Malgrat de Mar
Encyclopedia
Malgrat de Mar is a municipality
in the comarca
of the Maresme
, in the province of Barcelona
, Catalonia
, Spain. It is situated on the coast between Santa Susanna
and Blanes
. A local road runs from the town to the main N-II road, while the B-682 connects it with Blanes
, Lloret de Mar
and Tossa de Mar
. It is served by a RENFE
railway station on the line between Barcelona
and Maçanet-Massanes
.
, with smoothed temperatures almost over the whole year. The annual precipitation amount averaged over the last 18 years is about 650 mm.
Traditionally, Malgrat has been predominantly an agricultural town with considerable maritime commercial activity and, since the 19th Century, an important industrial centre. The tourist activity started in Malgrat de Mar around 1960. And since then it has become a important touristic destination.
, Nicaragua Incisa in Val d'Arno
, Italy Moguer
, Spain Seynod
, France
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
in the comarca
Comarques of Catalonia
This is a list of the comarques of Catalonia . A comarca is roughly equivalent to a US "county" or a UK "district". However, in the context of Catalonia, the term "county" can be a bit misleading, because in medieval Catalonia, the most important rulers were counts, notably the Counts of Barcelona...
of the Maresme
Maresme
Maresme is a comarca located along the Catalan Mediterranean coast in Spain, between the comarques of Barcelonès and Selva , and also bordering with Vallès Oriental ....
, in the province of Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
, Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, Spain. It is situated on the coast between Santa Susanna
Santa Susanna, Barcelona
Santa Susanna is a municipality in the comarca of the Maresme in Catalonia, Spain. It is situated on the coast between Malgrat de Mar and Pineda de Mar. The main N-II road runs through the town.There is train link direct from Sants station in Barcelona....
and Blanes
Blanes
Blanes is a town on the Costa Brava in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain.The coast of Blanes has 4 km of different kinds of beaches, including the Blanes beach and S'Abanell beach.-Main sights:...
. A local road runs from the town to the main N-II road, while the B-682 connects it with Blanes
Blanes
Blanes is a town on the Costa Brava in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain.The coast of Blanes has 4 km of different kinds of beaches, including the Blanes beach and S'Abanell beach.-Main sights:...
, Lloret de Mar
Lloret de Mar
Lloret de Mar is a Mediterranean coastal town in Catalonia and one of the most popular holiday resorts on the Costa Brava. It is 40 kilometres from Girona and 75 kilometres from Barcelona and therefore easily accessible...
and Tossa de Mar
Tossa de Mar
Tossa de Mar is a municipality in Catalonia, Spain, located on the Costa Brava, about 103 kilometres north of Barcelona and 100 kilometres south of the French border...
. It is served by a RENFE
RENFE
Renfe Operadora is the state-owned company which operates freight and passenger trains on the 1668-mm "Iberian gauge" and 1435-mm "European gauge" networks of the Spanish national railway infrastructure company ADIF .- History :The name RENFE is derived from that of the former Spanish National...
railway station on the line between Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
and Maçanet-Massanes
Maçanet de la Selva
Maçanet de la Selva is a municipality in the comarca of the Selva in Catalonia, Spain. It is an important communications junction, where the routes from the coast meet those from the Prelittoral Depression to form a single axis north towards Girona and the French border...
.
Climate
The town is located 4 meters above sea level. It has a coastal-Mediterranean climateMediterranean climate
A Mediterranean climate is the climate typical of most of the lands in the Mediterranean Basin, and is a particular variety of subtropical climate...
, with smoothed temperatures almost over the whole year. The annual precipitation amount averaged over the last 18 years is about 650 mm.
History
Malgrat de Mar was first populated between the 13th and 14th centuries, when it was known as Vilanova de Palafolls. However, it is known that the early inhabitants of Malgrat built their houses on the hill (named "El Castell") that is located in the middle of the town.Traditionally, Malgrat has been predominantly an agricultural town with considerable maritime commercial activity and, since the 19th Century, an important industrial centre. The tourist activity started in Malgrat de Mar around 1960. And since then it has become a important touristic destination.
Main sights
- Church of St Nicolau. Built on 16th century and enlarged in the 18th century. Because of its size, it is known as the Cathedral of the Coast.
- Peixateries velles (The old fish market). On the south side there were the meat market, while on the North side there were the fish market. On this later side, the stone-made waiter where the fish was sold is still conserved.
