Literary route

Portmán

Self-guided

La maldición de la Casa Grande literary route in Portmán

Explore Portmán, La Unión and Cartagena in the footsteps of Tío Lobo, the mining entrepreneur who inspired Juan Ramón Lucas's first novel.

Type

Self-guided

On foot around Portmán · by car to La Unión and Cartagena

Duration

At your own pace · self-guided route

Schedule

Price

Free

Meeting point

Recommended app

Difficulty

Introduction

Tío Lobo's Portmán

Can you imagine walking around a mining town with the maid who knew the most powerful house in the hills from the inside? That's what La maldición de la Casa Grande offers you, the first novel by journalist Juan Ramón Lucas, which tells the story, based on real events, of Miguel Zapata, known as el Tío Lobo, the mining businessman who built an empire out of the mines, the smelters and Portmán Bay.

This literary route was created by La Unión Town Council as part of Portmán's Sustainable Tourism Plan, and it takes you through the settings of the book: the Casa Grande, the old miners' hospital, the church, the cemetery where the Zapata family is buried and the old fish market. And it doesn't stop in Portmán! It carries on through La Unión and reaches the lands around Cartagena.

How it works

Self-guided, free and with audio at each stop

It's a self-guided route, so you can do it at your own pace. The official website, Destino Portmán, has a page for each stop with an audio guide and, for almost all of them, an extract from the novel linked to that place. Open it on your phone when you reach each spot and listen to the story right where Lucas sets it.

The first seven stops are in Portmán and are done on foot. The ones in La Unión and Cartagena are a few kilometres away, so you'll need the car for those. The website doesn't set a fixed order, so you can link them up however suits you best.

Below are the stops on the route and what awaits you at each one.

The stops on the route

Casa del Tío Lobo – The novel's Casa Grande, Miguel Zapata's Modernista residence remodelled by Víctor Beltrí in 1913. Seen from outside
Antiguo Hospital de la Caridad – The hospital for those injured in the mines, now the Archaeological Museum, next to the square named after Juan Ramón Lucas
Iglesia de Santiago Apóstol – Built thanks to the determination of Juana Hernández, Tío Lobo's wife, and the setting for a funeral in the novel
Portmán Cemetery – The Zapata family mausoleum, where Juana Hernández and several of her children lie at rest
Teatro Conchita – Portmán's “El Coliseo”, which Tío Lobo bought for his empire. Seen from outside
Lonja de Pescadores – The old harbour, in front of which one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the book unfolds
Mirador del Lastre – Views of the bay and an excerpt about the La Orcelitana smelter
Mercado Público (La Unión) – Víctor Beltrí's iron market, which in the novel amazes an English traveller while it's still under construction
Casa del Piñón (La Unión) – The house of another great mining entrepreneur of the sierra, the scene of a riot in the novel
Café del Rojo el Alpargatero (La Unión) – The café cantante of Antonio Grau, known as el Rojo el Alpargatero, where the flamenco of the mines rings out
La Maquinista de Levante (La Unión) – The factory tied to the Zapata fortune, to whose gates a hungry crowd comes
Mirador Zona El Descargador (La Unión) – The miners' cave houses, in one of the toughest scenes in the book
Mirador Camino del 33 (La Unión) – The Sierra Minera of chimneys and smelters, just as Lucas describes it
Fundición Dos Hermanos (Cartagena) – Scene of a shoot-out at the smelter gates
Venta Llano del Beal (Cartagena) – The Zapatas' roadside inn, where the miners drink before going up to the pits

The map

Route and main stops

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Take this route

This route is a free, self-guided itinerary: you can do it at your own pace, with the official website's audio recordings on your mobile.

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Additional information

Route created by La Unión Town Council as part of Portmán's Sustainable Tourism Plan.
On the official route website you'll find a page for each stop, with its audio and the extract from the novel.
The Casa del Tío Lobo and the Teatro Conchita can't be visited inside: you see them from the street.
The Archaeological Museum (the old Hospital de la Caridad) only opens on weekend mornings. Check before you go.
More information from the La Unión Tourist Office: 968 541 614.

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