The origin

It was August 2004, while walking through San Sebastián (Donostia), that I noticed the plaque of 31 August Street. At that moment, I wondered whether it would be possible to find streets around the world that could cover every day of the year with dates. That idea eventually became what is now Chronoways.

From then on I set myself the goal of photographing every example I could find in the places I visited. When I travel somewhere new, I usually look up the streets that interest me beforehand on the internet or on a GPS, or I simply obtain a map of the town once I arrive.

How many times have I made my family wander around in circles to achieve this goal! It has also led to curious anecdotes, such as the taxi driver in Oaxaca who asked whether I was an inspector when I suggested taking a route through streets that I would indicate along the way, or the fine I received in Sarajevo while searching for streets named after dates because I was convinced I had correctly validated my tram ticket.

Over time the project has grown thanks to the contributions of many people. Cronovies has thus become an open collection that aims to gather these small fragments of history present in streets around the world.