If you’ve been pondering a visit to the picturesque European microstate of Andorra, don’t put it off for another second. For there, high in the Pyranees mountains, rests the handsome and mysterious Ponderer, forever gazing out over the verdant valleys of this remote oasis.
Mirador Roc del Quer is a tranquil viewpoint that sits hundreds of metres above the charming village of Canillo, and it’s here that The Ponderer can be found. A surveillance platform – which is surely one of mankind’s finest architectural triumphs – extends an awe-inspiring 12 metres from terra firma, providing and experience that won’t simply take your breath away, but which will make you question everything you know about the world.
To stand upon this belvedere, gazing down in slack-jawed wonder as life trickles by hundreds, if not thousands, of metres below, is to truly find the meaning of life. The panorama is constantly evolving, challenging the observer as it transforms from the verdant greens and yellows of summer, towards the flamboyant whites and purples of winter. To share such a soul-defining moment with The Ponderer shall fill your heart to the point of bursting.
The road to the summit, which meanders through captivating farms and traverses sheer mountain drops, is certainly daunting. Getting there, however, is not. Comfortable buses travel from the town to the top, and the cheery drivers are a highlight of any journey (hola, Luis!). A short walk up the hill is required after disembarking, with a stylish vendor selling refreshments in preparation for the epic encounter to come.
After that, all there is to do is strap in and prepare for the feeling of soaring, unencumbered by the stresses of modern life, eons above the valley floor.
The Ponderer was created by Miguel Ángel González and arrived in 2016. His stoic, yet melancholy personality simultaneously comforts visitors in their spiritual journey through this landlocked principality, and confronts them to step out of their comfort zone.
Sí, he really is Andorra-ble!
Intermission: The Ponderer (to the tune of The Wanderer by Dion DiMucci)
Oh well he’s the type of guy who will never make you frown
High above Canillo, looking down upon the town
After seeing him and kissing him you’ll never be the same
This shirtless, bronzed Andorran hunk is known by just one name
They call him The Ponderer, yeah The Ponderer
He’s big and brown and brown and brown and brown and brown!
The Ponder years
Joining me on my playdate with The Ponderer was my Mexican half-sister – and self-confessed Big Thing tragic – Bigella Fernandez Hernandez. Our moment of quiet reflection atop the mountain was, sadly, shattered by the arrival of a vulgar gang of lower-class Spaniards who, hooting and hollering, wasted no time posing for risque selfies with the poor Ponderer.
Hopped up on cheap sangria, one particularly pompous playboy placed an ornate Flamenco cap upon The Ponderer’s proud head. Then, in a moment of madness, he reached betwixt the bars of the fence to snatch several coins that had been left as tribute to this God of the mountains.
“Yo, chico, I need this dinero more than he does,” the thug smirked, slipping the change into his oversized shorts as his padres chuckled. “After all, holmes, this gringo isn’t worth the cinco Euros. Viva la raza!”
I’ve had nary a violent urge since converting to Buddhism 15 years ago, but had to be held back by Bigella after witnessing this sicko robbing this most elegant and gregarious of Bigs.
After taking a few minutes to return to my ‘happy place’, as my bhikku had directed me, I pointed the lout out to a group of hotblooded Catalan youths who sat, mouths agape, as I ran through his litany of misdemeanours. Once I’d finished, they put down their empanadas, tore off their shirts, and prepared for battle.
“Stealing from Andorra’s notoriously underfunded National Parks is one thing,” the leader barked, “but dishonouring the work of Miguel Ángel González is simply going too far. We must defend the honour of Andorra!”
Not wanting our serene afternoon spoiled, Bigella and I turned our backs to the impending violence. As we settled in at the cafe for a mocaccino and a sumptuous serving of tocino de cielo, the screams from below left us in no doubt that the thief’s debts had been repaid in full.
It might take a long time to climb up the mountain to visit The Ponderer, but it only takes a few seconds to get back down – teehee!
