They say that Santillana del Mar is “the town of the three lies” because it is neither holy, nor plain, nor does it have a sea. Okay, it’s time to retire the expression, but we couldn’t help ourselves. Much more interesting is walking along Santo Domingo Street to the Collegiate Church of Santa Juliana and noticing the number of towers, coats of arms, and stone houses that a town of barely a few streets preserves.
The Others, released in 2001, was shot at the Palace of the Hornillos, in Las Fraguas, about 30 kilometers away. Nicole Kidman’s mansion exists, though it is private property and not visitable. Near Santillana also lies the Altamira cave — access to the original is extremely restricted—. On a whim, this Halloween getaway could begin with Amenábar and end 15,000 years earlier.
