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INTRODUCTION
Distance: 5,750 Kilometers
Technical difficulty: Low
Path: Linear
Identifying Color: GREEN
Healthy Route 4 runs partly through the Park, another through various urban streets and the last through a rural area. It begins next to the Arroyo de la Vega canal, continues through the Jardín de La Vega, crosses Avenida de Barajas, continues along Avenida Rafael Nadal, and enters Camino de Escobares until reaching the Hermitage of Pinar de San Isidro.
Along the way, in addition to enjoying the different types of vegetation, as well as the lakes and ornamental fountains found in the parks, we can visit the various unique spots dotted along the healthy route.
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1. Rose Garden of the Vega Garden
The Jardín de la Vega is a linear park with an area of 180,000 square meters, located in the Arroyo de la Vega urbanization. It begins in the Rose Garden, an area planted exclusively with rose bushes of different varieties and colors, producing an explosion of color and fragrance during the flowering season. The Garden features a wide variety of environments and facilities, such as the Nature Classroom, the Arabic Garden, the Japanese Garden, the World Peace Bell, the Bonsai Museum, as well as ornamental fountains, children's play areas, large lawns, a wide variety of trees, and a Fruit Garden with two viewpoints crowning the hills.
2. Rosenthal Sculpture: Pianist and Muse - Author Ilya Kabakov - Arab Garden of the Jardín de la Vega
To create this sculptural project, Kabakov explored the public spaces of Alcobendas, eventually choosing the fountain in the Jardín de la Vega. The sculpture is born from the space, from the musicality of the water, from the romantic atmosphere of the surroundings. A highly evocative piece, perhaps a symbol of the mixture of hope and fear with which an artist confronts his muse, inspiration, or perhaps, the viewer.
3. Bonsai Museum - Vega Garden
The art of bonsai originated in China some two thousand years ago, with Taoist monks creating it based on principles closely related to the search for the meaning of life and inner harmony. For them, the tree was a symbol of eternity and represented a bridge between the divine (heaven) and the human (earth). According to tradition, those who could keep a potted tree were assured of eternity. It was later brought to Japan, where it was perfected and evolved ("Bonsai" is a Japanese word; bon equals tray plus sai equals nature). In this museum, we can find "potted trees" of different species, such as wild olive trees, Scots pines, boxwood, oaks, holm oaks, and junipers.
4. Bell of Peace - Vega Garden
The World Peace Bell reproduces a traditional Japanese bell, the original of which was installed at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. It was cast in 1954 in tribute to the victims of World War II. Coins collected by children from more than 60 countries were used for its casting. The bell, which weighs half a ton, is 1 meter high, and has a diameter of 50 centimeters, hangs from a pagoda built by the City Council and is rung twice a year. It was donated by the World Peace Bell Association. The bell tower combines the five elements of Feng Shui: earth, fire, water, metal, and wood. The materials used are stone from the Madrid mountains and pine wood from Valsaín (Segovia). Various replicas have been made and installed in three Japanese cities and 14 countries on five continents, including Spain, with Alcobendas as the city that has hosted this Bell.
5. Themed children's play area "Pirate Ship"
The children's area located in Arroyo de la Vega measures 685 square meters. Its central feature is a large boat, with capacity for 100 children, and recreational activities for children ages 6 to 12, such as climbing, manual skills, slides, and more. The entire area is inspired by the marine environment and includes, in addition to the boat, other elements that allow for safe play and interaction among children as young as 3 years old. Also unique is the continuous volumetric rubber flooring that reproduces the waves of the sea. The space features integrated benches in the children's area and personalized dolphin-shaped wastebaskets, common to all children's areas in the municipality.
6. Hermitage of San Isidro
The Hermitage of San Isidro is located in the southeastern part of the municipality within a pine forest known as Pinar de San Isidro. It was inaugurated in 1995 and is where the San Isidro pilgrimage is celebrated. It has probably been celebrated for centuries and is documented since 1918. The Isidro festivities are celebrations of mass and pilgrimage, barrel organ music and chotis dancing, traditional family food, Manila shawls and doughnuts, a fair, and above all, great joy.
