San Juan arrives in Ubeda

Yesterday we had quite a nerve wracking time with the moving of the sculpture of St John of the Cross to his new home in Ubeda. We started by having to remove him from his spot here at Los Olivos. He was "glued" in, so this meant a crane having to nudge him in small stages to release him from the floor.
He was then lifted over the back wall, and onto a lorry to begin his journey to the monastery. The trip down the track had to be at walking pace, to ensure that none of the statue was damaged on the way down.
On arrival he was given a police escort to the monastery through the medieval streets of the old town, where after 2 hours of maneuvers with a fork lift truck he was finally inched into the correct positioning. The whole process took 12 hours!

We are so pleased with his new home - the monastery where San Juan died, and also in the most amazing spot on the old town walls. It is like he was made for this spot.

He will also be enjoyed by the many people that go on retreat at the monastery each year. This could not be a better place.

There will be an inauguration ceremony on Saturday for his arrival, and we'll post some pictures.