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WHEREVER you are in Spain at Easter, it's hard to miss the multiple references to one of the key moments in the Christian Bible – that of Jesus Christ's crucifixion and resurrection – and, including if you're of a different faith or even an atheist, the re-enactments of the tragedy and joy are powerful, moving and fascinating.
It's not only Christians who find biblical legend intriguing and enigmatic, of course. Modern literary thrillers themed on Church-based mysteries and symbolism have long topped the bestseller list in book stores: Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code was an instant hit; in Spain, too, where his female counterpart, Alicante-born Matilde Asensi, has kept book-lovers gripped for decades with her most famous works such as The Last Cato, Checkmate in Amber and Everything Under the Sky.
The first of these, still her most widely-acclaimed, centred on a fast-paced detective trail unleashed by the discovery of pieces of the original cross, or vera cruz in Spanish, upon which Jesus was crucified – and the author would have had plenty of inspiration and sources of research in her home country, especially given that a town fairly close to a popular coastal tourism, expat and second-home destination is reputed to house to one of these very pieces.
Pilgrim magnets for thousands of years
In the Christian tradition, five cities worldwide are officially considered 'holy', and have been the end goal of pilgrims for centuries; once, through the pull of the faith alone, and now also for hikers, tourists, history-lovers and culture fans.
One of these cities is Jerusalem, which is in fact a holy city for three different religions: Judaism, where pilgrims head to the Wailing Wall, the remains of King Solomon's palace; Islam, where the main holy city is Mecca, Saudi Arabia, which has to be visited once in a lifetime to complete the five pillars of the faith, but whose followers also often make the journey to Jerusalem to see the rock from which the Prophet Mohammed rose to heaven; and Christianity, given that this is the city where Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead on the third day – his tomb is now inside a temple, which has been the travel object for pilgrims since the fourth century.
Another is the Italian capital of Rome – once the seat of the Empire that controlled most of Europe, founded in the 8th century BCE (BC) by warring brothers Romulus and Remus and, later, still today, the centre of the Catholic faith, bordering the Vatican City (a country in its own right) on all sides, and where the Basilica di San Pietro (Saint Peter) has been a pilgrims' destination for over 2,000 years.
The other three of the world's holy cities are all in Spain.
Santiago de Compostela, A Coruña province, Galicia
No doubt you were aware of this one. Wherever you come from in the world, and wherever you live in Spain, you probably know someone who has had a crack at the Camino de Santiago, and maybe even completed it and got their certificate to prove it.
Some routes start in southern France, and others are scattered throughout Spain, along the east coast, in Madrid, central and southern Spain, Castilla y León in the centre-north, with some starting points being more popular and better-known than others.
A key set-off is in Roncesvallés, in the single-province northern region of Navarra – the capital of which is Pamplona – land-locked and close to the French border.
Many 21st-century tourists turn the Camino, or the 'Way', into a travel adventure, taking months out and covering the whole of mainland Spain's northern strip, writing blog posts, or getting friends and family to sponsor them, for charity.
Others might just do it for a week's holiday and, as long as they travel at least 100 kilometres (meaning they will start from within the far north-western region of Galicia itself), they can claim their completion certificate with their name on it in Latin.
Cosy 'pilgrim' hostels costing just a few euros a night are dotted along the way, and you get your 'pilgrim passport' stamped at each one you stay at.
The aim is to get to the stunning, ornate cathedral of Santiago in the Plaza del Obradoiro, which is what makes its home municipality a holy city.
Built to be a small stone city as well as a temple, constructed between the 11th and 13th centuries, wise men used the position of the stars to work out where the apostle Saint James, a preacher on the road during the times of Roman Hispania, was buried.
Along with 'Jaime', the name 'Diego' is a translation of 'James', and 'Santiago' comes from 'San Diego'.
His burial spot was referred to as the Campus Stellae ('Field of the Stars'), which eventually morphed into 'Compostela'.
After work started on building this beautiful cathedral to mark Saint James' last resting place, but before it had finished, Pope Calixto II decreed the first-ever 'Compostelian' Jubilee Year – exactly nine centuries ago, in 1122.
All days of the year on the Catholic calendar are dedicated to a different saint, the one for James being on July 25 – and, whenever this falls on a Sunday, Santiago de Compostela celebrates the 'Jubilee year'.
Given that dates and days repeat every 11 years, except for leap years (so if you haven't been able to find a 2022 calendar yet, you can dig out an old one from 2011; a London Olympics commemorative calendar will serve you just fine next year up until the end of February, after which you should store your 2012 edition until 2029) the last 'Jubilee Year' in Santiago de Compostela was in 2021, so it will miss the 900th anniversary.
But it will make the 910th anniversary, since the next 'Jubilee Year', or Año Jubilar Compostelano, is in 2032, when the city is likely to greet way more tourists than even in a usual packed summer.
