Medieval church re-emerges as Spain ships in water
Wed May 14, 2008 11:14am EDT
Barcelona ships in water supplies
By Martin Roberts
BARCELONA (Reuters) – Perhaps the most striking image of Spain’s drought, so severe it has forced Barcelona to ship in water, has been that of the underwater church which emerged from a drying dam.
For most of the past four decades, all that has been visible of the village of Sant Roma has been the belltower of its stone church, peeping above the water beside forested hills from a valley flooded in the 1960s to provide water for the Catalonia region.
This year, receding waters have exposed the 11th-century church completely, attracting crowds of tourists who stand gazing around it on the dusty bed of the reservoir.
Neighboring Vilanova de Sau is enjoying a tourist boom, its mayor Joan Riera says.