designed by globetrotting American Robert von Hagge, Empord\u00e1 is a 27-hole complex with nine more holes to come, situated due east of Girona.\u00a0 Suggestive of a contemporary approach to spreading the game, its modern features include multiple sets of tees for a malleable challenge, a practice area with a range, chipping and bunker-play sections, an 18-hole putting green, and a golf school.<\/p>\n

The 18-hole combinations, the longest of which is just less than 6,800 yards, par 72, are designated Forest and Links.\u00a0 Employing a design palette typical of many courses in the area, the former has holes framed by huge, umbrella-like pine trees and cork oaks.\u00a0 The latter \u2013 just minutes from the coast but not technically linksland \u2013 has the dunes, sandy soil, and windswept, moguled terrain to simulate the links experience.<\/p>\n

Take a hike<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Empord\u00e1 is part of a sort of golf-tourism ecosystem that includes La Costa Golf & Beach Resort <\/strong>(www.lacostahotel.com<\/span>), with 120 units, including 53 \u201cgolf apartments,\u201d as well as Mas de Torrent<\/strong> (www.mastorrent.com<\/span>), a lavishly restored Catalan masia<\/em>, or farmhouse, originally dating to 1751. The main building houses 10 individually decorated units, discreetly complemented by 29 garden suites.\u00a0 It proved an elegant setting for our initial sampling of the local staple known as butifarra, <\/em>a type of sausage, as well and dishes made with the area\u2019s black rice and fresh anchovies.<\/p>\n

As is usually the case, the local cuisine goes well with wines distilled in the area, including whites, sparkling, roses, and red vintages.\u00a0 A favorite digestif<\/em> is el cremat<\/em>, which consists of coffee with burnt rum.<\/p>\n

\"Fairways

Fairways at Platja de Pals are defined by century-old pines<\/p><\/div>\n

La Costa is also within walking distance of Golf Platja de Pals<\/strong> (www.golfplatjadepals.com<\/a>), which is in turn within sniffing distance of the Mediterranean, though the 6,844-yard, par 73 layout plays like a parkland course. Designed by British architect F.G. Hawtree in 1966, it is the oldest of the Costa Brava<\/em>\u2019s 10 courses and opens with several short but extremely narrow holes circumscribed by towering, 100-year-old pines.\u00a0 The holes get progressively longer but more wide open \u2013 the 8th hole is 575 yards and the back nine has three par 5s \u2013 and both the topography and the hole-to-tee transitions are conducive to walking.<\/p>\n

Going medieval<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Indeed, a good pair of walking shoes is de rigueur<\/em> in the Costa Brava<\/em>, least of all for golf, as our late-morning visit to nearby Peratallada exemplified.\u00a0 One of several restored medieval villages in the area, its name is a contraction for words meaning \u201ccarved rock,\u201d in this case a palace and walls dating to the 11th<\/sup> century and surrounded by an incredible moat that seems chiseled from sheer granite. The urban grid is dominated by a central square, from which narrow spokes emanate toward residential streets, today occupied by restaurants and bars, shops, galleries, and small hotels.<\/p>\n

The region\u2019s diverse appeal within a geographically discreet radius was once again highlighted during our lunch break on the Begur Coast, the easternmost point of the Iberian Peninsula.\u00a0 A craggy configuration of secluded blue-green coves and inlets, the beach communities feature all the available water sports, including scuba diving, snorkeling, kayaking, windsurfing, water-skiing, sailing, and deep-sea fishing.\u00a0 We dined al fresco at Hotel Aigua Blava (www.aiguablava.com<\/span>), on Fornells Cove, a family-run establishment that caters to golfers. It has 85 units, many with terraces overlooking the beach, as well as three restaurants and three bars.<\/p>\n

A half-hour commute brought us to PGA Golf de Catalunya<\/strong> (www.pgacatalunya.com<\/span>), a strapping inland layout traversing a valley near the AP7, the major thoroughfare connecting Girona and Barcelona to the southwest.\u00a0 Designed by European Tour veterans Angel Gallardo and Neil Coles, it is a roller coaster ride, 7,247 yards, par 72, slope 138 from the farthest back of five sets of tees.\u00a0 Opened in 1999 and already the site of two professional tournaments and a standard presence on European best-of lists, plans are to add another 18-hole track, as well as a first-class hotel.<\/p>\n

\"Catalunya

Catalunya is Costa Brava's "tournament" layout<\/p><\/div>\n

Town and country<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

All in all, the day seemed a microcosm of the Costa Brava<\/em>\u2019s extreme-opposite attractions \u2013 the natural versus the built environment.\u00a0 The countryside\u2019s generally moderate contours make it especially popular among cyclists\u2013 Lance Armstrong has a place in the area and it is common to encounter clusters of riders on the roadways \u2013 and hikers.\u00a0 A number of the longer hiking paths bisect the entire province, from the coast to the Pyrenees; others hug the shoreline or the foothills.<\/p>\n

At the same time, Girona, the capital, demands a visit. Twenty centuries have imbued the town with layer upon layer, literally and figuratively, of culture and history.\u00a0 For starters, its location at the confluence of four rivers \u2013 Onyar, Ter, G\u00fcell, and Galligants \u2013 make it an urban planning phenomenon.\u00a0 Naturally, this locus has also made it subject to frequent attack and polyglot ethnic influence.\u00a0 The Romans completely encircled the<\/p>\n

\"Girona

Girona embodies the Costa Brava's polyglot ethnic and cultural history<\/p><\/div>\n

city with a wall.\u00a0 Other architectural treasures include the Monastery of Sant Pere de Galligants, San Nicol\u00e1s Church, the Arab baths, and the stunningly preserved Jewish quarter.\u00a0 The immense cathedral stands next to the House of La Pia Almonya, a Gothic structure, as is the Chapter House, where the ornate Tapestry of the Creation is housed.<\/p>\n

Figueres, to the north, is a bustling town in its own right, as well as the birthplace of Dal\u00ed and site of the museum devoted to his work.\u00a0 Fittingly housed in a converted theater, Museu Dal\u00ed is as dramatic as its founder and adds well-rounded perspective to his prolific artistic career, much of which embraces more traditional forms of artistic expression, in contrast to his more sensational surrealist imagery.<\/p>\n

It seemed fitting to spend the final evening of our trip at the Hotel Pla\u00e7a de Madremanya<\/strong>, a rehabilitated castle in the eponymous town just northwest of Girona.\u00a0\u00a0 Folklore has it that the Costa Brava\/Pirineu de Girona<\/em> region resulted from the union of a shepherd and a siren, and our going-away repast perfectly captured the garlic-infused pairing of meat and seafood, particularly fowl and pork.<\/p>\n

Our only regret:\u00a0 the going-away part.<\/p>\n

www.okspain.org<\/span><\/p>\n

www.costabrava.org<\/span><\/p>\n

www.E-GolfTravel.com<\/span><\/p>\n

www.SpainGolfTravel.com<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

#\u00a0\u00a0 #\u00a0\u00a0 #<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The homeland of the late Salvador Dal\u00ed, the Costa Brava exudes a similar quirky charm. There’s more than enough golf to be enjoyed, but it’s probably overshadowed by the region’s outstanding cuisine and other cultural and recreational attractions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":11,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-courses-and-travel"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2009\/09\/Cala-Canyet.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10\/revisions\/19"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/tomharack\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}