Friday, 4/29 - On to Barcelona!

With some reluctance to give up our lazy ways, we headed today to Barcelona, about 600 km.  It was a good driving day - cloudy, cool.  That's good as it helps Mark's eyes not to have it bright.  I also gave up my wussy ways and drove for about 2 1/2 hours.  Sigh.

We are staying in an industrial area of Barcelona at a fairly nice, modern hotel, Hotel Servasa.  We were lucky to find it with just following Google Map written direction, no actual map.  As usual, Mark was able to find it with his unerring sense of direction.

We took the bus into Plaza Catalunya which took quite a while.  We met Chris and Ken and we strolled down the Ramblas for a bit.  Ken found a restaurant, Elizabets in his guide book which it said had good local food.  So, we went there and it was pretty good.  We had tapas, beer and wine.  Lots of laughs.  Then, we took a subway and a train back to our hotel and they took the subway back to theirs.  We are tired and about to collapse.

As a note - we missed the royal wedding of Kate and William completely as we were driving most of the day.

Three idyllic days in the sun...warm enough for a swim!

We have enjoyed beach weather for three days, as well as long walks along the boardwalk.  We have done a lot of reading and have watched a fair amount of snooker on tv, as well as some Spanish soap operas! We have eaten a lot of ham and cheese sandwiches. Mark just finished The Shadow of the Wind, a mystery set in Barcelona.  I just finished The Story of Edgar Sawtelle and have begun The Madonnas of Leningrad.

Yesterday, we discovered a new area along the boardwalk - a park with some waterfalls.  It is quite lovely and was unexpected as we had walked close to it with Michael and Nancy on several occasions.

We talked with Maura on the phone and she helped us to rent a car for our last days in London next month.  We await word from Chris and Ken that they have arrived in Barcelona where we will meet them on Friday.

On our last full day, we at lunch at a restaurant at the top of the waterfall area, made from an old Mississippi River boat.  We also, at long last, were brave enough to go for a swim.

Rain...then sun on Day 44, in the south of Spain

We woke to rain today.  So, we decided to read and be lazy.  But, by mid-day, the weather had cleared and I did my first drive in the six-gear, manual-shift car.  I have been a total wuss so far in wanting to drive.  But, Mark's eyes are really bothering him, so it was time for me to come to grips.  I didn't take a long drive - just to the supermercado in Torrevieja.  Other than a few herky-jerky moves with both the shifting and the breaks...it was okay.  The car has a pretty big blind spot for someone my size, but....I know I can now drive if I need to.

By the end of the day, it was sunny and warm, so we laid on our upper deck and sun-bathed.  Very nice!

And, we thought about Nicholas all day, as it is his birthday.  We hope that this next year will be better for him than the last.  Happy Birthday, Nick!

Happy Easter to All....Mike and Nancy take the bus to Madrid

Today we all got up bright and early so that Michael and Nancy could catch the bus from Torrevieja to Madrid.  The bus was fully booked and they were not slated to sit together.  We hope that they were able to talk someone into moving seats.  Nancy wrote down the words in Spanish!  We heard from them mid-way as their bus had wi-fi.  They were hoping to get to Mass at San Francisco Church in Madrid which has a ceiling painted by Goya.

Mark and I had a lazy day; I did some washing and we sat on our rooftop reading and eating left-over spaghetti...rather a strange Easter dinner!  I took a nice long walk along the boardwalk, too.  The weather got cooler and grayer all day long.

Another beach day; a move to a new apartment

Today we moved from 'the dungeon' to a new apartment,upstairs this time.  There is a rooftop area which will be nice to sit in and to hang our wash out.

We sat at the beach for most of mid-day; Michael once again braved the waters alone!

Nancy and I took a nice walk to the salt lake behind us where there is a park.  It was lovely and warm.  The area also grows grapes which were not affected by the disease which affected grapes years ago due to the dry and sandy soil which prevented the disease from spreading through the roots.

Mark and Mike made a delicious spagetti dinner with a nice bottle of Rioja.  We all took a nice evening stroll along the boardwalk on Michael and Nancy's last evening with us here.

Sunny and warm day...at last! A day at the beach!

Today, finally, we had a beach day!  Hurray!  So, we all sat on the beach and soaked up the sun.  No one bothered to go in the water, though, as the water was cold and rather rough.  Only a very few people went in, but the beach was crowded with sun-starved sunseekers.  As it is Good Friday, Michael and Nancy are fasting.  Mark is making a big seafood paella for their one meal of the day.

