Smoking in the boys room in Paris

We are staying in a "boutique hotel" in Paris . Here is the definition of a boutique hotel:  

  a small stylish hotel, typically one situated in a fashionable location

This hotel has 142 rooms and I guess that is small by hotel standards. Is it stylish? Ok, it's stylish. Is it in a fashionable district? I wouldn't call it fashionable. It has lots of restaurants with a few sex shops thrown in. You and your friend Pierre can be eating a burger and fries at a table outside and across the street people are doing who knows what in "luxeux salons " at the L'ODYSSEX.  Kinda bizarre, but I'm just a naive little old lady from the midwest.(!) I guess that's just how they do things in this den of debauchery they call Paris. Har. 

So the hotel itself has a theme: art. There were 3 artists chosen to design 3 floors each. The floor we are on has a bit of  a dark theme. The halls are black with ghost looking animal figures in white. Our room has the same theme. It sounds more bizarre than it is. It's really kind of cool. The lobby has interesting artwork. They have art classes, cooking classes and different things here. 

The room itself is designed different than a gal from Minneee-soda is used to. First of all, the bathroom is a six by six coffin like box with a door (appropriate since we are close to the Paris catacombs). It is separate from the rest of the bathroom around the corner. The shower is in a corner and there is a short hallway in front of it. In the very short hall there is a sink. There is no door on this part of the bathroom. Very little privacy.  Weird design.

By the way, last night some naughty hotel guest either above or below us were smoking in there coffin like bathroom and we smelled it in ours, if you're wondering about the smoking in the boys room reference.

One interesting thing here, the people at the desk emphasized that there is not only a bar, but a speakeasy too. This place is just too damn hip.

I'm making this hotel and neighborhood sound weird, but it isn't at all. It's all kind of fun and different. That's what life's all about.

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October 31, 2022 at 06:06PM

Never tie your shoes in Paris

Oh what an interesting city Paris has been on the first day.

So even though we're tired this morning we decided to go see NUMER UNO, THE BIG ENCHILADA, THE STAR OF  THE SHOW !!!- Ladies and gentlemen - you seen it in pictures, on TV- THE EIFFEL TOWER!!!! (applause

So it's a two mile walk- a mere pittance in our long list of walks we have taken over the months. On the way, I stop at a small bakery for another French institution SI VOUS VOULEZ!  - the Parisian CROISSANT!!  Yes people, I got a croissant and a cappuccino and it only cost 3.50 euros!

I have found the Mecca and it's a bakery  on a non-descript corner a few blocks from the hotel. This place had all kinds of eye catching delights that could put back the weight I've lost on this trip in a couple days. The cappuccino and croissant were of course perfect. 

Getting back to the EIFFEL TOWER..we start on our journey. go about a block, turn and there it is in the distance- THE EFFEL TOWER!! Have to admit, all kidding aside, it's an impressive sight. It's almost like it's not real. That's not really the THE EIFFEL TOWER, but it is....and we really are in Paris.

So off we go, finally arriving and it is of course, teeming with people. So we join in the crowd, moving down the street and immediately are met by blanket after blanket of GITTERING miniature EIFFEL TOWERs for sale. Oh they have smaller, non-glittering ones for sale too, for those who are more boring and cheap. For the cheapest tourist, every blanket has a small corner of EIFFEL TOWER keychains, 5 for one euro. 

BTW, who is selling all of these EIFFEL TOWER trinkets? It's the same group as Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia - Africans. 

As you move along, the blankets start selling berets, some vinyl hat wit a chain in front, PARIS ball caps, PARIS shirts, totes, backpacks, umbrellas. EVERYTHING PARIS for todays modern tourist. 

We cross the street to the bridge over the Seine and on the bridge are purveyors of that ancient hustle - the shell game. Fascinating to watch. This was not for a dollar or five dollars, this was for 50 or a hundred dollars. 

It was obvious that the few people around the guy were part of the hustle. They won some but lost once in a while to make it look realistic. The thing is most of the time the ball was never under any of the cups but in the guys hand. I wonder how much money they make in a day?

Moving on, you could take your picture with a with a bouquet of red balloon hearts for a price of course. Meanwhile people were out in the middle of the street between lanes of traffic taking pictures of  with the EIFFEL TOWER in the background for instagram.

