Barcelona - May 28, 29 and 30, 2013

We took a high speed train from Madrid to Barcelona about 500 kilometers in 3 hours - at top speed the train was traveling 300 km/hour.  We checked in at our great hotel and walked around Barcelona.  A completely different feel for us than Madrid.  Madrid felt like it was throngs of people everywhere.  Barcelona, while there are still alot of people, feels friendlier.  We had an early dinner, churros and chocolate and then went back to our hotel to do some pre-planning for Italy and Greece in July.  First thing on our agenda for the next morning was La Sagrada Familia - the famous church designed by Gaudi.  We walked one half hour to get there to find the line to get in was snaking around the church for several blocks.  We decided we did not want to wait and went back to our hotel and booked online for the next day which allows you to bypass the long line.  We then walked to Placa Catalunya and down La Rambla - a famous but now very touristy pedestrian walkway.  We did find La Boqueria - a famous market selling fresh everything - meat, cheese, fish, flowers, candy - you name it!  we continued our walk down La Ramblas to the water where the Christopher Columbus monument stands - but on this day Chris was wearing a soccer jersey from FC Barcelona.  We sat on the waterfront for a while and then snaked our way through the labyrinth of streets in the Gothic Quarter.  So fun to get lost in these streets knowing that if you headed in one direction for long enough you would eventually hit one of the major thoroughfares.  We had paella for lunch and then were hoping to top it off with churros and chocolate again but our little place from the day before was closed.  Went back to our room to relax after walking all day.  Bob did not feel well during the night again (similar to in Salema) and knocked him on his butt - we actually had a doctor come to the hotel and after 2 needles in the butt and about 5 medications, he is feeling better, but not before losing our last day in Barcelona.  Beginning to think it might be a reaction to seafood ...  oh well ... we are off to France in the morning.

La Sagrada Familia

La Boqueria Market

Placa Catalunya

Toledo - May 27, 2013

We hopped on a high speed train for the half hour ride (at 250km/hour) to Toledo.  This was a great day trip.  We went to the Cathedral of Toledo and it was very interesting.  We are finding that many places have audio guides included or for an extra fee, but they are very interesting and give some perspective to what you are seeing (other than being just another church).  We then hopped on a scenic bus/tram for a 45 minute ride around town - it gave a great overview.  We stopped for a leisurely lunch and then walked around the labyrinth of streets.  Great Day in Toledo!  A very interesting side note (see picture below) - hamburger vending machine - pure genius!

Cathedral of Toledo

Toledo

Hamburger Vending Machine!

Madrid - May 26, 2013

We had a leisurely morning.  Paid 20 Euros for 2 coffees and an egg sandwich (ouch).  We did a walking tour for a couple of hours which was very interesting starting at the Plaza Mayor and ending at the Puerta del Sol.  We then toured the Royal Palace.  It was pretty amazing - I think we saw 28 rooms - the Palace has 2800 rooms.

We went to see a Flamenco dance show in the evening which was amazing - it was in a small little tapas bar so it was quite intimate and had almost front row seats.

We capped the evening off with a couple of coffees and pastries (cost 3.50 Euros).  Guess where?  The Museo del Jamon (the Museum of Ham)!  Love that place.

Plaza Mayor

Royal Palace

Street Signs

Madrid - May 25, 2013

We took a train at 10 am for the 4 hour ride to Madrid.  We arrived at EXE Suites Hotel at about 2:30.  Great hotel - the nicest we have stayed in at 75 Euros per night. It is located near the Plaza de Espana and the Palace.  We set out to explore and walked down Gran Via to Plaza de Callao, down Calle de Preciados to Puerta del Sol - this is the centre of Madrid and its hub of people.  We found the Museo del Jamon (Museum of Ham) - Kate's favourite place in all of Madrid (maybe Europe).  This is actaully a restaurant not a museum and we had ham and cheese and bread.  We then walked up to Plaza Cibeles and down Paseo del Prado to the Prado Museum - many say that this is the greatest collection anywhere of paintings by the European Masters.  Each evening from 6-8 pm admission is free (otherwise about Euros).  We arrived about 4:30 and decided to have a siesta on the lawn in front of the museum and then take advantage of the free admission.  We took off our shoes and socks, I took off the bottom of my shantz (pants that convert to shorts with the very convenient zipper holding on the portion of the pants below the knee to the upper portion of the pants) and we snoozed for a bit - just like all the other 20 somethings on the lawn.  We awoke to find the "free" line (non-existant pre-siesta) to be snaking around the building.  We quickly put on our stuff and got in line.  The museum is magnificent, the paintings have painstaking detail and are brilliant.  We left the Prado about 8 pm and walked back to our hotel (quite a distance).  There were people everywhere - busier than we have seen in New York (even in Times Square) - it was crazy.  We had an overpriced not that great dinner at a restaurant near our hotel and now we are going to bed.  Tomorrow we are planning a walking tour and a to go and see the palace.  There is also a massive flea market which me might try to see.