Castillo Santa Barbara, Alicante

Today we journeyed to Alicante in the rain.  We were all pleasantly surprised by how nice the downtown was with tree-lined boulevards and a pretty waterfront.

We had cafe and some tapas or raciones at a waterfront cafe and lingered over the food & drink in hopes the rain would pass.

When the rain let up, we drove up to the Castillo Santa Barbara which is way up a mountain overlooking the harbor and the town. It is called Santa Barbara because it was captured from the Moors on the Feast Day of Saint Barbara on December 4.  (David's birthday!) The rain let up and we wandered all through the ramparts.  The view was amazing and we had a lot of fun.

Then, we wandered around the shopping area, but little was open due to both siesta and Holy Week.   We hung around for quite a while, hoping to take in a religious procession, but it appeared that the procession would not reach the area where we were until around 10:30 and it was only 7:30.  So, we drove home, concluding that we had had a really nice day, despite the weather forecast.

Michael swims in the Mediterranean...

Today was the first day where the wind dissipated, at least until the evening when it started up again.  Michael was determined not to go home without having swum in the Mediterranean.  So, after Mark made some yummy chicken noodle soup, we all walked down the boardwalk to a spot where there was less seaweed and brown turbulence and we all watched as Michael went in.  No one else braved the cold.

So, we finally had our beach day and we all got some sun.  We walked the beach several times and had a relaxing day.  Ah!  The life of 4 retired teachers.....

Siestas for everyone....

Today we had a lazy day, choosing only to go into Torrevieja.  The first thing we had to accomplish was booking Michael and Nancy a way to get to Madrid for their flight next week.  As they are traveling on Easter, the trains are totally booked which is the way that they wanted to travel.  And, it began to look as if even the bus was full, so we were talking about planes or rented cars.

We went to the information bureau and they said that we had to go to a travel bureau for tickets.  So, we found one and he was able to book Michael and Nancy the VERY LAST TWO bus tickets of the day.  Whew! And, they won't even be able to sit next to each other for the 5+ hours.  Nevertheless, they were very relieved.

Then, we strolled along the waterfront and had a nice lunch with a compris menu.  As it included a glass of beer, we all came home and fell fast asleep for the rest of the afternoon!  We are all lightweights in that area.

Later, revived, we walked around La Mata and got some sponge cake and came home and pigged out on strawberrys, cake and whipped cream.

Archaology in Cartagena...

Today it was still windy and chilly. Unfortunately, we all had a pretty terrible night's sleep.  The apartment next to us has 4 guys who came in around 3 a.m. drunken and loud; clearly, they had also picked up some women.  The sounds of furniture being moved seemed to go on for hours. Eventually, Michael got up and complained and the night watchman told them to quiet down, but they didn't.

Our expedition was down the coast to the old port city of Cartagena.  We did quite a bit of walking, trying to find the Roman amphitheater. But, we persevered.  First, we went into a museum that explained how  the town did not even know that the town HAD a Roman amphitheater until 1990! It had been buried under layers and layers of other civilizations,  as the amphitheater was built on a hill.  The museum did a good job showing the evolution.

It has a deep water port that was used by the Carthaginians, the Visigoths, the Byzantines, the Moors and the Spanish.  The amphitheater area had evidence of those civilizations, except the Carthaginians.

After the museum, we walked into the amphitheater which is still being excavated.  It was pretty impressive. Then, we walked up on the heights into the castle gardens where there was quite a large flock of noisy peacocks.  We did not go into the castle, and wended our way down the hill, not quite sure if we'd end up near where Mark parked the car.  As Nancy had taken a spill in the slippery marble shower in the morning, she was quite sore and we did not want to do extra walking.

Let's hope that the party guys are quiet tonight.  We have been told that they will be kicked out if they are noisy again.

Windy Day along the Mediterranean....

Today was sunny, but the wind was persistent with a nip to it.  Michael and Nancy got up and went to the local church for Palm Sunday.  They came and got us to see the procession of the statue around a few of the blocks, which was very interesting. They had very elaborate palm fronds.

Later we went in to explore Torrevieja, an old port.  The population is 13% British ex-pats.  As it is Holy Week, it was fairly crowded. We walked through an open air market; I bought an English-Spanish dictionary.

We drove back along the salt collection areas, something for which the area is famous.

Mark, Michael and I watched some bocci, or boules in the village square.  Mark made a delicious shepherd's pie.  We are hoping that the weather improves so that we will be able to sit on the beach.

