A walk through Laguardia-Biasteri

amplify image

Laguardia-Biasteri

Laguardia owes its name to its consideration as 'the Guard of Navarre', the defensive bastion against Castile during the Middle Ages. Together with the charm of its walls, its ancestral homes and palaces, Laguardia-Biasteri joins another one, hidden only apparently: its underground wine cellars, in which excellent Rioja Alavesa wines await.

The walled nature of the town has provided a pedestrian urban area to the Rioja Alavesa comarca (land) chief town. It is a delight for walking by following this route or wandering about its streets.

In the 13th century, the town surrounded with thick walls. Although the Carlist Wars destroyed part of their elements, the walls remain upright, with many turrets and the Puerta Nueva (New Gate), one of the five gates leading to the town.

We will go inside across the walls, through the 15th century Puerta Nueva or de Carnicerias (New Gate or Butcher's Gate) and we will immediately find the Main Square. The Main Square is arcaded and dominated by the Town Hall, and there you must pay attention to its clock.

The Town Hall of Laguardia-Biasteri shows the town’s coat of arms and Charles V's imperial coat of arms. Nevertheless, everybody's attention is on the clock: at 12, 14 and 20 hours, its automatons come out dancing.

To the right, we will take the Main Street, which is a compilation of ancestral and palace homes of the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries. The coats, balconies and eaves are a delightful sight.

The church of Santa Maria de los Reyes, monumental jewel of Laguardia, waits for us at the back. It has a combination of styles and was built between the 12th and 15th centuries. Its portal is exceptional because it preserves its 17th century polychromy, when the usual thing is to lose the original paint on the stone.

To its left raises the Abacial tower (Abbot’s), a military building reconverted into the temple bell tower. To its right, we will be able to get into the Collado Promenade, where the shades of the stones are changed into the greenness of vegetation and the blueness of heaven. It is located to the North of the hill on which Laguardia settles. In this pleasant promenade, there is a bust of Samaniego, the local fabulist, and beautiful views over the surroundings.