Barcelona, Spain - October 11-14

Alright. Time to get back into this thing even if it's been over a month since we've been to a lot of these places.

We woke up early in Bilbao to take an 8 hour bus to Barcelona. It was by far the cheapest way to get there. The time actually went pretty quickly, but sitting and doing nothing on a bus for 8 hours is exhausting so by the time we got in we weren't in the mood to do too much. Between the travel time and recharging, we lost most of one of our three days in Barcelona. That left us with only two days to do as much as possible. We got a lot done, but left wanting to go back.

Our first full day was mostly spent walking through the city to get a feel for it. We walked up Las Ramblas (past the animal vendors and the increasingly obnoxious street performers), through Placa de Catalunya, up Passeig de Gracia (where the Gaudi house is.



apparently this was the last project he did (other than Sagrada Familia) and it is really crazy inside. There was a line around the corner to get in and it was E15.50 a person. That's close to Leaning Tower territory pricewise. We decided to save it for another trip), past Sagrada Familia and then came back towards the water through their Arc de Triomphe, ending up at the park. It was actually longer than it sounds too because we spent a bunch of time doubling back trying to decide where to eat. Restaurant indecisiveness is a common theme of our trip.

After lunch we walked through the park and back to the Picasso Museum. It was a full day.

Our second day was just as full. We swung by the big market which was filled with delicious juices and some other things.



We went to Parc Guell which I remembered being really cool. It is an interesting site to see and has great views everywhere. This is where the unfortunate body-chop off picture occurred. Fortunately, we got some good backup pictures after that one didn't work out







The large cathedral dominating every picture of the city is of course Sagrada Familia. It's still not done. I think it's supposed to be done in around 2025 now. I doubt it will be. We left Parc Guell and walked all the way down to see it.

Just like a lot of Gaudi's work, it really is a strange sight. It was interesting to see a cathedral that retained so many of the same elements of the other cathedrals we had seen, but yet was entirely different.



The line to take the elevator upstairs was too long and sadly they didn't have an option for stairs. We settled for just walking around the church and attached museum.





We walked to get mussels later that night and hit the hay early before our early morning flight to Madrid.

Bilbao, Spain (September 10-11)

We're falling a bit more behind. Internet has been spotty and a lot of the places that do have wireless have limited range because of thick century old walls. We're in Sevilla now (mid-80s at the end of October).

After San Sebastian we knew we had four nights to kill before meeting some friends in Madrid. We ran through a number of possibilities: stay in San Seb another night, go to Barcelona a night early, go to Zaragoza halfway between to cut down on travel times, or go to Bilbao. After asking our hostal in San Seb if they had availability for another night, we were told that weekend was a national holiday (or puente weekend as they are known here). It's always a holiday weekend so that wasn't surprising. But this seemed to be the holiday weekend that kind of symbolized the end of summer. Hotels in Barcelona were very difficult to come by and were very expensive for Saturday night. San Sebastian was basically all cleared out. And Zaragoza? Well the Holiday was El Dia de Nuestra Senora del Pilar. And Zaragoza's church is la Basilica de Nuestra Senora del Pilar. It's their city holiday and no rooms could be found.

So we settled on Bilbao. It saved us an extra day in San Sebastian since we wouldn't have to take a day trip to Bilbao. And since it was only an hour away it was an easy trip and only added an extra hour to the bus to Barcelona.

I had been to Bilbao a number of times before while studying in San Seb. Due to location and history, it doesn't have the beauty or vibe of San Seb. But thanks to the Guggenheim it has been reinvigorated in the past 20 years or so and I could even tell a difference between my visits and 2004 and now. A lot of construction and deatiled touches are improving the uniqueness and beauty of the city.

Despite all those kind words, there's really not much to do in Bilbao (although I know a few people who would disagree with me about that). You go see the Guggenheim and you leave. The Casco Viejo is cool and the Plaza Mayor is filled with energy, but they aren't unique. The city has done a good job supplementing the Guggenheim with other museums and cultural sights, but they are plenty of those elsewhere in Europe and we were kind of worn down by generic sightseeing. Fortunately, the Guggenheim is far from generic and totally worth the trip. Because of that, it seems we didn't take many (or any) pictures in Bilbao other than at the Guggenheim.

Here's Ali with the famous flower dog.



And this is a permanent "exhibit" in which mist is spritzed from under the bridge every hour (or something like that).


And here's me looking cool with my audio guide in front of said exhibit.



And this is a small scale model of a permanent exhibit which involves a bunch of bent steel in interesting positions for walking through.



That's about it. We were pretty tired that night and it rained, so it was an early night for us. Perhaps some day Bilbao will get a better run from us.

