Last days in Spain

After a relaxing four nights in Sevilla, we had three days of traveling before our stop in Madrid. We took a super high speed train out of Sevilla that traveled at 300 km/hr, and after a change in Madrid we were in Toledo, the capitol of the Spanish empire before it was moved to Madrid hundreds of years ago. It is a beautiful old walled city surrounded by a river on three sides. It is also up on a hill, so the walking was difficult, and we stay a little bit out of the old town. The highlight was the army museum, which was in the old royal palace that had been destroyed during the Spanish civil war and then rebuilt. There were exhibits with all kinds of different weapons and armor, and two floors tracing the military history of Spain from 1500 to the present day.

The next day it was onto Àvila, which was about an hour and a half bus ride on the other side of Madrid. It was really cool and we liked it more than Toledo. It wasn't hilly, there was more food, and it has a awesome city wall that they claim is the best preserved medieval wall in Europe. There were free tapas just like in Granada, and they have really good mashed potatoes that have bacon in them.

The following day we traveled to Madrid after a little confusion with the siesta they took at the bus station in Àvila. We stayed in a nice hostel that was kind of like a hotel. We had our own room with a TV and internet, but had to share a bathroom, but only with one other room. The first night we walked on Gran Via, which is kind of like their Broadway, and then went to plaza Puetra del Sol, which is the square in the center of town. There were lots of street performers, so it was a really fun place to walk around at night.

We only had two days to explore Spain's largest city, so we had to pack a lot in. Luckily it wasn't quite as hot, so we were able to use most of the day. We went to the royal palace on the first day, which was built and designed by spanish monarchs over the years. It was very luxurious, and much different from the other palaces we visited in spain because it was entirely european. Some of the highlights were the porcelain room, which had walls lined completely with porcelain, and the Stradivarius violin collection. We also went to the cathedral, which is right next door. It was weird because it was very modern. It was built in the 19^th and 20^th centuries. Then we went to the museum of the Americas, which was a collection of artifacts brought back from America during the Spanish conquest. They also added more recent objects from the native tribes, but the coolest things were the gold statues from the Incas and Aztecs. The picture below is us outside the royal palace.

The next day we went to the el Retiro park, which was a big park in the middle of the city that was really beautiful and really well kept. In the evening we went to the Prado Museum, which is kind of like the Spanish version of the Louvre. I thought it was a great museum because there were descriptions of most all the paintings in Spanish and English, and they were organized by artist, which I like because then I can at least get a feel for the style of the painter. It was also free from 6 to 8. We took one more walk around the main streets and plazas before calling it a night.

It was a fantastic time in Madrid, and in Spain in general. Madrid was definitely one of our favorite stops because there was so much going on, and it was very clean. It was challenging because almost no one speaks any English, but we were able to manage. Some of our other favorite stops were Valencia, and Àvila. There were lots of really interesting cities, and they were not nearly as packed with tourists as places in Italy. It was really hot, but it was manageable and better than it being too cold. All in all, we really liked Spain, and I think we both would like to come back. Goodbye for now, and onto Germany.

If you want to see more pictures

Trillion has many more pictures on facebook. This link should take you there.

http://www.facebook.com/media/albums/?id=12329446

Just click on the album to see the pictures from that city. You will probably have to be facebook friends with her to see the pictures, so if you are not, add her as a friend.

Sevilla: Tapas, Bullfights, and Flamenco

Sevilla was our next stop, and if you could get past the heat, it was a very fun and exciting place. High temperatures were in the high 90's, with the heat index over 100 for most of the day, but we had an air conditioned apartment which treated us very well from the hours of 3:00 to 8:00, when most everyone goes inside. Here is a picture down one of the main streets.

Our first day we went to eat at a place called 100 Montiditos, which is a sandwich place that had everything for 1 euro on Wednesdays. Three little sandwiches, fries, chips, and two drink for only 7 euro, and the quality was pretty good too. Then we went to the bullring, where there is a bullfighting museum. It is a really cool arena, and there was lots of art and memorabilia relating to bullfighting. We found out there was a bullfight featuring three rookie fighters the next day, so we decided to go. The bullfight was awesome. The area around the arena was packed, and it was really exciting even though it wasn't the best fighters. Six bulls were fought by three bullfighters, and when the third guy did really well, the crowd went absolutely crazy.

The next day we toured the royal Alcazar, the royal palace in Sevilla. It was similar to the Alhambra from Granada in many ways, but with more of a spanish influence, and also only 2 euros for students. There was a gigantic garden behind the palace with the tallest palm trees I have ever seen.

Later that day we walked to an area along the river called Triana, which is a bustling place with lots of bars and shops. There were a bunch of guys on a boat trying to run up a greased poll and get a flag. Only about 1 in 20 were successful, and when someone got it, they just set it up again.