From castle to...overbuilt Spanish coast....

Today we all were reluctant to leave Alarcon and the castle we called home for a night.  We lingered over our luxurious breakfast, packed slowly and took more photos of the gorge and the castle, from both inside and outside the walls.

We drove south to Torrevieja along the the Costa Blanca from Alicante.  Unfortunately, the area is very, very built up with high rises.  The timeshare is not great, I am afraid.  We are on the beach, but...not our unit.  In fact, our unit is quite peculiar.

 The bedrooms are underground - no windows at all.  And, there is no privacy.  The room Mark and I are in does not have walls that go up to the ceiling.  If we wanted to throw a ball over to Michael and Nancy, we could.  And, their room is even worse - no walls at all!  It is just an open area at the bottom of the narrow circular staircase.  Oh well, we will all make do.

And, the resort has NO amenities.  There was supposed to be an exercise room with sauna, but....all closed for reconstruction.

We went out and got supplies for the next few days, including a coffee pot.  Mark made a nice stir fry with shrimp.  Then, we watched Rafa Nadal defeat Andy Murray in the semi finals of the Monte Carlo tennis tournament.

Oh, and it is COLD and windy!

Sleeping in a Castle - no damsel in distress!

Today we got up and left the apartment pretty early.  We paid 87 Euros for the 3 days of parking!  Yikes!  City living has its expenses.  Mark got out of the city amazingly easily - naturally, much of it was due to Barbara's navigation!

We only drove for a few hours south, but got a bit lost at a turnoff at a village called Honrubio. We stopped there for a few minutes as they were having a market day.  Nancy bought some sunglasses for 10 E.  We ended up back on the highway at a nice restaurant reststop where 3 of us had pork on skewers and Nancy bought some souvenir plates.  We also got directions and went back to Honrubio, but, this time took the right road to Alarcon.

Wow!  Alarcon was magical!  It is an amazing castle built in the 14th century on the spot where a Moorish castle, built in the 8th century previously stood; reputedly it was the spot where the Visigoth, Alaric, established a castle in his son's name.  The castle sits high above a ravine.  The paradore was the best one yet - only 14 rooms.  Mark and I have a corner room overlooking the gorge. The room is called the Constanza de Aragon, the daughter of Jaime II of Aragon.  She died in 1327.  From our window, we can see a tower, "Alarconcillos", a very old star observatory.

We all got the key for the ramparts and walked along the wall. Later,we walked around the small town and by an old Spanish cemetery to overlook the gorge.  Scary heights!

We had a drink in the beautiful castle's bar and had a 9 p.m. dinner in a restaurant in a plaza near the castle.  It was called Don Julio's.  It is amazing that kids are with their parents eating out so late.   (We are becoming very Spanish in our hours of eating, too, and did not return to 'our' castle until past 11.

Another Sunny Day in Madrid....wandering around

Today, Julia and Michelle left very early on the bus to the airport.  Julia headed back to England  and Michelle headed back to Miami.  Mike and Nancy went with them to catch the airport bus.  I, however, was still recovering from a rough night and never even heard them leave.

Later, the four of us walked around for most of the rest of the day. First, we walked by the Royal Palace, but opted not to go in.  We strolled to a church, but arrived just as the gates were closing for siesta time.  (San Francisco Church where Michael and Nancy are considering going for Easter Mass next week.)  Our feet took a break at Starbuck's where we all had expensive iced coffees.  But, we had grilled cheese and ham at the flat, so...saved money that way.  My stomach is definitely not feeling adventerous today!

Later, we went on a quest to find a statue of an angel that marks the spot where there was an attempted assassination of the king and queen in the early 1900's.  The assassin was the uncle of a friend of Mark's on the Theatre Board on Nantucket. But, we were unable to find the spot, unfortunately.  However, we all had a nice ramble and Michael talked a man who was hanging up posters into giving him one for Nancy, which was nice. 

In addition, we filled out a complaint form at  Ginger, the restaurant where we got sick.  They were not happy to give us the form, but they did and we filled it out and will mail it in a place not quite as busy as Madrid.

Julia's 20th, the Prado, Flamenco....and upset stomachs

Today, the weather was amazing - sunny, blue skies and about 80 degrees.  After a wonderful breakfast, a la Mark, the White Clan split up to visit different museums.  The Florida contingent went to check out the Picasso Museum (Reina Sophia) and Guernica, while Mark and I headed for the Prado.