Museo del Jamon (Museum of Ham)

Puerta del Sol

Velazquez - Famous Spanish Painter

Africa - May 24, 2013

Going to Africa for the day!  Our day started at 6 am with a 2 hour taxi ride from Ronda to Tarifa, Spain.  It was an amazing ride where we got to see numerous hill towns clinging to the the sides of cliffs.  Once in Tarifa, we hopped on a ferry for the 35 minute crossing to Tangier, Morocco, Africa.  We arrived and took a very typical tour offered by the ferry company - I would not want to wander around without a tour/guide.  We had a drive around Tangier, got to ride a camel and walked around the Medina - the famous shopping district in the old town.  We walked through the areas selling fresh fruit, vegetables, spices, meat, etc.  We were hounded by vendors in the market selling leather, jewellry and other items until we finally went for lunch of soup, skewers of beef (that is what we are telling ourselves) and couscous and chicken.  We were then taken to a few shops (either owned by the ferry company or where they get substantial commissions) to look at and buy (if you choose) carpets, spices and knick knacks.  Thankfully our backpacks do not allow many purchases.  Back on the ferry at 3 pm, and a 2 hour taxi ride back to Ronda.  We then went for dinner in the main square and had paella - our first of the trip - outstanding!  We were then able to watch a procession of at least 100 kids who were having their first communion.  Pretty special.   Great day all around and we can now say we have been to Africa.  

Jan Riding the Camel

Olives in the Medina

Entrance to the Medina

Love Ronda - May 23, 2013

We decided to stay an extra day or so in Ronda as we love it here.  

We slept in again (9 am) and then ventured out to do some errands and planning.  We were hoping to go to Africa for the day tomorrow (How many people can say that?)  The problem is that we are relatively remote in Ronda.  The best ferry service to Tangiers, Morocco is from Tarifa, Spain (about 35 minutes).  Ronda is about 120 km from Tarifa, but involves a 1.5 hour train ride to Algeciras and then a connection to Tarifa by bus for about 30 minutes.  The trains and connections would necessitate an overnight in Algeciras (thereby also losing a day of our journey).  We stopped at a travel agent to see if there were any tours from Ronda but to no avail.  We asked a taxi how much it would be to take us to Tarifa and it ended up being about 200 Euros round trip - a small price to pay to see Africa for the day!

We then took some laundry to the laundromat and left our clothes there to be washed and folded - that is what you do here I guess.  We then went and toured the Bull Ring - the first in Spain.  It was very interesting but thankfully the bull fights only take place in September.

It was time for lunch.  I thought a nice little cafe by a quiet square.  Jan decided that it was the day to conquer her fear of heights and by extension mine as well.  She decided that we would eat at a restaurant hanging on the side of the cliff/gorge with a great view of the New Bridge.  We were shown to the best seat in the house on a corner of the terrace with both of us hanging on for dear life!  For most people this would have been spectacular - I barely remember what I ate.  At one point, Jan asked if we could move and they said no!  What?  As I noted to Jan, I would not even stand at the rail which our table was against for 5 seconds, never mind a one hour meal.  I think I had a salad and spaghetti.  I do know that I had a beer.  Jan knew I was in trouble when she asked if I wanted to try her chicken and I flat out refused.  I don't recall this.  Anyway, I think Jan accomplished her task (kinda) and I certainly did not.  As we left the restaurant, every muscle in my body had melded into one gigantic tensed muscle.  We then went to the quiet square and had a coffee and beer to relax.  It was wonderful - there were flamenco guitar players and it was so serene - just what I was originally looking for.

We picked up laundry and had a gelato and are going to bed.  Tomorrow - AFRICA!

Dining on the Side of Cliff!