Adventures in San Sebastian

I loved San Sebastian - it definitely lived up to the hype and we had an awesome time. Between the beach and the food, I pretty much didn't want to leave. Best of all, I knew Kevin wouldn't be a hard sell to stay a little longer... like the rest of the month, haha! Unfortunately, we were scheduled to leave on the Friday of a 3 day weekend. Sadly, there were no rooms in the city for Saturday night and we were forced to move on. We will return for sure.

The views were so beautiful that we did a lot of climbing and walking, the perfect recipe for great afternoon naps and late nights out eating pintxos. Food food food - more on this later - this post was supposed to be the adventure post.


We walked out to see Eduardo Chillida's El Peine del Viento (Wind Comb) Sculptures and I took a nap . . . I mean courageously climbed up there


Kev contemplated the sea


We braved seeing guys in tiny bathing suits play paddle ball against the sea wall


FINALLY got to go on a funicular that led to the top of Monte Igueldo - to quite possibly the cutest fun park / castle tower with the nicest views ever - seriously, the tower bills itself as the "best view in the world". The park was closed for the Winter, but fun to explore anyway.


The Mysterious River - a tiny little lazy river type ride that happened to go right along the edge of the cliff

Too adorable - I will be coming back in Summer specifically to try out this one. The bumper boat pond was also filled with goldfish that we suspect didn't make it home after being won at a carnival game. Some of them were getting pretty huge.


On the way home, we ended up with steps that plunged directly into the ocean since the tide had come in while we were on the other side! The guy behind me here looks like he's walking on water, but it's more like pointy sideways rocks that were about 2 1/2 feet tall and lead through the deepest part. When the rocks ended the water was still almost past my knees.

The local ladies had turned the (now fairly useless) stairs into a swimming platform and were slowly lowering themselves into the icy water.


The stairs are on the far side, about middle - and had easily 10 - 15 ft of beach around them when we walked to the other side . . . Strangely, this was also the day they fired that thing at the moon - had the moon exploded or something there probably would have been no tide (or a giant tidal wave? please post any theories or scientific knowledge you may have re: potential moon explosion after effects in the comments)



On a side note, I can't believe we'll be back in San Diego in about 2 1/2 weeks! How exciting!

San Sebastian (Kevin) (October 5-10)

Of all the places on our itinerary, the one individual city I was most excited about was San Sebastian. It's a little odd because I had been there plenty of times before. I was looking forward to seeing other cities almost as much. But something about going back to San Seb was different. It's got a hold on me.

I was also nervous about going back because for as long as I have known Ali I have expounded the virtues and awesomeness of Donostia. That's a lot of pressure. What if it had changed? What if she didn't like it? Fortunately, some things always live up to the hype.

We arrived after a train from Paris and went to Hostal Amaiur in the Parte Vieja. Shockingly, this was our cheapest accommodation of the entire trip up to that point and was in a fantastic location. It was still cheap even after paying more for a room with a balcony. We had a room with a balcony over Calle 31 de Agosto



This allowed us to spend our early evenings having some beverages and snacks overlooking the parte vieja.



It was also interesting because one of the places directly across the street was a culinary society and for three of the nights we were there was filled with men cooking, eating, and singing random songs into the early hours of the morning. At least it solidified my lifelong dream of being in a Basque gastronomic society.

It was an interesting trip for me because it was half about getting reuinted with some old friends:

my old apartment



Tas Tas





(the blurriness seems appropriate)

and Juantxo (fillete con queso, cebollo, y pimiento).



But it was also a trip of seeing old things a new way.

For example, I had climbed Monte Urgull any number of times, whether it was going to the bar part way up or all the way up to Jesus. But this year, because of the closing of the Museo San Telmo, there was a museum at the top of Monte Urgull and you could climb all the way up to the base of Jesus.



On Thursday, Ali and I went to Getaria for lunch. I had been there once on a sailing trip and once with my parents. I had only been in the spring and the main street was bustling with restaurants grilling fish on their outside grill. When Ali and I went, it was entirely empty, aided no doubt by the pouring rain. The vibe wasn't exactly the same. Nevertheless, we sat under a covered patio in the downpour to have some fish. It was still a great time, but different than my recolleciton.



But for the most part, things never change. The food was absolutely incredible. The views were stunning. The people were overly nice (the bartender/server at Egosari even remembered me three years on).



It was great to be back. And it was even better for me to have Ali agree that I wasn't just overstating how awesome it was. It really is a magical place.

Trip Status and Updates

We meant to do this earlier, but forgot to get around to it. We are currently in Granada, Spain in a little apartment with a view of the Alhambra.

This part of the trip has been entirely different for a number of reasons including 1) that to some degree we both speak this language; 2) food is different and generally cheaper (between bocadillos and tapas we don't have the need/desire to eat a full meal every single day like we did in Italy); and 3) accommodations are generally much cheaper allowing us to either save money on that end or spend about the same amount as in Italy to end up in some very nice places (either by quality or location).

