Posts Tagged ‘journal’
May 26th, 2010
Toro, Toro!
After making an early evening of it we set out in the morning for Sevilla by way of Ronda, one of the white hill towns of Andalucia.
We only had a few hours there before needing to move on so our first stop was the bullring. It dates back to the early 1700s and is the largest in the world (according to the audio guide), which is kind of surprising as it really not very big.
The arena serves as a museum of the history of bull fighting as well as being an active arena, as evidenced by the blood stains left on the sand. The experience was pretty good. It gave a peak into the history and pagentry without having to experience any of the brutality of actual bull fighting.
Adjacent to the museum is a park overlooking the valley and has a spectacular view that stretches for miles.
Around the corner from there is the Puente Nuevo (New Bridge) which spans a deep river gorge. It was completed in 1793 and replaced the old bridge which had been built in 1735 but collapsed six years later. Apparently they learned a lot about bridge building in the intervening years because the new bridge is still here.
After a quick lunch of pizza we headed off to Sevilla.
Oh yeah, we have been seeing a lot of this sign:
It makes me laugh.
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May 24th, 2010
The Winning Team
As we made our way back towards our bus stop after dinner we could hear the sound of a huge crowd singing the Granada football team’s fight song. When we got to the Gran Via we were in the thick of a throng of screaming and cheering soccer fans there to welcome home the winning team. The previous night they had won their game and ascended to the next round of the finals.
We just happened to be perfectly positioned so that when the bus carrying the winning team rolled into the plaza, it stopped right in front of us. It was pretty exciting to be in the midst of that many jubilent people.
When the bus dropped us off near our hotel we could still here the crowd singing in the city below. And just now, fireworks.
We spent the morning in Cordoba at the Mezquita, a once Muslum mosque converted into a catholic church in the 16th century. It was interesting to see the ornate, over the top decoration of the church overlaid on the understated geometric simplicity of the mosque.
The drive from Cordoba to Granada went incredibly smoothly and made up for all the trouble we had yesterday. The Spanish countryside is mile after mile of neatly planted rows of olive trees. There is nary an inch of uncultivated land to be seen. As we approached Granada we could see the peaks of the Siera Nevada mountains looming over the valley.
Our car friendly hotel is right next to the Alhambra which is good because we have tickets for a 9 o’clock entry, for which it is recommended we show up an hour early. And so I must end here as it is all ready late.
Tomorrow I will tell of the fantastic dinner we had and the ridiculously friendly waiter.
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May 22nd, 2010
Bagpipes and Banjos
In Toledo we came out of the parking garage to the incongrous sound of bagpipes echoing up the city walls from the valley below. Later, as we emerged from our hotel it was a banjo. And then, as we climbed the narrow streets towards the center of town a band that sounded very much like The Pogues started in (I would be woken up by them later at around 2 am). For the rest of the day as we came across certain streets positioned just so, the music would reverberate off the walls of the closely set buildings.
Saturday in Madrid was the European football finals (or something of the sort) between Milan and Munich. Fans of both teams had flooded the city in wild, roaming packs that would break out into competitive (or cooperative) fight songsin full throated roars regardless of the hour or location. Including, Irene tells me, outside our window at two or three in the morning.
Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your point of view) we left the city in the morning before the expected craziness really got underway.
So far a lot of this trip has been a lot like an episode of Seinfeld. Lots of places know how to take a reservation, but not necessarily how to make good on one. At the rental car agency we were told that even though I checked the box saying I wanted a GPS that was only a mild expression of desire and not an actual reservation. Not sure what I would have needed to do to confirm that, yes, I really would like a gps please, but apparently just ticking the appropriate box isn’t enough. Good to know Avis, good to know.
We’ve been trying to make do with just the directions I printed out at home with less than stellar results. We made it to Toledo well enough, but our drive to Cordoba was a bit of a disaster at the beginning and the end. Mostly at the end.
Finding our way to our hotel proved to be way more difficult than it looked like it should have been. In our defence the signs pointing to the city center could have been clearer and sometimes we just didn’t believe they wanted us to turn down the “streets” they wanted us to turn down. We got there in the end.
This is going to come off very stupid American of me, but Cordoba reminds me a lot of Mexico. And no, not just because of all the Spanish. It reminds me of Merida, the capital of the Yucatan, with it low buildings and tiny streets.
We arrived too late to take in any of the attractions apart from wandering the narrow lanes and people watching. There is some sort of festival/carnival going on outside of town but the lovely ladies in there elaborate dresses can be seen all over.
Tomorrow we are setting out early for the mosque and then head for Granada. More to come.
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May 21st, 2010
We have arrived
Our first day got off to a rather inauspicious start when we showed up at our hotel only to find that they had lost our reservation. Even after I pulled up the confirmation email on my phone they were still insistant that there was no reservation. They claimed that the hotel had switched ownership since I had made the original reservation and it must not have gotten written down.
At which point we asked that even though they didn’t have our reservation, did they possibly have a room for us anyway?
This caused a great kerfuffle while they spent the next 30 minutes calling god knows who on the phone still trying to track down the original reservation only to declare at the end that they did in fact have a room but we could only have it for one night. They were very insistant and apologetic about this point but as our original reservation had only been for one night we were happy.
My parents had been standing by while all this was going on because they got into our hotel before we did and they aren’t even staying there.
It’s really very warm here. Very warm. I’m glad we didn’t come in the heat of summer. And we’ve all ready walked a lot. From our hotel down to Plaza Mayor where we strolled through the fabulous Mercado de San Miguel. Then on to the Palacio Real ( Royal Palace).
Honestly, I think that’s about the last royal palace I need to see in this life time. We’ve seen palaces in Paris, Vienna, Munich, Prague and probably a few more that I’m leaving out and at this point they all start to blend together. Not that it wasn’t nice. It was. But it was another nice palace. Meh.
Now we are back at our hotel were Irene has insisted we have a short siesta before meeting my parents for dinner later.
Tomorrow morning we pick up our rental car and drive to Toledo. Irene and I will be back in Madrid at the end of our trip to spend a few more days.
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