Andorra de la Vella

There are six micronations in Europe: Liechtenstein, San Marino, Monaco, Vatican City, Malta and Andorra. As I had just hiked the Camino de Santiago starting from the Pyrenees mountains, I wanted to seize the opportunity to see Andorra, which is nestled amongst the Pyrenees mountains, a nation that covers just 467.4km² with a population of around 78,000.

Driving from Lerida in Spain, I passed through the rural green farming areas and came to the highway leading to Andorra’s capital, Andorra de la Vella.

Interestingly, I saw signs in Spain periodically showing how many kilometers remained to reach Andorra. Being a skiing destination, I imagine lots of Spaniards and French visitors go to Andorra.

The highway goes next to Panta D’Olivana, a reservoir and dam that is very beautiful. The scenic countryside and the towns perched on the hills are very picturesque.

Next, I passed by the mountains close to Coll d’Nargo.

A cute mural covering the side of the house was commemorating the eighth century county of Urgell.

After a short distance, I was at the customs control between the two countries, Spain and Andorra. There was nothing to do, but to just pass through. Nobody stopped me or any other cars ahead of me.

A few miles after the customs, I reached the capital city of Andorra named as Andorra de la Vella. Andorra is one of the oldest countries of Europe, older than 1000 years and has cobblestoned streets.

The weather was beautiful and many people were enjoying drinks at the bar in front of the hotel that I was going to.

The 16th century Casa de la Vall was right by the main square which contained many bronze sculptures.

Walking by, I saw the government administration building of this country with a population merely a single digit percentage of San Francisco city population.

Although small, it is a modern country with high HDI and high per capita GDP.

The roads were modern, buildings on the Main Street and on the mountains were stylish.

It was very green, wooded all around and the nature was well preserved.

The apartment buildings next to the rocky mountains look very rugged.

I saw many motorcyclists around the area. Probably because of the winding roads making the ride a bit more fun.

Walking around, I discovered a nature trail, which went up a very steep grade. I climbed and came to a path which goes parallel to the mountain.

The path reveals a very beautiful view of the entire city of Andorra de la Vella.

From up here, it looks like a very densely packed city.

A densely wooded area is seen at another part of the city.

The path was narrow and had a small adjoining canal carrying icy water seeping in from the mountain.

As I kept climbing, finally the path ended, and there was just an area with rock fall. It was very quiet at this point.

The historic Casa de la Vall was visited by many people. It had a very interesting construction with rock bricks. They were many different statues around.

According to my GuideMichelin app, there was a Michelin rated restaurant very close by. I called and was able to make a reservation for the evening.

This restaurant was unique because the owner was from Andorra, his wife was the main chef and she was from Argentina, and there was a pastry chef from Columbia. They provided really attentive service. The food was delicious, a chef’s tasting menu with five courses.

the 19th century cardinal Benlloch was the co-prince of Andorra and his sculpture is visible in the main square.

The plaza Pricep Benlloch is right behind the sculpture.

Justi Guitart was the co-prince of Andorra and Bishop of Urgell and his sculpture is also in the same square.

Walking around, one cannot help but admire the beautiful mountain vistas.

The spring season and the colorful trees made the views even more vibrant.

as I drove out to my next destination, I saw a pretty unique sculpture at the middle of roundabout on the highway just outside of De La Vella.

The highways continued to be mountainous, modern and delightful to drive on.

The views of buildings at the mountains looked cute.

I drove by the tiny town of Ransol which has less than 200 population population.

I stopped by at a gas station and got some coffee. Later, I realized that Andorra and has no tax and therefore guessed that the petrol prices would be very low. As I looked at the price display, It turned out that it was true. It was a small pleasure to fill up the car fuel tank with low priced fuel.

The Pyrenees mountains with the snow on top looked beautiful in the distance.

A steep downhill began as I kept descending from over 7,000 feet to lower and lower levels.

Finally, I was at the border of Andorra and France.

At this point, I realized that my Andorra trip was over and fondly remembered how beautiful this historical micro nation was and how much I enjoyed the short trip.