To spot Galicia Square, look for a large, open, rectangular park filled with lush rows of Dutch ash trees, a central fountain sending misty sprays into the air, and plenty of benches under the trees-right where several roads meet near the Campolongo neighborhood.
Welcome to Galicia Square! Imagine the year is 1884. Steam and excitement fill the air as a shiny new locomotive chugs into the city, stopping right where you’re standing. This spot-now a peaceful, tree-shaded haven-was once the humming heart of Pontevedra’s old railway station. Back then, the plaza was just known as the “Square of the Station,” a crossroads where the clang of train bells and the chatter of arriving travelers filled the mornings. If you stood here in 1904, you’d spot the grand Palace Hotel towering at the corner-four stories and an attic, straight out of a modernist dream, housing tourists and dignitaries who’d just stepped off the train.
There was even an elegant chalet built by engineer León Domercq y Alzúa, perched on another corner. I bet he never imagined it’d be knocked down to make way for city progress in the 1980s! As the decades chugged along, the plaza grew busier-and noisier-when buses and even the city’s trolebuses rumbled by. In 1962, the city finally named it Plaza de Galicia as a tribute to its beloved region. And when the new train station opened farther away in 1966, the old building disappeared, leaving space for more movement, more change.
By 1988, the last trolebuses sputtered away, and traffic lanes crisscrossed the square. But Pontevedra had a greener vision. In 1991, a team of creative architects-led by José Martínez Sarandeses-ripped out those hectic roads, planted lush avenues of trees, added lawns and garden beds, and transformed the plaza into the peaceful escape you see now. The plaza’s heart? The circular center with granite blocks symbolizing the stars from the Galician coat of arms, and a playful fountain that splashes and cools the air-perfect for a hot summer day.
Sit on a bench, enjoy the dappled sunlight, and know you’re surrounded by more than just trees and flowers. Galicia Square is a living story of travel, change, and community-one that keeps evolving, a bit like the people of Galicia themselves. And if a pigeon bumps into you… well, they’ve been here since day one!
