A long but much better travel day

Friday, July 16th, 2010

David left early this morning, around 6:00, Tim and my train wasn't until 11:30 or so, so we slept for a bit longer before packing up and catching a cab to the train station. At the station we had an early snack and purchased our tickets back from Seville to Madrid for Sunday before heading out about 10 minutes late on the train. The train ride to Seville had quite a few stops and took in total about eight and a half hours. I tried to kill some time on the train catching up on typing up my blog entries, but unfortunately even though we had a first class seat, there were no power outlets on this train, so the computer battery didn't last long, although I did get a few done. Other than that we slept, looked at the dry arid scenery out the window, listened to music, and played games on our phones. In many ways it feels like a waste of a day when the majority of the day is spent on the train, but sometimes it is much needed downtime. We arrived in Seville right around 8:00 p.m. and took a taxi from the station to or hotel. The hotel was a very pleasant surprise, although a bit more expensive than the employee rates we have gotten in many cities, I had booked it on Priceline for a reasonable price and it was in an excellent location in the historical center of Seville and withing walking distance of all of the sites and numerous restaurants/cafes. And and added bonus, free internet, so I could finally get caught up on these blogs. After dropping our bags and relaxing for a bit we head out down the street and found a cafe to have dinner at. Unfortunately the dinner was not that good and not that cheap, tomorrow we will try to scope out a better place and a better value. After dinner we headed back to the hotel, picking up ice creams on the way and went to bed.

Parks, Plazas, and Paella

Thursday, July 15th, 2010

Today is David's last day in Spain as he leaves tomorrow morning for Madrid and then home to the States. Today is also our only day in Valencia as Tim and I leave tomorrow for a full day of travel to Seville, in the Southwest of Spain, so as exhausted as we all were from our travels and activities over the last week, we set out reasonably early to explore the town. We walked from our hotel along the Jardines del Turia, which are a series of gardens, parks, playgrounds, etc. that lie in the bed of what was once the city's river, which is evident by the myriad of bridges that cross over it into the historic center of town. From the Jardines del Turia we turned in towards the historic center and made our way to Valencia's Romanesque-Gothic-baroque-Renaissance (yes apparently it is all of those things) Cathedral. The Cathedral is home to the Capilla del Santo Caliz, a chapel containing what they say is the Holy Grail, we weren't sure we bought it. Another interesting highlight of the Cathedral is in the back where there is an alter to the Virgin Mary, adorned with flowers and thank-you cards. The ritual is that if a pregnant woman goes to the Cathedral a few weeks before their baby's birth and walks around the Cathedral 9 times to commemorate the 9 months that Mary carried Jesus and pray to the Virgin Mary for an easy delivery and a healthy baby that it will happen. This explained the pregnant women doing laps, I thought maybe they were trying to induce early labor and the Cathedral was the only cool place to go and do so.

After touring the Cathedral we ducked into an Irish pub oddly enough for an early lunch, we hadn't had breakfast this morning so come midday we were pretty famished, even though in Spain you don't usually eat lunch until 2 or 3.

After lunch we got a bit lost in the narrow winding streets of the Barrio del Carmen, a neighborhood in the historical center, before finding the central market. This market was nothing compared to the market in Barcelona, however, this could have been due to the fact that most of the stalls were closed or were closing up for afternoon siestas. We didn't see as much evidence of siestas in Barcelona or elsewhere in Europe, but here in Valencia all of the shops seemed to close up between 2:00 and 5:00 or so. From the market we made our way to the Placa de Ayuntamiento a beautiful plaza surrounded by historic buildings such as the Ayuntamienta de Valencia and the Correos. From this plaza we made our way to the Plaza de Toros de Valencia, home to Valencia's bull ring before heading back to the hotel for a rest.

We headed back out from the hotel around 5:30 or so in the evening to explore the Jardines del Turia in the other direction as we made our way to the Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias, a complex of amazing architectural buildings housing various museums surrounding by a series of enticing reflection pools. The afternoon sun however was barreling down on us so we made our way back to a cafe near the hotel for a refreshment and then went back to the hotel to cool off before dinner.