I thought that having internet more frequently would help us to stay more up to date with the blog, but for the most part it hasn't. We're about 2 weeks behind, but should get a bit more done before we get home.

Speaking of which, we have booked our flight back. We will be leaving from Oporto, Portugal on November 9 and arriving in San Diego late that night (contingent on a smooth layover in O'Hare). After some time to recover we should be back to normal by the 11th or 12th.

With a set return date, we have been able to plan out our itinerary more concretely than we did for the first part of the trip. Here is our plan:

October 20-23: Granada
October 23-25: Ronda
October 25-26: Gibraltar (La Linea de Concepcion)
October 26-28: Cadiz
October 28-30: Arcos de la Frontera
October 30-November 2: Sevilla
November 2-November 7: Some combination of Lisbon, Sintra, and another town or 2 in Portugal.
November 7-9: Oporto
November 9: Leave for San Diego

We're looking forward to seeing people when we get back and jumping into the Thanksgiving and holiday season.

More Paris

We have a lot of stuff from Paris since we were there for a week, so we'll probably just put up things occasionally as we get the chance.

Our first day we decided to walk around and get the lay of the land. We walked down Rivoli to Notre Dame. This is us at point zero.



I know you're shocked. I'm actually wearing shoes.

We walked behind the cathedral. The park was filled with flowers and had a little playground with a spinning disk Ali almost forced a child off of. She had to settle for this picture to commemorate the experience instead.



The next day we took advantage of Paris's awesome Velib bike system. For those that don't know about it, Paris has set up an extensive system of bikes throughout the city. For 1 euro a day or 5 euro a week (and cheaper for Paris residents), you can take a bike at any of the Velib stations and ride free for 30 minutes before dropping it off at another Velib station. At that point you have presumably reached your destination or you can grab another bike at a close by station and head off again. It's a great way to see the city, although I was slightly unnerved by riding in the bus/taxi lane with cars passing within inches of us. But all the Parisians seemed to be doing it and I wanted to fit in.

We planned to ride from our place in Le Marais down to the Champs-Elysee. We knew it would take more than 30 minutes so we planned on switching bikes midway through. Unfortunately, we didn't have a Velib map so we had trouble finding a station to drop the bikes off. They are usually just off some of the main roads and hard to see while biking. Even when you find one, there is a good chance it will be full in which case you have to go around the corner to find another one. Fortunately, each Velib station provides a map of the nearby stations, tells you how many open spots there are for bike drop off, and gives you an extra 15 minutes to find the station. Eventually we found one and peddled up the Champs-Elysee, but again had trouble finding a station and probably had it out longer than the 30 minutes. It had gotten hot and we were thirsty.



Fortunately the view was good.

We headed up to the Arc De Triomphe and continued our conquest of the highest buildings in Europe by taking the stairs to the top. This was probably one of the tougher climbs, but we're getting really good at it now. And the view from the top was great. You can see in every direction: towards the Eiffel Tower;



down the street to the new grand Arch, the Arch de la Defense



to Sacre Couer in the distance (which we unfortunately didn't get to this trip).



and straight up the Champs-Elysee to the Tuillerie Gardens and the Louvre.

After leaving the Arc, we walked straight up the Champs-Elysee past stores with items I can't afford and wouldn't buy even if I could and into a Nespresso store that took up 2 levels and had an employee to customer ration of approximately 3:1. The Sephora was similarly daunting. The stores were certainly interesting, although apparently a shadow of what they once were. Similarly, the cafes have a lot of history, but now charge up to 6 Euro for a shot of espresso.

We arrived at Place de la Concorde. Here I am doing I do not know what with the arc in the background.



Directly behind the gate in front of me is an obelisk which was transported from Egypt in the 1830s. It is also where over 1,000 people were beheaded by the guillotine.

Finally we walked up through the Tuillerie Gardens and by the Louvre...



finishing with a stroll along the Seine where we saw a lady walking her cat on a leash.



It's blurry, but let me assure the cat did not seem pleased.

It was a very busy and long day. It was also very warm which wore us out. It also spoiled us for the rest of the week which god cold enough that even I felt it.

We finished the night with some steak and moulles frites. It was a good first day in Paris, but reminded me how big it is and how much there is to see.

Avignon (September 27-28)

On the way up to Paris from Nice we decided to make a stop in Avignon. As far as we can tell, Avignon is famous for two things: 1) almost being the official home of the (Roman) Catholic Church and 2) having a destroyed bridge that is also the inspiration for a children's song. It turns out one day more or less was a good amount to see both of those things.

