Available to watch now on Netflix, a new thriller in Galicia: The mess you leave behind. The original Spanish title is ‘El desorden que dejas‘.
The mess you leave behind is a mysterious thriller. The story of this series happens in the surroundings of Ourense. Enjoy beautiful views of the green wooded area, see the rain falling down as you expect you in Galicia. And besides nature you will also get a view of the Galician live. In Spain the series is a great succes, thanks to it’s story in combination with the surroundings.
The mess you leave behind is an exciting story, and looking even more exciting in the mysterious landscapes of inner Galicia.
What is this series about?
The story is about Raquel, a teacher. Raquel is played by the well known Spanish actress Inma Cuesta. Together with her boyfriend Raquel moves to Novariz, a (fictional) village in the innerland of Galicia.
Raquel aims at getting her career back on track by accepting a job as substitute teacher on an high school in Novariz, the hometown of her boyfriend. When she accepts the job she didn’t knew yet her predecessor committed suicide.
When Raquel starts her new job work is not made easy for her. At her first class she gets to know the cheeky class of her predecessor and her story. She also gets to deal with her colleagues who all have their own story and interests. And she has to deal with her family in law and the small village where she ended up.
This story is about a small village in Galicia, but also about the life on a school, the relation between a teacher and her students and ‘the mess you leave behind’. The dead of Raquel’s predecessor Viduca – played by the Spanish actrice Bárbara Lennie – gets murkier. Did she really commit suicide?
Where in Galicia is the series shot?
The series takes place in the fictional village Novariz, in the surroundings of Ourense. The actual name of the village is Celanova, a village about 20 kilometres south of Ourense.
When watching the series you get the feeling it all takes place in one village. In reality the series is shot at several locations over Galicia. Main locations are the village of Celanova and it’s surroundings and the surroundings of A Coruña.
Big part of the series takes places at an high school. The institute you see in the series does really exist. It’s the IES de Celanova, the local high school. As you could already see in the picture above it’s a beautiful and impressive building in this small village. The building has all for a tv series: a nice entry, beautiful library and a large patio with pillared pathways where the students often hang out.
Although the high school of Celanova has practical everything not all the school’s scenes are shot over there. The teachers room where the teachers often meet is from the language school of A Coruña and shot over there.
In the series you also see the typical thermal springs of Galicia. You can find those warm natural baths mainly in the surroundings of Ourense (here you can read more about those thermal springs). The sceneries with thermal springs in the series are shot in the rural village of Bande, also south from Ourense and near the Portugese border.
You can also see some beautiful shots from the Ribeira Sacra and the Sil Canyon. This breathtaking location is in reality about an hour drive from the village of Celanova.
Other scenes are shot in the Natural area Chelo nearby A Coruña. Even with the tensive setting of the series you can see it’s a beautiful area for a hike.
As you see the series is shot in several locations in Galicia. The result are some beautiful sceneries. Enjoy Galicia when watching this series!
Trailer of The mess you leave behind
The series is English spoken. But as you see in this trailer, it’s also possible to watch in original language and subtitled. I would recommend to do the latter and get the best Galician experience.
What do you think of The mess you leave behind?