Tim's Dad had contacted a colleague of his, Robert Callahan, who lives in Valencia to let him know that we would be in the area and see if he might be able to meet up with us. Robert was kind enough to meet us at the hotel around 8 o'clock to take us down to the beach for some paella, although he informed us that true Valencians never have paella for dinner, they have it for lunch in the afternoon. Lunch or dinner, it was delicious. Although I must say both Tim and especially David looked relieved when he asked if we just wanted the traditional chicken paella, although true Valencian paella usually also has rabbit and snails. Before our paella we enjoyed a few tapas and some beer/wine. It was a gorgeous atmosphere, right on the boardwalk along the beach, and with the ocean breeze the temperature was perfect.

After dinner Robert dropped us back off at our hotel where we all worked on packing up for the morning and then went to bed. We will miss David when he leaves tomorrow and were extremely grateful for his company. It was nice to see someone from home as we have been traveling so long just the two of us.

So sad to leave Mallorca

Wednesday, July 14th, 2010

After we woke up this morning and got our things mostly packed and had breakfast we decided we would pay the additional fee to keep our hotel room until 4:00 in the afternoon so that we could come back to the hotel for lunch and could clean up before heading to the airport. We left for the beach shortly after 10:00 in the morning. The sun felt a little hotter today, perhaps because there was a little less of a breeze, but I spent a fair bit more time in the water. We decided to head back to the hotel for an earlier lunch around 12:30 or so, this way we would have at least an hour or so back at the beach after lunch. We made it back to the hotel after our afternoon at the beach a little before 3:00. We took turns cleaning up and finished packing up and left the hotel right around 4:00. Again we underestimated the travel time from the hotel to the airport and arrived at the airport only an hour or so before our flight again. But again, we had no problems, that is until our flight was delayed 30 minutes or so and we had to sit on the plane at the gate. We weren't that surprised however, the amount of planes at the airport in Mallorca is astonishing. Mallorca is obviously THE beach destination of Europe, in fact it was hard to find a Spaniard, most store owners, waiters, etc. were English. When we finally departed Mallorca it was again just a short 30 minute flight to Valencia. Upon our arrival in Valencia I was able to get directions from a lady at the airport on what metro station to get off at for our hotel. Unfortunately the metro station was much further than we thought from our hotel and we weren't entirely sure in what direction from the metro it was, luckily we guessed correctly and arrived at the hotel safely. After dropping our bags at the hotel we set back out to find something to eat. We found a Lebanese restaurant not far from the hotel and enjoyed a couple of drinks and some sandwiches before heading back to the hotel.

Spanish Paradise

Tuesday, July 13th, 2010

There is nothing better than waking up in paradise. This morning we woke up and had some breakfast at our hotel before packing our beach bag and heading out. Tim stopped in the town to get a haircut (since it has been over a month and a half since we left) while David and I picked up a towel for David, a soccer ball, and some water to take with us to the beach. After Tim was done with his haircut we walked the short distance to the beach. This beach was a refreshing change from the beaches of Barcelona. The sand was much finer and softer, the water clearer, and the beach much less crowded. We found a great spot on the beach and settled in. The weather was phenomenal as well, the heat in Barcelona had made it very hard to lay out without getting into the water every 15 minutes or so, but there was a beautiful breeze in Mallorca that made it pleasant to lay out for even an hour before you felt it necessary to dip into the ocean to cool off. We took a break early afternoon and went back to the hotel to make lunch. After an hour or so break from the sun though we were back at the beach. The boys enjoyed kicking the soccer ball around the beach and the scenery (anyone who has been to a European beach knows what I mean) while I soaked up the sun, listened to music, and cooled off in the Mediterranean. Early evening we headed back to the hotel and had a swim at the pool where the boys got involved in quite the competitive game of water soccer with a young group of Italian boys. After the game we went up to the hotel and cleaned up for dinner and had a couple of drinks before heading out to eat. We found a restaurant a little further into Magaluf and enjoyed some good food and drinks. We returned to the hotel late and went to bed. Tomorrow we check out of the hotel, but our flight isn't until late evening, so we hope to enjoy a little more time on the beaches of Mallorca before heading for Valencia.