After we arrived and got situated we went to the former Palace of the Popes. In the early 14th century, the newly elected pope moved the Papal Residence to Avignon rather than stay amidst the violence in Rome. A number of successive popes decided to stay in Avignon despite constant wooing by Rome. Eventually, the residence was moved back to Rome. However, these events also led to the Papal Schism during which time three men all claimed to be pope. It also led to the creation of the word "antipope," which is pretty awesome.

As for the palace itself, it's big and interesting, but largely empty. It was hard to get a sense of what it was actually like because there wasn't much left of the time it was actually used (which makes sense given it was 600+ years ago). The tower has a very good view of the city and river and you can see why the popes found it an attractive location. You can see the castle in the background of this picture.



Next we went to see the famous Pont D'Avignon. It is famous because it is half a bridge and because a song was written about it. It was not famous to either one of us though as we had never heard of it before we went.



It was inspired by Saint Benezet who was divinely chosen and proved so by lifting a heavy rock (or something). The bridge used to be a full bridge. Then it was not. Then it was again. Then it was not. This repeated a number of times until they finally gave up.

It became additionally famous by this song and frollicky dancing:


Now that will be in your head for at least a week even though you have no idea what the second line is.

We were there on a Sunday night so unfortunately most of the restaurants I had heard about were closed. We ended up in a cute little plaza at a place that served tartines and charcuterie plates.

The following morning we walked along the river and took funny pictures.



We didn't get a chance to do the tourist train that we had heard about. One it was a little pricey for what it was. And two, I decided it went slow enough that we could just walk alongside it and listen to the audio recording if we were really interested. Nevertheless, it's a very cute little train.



Avignon was a very nice little stop over. I found the town to have a very pleasant vibe and would be happy to go back, especially as a base to see other cities in the region. I would avoid Sunday nights however.

Nice, France (September 25-27)

Our first stop in France was in Nice. It was nice. We enjoyed moules frites for the first time in the trip, discovered the wonders that are French sandwiches (Salami, butter, and cornichons on a half baguette? Why, Yes, please that sounds wonderful! And it is.), wandered around the big food and flower market, sampled Socca, and also took advantage of the large number of cheap, delicious Asian buffets in Nice. After a month straight of Italian food, we were ready for a change.

Most of all we spent our time relaxing on the beach with roughly 17 Euro worth of English reading material (1 Economist, 1 New Yorker, and a Soduku book) and playing with the camera.

We watched the sun set


had a bottle of wine and got all romantical


Played with the timer on the camera



The rocky beach made things interesting. It was hard, and tough to walk on, but they made a really cool sound when the waves splashed ashore and drew back there was a sound just like when you pour milk on rice krispies!


Every time we sat down we caught ourselves saying "Oof!" which in French sounds like . . . "Egg!" so this was our "Oeuf" rock.


We took about 40 pictures of us hanging out at the beach and had a great time. It was nice to get in some relaxation in the sun before heading to Paris for all the serious sight-seeing. Also, just as an aside, Nice should change their name to something else for the purpose of internet searching. Try looking up "Nice Restaurants" or "Nice Hotels" on Google. Sheesh.

Self-Portraits (Part II)

After our last post showing how skilled we (mostly Ali) are at taking pictures of ourselves, whether by tripod or arm-extension, we received a few comments asking us to ask others to take pictures of us. It's not that we refuse to do it, we've just run into a few problems with people who apparently have never seen a camera before.

At the Roman Forum, we asked a nice lady to take a picture of us. I think she was from Germany. Perhaps somewhere in Eastern Europe. She was very kind and did her best, but seemed to miss the point that we wanted a picture to show that we were actually at the Roman Forum.


She seemed to think that we wanted a picture commemorating the fact that we in fact exist and do not mind standing next to each other.

Then today in Barcelona we reached the very top of Parc Guell with a sweeping 180+ degree view of the waterfront and the city. We asked a nice young lady to take a picture of us. She skipped over the requisite "Just push the button?" question and went straight for the shot. She then asked if it took, and upon checking I realized it had not. Yet despite this warning and the fact she seemed to be aiming over our heads, we let her continue.



She opted for the disembodied heads levitating over the city photo. Unlike the lady taking the picture at the Forum, this girl apparently thought we wanted our heads to not to be a distraction from the beauty that is Barcelona. At the very least, I feel like it gave me a great idea to cut out the messy part of traveling by superimposing our floating heads on pictures of famous panoramic views.

In all fairness, we are very grateful for the help of people, some of whom go out of their way to offer and most of whom to a very good job. But it's always awkward when you don't like the picture that came out and have to either ask for another or move on. Most of the time, we know what we are looking for better than the person who is taking it. The tripod and timer help us set it up. Sometimes we end up in mistiming it or in awkward poses and with the frame a little tilted, but we're usually pretty happy with the results.