So here's the thing- I bought a beret (and PARIS ball cap for tomorrow), PARIS tote bag and backpack, PARIS umbrella, PARIS t shirt. I attached the glittering EIFFEL TOWER to the top of the beret (not an easy feat) and had my picture taken in the middle of the street with the bouquet of red heart balloons with the EIFFEL TOWER in the background. That was after I dropped  $500 on a couple of shell games. 

That folks was my first day in Paree.

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October 30, 2022 at 06:35PM

One thing social media got right

Google maps is a gift from the Gods. We never would have been able to navigate our way through these months of travel without it. 

When we get off trains or planes, it tells us exactly where to go to get to our next bus, tram or train to take us to the next place to rest our weary bods. We were never gonna be people who took a taxi from the airport. Too much money. 

So today we took a 45 minute train from Chuck De Gaulle airport to the neighborhood we're staying in and walked .7 mile to the hotel on a bag drag. 

We each are traveling with a suitcase and a backpack and even though I have left things behind, they never get lighter. I would only take a suitcase next time, forget the backpack. Or maybe just a rolling back pack. It's hard to know how much to pack for a months long trip. I role everything up to fit it in the suitcase. I put toiletries, jewelry, chargers cords, in zip lock bags. I have a cellphone and a tablet. Could have left tablet home. I packed too many clothes and have left at least 5 items of clothing behind. 

We don't buy souvenirs really. Mike bough a Arsenal soccer shirt and an Ireland shirt. I bought an Ireland shirt. That's it. My pictures will be the souvenirs.

Some things we haven't done is pay to get in many places. I have gone to a couple of free art museums, many free cathedrals. Paid to get into Gaudi Park in Barcelona. I just can't see spending a lot of money on tourist stuff. Paying to get into a church seems wrong. Cant do it. You could spend so much money on all of that and people do. Free stuff is more interesting anyway.

We could have took a train from Barcelona to Paris but it would have been a six hour ride with 3 train changes. Ah at this point, no. We took Easyjet and it cost about 50 dollars a piece. 

At first I was kind of leary of the low cost airlines like Easyjet, Ryanair, Transavia but after having used them, they are fine. A cheap, easy, reliable (for us anyway), to get around Europe.

Google maps and public transport get us around cities. And also our feet.  we walk to and from if it's less than a mile. 

We don't do much on the day of arrival. Just too tired. Between getting to train or airport, riding 2-4 hours, getting to next spot once we get there, ready for rest. 

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October 29, 2022 at 08:38PM

It's time to go home

This trip ends December 1st. We originally planned to it for a year spending a month in 12 countries. That didn't work out because it was just too expensive. When we end this we will have spent 26 weeks traveling.

Why are we ending it? Yes money is definitely a factor.  We could probably have squeaked by with money. The biggest reason is that we are tired. Just plain tired. 

This is not an easy way to travel, going from place to place all the time. Constantly changing where you are staying wears on you. Riding trains wears on you. You really start to long for the comforts of home. Your own bed.Your own stuff. Familiarity. 

This has been a juggling act of trying to figure out where to stay, how to get there. As I have talked about,  staying in airbnbs is a crapshoot. Mediocre most of the time. We've had a couple real bad experiences with them. You never know what you are going to get. Europe is old and with old buildings come problems. 

I don't know the process of becoming an airbnb host. Im sure that there are criteria you have to meet. I doubt anybody comes to inspect your place. I think once you are approved there is very little monitoring of their places. We have stayed in 11 airbnbs during this trip and there were only two that I would even think of staying in again. 

The hotels have been better. We have stayed in 6 and they have all been OK. Wow, we have stayed in 20 places by the time this is done!

Taking trains has been, shall we say interesting? On our first train ride in London, they didn't post the platform until ten minutes before the train left. When they did, there was a mass stampede as people ran for the train. We have sometimes been on 3 trains in one trip., having to run to the next platform to make the train. One time, they suddenly announced the train wasn't going any farther, we would have to get on a new train. Platforms have been changed at the last minute and there is a mad rush by everything to get there. Seating can be confusing, sometimes it's chaos.

