Prehistoric Sites of the Vezere Valley, France - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Montignac, France

Weather: Considerable cloudiness with occasional rain showers, 47/61F.

Route: From Bordeaux 185 km east on A89.

Significance: There are 25 caves in the Vezere valley that were decorated during the paleolithic era, most around 17,000 years ago. The most famous cave, Lascaux cave, was found in 1940. After a few decades of thousands of people visiting the site the images started to decay. The caves were finally closed in 1963 to protect them.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

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Images of animals (from whc.unesco.org)

The limestone cliffs that contain the caves (from whc.unesco.org)

Bordeaux, France - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Bordeaux, France

Weather: Cloudy skies, 52/71F.

Route: From Bilbao 335 km NNE on AP-8 and A63.

Population: 257,068

Places to visit: Place de la Bourse, St Andre Cathedral, Musee du Vin et du Negoce, La Cite du Vin, Jardin Public, Musee d'Aquitaine, Porte Cailhau, La Fleche Saint-Michel.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

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Place la Bourse (from forbes.com)

Porte Cailhau (from whc.unesco.org)

Bilbao, Spain

Place: Bilbao, Spain

Weather: Light rain early, a mix of sun and clouds in the afternoon 46/63F.

Route: From Cave of Altamira 125 km east on A-8.

Population: 345,821

Places to visit: Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao Fine Arts Museum, Basilica of Begona, Euskal Museoa Bilbao Basque Museum, Catedral de Santiago, Museo Maritimo Ria de Bilbao.

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Guggenheim Museum and Le Salve in the background (from telegraph.co.uk)

The river estuary cuts through downtown with hills in the background (from theguardian.com)

Cave of Altamira, Spain - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Cave of Altamira, Spain

Weather: Considerable cloudiness with occasional rain showers, 49/60F.

Route: From San Millan 250 km NW on AP-68 and A-8.

Significance: Paleolithic cave paintings are always so mysterious. Who painted this and why? Was it some weird member of the community who saw things differently? Or was he/she celebrated for their work and it was a big part of the community?  These paintings were between 15-25,000 years ago.  The most common painting was of buffalo, but there are many other animals and even some mysterious symbols.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site 

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Some of the many images of buffalo (from whc.unesco.org)

San Millan Yuso and Suso Monasteries, Spain - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: San Millan, Spain

Weather: Considerable cloudiness, 42/63F.

Route: From Burgos 88 km on N-120.

Significance: St Millan was a 6th century aesthetic monk, who started a monastery in a cave, and whose followers built first a small church near the cave and then a in the 16th century a larger monastery below the cave.  The cave is still a popular place for pilgrims. The first books on record in the Castilian language, predecessor of modern Spanish, were found here.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

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The small monastery of Suso built into the cave (from whc.unesco.org)

The larger Yuso monastery below in the valley built in the 16th century (from whc.unesco.org)

Burgos, Spain - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Burgos, Spain

Weather: Partly cloudy 43/63F.

Route: From Oviedo 297 km SE on AP-66 and A-231.

Population: 175,921

Significance: The world heritage listing is actually specific to the Burgos Cathedral. It was built in the 13th century and is the greatest example of Gothic architecture in Spain. 

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

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The Burgos cathedral (from whc.unesco.org)

The interior of the cathedral (from whc.unesco.org)

Oviedo and Kingdom of the Asturias, Spain - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Oviedo, Spain

Weather: Cloudy with occasional light rain, 50/61F.

Route: From Lugo 249 km ENE on A-8.

Population: 220,020

Significance: The only area of the Iberian peninsula that was never taken over by Muslims was the Kingdom of Asturias in Northern Spain. There are several pre-Romanesque style churches built in the 9th century, which are symbolic of the beginning of the christian reconquista, which took almost 700 years to be fully realized.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

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Santa Maria del Naranco (from whc.unesco.org)

Cathedral of San Salvador (from whc.unesco.org)