Mark and I stayed for about 3 hours.  It was great; we rented headphones which were well worth the 3.5 Euros we paid.  The highlights of the day - Hieronymous Bosch and the Velasquez in my opinion.  By some strange happenstance, in one of the rooms, we ran into a couple we had met in Avila!  (from Brooklyn.)  We had coffee in the middle of the day to give our feet, and brains, a rest.

Then, we walked back to the apartment and were joined shortly thereafter by the rest of the group.  Michael had purchased a chocolate ice-cream cake and we sang for Julie's birthday.

Then - off to Flamenco dancing at a theatre at the Plaza del Carmen, a short walk.  It was fabulous!  Four of us had to move in order to see as a really tall family sat in front of us.  But, the dancing was amazing.  We all thoroughly enjoyed it.  And, it was only 15 Euros each in a small theatre with 3 musicians and a singer, too.  So, it was a concert, as well as dancing.

After that, we strolled back to the Calle Huertas and ate outdoors at the Ginger Restaurant, which had been recommended by the Tourist Information Bureau.  Unfortunately, Michelle, Nancy and I all had a salmon, spinach strudel and all were sick.  Michael and Mark had to go to the pharmacy to get something to settle our stomachs.  The rest of the gang had sparking wine from the Loire Valley and toasted to Julia.

Onto Madrid!

We had a rather rocky start to the day.  There was no hot water in the parador and the water was the color of rust.  ugh.  So - no showers.  We ate breakfast and packed. The management was pretty unconcerned about the lack of water and only took off 15 Euros each from the room price. 

By a miracle, Mark managed to find the parking garage in Madrid near to the flat at 8 Carretas, (Apt 202) near the Puerta Del Sol.  We did not have a map!  And, I had written directions from Google directions, but missed a fork in a tunnel and got totally off the map's directions.  Mark drove in bumper-to-bumper traffic and we couldn't find any signs to familiar spots, such as the Plaza Mayor or the Puerta del Sol.  Nevertheless, using the Rick Steve's tourist map, we eventually did find the place.  The Force was definitely with us.  (Unfortunately, the car costs 30 Euros a day to park!)

We were let in the apartment by someone from Spain Select. The apartment is quite nice, but the internet only works on Nancy's computer, so it is a pain.  Julia and Michelle had arrived in Madrid shortly before us, and Michael and Nancy went to meet them at a Starbuck's.  We had to discreetly let them into the flat as we were only supposed to be four people.  The girls will sleep in the living room for 2 nights. 

After settling in, we walked around and got familiar with the neighborhood.  We are in a FABULOUS location!  We got some food at El Cortes Ingles as well as sandwiches at a place where everything was one Euro. 

Later, Michael, Michelle, Nancy and I walked around and got tickets for flamenco for tomorrow night to help celebrate Julia's 20th birthday.  We went to the Plaza Mayor and happened upon a German military swing band playing for free. They were really, really good.  For a while, there was a female vocalist singing Michael Jackson songs - she was excellent and had the crowd hopping.  She was followed by an amazing saxophonist.  So, it was a real treat.

On to the walled city of Avila!

Today started rather dreary, drizzly and cold.  We had our breakfast at the parador and then got in the car.  It was a long driving day, taking us through mountain passes and tunnels.  But, as we approached Segovia, the weather brightened.  We saw snow-topped mountains in the distance and began to see storks and their nests, mostly on churches.

We stopped in wonderful Segovia where our bodies and spirits were refreshed.  Our bodies were refreshed by getting out of the car after six hours, as well as by a coffee sitting looking at the amazing aqueduct.  Even though we saw it before, we were again astounded by the sheer size and engineering of it.  Photos just can't take it all in.  We climbed to the top and looked from there, too.  The shadows it cast were beautiful. Unfortunately, we were never able to get a great photo because of tour busses and construction cranes.  We were all very very happy that we stopped to see it, especially Nancy.

From there, we drove only about another hour to the walled city and parador at Avila.  The area has grown a lot since Mark, David and I, Ted and Bev visited it 14 years ago.  But, the area within the city walls was the same. 

The parador, however, was somewhat disappointing.  The staff seemed indifferent.  We wanted to climb on the walls and were sent to the lower part of town, away from the main area, only to find out that the walls are closed on Monday.  (And, they now cost, unlike years ago.  Oh well, that's understandable.)  After a walk around, taking photos of the outside of the wall, we went to a good Chinese restaurant just outside the wall.  Mark says that we ate at the same spot years ago, but I have no memory of it.

Then, we all had a glass of wine in one of the parador's salons which was nice.