Bull Ring

Ronda, Spain - May 22, 2013

We had the best meal of our trip last night at a small tapas bar in the Old Town called De Locos Tapas. It came highly recommended on Tripadvisor and did not disappoint.  We arrived to find out that it was completely full.  The Owner suggested that we go for a walk and maybe something would up.  Nothing did open up but he asked if we wanted to sit at a small table by the kitchen (all the other tables are upstairs).  They could be the best seats in the place.  We were able to speak with him all evening as he explained tapas, Spain, culture, etc.  We were able to see the tapas being prepared and as they were taken upstairs to the other guests.  We had lamb, duck, red tuna, mini burger, cheese plate, risotto, codfish and sirloin.  It was all outstanding but our favourites were the duck and the lamb.  Our bill for all of this plus 2 glasses of wine, 2 beers and a dessert was 32 Euros (about $42).  The best meal we have had in Europe so far.

We got up late, had a light breakfast and then headed out to see the sights of Ronda.  We walked to the old town and stopped at Mondragon Palace - an original Moorish building built in the 14th century - it was very interesting.  We then ventured down below the Palace to get near to the bottom of the Gorge and had great views of the Puente Nuevo (the New Bridge) built in 1751.  We then followed the valley floor around the town and climbed up (on a walking trail) to near the far end of the old town.  It was around lunch time and we found ourselves near De Locos Tapas - stopped for an amazing lunch.  We then walked down the other side of the town into the valley to see the Arab Baths (built between the 13th and 14th centuries), the Arab Bridge (the first bridge in town) and the Puente Viejo (the Old Bridge) built in the 16th century.  We climbed along side the Old Wall and back into the Old Town.  Getting our workout today.  We went back to the hotel for a siesta (that is what they do here).  We went for dinner about 9 pm and had tapas at Entre Vino and Faustinos Bar and Tapas.  Over stuffed, we went back to our hotel.  Love Ronda.

Andalucian Hills

Hotel San Francisco

Puente Nuevo (the New Bridge) -1751

Puente Viejo (the Old Bridge) - 16th Century

Jan and Bob on the New Bridge

On our way to Spain - May 21, 2013

We got up at 5:15 am to catch a bus from Salema to Sevilla, Spain.  The countryside looks amazing.  We arrived in Sevilla and decided to take the train to Ronda and finally arrived here at about 7 pm.  Long day but this place looks fantastic.  Still raining though.  Pictures to come tomorrow ...

Salema - May 20, 2013

Bob was feeling better and we had another lazy day.  Had a great breakfast at the hotel which was included in our room rate of 50 Euros (about $62), wandered on the beach, had lunch of soup and pasta and met a lovely couple from Washington State at our hotel bar - they are travelling for 6 months over here.

Salema - May 19, 2013

Had a relaxing day today doing nothing.  Bob was not feeling great and slept most of the day.  Jan enjoyed coffee, dessert, wine and pizza at a few different beachfront patios.

Salema (the Algarve) - May 18, 2013

We got up about 6:30 am and made our way to the Oriente Train Station for our 4 hour train ride to Lagos, Portugal in the Algarve region (the southern coast).  This train travelled up to 200 km/hour at times.  On arrival in Lagos, we had lunch and hopped on a bus (cost 5 Euros for both of us) to take us to the small fishing village of Salema about 30 minutes away.  We are booked for 2 nights at the Hotel Residencial Salema (cost 50 Euros per night).  We had a nap then went for a walk – as soon as we walked out the door, it started to rain so we popped into the Atlantico restaurant and had Cataplana (mixed fish stew with a few kinds of fish, potatos, tomatos, onions – one of the local specialties) and some sangria.  We thought that we would be able to ditch our coats, but to no avail – still wearing coats and getting rain (only a little here).  We walked up Rua de Pescadores which is the main street and back, had dessert, coffee and some moscatel (a sweet dessert wine - another local specialty) and some Amargynho (a local almond based liquer much like amaretto but smoother).  We met a couple from Wales at the bar and chatted with them for awhile.

Salema Beach

Rua de Pescador

Lisbon - Belem May 17, 2013

We slept in a little today (8 am) and had a Kings cake and coffee at Confeiteria Nacional founded in 1829.  We were told that around Christmas people will wait 4-6 hours to get a Kings cake from this establishment.  It was very good - similar to our Christmas cake but with less fruit and more cake and almost a baklava texture and taste.

We hopped on the 15E tram to Belem (pronounced Bay-len - they appear to pronounce "m" as "n" here) about 10 am (being made extremely aware of the pickpockets who frequent this tram).  We arrived at the magnificient Monastery of Jeronimos (see below) - it is interesting to note that Jan and I did not think we were particularly interested in all of the churches around Europe, yet we spent 2 hours wandering around and marvelling at the architecture and painstaking detail (and this was not our first nor last church).  They had an excellent exhibit at this church which chronicled and compared a timeline involving the Monastery of Jeronimos, the history of Portugal and the history of the world.  It was fascinating and we could have spent the entire day here.