- Town hall. A Modernist style building, which was inaugurated on 15 August 1913.
- La Cooperativa (The Cooperative - The library). One of the oldest buildings in Malgrat, built by the Clapers family in the 16th century. Later, it was a blood hospital (18th century), the Casino Malgratenc (a cultural society) on the 19th century, and a worker's cooperative on the 20th century. Finally, it has become the library in the 21st century.
- Ca l'Arnau. A Modernist style building, built on 1914. Recently, it had been renewed and it has become the Music School.
- The Old Hospital. In 1441, Hug Descolomer founded this hospital to help the poor people. Nowadays it has become a therapeutic center, and its chapel is used as an exhibition gallery
- El castell. It is a tower located on the top of the hill, just in the center of the town. It is surrounded by a park, and it can be accessed by the Hug Descolomer road, totally constituted by steps, next to the Passatge dels Arcs (Archs passage). The park offers a panoramical view of Malgrat and its surrounding areas.
- Torre d'en Riera (also called Torre de la Vídua de Can Sala). It's a Modernist style house.
- Parc de Can Campassol. It is a park located in Carrer de Mar street. It housed a colonial style house where Zenobia CamprubíZenobia CamprubíZenobia Camprubí Aymar was a Spanish-born writer and poet; she was also a noted translator of the works of Rabindranath Tagore....
was born (the wife of Juan Ramón JiménezJuan Ramón JiménezJuan Ramón Jiménez Mantecón was a Spanish poet, a prolific writer who received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1956. One of Jiménez's most important contributions to modern poetry was his advocacy of the French concept of "pure poetry."-Biography:Jiménez was born in Moguer, near Huelva, in...
, Nobel Award of Literature, 1956). In the artificial lake of the park there is a sculpture of her. - La Pilona. It is an artificial platform located in the middle of the sea. In 1910s, it was used to load ships with de mineral extracted from the mines of Can Palomeres, in the mountains located in the North of Malgrat. There were an aerial structure to transport the mineral from the mines towards the platform.
- Torre de l'Esquena. It is a 19th century house.
- Plaça de Marià Cubí. It is a square inaugurated on 1956. The sculpture is dedicated to Marià Cubí i Soler, born in Malgrat on 1801, who became a frenologist and linguist.
Natural places and parks
- Pla de Pineda. Located behind the hotels in Passeig Marítim. This space has conserved the agriculture in spite of the hard urbanistic pressure. It is very pleasant to take a walk around this place
- Pla de Grau. Located at the east of the town, between Malgrat and the Tordera river. It is the greatest agricultural space in Malgrat. Produce include the fesols del ganxet (a variety of white beans). This space has been protected.
- Mouth of the Tordera. Usually, the Tordera river is dry in many parts of its course, but there is a lake in its mouth. There can be found a lot of bird species.
- Parc Francesc Macià. The newest and biggest park in Malgrat, home to fantastic figures inspired by children tales.
Beaches
- L'Astillero. Located opposite to the tourist hotel zone.
- Central beach. Located In front of downtown Malgrat.
- Tordera Mouth beach. The largest beach in Malgrat. It extends from Malgrat downtown to the Tordera mouth. There is a nudist zone.
Twin towns
CárdenasCárdenas, Rivas
Cárdenas is a municipality in the Rivas department of Nicaragua. In 2002, the municipality of Cardenas had threatened the government in Managua with sucsesion and becoming part of Costa Rica. Costa Rica claimed that it would respect Nicaraguan territory and had no intention of annexing the...
, Nicaragua Incisa in Val d'Arno
Incisa in Val d'Arno
Incisa in Val d'Arno is a comune in the Province of Florence in the Italian region Tuscany, located about 20 km southeast of Florence....
, Italy Moguer
Moguer
Moguer is a municipality and small city located in the province of Huelva, Andalusia, Spain. According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 18,381. Its surface area is , and its population density is ....
, Spain Seynod
Seynod
Seynod is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.The inhabitants of Seynod are called Seynodiens.-Administration:The town of Seynod is the seat of a canton which includes twelve communes.-Geography:...
, France
Sources
- Panareda Clopés, Josep Maria; Rios Calvet, Jaume; Rabella Vives, Josep Maria (1989). Guia de Catalunya, Barcelona:Caixa de Catalunya. ISBN 84-87135-01-3 (Spanish). ISBN 84-87135-02-1 (Catalan).