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1000 year old olive tree in Catalonia

Trees of biblical age: The route of the 1000 year old olive trees

Considered a symbol of life, they can live to be 2000 years old: olivetrees. The largest number of thousand-years-olds - including the oldest olive tree in the world, the Farga de Arión, planted in 314 - can be found around Ulldecona in south-eastern Catalonia.
There are 1500 specimens in the region and some of these methuselahs are reached by the Ruta de Olivos Milenarios - passing oil mills and muses. Even older than the olive trees are the nearby cave drawings of the Serra de Godall: about 8000 years ago, Stone Age people carved pictures of animalhuntings  and deities with red paint into the rock.

Casatiglione Falletto

Truffles, cheese, wine: La Strada del Barolo

Piedmont, the land at the foot of the mountains, is a paradise for connoisseurs. It is no coincidence that this is where the Slow Food movement started. The region's wines in particular are world-renowned - above all Barolo.
The king of wines, made from the Nebbiolo grape, grows south of Alba in eleven municipalities that have joined to form the Barolo Wine Route. Sixty-five of its winegrowers open their doors to travellers and invite them to drink. Other delicacies of the region can also be tasted, such as the blue cheese Castelmagno or the famous truffles of Alba.

Vineyard near Arbois

Unlike the others: The Jura Wine Route

Vin Jaune, Vin de paille or Macvin du Jura: in the remote mountain villages of the Jura, exceptional wines have been maturing for more than 1000 years. Especially the three sweet wines enjoy and connoisseurs high reputation.
On the 80 kilometre long Route des Vins du Jura, travellers can learn about their unusual production methods - for example in the Musée de la Vigne et du Vin, the wine museum in Arbois - and can taste the wines at the wineries. The castles, churches and abbeys along the route from Salins-les-Bains to Saint-Amour are also worth a visit.