Landscape

Route 20 – Brandía park

Large green space in the Vidán neighbourhood that has 6 hectares divided into areas by vegetation. Of note is the old oak grove and the Geometric Garden, restored in 2003, which is in front of the Villa Rial (current sociocultural center of Vidán). It is a small garden in a romantic style and rectangular shape that is divided into sections by paths, the main one parallel to the Sar River. It has a variety of plants: boxwood hedges, laurels, lavenders... Behind the trellis that delimits the garden, exotic trees, camellias and banana trees accompany the path.

Route 19 – Salgueiriños park

It is located near the Funga community center, as well as the archaeological site of Castro do Pozo da Neve.

Route 8 – Banquete de Conxo oak

The Banquete de Conxo Oak, standing for longer than 250 years, is the most veteran tree in the historic Banquete de Conxo Forest. Known popularly as “o avó” (the grandfather), it’s the most significant and oldest tree in the Banquete de Conxo oak grove. It is a symbol of resistance against indiscriminate fellings, and against the multiple fires that devastated Galician forests during the XIX and XX centuries and reduced spaces such as these, which used to hold up to 1000 oaks. Today only around 40 remain, with this oak as their banner. The Banquete de Conxo Oak has 3,75 meters of trunk perimeter, a height of 26 meters and its crown spans 392 square meters.
This oak was also the Spanish candidate for the European contest Tree of the year in the year 2022, having won the popular vote to represent the country.

Route 8 – Banquete de Conxo Forest

In this forest took place the historic reunion known as the Banquet of Conxo. The Employment Workshop “Youth Ecotur III”, from the Santiago City Council, allowed for the restoration of this space of natural beauty by setting it up for visit, creating a continuous path by the bank of Sar river that joins the Conxo and Sar neighborhoods.
The Banquet of Conxo, also known as the Democratic Banquet of Conxo, was a fraternization meeting between students, workers and artisans that, under the slogan “Order and fraternity”, took place on March 2nd 1856, aligning with the tenth anniversary of the Carral Martyrs. Arising mainly as Aurelio Aguirre’s initiative, it’s believed to have been held in the Belvedere area, next to the Sar river, in an oak forest located behind the Santa María de Conxo Monastery.
Considered one of the foundational events of Galicianism, this meeting caused commotion among the high-class people of Compostela from the very moment it was announced. Two workers and a boss assisted from each trade, all of them invited by students from the University of Santiago. The latter wore tailcoats and served the food to the workers, a gesture that was interpreted by the authorities as a provocation – the students were considered high-class –, which caused the oak grove to be taken by the military and the lunch to be celebrated with the diners surrounded by soldiers for fear of an insurrection.
Among the participants of the banquet stand out Aurelio Aguirre, Eduardo Pondal and Luís Rodríguez Seoane. Other distinguished attendees were Manuel Murguía and Juan Manuel Paz Novoa.

Route 18 – Mount Deus viewpoint

Located in the neighborhood of Vite, at the north.
From its 375 meters high you can see in the foreground the neighborhood of Vite, the former site of the Burgo de las Naciones or the Guadalupe factory, which became the most important tannery in Galicia. Further on, Avenida de Juan XXIII gives way to a different view of the historic center, with the convent of San Francisco and the monastery of San Martiño Pinario hiding part of the cathedral, whose towers dominate the center of the view. It consists of about 30,000 square meters of green area that were conditioned between 2009 and 2011, when different native trees were planted, the facilities were improved and a panoramic image was placed to locate the main monuments.

Route 8 – Banquete de Conxo Mosaic

Since 2019, presiding the Forest, we can find a large mosaic that pays homage to the Banquet of Conxo, created by Pancho Lapeña, Antón Pascual and Xosé Vizoso.

Route 8 – O Paxonal oak grove

Sar River landscape in Paxonal Oak Grove

Oak grove on the bank of Sar river set in the place currently known as Eugenio Granell park (O Paxonal). Located at the back of the park, towards Conxo, this place keeps the silence, peace and calm typical of the oak groves hidden in our atlantic forests in rural areas; so much so, that despite being close to places as busy as the train station, Lugo Avenue or the Conxo Provincial Hospital, you’ll be able to escape from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Route 8 – Eugenio Granell Park

Is located in the O Paxonal neighborhood, also known by the generic name A Pontepedriña, nearby the train station. It’s one of the biggest parks in Compostela, and one of its highlights, aside from the spectacular views of the city, is its configuration: the landscaped, lawn areas slowly become a lush oak forest by the river’s shore, completely indifferent to the city close by.
It has platforms for exercise and skateboarding, and it will soon be joined with the parks in the Conxo neighborhood, and from there to the ones in the Southern University Campus, completing thus the Green Itinerary that encircles the city.

Route 17 – Mount Gozo viewpoint

This is the viewpoint of Monte do Gozo, identifiable by two sculptures of pilgrims that point to the cathedral and show in their gestures, the jubilation that, according to tradition and stories, pilgrims have always lived in this place. They were placed in the Holy Year of 1993 and made by the Galician sculptor Acuña.

Route 16 – San Domingos de Bonaval Park

The park of San Domingos de Bonaval completes the complex made up of the convent and the new Galician Center of Contemporary Art. Álvaro Siza, author of the CGAC, and Isabel Aguirre have integrated the existing elements in the large convent enclosure, which includes a medicinal garden, different ruins, a oak grove and the Bonaval cemetery. This large public space has new elements, such as the stone walls that define the access ramps from the museum, so that it seems that they have always been there, and maintains existing pieces, such as the layout of the cemetery, which are absolutely new.
Throughout the meticulous construction of the park, all the large wooded pieces have been respected, which contribute decisively to creating the feeling that the new park is marked by the presence of a long history.
The exhilarating routes through the different spaces of the Bonaval park offer a wide variety of views. From its paths you can contemplate the historic buildings of the convent complex, the beautiful contemporary architecture of the museum, the nostalgic layout of the cemetery or exceptional perspectives on the city of Santiago. These tours are enriched by the presence of several sculptural pieces, such as those signed by Eduardo Chillida or Leopoldo Nóvoa.