I have to say, despite all that, the scenery on the train trips have been a highlight.

Every time we arrive at a new place we have to figure out how to get to our new home. Bus, train, tram? Where's the stop? How much is it? How do we pay for it? Where do we get off? In Europe, all this is in a different language. How are we going to get around the city? How much will that cost? 

When we get to the stop, how far to the place? We have walked a mile sometimes up steep hills to reach where we are going to stay each dragging a backpack and suitcase. 

Where is the nearest grocery store? Are there restaurants around? Is the area safe? 

In between all this, we have seen speculation sights, beautiful scenery which made it all worth it. Would I do it again? Of course. But alas, we are tired. I say this with a lot of sadness: It's time to go home. 

BTW, we will be spending last month in Paris and Lisbon.

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October 27, 2022 at 10:31PM

the nooks and crannies of Barcelona

I really love Barcelona! It has grown on me. What I love most is that it has a lot of nooks and crannies just like Edinburgh. You go down a narrow street and there's always something interesting. You might come to a plaza with restaurants, an old church. There are vintage shops, strange little shops along its narrow side street. I found a shop that only sold condoms. Won't be needin' any of those but interesting... Then I found a shop that sold crucifixes, baby Jesuses, saint statues, etc that was 104 years old. 

The Roman city of Barcino was founded in 15 BC. A wall was built around the city at that time. In the 3rd Century and 2nd wall was built incorporating more land and in the 13th century yet another wall. Apparently you can never have too many walls.

I love this ancient history. It's so cool that there are parts of ancient walls from 15 BC that you can still see. In the Placa Nova in the gothic quarter there is an entry point, which was one of four, to the original walled city. One of the main roads of the original city started here.There are still two towers there. There is also evidence of the arches of  2 aqueducts that came together here that provided the city with water. 

A bishops palace is attached to the wall here. There is also a cathedral. This where Barcelona began

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October 26, 2022 at 09:

selling on the street in Barcelona

There is a phenomenon that apparently occurs all over Spain but I've just seen it in Barcelona. It's called top manta (top blanket). It is the illegal sale of counterfeit products on the street. 

Ive seen it along the beach in gava on the boardwalk/sidewalk. Sellers lay out a blanket and put their products on it . In this case it was blanket after blanket of sneakers, purses, sports jerseys, belts and the list goes on. These products all look like the real thing with nike swoops and jerseys that look like the real thing. 

These products are produced in factories in China, India, Spain. They are sold mostly by  illegal and legal African immigrants. They are know as manteros. Some  work for larger scale criminal organizations and make very little. Others do it because finding a job as an African migrant can be impossible.

This was a huge problem pre-pandemic in central Barcelona along streets frequented by tourists. It would often be set up near subway stations. When the police approached they take the blanket in a bundle and run down into the station to escape. 

They have met with mixed reaction in the past, sometimes ignored by city officials. There has been a crackdown after a couple violent incidents and they are much less present in the central area. 

I've seen them in parks, at landmarks selling on a much smaller scale selling jewelry, fans, water. 

 Anywhere there are tourists, you will find them. 

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October 25, 2022 at 09:39PM

Barcelona is just about perfect

 Let's say some old bat American decided to move to Europe for a year. Where would the old fool be better off living?

Having travelled to the UK and Europe for 153 days, 8 hours and some odd seconds, I would choose Spain. Spain is by no means perfect but it is beautiful. And lush. And tropical. It has beautiful beaches, mountains. It's cheap by American standards. Great public transportation. Nice people.

Now where in Spain? Barcelona. In my humble opinion,  living outside the city would be ideal.The city is big, busy, lots of traffic. It reminds me of New York but with more space. 

Barcelona has everything big cities offer-culture, restaurants, shopping, great architecture, beautiful parks, historic places, more diversity than other places in Spain. It is in a good place for travel to all of Europe, the middle east, Africa by train. Cheap flights here. 

The thing is Barcelona has all that and it is physically beautiful with all the lush vegetation and flowers. That's the difference. 

I think where we are right now, Gava or the area near it, would be a really nice place to live. You have beach, mountains, beautiful neighborhoods. You are close to Barcelona.