We're going to Ibiza...well Mallorca....close enough

Monday, July 12th, 2010

After a late night celebrating the Spanish victory in the World Cup Final, we slept in a bit this morning, checking out of our hotel in Barcelona at around noon. We then took the 12:30 bus to the Montmelo train station and the 1:01 train to the airport. We may have slightly underestimated the travel time from hotel to airport and arrived at the airport less than one hour before our flight to Palma de Mallorca, but luckily we were able to successfully check our bags and board our flight with time to spare. The flight from Barcelona to Palma de Mallorca is only 30 minutes in flight time, so it was a quick jump over the Mediterranean and we were there. Upon our arrival in Mallorca I inquired about transport to the Palmanova/Magaluf area of Mallorca, where our hotel the Playas Ca's Saboners Apartamentos was located. Transportation was fairly simple, we merely had to take the #1 bus from the airport to the main bus station near the Placa de Espana and one of several different busses from there to Palmanova/Magaluf. Based on the information I had read in reviews we got off at a Magaluf bus stop and had only a 5 minute walk to our hotel. We arrived at the hotel around 5:00 in the evening and were able to check in straight away. The hotel was very well located within walking distance of a grocery, restaurants, the beach, etc. The hotel also had a very nice pool on site as well. The room itself was nothing spectacular but had a separate bedroom, living room area, and kitchenette with a mini fridge, stove top, toaster, plates, silverware, etc. It was perfect for our needs and would be an excellent place to return with friends. After dropping our bags in the hotel we walked to a supermarket we had seen upon our arrival and picked up some items for breakfasts/lunches which we planned to eat in the room as well as some snacks/beverages. After returning to the hotel we set back out shortly to find a place to eat. We had dinner at a little place just right down the street. I was really surprised that for a resort town the grocery items as well as the prices at restaurants were quite cheap, often cheaper than what we have found in mainland Spain. After dinner we walked back to our hotel and hung out on the patio chatting over a couple of drinks before heading to bed.

Espana, los campeones!

Sunday, July 11th, 2010

Today we decided to try a non-city beach so we asked the front desk staff at our hotel for recommendations of places to go and she recommended a few different beaches and provided us with instructions to get there by train. So after breakfast we set out for the beach, and we definitely weren’t the only ones with the idea. It seemed every person on the train had a beach umbrella in hand. Two trains and an hour or so later we arrived at the beach and found a nice spot close to the water to set up camp. While still crowded, the beach was a little less packed that the city beach we visited previously in Barcelona. After only a few hours of the sun beating down on us we decided we had probably gotten enough sun and packed up to find something for a late lunch before heading back to the hotel to clean up before heading into Barcelona center to watch the World Cup Final in the evening.

After our rest, we caught the 6:30 p.m. bus from the hotel to Montmelo and then caught the 7:01 p.m. train into town. We got off at Passeig de Grácia and walked from there to the Placa de Catalunya where our waiter last night had told us people would be gathering. However, when we arrived at the Placa, there was no signs of this being a gather place for Spanish soccer fans. So again my Spanish came in handy as I asked someone on the street where to go, and they told us Placa de Espanol. So we hopped back on the metro and headed to Placa de Espanol with what seemed like the entire rest of the city. When we arrived at Placa de Espanol it was packed. We could barely see the screens at the front of the Plaza, but the atmosphere was electric. We stayed to watch the beginning of the game and through most of the first half before we decided to go find a restaurant where we might be able to better see the game, and hind-sight this was probably a very good idea, because after Spain won, things likely got very crazy there. It took us a while to find a restaurant that had a table available with a view of a television. It wasn’t the ideal atmosphere for watching a soccer game, but everyone there was there for the same reason, so it was still pretty intense. We enjoyed a meal while watching the rest of the game. And from the moment Spain won in the last minutes of overtime, the people of Spain were celebrating. The restaurant even gave every group in the restaurant a complimentary bottle of champagne to celebrate Spain’s victory which we promptly popped open when we arrived at the train station and enjoyed while waiting for our train back out to the suburbs. We caught one of the last trains back out to the suburbs and arrived in Granollers station at nearly 1 o’clock in the morning and walked out to absolute mayhem. Bottle rockets were being shot off in every direction, people were running through as the fireworks were exploding, people were up on top of statues, swimming in fountains, and blowing up what I can only describe as “bombs”. Growing up in a family where we were required to squat behind a picnic table turned sideways when my dad set off fireworks in our backyard, the whole situation made me feel quite unsafe, but was exhilarating at the same time. I was also concerned about getting a taxi home, we obviously could not get one from the train station because well police had blocked off the entire square in front of it for the fans' celebration. So we carefully crossed the plaza and walked away from the celebration to find somewhere to call a cab from. Luckily we were able to find a hotel and asked the gentleman at reception to call us a cab, and we safely made it home. Turns out I had no reason to worry at all.