The last night we happened upon a flamenco show on a square in Triana. It is a traditional Spanish type of music and dance, and the show was quite impressive for a free show. There were two guitarists, three male singers, two female singers, a male tap dancer/percussionist, and a female dancer. They were all really good, and we really enjoyed the show.

We stayed in Sevilla for four nights, and it was really nice to have some time to relax. I would have to say there were a number of cities I liked better, and it was middle of the road in terms of cleanliness, but the activities (namely the bullfight and flamenco) were awesome. At night there was always lots going on, which was great because that's when we wanted to be out. All in all, it was a fantastic stop in Sevilla, and it was sad to be leaving southern Spain.

Ali-hambra

We arrived in Granada at around 8:30, which was quite early, but it ended up working out for us ok. We stopped at a bar for some breakfast and got some great churros con chocolate. With Trillion's cappuccino and my freshly squeezed orange juice it came to a grand total of 4 euros, and we stayed a while and used their Wifi. We still had to wait for some time to get into our apartment, but we still got in before lunch. Here is the view from our balcony.

ranada is known for a couple things. One is the Alhambra, an islamic royal palace built over 500 years ago, and free tapas. We experienced both, and thoroughly enjoyed them. For the tapas, you just go to a bar (it's not this way in all bars, but it is in most), order drinks, and they bring you a plate of food. Another drink gets you another tapa, and the drinks are usually around 2 euros. Sometimes they have a set order that they bring things out in, and at other places you get to choose what you want. One of our favorite places was called Poe. It was actually run by an English couple, which was nice because we were finally understood, and they had a great spicy pork stew. A delicious meal for 10 euros.

Our second morning we woke up and headed up the hillside to la Alhambra. It was an amazing place with the most intricate stonework and mosaics. It was the last stronghold of the Muslims on the Iberian peninsula, and was finally overtaken in 1492. The palace was built over a period of about 300 years by rulers after they retreated to the region of Granada. There is also a huge royal garden, and a spanish palace that was built by Spanish kings soon after their conquest. Here we are in one of the many courtyards of the main palace.

And here you can see some of the intricate carving that are found throughout the palace.

The Gardens, called the Generalife gardens, may have been the coolest part. They were huge, and I can't imagine how much water is takes to keep them going considering Granada is basically in the desert.

We only spent two days in Granada, which was probably enough, but it was still sad to leave. The free tapas were amazing, and just walking around on all the narrow streets was really cool. The only issue is the heat, but there is enough shade that it isn't too bad. Plus we were headed to even hotter places... more on that soon.

Valencia: Our Last Stop on the Mediterranean

Our first stop on our own was the city of Valencia, or Valenthia, as they pronounce it in their language of Valencian. Our apartment was SO nice. It had all marble floors, countertops, and even walls in the bathroom! it was also right next to the empty river bed which is now a park, and on the edge of the old city. The first day we walked to Plaza de la Virgen, one of the main squares in the city, which was about 3 minutes away. Then we got our first Paella, a Valencian specialty that has rice, chicken, beans, rabbit, and spices. Here is the plaza.

Valencia is an amazing city. It is one of the cleanest cities I've ever been to and is Spain's 3rd largest city. The weather was perfect with just one short rain while we were inside at dinner. Although almost none of the locals speak any amount of english, they try to help you without you even asking. When we got on the bus from the train station some lady randomly started trying to help us get to our apartment and telling us where to visit, all in Valencian. We had no idea what she was saying, and she elicited help from another younger person on the bus that spoke minimal english, but translated some of what she was saying. It was really fnny and nice, even though we already knew what stop to get off of and that there was a free art museum.

We loved just wandering around the old city and looking at all the buildings. The city has lots of blue tiled domes and polished copper domes as well. We climbed the bell tower for only 2 euros and saw it all! On our second day we went to the free fine arts museum that was very pleasant. We then walked to a modern art museum that was only 1 euro because the lady just assumed we were students. We both enjoyed the modern art museum more than the fine arts museum because it had so much weird but cool stuff. At night we went to a restaurant called the Ginger Loft and had possibly our most favorite food of the trip. It was a very swanky place, had excellent spanish and asian food, and wasn't all that expensive! I got the Chinese beef and Trillion got the chicken quesidillas, which were served with a really good aioli. Here is another look at the cathedral with its many blue domes.

The next day we went to the beach which had sugar fine sand and stretched for miles. We ate paella for lunch for the second day in a row and it was once again amazing. Evidently lunch is their main meal and the time when good restaurants serve paella. No one eats lunch till after 2pm or dinner until 9 or 10. It takes some getting used to. The water at the beach was clean and probably the warmest I've been in. It was sad leaving the beach because it was our last visit to the Mediterranean.