We then walked over to the Monument to the Discoveries (see below) which shows that exploring and conquering the world was a team effort - did you know that Portugal was once the Global powerhouse?  We then walked along the waterfront to the Belem Tower (see below) which protected Lisbon's harbor.

After our visit to the Belem Tower, we stopped at Pasteis de Belem (see below) for the famous custard tarts.  We have tired these tarts at various places in Lisbon, but these original tarts are by far the best.  Apparently the recipe is a secret known to only 3 people.

We came back to our hotel for a siesta and then ventured out around 8 pm to find a fado performance and dinner.  Fado is the traditional folk music of the Portuguese where they sing about their emotions (apparently mostly sad).  We stopped at a couple of recommended places but they were completely full (who would think on a Friday night?) so we found another place.  The fado performances were quite good, but the food was not.  Jan ordered grilled sardines (a local speciality) - very difficult to eat and many bones - too bad the table beside us didn't order first, the lady took her sardines apart like a surgeon.  I ordered the fried pork and clams (another local specialty) - not great as one might expect when you saw this on the menu but I had to try it.  Oh well.  You can't win them all.  We topped off our night with coffee and donuts at Cafe Brasileira near our hotel - they were delicious.  We are leaving Lisbon tomorrow and taking a train to the south of Portugal - the Algarve and the small fishing village of Salema.  

Monastery of Jeronimos

Monument to the Discoveries

Belem Tower

Jan at Pasteis de Belem - best custard tarts

Lisbon - May 16, 2013

We took 2 walking tours today (for a total of nine hours) - you would think that I would be losing weight with all the walking, but maybe part of the problem is that our second tour today (5 hours) was a Gourmet Food Walking Tour - oh well, as they say, when in Portugal do as the Portuguese!

We started out at 10 am with the Original Walking tour given by Inside Lisbon and our guide Sofia.  This was a general walking tour of the 3 main Lisbon areas:  Baixa, Bairro Alto/Chiado and Alfama and lasted about 4 hours (cost was 11 Euros each).  We learned about the history and culture and saw many of the sights.  We have discovered that we love these walking tours and Sofia was excellent.

After the tour, we took the tram back up to Castelo Sao Jorge (St. George's Castle) and saw the castle and grounds.  It is really an old archaeological site as opposed to "working" castle, but the views were amazing.  We wandered down through Alfama (the Old Town) back to Rossio Square.

At 4:30 pm we started the Gourmet Food Walking Tour with Paulo and Marta.  This tour was amazing, not for the food and drinks (which were very good) but for the information provided by Paulo with respect to food, culture and history.  It was extremely interesting to note that many of the world's food institutions started in Portugal but have been adopted by other countries as their own - tea in England, tempura in Japan, vindaloo in India and many others.  Many of these food cultures were "transferred" to other areas many centuries ago as it was a requirement that Portuguese sailors as they went to foreign lands we required to marry local women and assimilate into their cultures to make trading with them easier - many of the low level sailors stayed in those countries.  During the tour, we got to try port, cheese and marmalade (a quince based jelly not orange), coffee and custard tart, ginginha (cherry liquer), codfish cake and beer and finally, red wine, cheese, pork, chorizo, seafood salad and bread.

Amazing day.  We are exhausted - we are going to slow down one of these days!

Alfama

View from Castelo Sao Jorge (St. George's Castle)

