Santander Things to Do

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Behind Pombo Square, the Church of Saint Lucy is one of the main religious buildings in the city. It was built in the mid XIX century and its lavish interior and attractive arcaded porch are worth a bit of attention.

The church is a work of the architect Antonio de Zabaleta, who had worked with great profusion in the area (he designed the plans of the nearby East Market and the House of the Arches of Botín of Pombo Square). It is a historicist building influenced both by the Italian Renaissance and the Paleo-Christian art.

The church dates back to one of the moments of greatest economic and urban growth in the city and is one of the few examples of Spanish religious architecture from the second half of the XIX century.

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This Square is coetaneous to the development of the adjacent Paseo de Pereda and was built in the same architectural style. The north side of the Square is lined with eye-catching arcaded buildings and the whole area is presided by the palacial building of Juan Pombo (hence the name of the square), which nowadays hosts the oldest nautic club in the city (Club de Regatas).

Although the square is popularly known by its traditional name of Plaza de Pombo, it is *still* officially named after José Antonio Primo de Rivera, founder of the single party under the fascist dictatorship.

This is one of the favorite places for Santanderinos to go out, as the nightlife area of Cañadío is close by and there are a number of cafés and tapas bars in the surroundings. However, it is not a place for relaxed conversation, as it is popular with families bringing their children.

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There is a monument dedicated to José María de Pereda in the middle of the garden. All this relevance (the city commemorates this writer and journalist in its most important avenue and gardens) is only local, as few people would know Pereda outside of Cantabria. He is, nevertheless, one of the best authors of the XIX Century Realism movement in Spanish litterature. In his novels, he reflected with great fidelity the day to day life of his countrymen.

His two most important works are Sotileza, in which he porpraits the lifestyle of the fishermen, and Peñas arriba, which describes with great accuracy the life in the highlands of Cantabria in the XIX century.

Readers with a good level of Spanish and interested in XIX century litterature may find the reading of these two works a good introduction to a trip in Cantabria. Other than that, the language used by the characters in his works is considered a good reflection of the dialectal form of Spanish used in la Montaña (aka Cantabria).

In this monument, Mr Pereda sits on a monolith decorated with scenes from his main works.

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These perfectly manicured gardens are also dedicated to the memory of the writer José María de Pereda and, although they are rather small, they have all the elements that the average urban park requires, including a music kiosk, a pond and several fountains and monuments.

The gardens are built on sea-claimed land, in an area that used to be the city's port. It is said that all species of trees from Cantabria are represented in the Pereda Gardens.

The municipal information office is also located inside the gardens.

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The Stone Crane is the only relic that remains from the time when port activities were still carried out in this part of the port of Santander decades ago. It is more than 100 years old and, for its value for the commercial and industrial history of the city, it has been preserved as a monument.

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The kiosk that stands on the Molnedo Docks was conceived as a customs office. It is another work of the architect González de Riancho dating form the Belle Epoque period of Santander. The building, which is grandiloquently known as the "Little Palace of the Docks" (Palacete del Embarcadero) is currently used to host itinerant exhibitions mostly related to the sea and maritime topics. The admittance is free.

The "Little Palace" is the departing point for the Pedreñeras, the small boats that connect the city with the little towns across the bay. They are mostly used by commuters, but in Summer, they are extremely popular with beach-goers heading to Somo or El Puntal. Year round, there are also highly recomendable scenic rides in the bay for the tourists.

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The last renovation of the Molnedo Docks brought the installation of a scultural group depicting a group of children that represent the raqueros. These were low class children who spent their time on the docks and dove into the sea in search of the coins that the people threw into the sea for their amusement. The raqueros appeared in several of the novels by José María de Pereda and still today the term raquero is used locally in a belittling manner refering to naughty or lazy children.

Nevertheless, in a few years, the sculptures of the raqueros have become so popular with locals and tourists that they are now one of the symbols of Santander.

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The Port of Santander has more than 2000 years of history and is the main reason for the existence of the city. The area facing the Paseo de Pareda, known as Molnedo Docks (Dársena de Molnedo) is, however, much more recent. It was a XIX project due to the engineer José de Lequerica, which aimed at facilitating the landing of the ships load during the low tide. In the mid XX century, the port activities were moved westwards, to the Maliaño Docks (still in use) and then, later to Raos, outside of the city.

The Molnedo Docks were remodeled a few years back. The old stones were replaced by a modern pavement with stylish streetlamps. The docks lost for many their old charm forever, but they are still a great place for fishing and enjoying the scenery of the bay.