Paronella Park: The Castle Built by a Spanish Dreamer in Tropical Australia
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Since childhood, Spanish baker Jose Paronella had dreamt of building a Moorish castle. In 1913, the adventurous 26-year-old left his village in Catalonia and moved to the tropical north of Australia. There he eventually found wealth as a sugar cane farmer, and was finally able to pursue his dream.
In 1929, Paronella purchased a plot of rainforest in Queensland and began building his castle by hand, using sand, clay, old train tracks, gravel from the nearby creek, and wood taken from abandoned houses. By 1935, the structure had expanded to include a pool, cafe, tennis courts, cinema, ballroom, and villa gardens with a grand staircase — all open to the public.
After Paronella's death in 1948, the building suffered decades of neglect, but thanks to conservation efforts, the castle is alive once again. Lush tropical plants have encroached upon and mingled with Paronella's hand-built stairs and fountains, making them look like they sprouted from their natural surroundings.
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