Castelo Sao Jorge

From the Castle

Tram

Goodbye England - Helloooo Portugal - May 15, 2013

We actually slept quite well and got up to a quite vibrant and safe Luton.  We hopped on our Easyjet flight to Lisbon at noon and arrived at 3 pm.  After a rainy 8 days in England, it was beautiful here about 20C.  Our taxi driver spoke no English but we were able to give him the address.  We are staying at the Pensao Residencial Geres just off Rossio Square - this is an area very well known for its African population - we are quite close to Africa.  We checked into our small and clean room with a view of the square. Great location.  There are 4 main areas to explore in Lisbon: Bairro Alto and Chiado, Baixa, Alfama and Belem.  We went for a walk in the Bairro Alto and Chiado areas.  We took the Elevador da Gloria funicular up to this area.  We stopped at the Port Wine Institute and had a couple of glasses of port each (a ten year old port and 20 year old port) - you have to try port as it originates here.  It was very good but we determined that the younger port was fine for us and much cheaper.  We went to the top of the Elevador de Santa Justa and had a great view of Lisbon.  We walked by Cafe a Brasileira, a 100 year old cafe which was the literary and creative soul of Lisbon in the 1920's.  We decided it was time for dinner and, after surveying a few restaurants, stopped at the Restaurante a Licorista down a back lane near Rossio Square.  As we were seated, the waiter dropped off bread, codfish cakes and octopus salad - these appetizers are not free and if you do not eat them, they will not be on your bill.  But we had to try - the octopus salad was delicioso! We ordered the grilled codfish to share (the Portuguese say there is 365 ways to prepare codfish) and Vinho Verde (another local favourite) - a wine translated meaning green wine referring to its age not its colour. The fish was delicioso and melted like butter in our mouths.  The dinner ended with a shot of Ginjinha - a cherry liquer - delicisio again!  Obrigado (thank you) to our waiter and back to our room for some rest, relaxation and blogging.  We have our patio door open and listening to and watching the activity in the square.  Love Portugal!

Elevador da Gloria Funicular

View from top of Elevador de Santa Justa

Panoramic View from top of Elevador de Santa Justa

Our hotel room view

Bath - May 14, 2013

Our last full day in England started out with our last English Breakfast – affectionately known as a heart attack on a plate.  It consists of back bacon, sausage, eggs, grilled tomatoes, mushrooms, toast and fried toast – the latter of which is actually toast fried in very hot oil – strangely delicious!  We had to say goodbye to Tree Tops B&B, Liz and Ben (the dog) as we are spending the night in Luton which is where we fly to Lisbon from in the morning.  It was a great place to stay and would recommend it to everyone.  We then hopped on a train to Reading and switched trains to go to Bath for the day.  We arrived around noon and dropped our packs at the Bath Backpackers Hostel who will store your bags for the day for 3 Pounds (there are no lockers at the train station).  We showed up at the hostel and they hand printed and corner of a piece of paper with our numbers (10 and 11) which we taped to our bags and she gave us corresponding hand printed pieces of paper.  Our bags were then put on a shelf in the reception area – completely safe (?)  We toured the ancient Roman Baths dating back to 76AD.  It was fascinating!  Bath (or technically called Bath Spa) is an ancient city and would be great to explore.  At 2 pm, we joined a free walking tour which took us for a 2 hour tour around bath where we saw and were informed about the Roman Baths, Bath Abbey, the Avon River, the Bridge which makes the river disappear, Allen Ralph who owned the Quarry, John Wood the Older and John Wood the Younger who designed many of the buildings, the Assembly, the Circus, the Royal Crescent and many other sights.  It was cold and pouring rain for the entire tour.  Our guide, Christine, was fabulous and is one of 76 guides who provide free tours daily in Bath – they are volunteers and will not accept tips – they are proud of Bath and want to show it off.  We had a quick lunch and picked our up our bags – yup they were still there and hopped on the train to London where we took switched trains to Luton by taking the subway from London Paddington to London St Pancras – we are getting pretty good at this train/subway thing – wonder if it will be same when few people speak English.  We arrived in Luton to find the train station deserted and ne'er do wells everywhere.  We asked for directions to the hotel at the train station but they were not much help.  We ended up stopping at a McDonalds to ask for directions and 2 policeman from Leicester heard us and offered up their GPS phone and eventually drove us to our hotel.  We checked in and the man at reception said he would take us to our room as he put on his jacket!  WTF! (Why The Face).  We walked in the rain up a deserted block where our room was in a building which actually had the name of the hotel on it (some consolation I guess).  Our room was actually very clean and quiet for 46 pounds.  We decided to forego dinner and went straight to bed.

Roman Baths - 76 AD

The Circle

Bath Abbey

Cotswold Hike - May 13, 2013

We took a bus to Stow-on-the-Wold and walked around town a bit.  We then started our cross country hike across Cotswolds country - apparently you are entitled to hike across farmer's fields and this is what we did.  We took an apparently public path (hard to tell there was a path at all) across, up and down the fields until we arrived in Lower Slaughter about one hour later.  We had cream tea (tea, scone, jam and clotted cream - delicious!) at the Mill and then ventured further on through the fields to Burton-on-the-Water - the English call it little Venice because of its canal.  Great day and this is the England I will remember most fondly!

Burton-on-the-Water

A Protective Mother on our Cotswolds Hike

Jan at the Kissing Gate