Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: Montserrat

Casa Rosada (Pink House) - or officially Casa de Gobierno - is one of the main landmarks of Buenos Aires and dominates the main square of the city Plaza de Mayo. The pink coloured building houses the Argentine national government and the president’s office. It is also the place where many of the major historic events of the country took place. Among them the scenes when Juan and Evita Perón addressed the masses from a balcony. The Casa Rosada was constructed on the site of a fort established by the Spanish in 1580 and used by the Spanish colonial viceroys. After the Argentine independence (1816), the fort was redeveloped into a customs house by a British architect. In 1862 the building was chosen by President Bartolomé Mitre to be the seat of his government. His successor - President Sarmiento - expanded the building and is believed to have ordered it to be painted pink. The current building was completed in 1884. Casa Rosada can be visited during a guided tour. The building also houses a museum, which contains objects relating to former presidents of Argentina. It has been declared a National Historic Monument of Argentina in 1942.

Montserrat is a mountain range north-west of Barcelona. Its main peaks are higher than 1.000 meters, with Sant Jeroni as highest (1,236 m). Montserrat literally means "saw mountain" in Catalan, which describes the peculiar aspect of the spectacular shaped mountains. The mountains are visible from a great distance and are part of the Montserrat National Park. Montserrat is well known as the site of the Santa Maria de Montserrat Monastery with the Virgin of Montserrat sanctuary.

The Santa Maria de Montserrat Monastery - a Benedictine monastery about 1000 years old - is situated half way up the mountains of the Montserrat Natural Park; a mountain range with weird shaped peaks of more than 1200 meters high. The impressive basilica is by far the most interesting of the many buildings. Within the church is the chapel with the 12th century figure of Our Lady of Montserrat - known as la Moreneta (“little dark-skinned one”) - the patron saint of Catalonia. The Basilica was greatly damaged during the war with the French (1808-1814) and could not be reconstructed until the end of the 19th century. Picture: sculptures of Jesus Christ and the 12 Apostles on the façade of the Basilica

The Santa Maria de Montserrat Monastery - a Benedictine monastery about 1000 years old - is situated half way up the mountains of the Montserrat Natural Park; a mountain range with weird shaped peaks of more than 1200 meters high. The impressive basilica is by far the most interesting of the many buildings. Within the church is the chapel with the 12th century figure of Our Lady of Montserrat - known as la Moreneta (“little dark-skinned one”) - the patron saint of Catalonia. The Basilica was greatly damaged during the war with the French (1808-1814) and could not be reconstructed until the end of the 19th century. Picture: main altar of the Basilica