A Coruna

Our 2nd daytrip from Santiago was A Coruna, and it has nothing to do with Cerveza. This is a cool seaside town that is due north of Santiago (versus Finisterre which is due west). One of the coolest things to see in A Coruna is the Tower of Hurcules.

This ancient lighthouse was originally built by the Romans in the 2nd century, and renovated in 1791, and is the oldest Roman lighthouse that remains in use. Unfortunately they were closed since it was Christmas Eve, but you can go inside pretty much every other day (of course).

They had a beautiful compass rose between the lighthouse and the water that pointed to different parts of Spain.

This quadrant pointed towards Santiago of course has a scallop shell.

This quadrant points towards the west coast of this region of Spain, which is known as the Death Coast.

This section of coastline was referred to as the Death Coast because of how many shipwrecks happened here. There are even stories of pirates setting up fake lighthouses to get ships disoriented so that they run aground.

The statue in the background is supposed to be a conch shell. I think you are supposed to squint your eyes.

They had a fake Stonehenge nearby. Not sure of the signifigance, but it got us to walk over!

Fake Stonehenge or not, it was a beautiful spot and well worth a visit.