The 55m Torre de Hércules | Tower of Hercules (📷1&2) at A Coruña was built during the 1st C. CE, during the reign of Emperor Trajan, & is UNESCO-listed as the oldest surviving Roman lighthouse. It’s still in use today, making it the oldest functioning lighthouse in the world: that’s *two thousand years* of continuous maritime safety service! It underwent major restoration in the 18th C. (reflected in the current neoclassical shell) & until the 20th C. was known as Farum Brigantium. You can ordinarily climb the spiral staircase within the Roman core; it was closed for renovation during our visit. On the adjacent granite headland are even older relics: the Petroglifos de Punta Herminia are a group of prehistoric rock carvings dated to 2500–1800 BCE. They’re very weathered/ hard to make out, so not as photogenic as the Atlantic surf smashing onto the rocks below (📷3). Onwards to O Ézaro, where we admired the dramatic rocky landscape surrounding the Río Xallas (📷4). This reflects a very old granite core formed ~300M years ago, & very lengthy erosion causing large fractures, rounded domes, sheer cliffs & boulder formations.

🇪🇸#spain #galicia 🇪🇺#europe 🚀#travel 🚐 #camperVan #nomad #roadTrip #vanLife 🌍#unesco 🏛️ #roman