We went to port city of Santander which is the capital of the historical region of Cantabria. It is located on the north coast of Spain. We walked along the coastline which had a large park. 

We walked through the park exploring and admiring the views. We came across some bronze status, which was a memorial.

It was a memorial for the rebuilding of Santander after the massive fire of February 15, 1941,  which destroyed most of the city. During the fire a total of 72,211 firefighters fought the fire and its aftermath. There was only one death throughout the fire and it was a firefighter named Julian Sanchez who was from Madrid.

The park was quite long and ran parallel to the water.  Along the parkway we came across a large structure which was quite unique.

It is called “Centro Botín” and it is an art center with a very unique architectural design. We walked under the edge of the Centro Botin near the water.

The building appears split into two halves with a central connecting hallway. There is also a stairs and an elevator which allowed people to reach the roof. We decided to head to the roof and check out the views. 

We continued our walk along the  park and came across some bronze statues of children, called “raqueros”.

Apparently the story of the statues is to depicted the children who would wait for the tourist ships to arrive at port. The tourist would trow coins into the water and the children would dive in for the coins.

We walked along the park for a while before heading in to explore  the old quarter of Santander.  The waterfront parkway was a great time and a leisurely way to spend a few hours.

“Ados eta egun handia”