Right now in valencia, they're having their July festival which includes weekly fire works, music concerts, fairs, and other cultural activities. Basically the city is alive! That night we walked over to the fair and rode the ferris wheel which was actually pretty scary because it went so fast. The city is also in the middle of a concert festival which is four days long and has music every afternoon and night. We can hear it from outside our apartment and it echos through most of the city. The 40,000 tickets for it is sold out. Seal played there two, so unfortunately we just missed him!

The last day we stored our luggage at a hostel and went to the city of arts and sciences. It is a museum complex that is very modern and very cool. The aquarium was mostly outside and had all of the tanks underground. There was an amazing dolphin and diving show, walruses, sea lions, sharks, and much much more. We spent the rest of our day at the science museum which was also very different from our science museums. It had a whole section devoted to the science and history of soccer, which was fun because it had fittness tests for us to do. We are both fit in case you were wondering.

After 8 hours at the 2 museums, we walked back through the park that is in the river bed where they were having three different music concerts and cultural celebrations, as well as a fair. We walked to get our bags and then went to the train station, and eventually we got our 12:45 overnight to Granada. This last picture is for Chris, I hope you're reading. Also, Trillion wrote a lot of this so I want to make sure she gets her credit.

Barcelona!

Having been now to many parts of Europe we thought we had experienced everything. We were wrong. Barcelona is a completely different type of city. It comes alive at night and is filled with young people, night clubs, tapas, and bars, with some trannies and drug dealers thrown in on the side...ok, maybe more than just a few. It really was a fun and unique place, just a little more shady than most of the other places we have been.

Our first night there, we walked to the marina, down Las Ramblas (the main street filled with people eating, street performers, tourists, and people trying to get tourists to buy drugs or come to parties). We ate at a tapas bar a little bit off Las Ramblas, and had a really good first meal. In case you were wondering tapas are just small plates of food, and they are very common in Spain. You will be hearing much more about them if you continue to read about more cities later. The best thing from our first night was the spicy churizo flambe. They came and lit it at our table, and we put it out when we decided it was done.

The second day we walked up to the area called the Eixample. It is a big area of the city that was thoroughly planned out during a major expansion of the city in the late 19^th century. There are many wide boulevards and smaller streets laid out in a grid pattern, and buildings designed by the architect Gaudi and his contemporaries. Gaudi is huge in Barcelona, and with good reason, since he designed so many really cool buildings throughout the city. The highlight of the area is definitely Gaudi's biggest work, the Sagrada Familia. It is a huge cathedral that rises up in the middle of the city. It is still under construction, and though it looks very impressive, it is clear there is still a lot of work left to do even after over 100 years of construction.

Our next stop was a place called Parc Guell. It was supposed to be a futuristic housing development, planned by a guy named Guell, and designed by Gaudi. As a business venture it was a failure, but it was turned into a park around 1920, and has some really odd and interesting architecture. There were also some stunning views of the city, as it is up on a big hill. That evening we all went out to a really great Tapas bar, and then 7, Lauren, Trillion, and I went out for a few drinks. We passed a club with a line to get in taking up the whole city block.

The next day, we went to the market off of las Ramblas for breakfast, and then we walked around the gothic quarter, which is the old town area. There is a big gothic cathedral, but is wasn't open when we got there, and a lot of the outside was undergoing restoration. Then we walked down to the beach and walked along it for a while. It was actually a very nice beach for a big city, and it stretched for miles. Then Trillion and I walked more around the port area, and shopped in the mall on the water. We all had dinner at a place called Sinatra, which was fancy and had old Frank Sinatra movies playing. The free champagne was nice too.

The next morning we had to say goodbye to the rest of the gang, which was very sad, but it is also nice to have some time with just us. Jim, Lynda, 7, and Lauren left early in the morning, and Trillion and I went to the market for some more fresh fruit juice, and we got to walk around the city one last time. Barcelona was great, but I was excited to see what else Spain had to offer...

Goodbye for now, more will be coming soon

The top 10 things I miss about the US

After being gone for more than a month and being in 5 different countries (7 if you count Vatican City and Monaco as countries), Barrett and I have come up with a list of the things we most miss about the United States and look forward to enjoying when we return home in August! This list is in no particular order:

1. Family

2. Friends

3. Free refills on drinks/ free water

4. Our bed

5. Our closet (packing and unpacking clothes every couple of nights gets really old)

6. Chipotle (though any good mexican would do)

7. television in English

8. Being able to understand everyone

9. DVR/ DVRed shows

10. Having a full pantry/ being able to cook