That building is soooo Gaudi!!!

Saturday, July 10th, 2010

Today we missed the bus leaving the hotel, not realizing that it runs only every hour on the weekends, so we had to take a taxi from the hotel to the train station in Montmelo. After just one switch of trains in the city we arrived in L’Eixample and at La Sagrada Familia. La Sagrada Familia is Barcelona’s most famous building, and it is still a work in progress. Construction on the building began in 1882 and it is estimated that they could be completed by 2020, but judging by what I saw on the inside, I doubt this will actually happen. However, when it is complete, La Sagrada Familia will have 18 towers, all 100 meters or more high. The towers represent the 12 apostles, four evangelists and Mary, Mother of God, plus the tallest tower standing for Jesus Christ. The outside of the building is the most intricate, but the inside is pretty unbelievable as well. I really hope that they finish the building during my lifetime, as I would love to come back and see the finished product, as it is hard to imagine exactly how it will look when complete.

After leaving La Sagrada Familia we grabbed a quick lunch before heading back on the metro to Park Güell. Park Güell can be found up in the Grácia district. Park Güell was originally designed to be a self-contained community with houses, schools, shops, etc. The project did not succeed, but the city turned the “Dr. Seuss –style” plaza into a park filled with colorful mosaics and paths/plazas designed by Gaudi.

After walking through the expansive park we made our way back to the metro and to Passeig de Grácia. As soon as we got off the metro at Passeig de Grácia, we noticed a large number of people gathering with flags in what looked to be some sort of demonstration. Nevertheless we stopped in front of Casa Botlló and Casa Amatller to view their unique modernista facades, before continuing up Passeig de Grácia towards La Pedrera, Gaudi’s best-known secular creation. However, the closer we got the thicker the crowds of people with flags grew. Finally we stopped and asked someone what was going on. The gentleman informed us that it was an “Independence” demonstration. Apparently, Catalonia, the region of Spain of which Barcelona is the capital wishes to succeed from Spain. And just like that we all learned something new. We fought our way through the crowds to La Pedrera, and made our way up to its surreal rooftop terrace with its bizarre chimneys. La Pedrera was an amazing building, but I have to be honest, the hundreds of thousands of people who were gathered in the streets below us, kept drawing our eyes, and we probably spent more time watching them than looking at Gaudi’s work at la Pedrera. Walking out of La Pedrera we found ourselves right in the thick of things and had to fight our way through and walk several blocks to escape the crowds.

Once we did make our way out of the crowds we walked to the Placa de Catalunya and down La Ramblas looking for a place to eat. We finally made our way down near Port Vell before selecting a restaurant to watch the third place World Cup game between Germany and Uruguay. The boys were happy to find a place to watch the game and I was happy to finally sit down to have some Spanish tapas and sangria. We sampled Calamari Romano, Bombas, Croquettes, Patatas Bravas, and Pincho Morenos and we enjoyed them all. After the game was over we took the metro/train back to Granollers, where we were able to just pick up a taxi back to our hotel.