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View of Portbou and the Walter Benjamin Memorial

View of Portbou and the Walter Benjamin Memorial

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View of Portbou and the Walter Benjamin Memorial

Name: View of Portbou and the Walter Benjamin Memorial
Rating: 2

Recommended by 14 cyclists

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Location: Portbou, Alt Emporda, Girona, Catalonia, Spain

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Top cycling routes to View of Portbou and the Walter Benjamin Memorial

4.6

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410

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1. Banyuls Pass – Port de la Selva loop from Roses

102km

07:01

1,480m

Hard bike ride. Very good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels.

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4.8

(4)

294

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2. Collioure Beach – Banyuls Pass loop from Collioure

89.6km

06:13

1,570m

Hard bike ride. Very good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels.

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4.7

(6)

137

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3. View of Roses – Port de la Selva loop from la Garriga

84.7km

05:44

1,370m

Hard bike ride. Very good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Tips

Fahrradpartner

April 3, 2025

The long building is the train station, formerly the largest border station between France and Spain.

Translated by Google •

Fahrradpartner

April 3, 2025

A look back, so to speak, reveals the most important sites in Portbou, the cemetery, and the Walter Benjamin memorial. Between 1934 and 1944, the Spanish town of Portbou on the Costa Brava was a gathering point for German and French emigrants.
The German philosopher and literary critic Walter Benjamin also fled across the Pyrenees to the border town on September 25 and 26, 1940, accompanied by Lisa and Hans Fittko.
Between 1934 and 1944, the Spanish town of Portbou on the Costa Brava was a gathering point for German and French emigrants.
The German philosopher and literary critic Walter Benjamin also fled across the Pyrenees to the border town on September 25 and 26, 1940, accompanied by Lisa and Hans Fittko. From there, Benjamin, who had a visa for the USA, wanted to travel on to Lisbon. Due to a heart condition, he could only make the journey very slowly. The refugees were denied entry to Portbou in accordance with a newly issued Spanish government decree. The Spanish authorities therefore denied him entry and wanted to send him back to France, where he faced arrest by the Gestapo. On the night before his deportation, September 26-27, Benjamin committed suicide by overdosing on morphine at the Hotel "Francia de Portbou." His body was buried in the local cemetery.

In 1989, at the suggestion of Federal President Richard von Weizsäcker, the Federal Foreign Office and the Federal Ministry of the Interior commissioned the Association of Independent Cultural Institutes (AsKI) to plan, organize, and realize a memorial site for Walter Benjamin.

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Marc

April 20, 2025

Beautiful climb to Spain

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Elevation 90 m

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Tuesday 16 December

16°C

11°C

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Max wind speed: 5.0 km/h

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Location: Portbou, Alt Emporda, Girona, Catalonia, Spain

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View of Portbou and the Walter Benjamin Memorial

1. Banyuls Pass – Port de la Selva loop from Roses

2. Collioure Beach – Banyuls Pass loop from Collioure

3. View of Roses – Port de la Selva loop from la Garriga

Other Popular Places to Check Out

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