Caravaca de la Cruz (Murcia Region)
If you're based in or close to the La Manga del Mar Menor area, here's an idea for a swift weekend away: From the coast to Caravaca de la Cruz, it's about 139 kilometres, or around an hour and 25 minutes by car, and Murcia city, the capital of this single-province region, is about halfway. Start early in the day, or the night before, and tour the historic quarter, including the 'Flower Square' or Plaza de las Flores, the beautiful Plaza Cardenal Belluga, the cathedral, and the Salzillo Museum, then head on to Caravaca late evening or the next morning to explore one of the planet's five holy cities in the Christian faith.
For those with plenty of energy and little time, you can do it in an ordinary weekend, or pace yourself a bit and stretch it out to four days.
Although a 'city' officially, Caravaca falls far short of the usual definition in size – its headcount is around 25,800, so it would otherwise be considered a small town.
And it's in this 'city', close to the western border onto Albacete and Castilla-La Mancha, at an altitude of 625 metres (so it can get cold in winter; bring a coat and gloves for exploring), where one of those pieces of wood that inspire so many novels is reportedly found.
Flavius Valerius Constantinus, better known as Emperor Constantine I of Rome – born in 272, reigning from 306 until his death in May 337 – was the son of Flavia Julia Helena (250-330 CE, or AD), Roman Empress and later proclaimed a saint by the Catholic, Lutheran and Orthodox Churches.
And it's Helena of the Cross, or Helena of Constantinople, whom this inland Murcia town has to thank, 1,700 years on, for its thriving tourism industry: She identified a strip of wood as part of Jesus' cross and had it brought to what is now Europe from Robert the Patriarch of Jerusalem.
It would take until the 13th century to find its way to Caravaca de la Cruz (cruz being 'cross' in Spanish), and the town was given the title of Holy City by Pope John Paul II.
This Pontiff gave Caravaca the status of Jubileo Perpetuo (Perpetual, or everlasting, Jubilee), which is celebrated every seven years.
The next of these is 2024, but if you can't wait that long, you can see the chunk of the vera cruz at any time – now folded into a double-armed cross, it sits on the main altar in the basilica inside the castle.
Santo Toribio de Liébana (Cantabria)
This is another 'Holy City' which is not actually a city at all, in reality. Based in the one-province region of Cantabria on the north coast – home of Santander, the Picos de Europa National Park, the Altamira Caves and the wide-open Cabárceno safari park – Santo Toribio de Liébana is not a residential hub, but a huge Cistercian monastery.
You'll find it in the town of Camaleño, in the Liébana district of Cantabria – and if you enjoy your trip to it, send a quick blessing to the Bishop of Astorga (León province), Santo Toribio.
He had it built in the early fifth century after he brought home – you've guessed it – a piece of the original cross.
Known as the Lignum Crucis, the chunk of wood is said to be the largest part of Jesus' cross in current existence, which earned the monastery the privilege of celebrating the Holy Jubilee Year in 1512, granted by Pope Julius II.
Whenever the Año Santo Jubilar Lebaniego is celebrated, and only ever then, a gateway within the monastery referred to as the Puerta del Perdón, or the Doorway to Pardon, is opened.
Celebrations only take place when the anniversary of Pope Julius' blessing, April 16, falls on a Sunday.
This year, April 16 is Easter Monday, meaning the year 2023 is going to be the right time to head up there and soak in the holy atmosphere.
If you're planning on making the journey all the way to Cantabria, set aside the best part of a week and, as well as visiting the other sites we mentioned above, take a trip to the much-lauded, picturesque village of Potes, the solid-stone Baroque village of Santillana del Mar, and the coastal town of Comillas with its gigantic Pontifical University, one of the most expensive private higher education centres to study at in Spain.
Whilst in Comillas, at the very least take a selfie outside the restaurant El Capricho, even if you get there at the wrong time to pop in for dinner – this whacky, fabulous green-and-red tiled spire was designed by Antoni Gaudí, the architect behind Barcelona's 'unfinished' Sagrada Família cathedral and psychedelic Parc Güelll.
You'll probably have suspected that the moment you clapped eyes on it if you didn't already know, given how it bears his very unique, colourful, weird and wonderful stamp.
Dining at the Capricho, despite its global fame, is surprisingly affordable, but check opening times and make a booking to avoid disappointment.
BLUE flags are the global gold standard for beaches, which means you don't have to worry about anything lacking when planning a trip to one of them: If it's flying the flag, then it's already perfect.
YET again and for the 36th year running, Spain holds the record for the highest number of blue-flagged beaches in the world, with its east-coast region of the Comunidad Valenciana having more than any other.
THIS year's Princess of Asturias Arts Award winner has already been announced after her name was put forward by Spain's most famous living film director.
NO DOUBT you will have heard about Spain's world-famous Easter parades, of which the main and most moving is on Good Friday – and perhaps you've always wanted to see one in action.