Spain-2011

22.2.11

In closing...

As you can probably tell, we had a great time. We had been planning on a vacation like this for a long time and we can't wait until we do it again, but next time we'll go to a different part of Spain.

We covered about 2,400 kilometers of road and saw some great and historic places, slept in some fantastic Paradores (Hotels) and had great food and wine along the way. The weather didn't always cooperate but that didn't stop us form doing everything we had planned, and then some.

If you want to see more pictures of our Road Trip, please let me know and I'll send you the link.

Cheers,
Pedro and Linda.

20.2.11

Back at home...

After a very long travel day yesterday and a 3.5 hour drive this morning from Atlanta to Fort Mill, we are back at home. I'm posting some final pictures of our last day in Madrid. We spent most of Friday walking around Madrid and we were both exhausted by 11:00 PM.

Living Statue

Retiro Park

Alcala Gate

Cibeles Fountain

Neptune Fountain

Madrid Architecture

Living Statue - No, he is not actually falling.

Lunch :)

Hotel atrium

Madrid Architecture

San Miguel market

7.2.11

Day 9 - Madrid

Our last day.... :(

When we arrived yesterday, we checked in, dropped off our luggage and without wasting one minute, we went out to explore Madrid. I´ve attached a few photos and we´ll post our final entry later tonight.

Royal Palace

Many buildings in Madrid, especially government and other
historic buildings, have these enormous sculptures on their
roofs. This is the Ministry of Agriculture Bldg.

Prado Museum - A MUST see.

Prado Museum - Sculpture of Velazquez

Neptune Fountain across from our hotel.

Linda with 2 characters in Puerta del Sol, which Madrid´s version
of Times Square.

Linda in Puerta del Sol

Cibeles Fountain and Alcala Gate in the background

4.2.11

Day 8 - Madrid

Site seeing today,,, and of course, shopping for Spanish shoes and a few gifts. There are some great discounts to be had still left over from the holiday season so off we went.

After a few hours of walking around, we went into some of the old Madrid streets and found a great place to eat. I ordered a variety of plates and some Rioja and, needless to say, it all disappeared very quickly... On the table next to us, there was a group of American and German folks on a ¨business trip¨ and what a time they were having. They work for a company that designs theme parks. I hope they got a good night sleep before designing any wild rides.

Palace Hotel. A great hotel across Neptune fountain and close to old Madrid.

Neptune fountain across from the hotel.

Hotel rotunda. Stained glass dome.

Cibeles fountain- Main Post office bldg in background.

Day 7 - Cuenca

Once again, the snow followed us. Here is a view from our room when we woke up... But on to Madrid after a quick stop to see my father and have breakfast with him. We went to see him and my aunt last night and spent a few hours with them...

As I tried to go to sleep that night in Cuenca, I couldn't stop thinking that we were in a 400+ year old building, built on a cliff and that the bed in our room was no more than 6 feet away from a vertical drop of about 200 feet. The 30 inch thick rock solid wall between us and this precipice didn't help get this image out of my head... It took me a while to fall asleep.

We moved up our trip to Cuenca by one day due to the weather related "change of plans". Cuenca is a city I go to regularly since that's where my father lives most of the year. The old city is built up on a ridge with rivers and canyons on both sides. Many of the houses and buildings were constructed practically on the edge, as you will see by some of the pictures below which I've taken on previous trips. Visiting those places, some are private residences, some are businesses, is a bit nerve-racking the first time, especially if you are not comfortable with heights.

Cuenca's old city to the right.

Pedestrian bridge over a canyon and highway below.
This bridge was designed by Alexander Eiffel
Linda refuses to walk across this bridge.
Well, she made a liar out of me today Feb 16, 2011. She not only
crossed this bridge, she insisted on it even though it was very
cold and windy.

The "Hanging Houses" which are now a museum of modern art.

Our hotel, The Parador de Cuenca is a former 16th Century Convent. As you can see, it is also perched on top of a cliff.

Parador (Hotel) de Cuenca.

Day 6 - Jarandilla de la Vera

CHANGE OF PLANS!!!!! Since we've heard that Leon and Burgos are expecting some bad weather (Snow, Cold, possibly bad driving conditions) we've decided to head South tomorrow, Feb 15th. to a different Parador in Jarandilla de la Vera, pictured below. I'll update the blog when we get there... Right now, The Cathedral bells are ringing 11 times so it's time to get some rest. We have a long drive tomorrow.

So here we are. After a 6+ hour drive from Santiago, and a stop in Salamanca for a nice late lunch, we have arrived in this small town on the side of a mountain in the Sierra de Gredos, in western Spain. Although our initial intention was to get away from the snows of the north, we ended up driving over several mountain passes that were covered in snow. Right now, as I write this from "our castle du jour", I can look up the mountain and see the snow covered sierra. In any case, it is another nice spot and a nice setting. We don't get to sleep in a 15th Century Castle very often. The grounds are full of olive and orange trees. The town itself doesn't have much to offer so we are going to use this night off to get some rest since we've been going non-stop since we landed.

These are the pictures I took this morning. The second picture shows the view from our bedroom window this morning. Snow seems to be following us...
I climbed one of the towers of this castle and I had the urge to yell: You don't frighten us, English pig dogs. Go and boil your bottoms, you sons of a silly person. I blow my nose at you, so-called "Arthur King," you and all your silly English K-nig-hts. You Monty Python fans will get this... Of course I said it with a Spanish accent instead of French...

Hotel/Castle courtyard

Main entrance. Orange tree ready for picking...

As we were driving out of Jarandilla, we passed through a small
country village (Losar de la Vera) where all trees and shrubs were
meticulously pruned.
These are just a few of hundreds of such inspired shrubbery.

We had seen storks' nests in many places. Church steeples,
tall pines, etc. We snapped this picture of storks on top of
an old barn while on the road out of Jarandilla this morning.

Day 4 & 5 - Santiago de Compostela

Today we went for a drive North of Santiago to Pontedeume, the small town where I grew up before we moved to the Canary Islands. While in Pontedeume, I walked through the streets where I used to play as a child and then visited the church where I served as an altar boy.

After that, we drove further north to Cedeira and the north east corner of Spain where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Cantabric Sea (Bay of Biscay). On the way there, we drove through San Andres de Teixeiro, home to wild horses and amazing views.

I've attached pictures of Pontedeume, Cedeira, one of the wild horses we came across and some of the views of the wild Galician coastline.

Our former house-White balconies just beyond
the street lantern.

Church in Pontedeume

Pontedeume. Used to be a small (mostly) fishing town. It is
much bigger now

Pontedeume - Count of Andrade tower

Cedeira

Wild horse

The Parador de Santiago is built in a former Hostal & Hospital built to accommodate pilgrims from all over Europe who came to the Cathedral, which is adjacent to the hotel

We arrived in Santiago de Compostela this morning. The drive from Baiona was short but slow due to some heavy downpours. It has been too many years since I've been here and I almost forgot how incredible this city is. The Cathedral is truly amazing and awe inspiring. We visited the Tomb of St. James and attended afternoon mass.

The hotel we are staying in, the Parador, which is also known as the Hostal of the Catholic Kings, is truly an unbelievable property. You feel the hundreds of years of history as soon as you walk in. I have posted pictures below from the Cathedral, the hotel and some other shots around Santiago's old city.