The only downsides I could see is the summer tourist season. It is busy now with tourists, can't imagine during the summer. It must be crazy. Another downside is summer weather. It gets hot. It's humid here now and with the heat it could get pretty miserable. 

So here's what you do: You travel north during June, July August and spend more time here the rest of the year. 

So that's my rose colored glasses analysis of where to live in Europe. No doubt actually living here is a whole other ball game. And no, I'm not moving to Spain anytime soon.

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October 24, 2022 at 08:10PM

I miss home

Has this trip satisfied my itch to travel? Do I still want to live somewhere other than the United States?

I have certainly seen a lot in this past 153 days. I have been to  9 countries, 13 cities. I've taken 5 plane rides, 10 train trips, too many bus, subway, tram rides to count. Oh and one funicular! Cant forget that. I've walked 658 miles in  these 5 1/2 months.  

The most I walked in one day was 9.9 miles. That was on July 13 in Edinburgh. Where the hell was I walking to that day? It probably involved hills since Edinburgh was all hills.

Oh yes, Edinburgh, a painful city. One of my most favorite on this trip but the hills and stairs could kill you. The only other city we encountered killer hills was Lausanne Switzerland. The city is built on a hill. To get t our airbnb from the train was a straight uphill climb. It took some getting used to. Worth it with the views from there. 

I've seen beautiful mountains on train trips through the alps and other places. The otherworldly greenery of Ireland. Beautiful lochs in Scotland. Beautiful beaches in Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Spain. 

I've seen castles, cathedrals, beautiful bridges, stunning architecture in London, France, Spain, Austria, Germany. I've on seen ordinary homes and opulent homes. Ancient buildings and new buildings. Walked cobblestone streets. Heard church bells ring in many countries. Heard street musicians in every country. 

I've heard many languages and accents  other than my own. Most of all, I've met many people, heard some stories, asked some questions. Felt the kindness of strangers.

The itch to travel isn't satisfied. I won't do it this way again but I will do it again. And again. Do i still want to live somewhere other than the United States? I don't know. I miss home.

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October 23, 2022 at 09:23PM

Is Spain racist?

So today stayed in gava, gava, gava, where the airbnb is. I honestly could just stay here everyday and be happy. The sea keeps me happy. Besides you could really see the mountains clearly today. It's been pretty hazy.

Every morning there are clouds and sun. Maybe that's the way it is where you are so close to the sea. Maybe the water and air temp are close. I don't know. The last few days have been hazy and humid. Pretty sticky. It's weird , it doesn't get out of the 70's but feel hot in the sun. 

So I decided to take a walk down the boardwalk by the beach a couple miles. Lots more people on a Saturday naturally. There are restaurants and bars along the way. lot a wine drinking going on. 

I come to a place where there are purses, sports jerseys, sneakers, belts laid out on big cloths. The stuff has the brand name on them but they are obviously knockoffs. 

This goes on for couple of blocks. They are all being sold by black men. Here in Spain you see a lot of black people selling stuff. At the beach they sell beach cloths and sunglasses. On the street they sell bracelets. They sold spain flags at the national day of spain. It's always black men.

There are a lot more black people (African) people in Barcelona than there were in Valencia or Madrid. That's not saying much because those cities had next to none. This in a country that is 9 miles from Africa. Spain has remarkably view black people.

1.3 million people in Spain are African. Spain has 47 million people.  So that's about 2 percent. Spain has a lot of immigrants from South America. So it considers itself diverse because of that. Few from Africa. It's obvious they aren't wanted.

Spain and the EU pay and give favorable treatment to Morocco to keep African migrants from coming here. A lot of people would say: "Can you blame them? They are poor and will become dependent. They don't speak the language."

Latin American immigrants share the language but they are also coming for economic reasons. The difference is they are wanted here, encouraged to come here, for unskilled labor jobs. It is easier for them to get citizenship. 

Racism? You decide.

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October 22, 2022 at 06:15PM

Sagrada Familia boggles the mind

Antoni Gaudi's Sagrada Familia is unlike any church I have seen and I've seen a lot on this trip. It's like a church out of a fantasy. It looks like something you would see in a Harry Potter book. It's like it's melting. 

I mean who designs a church like this? Someone like Gaudi does. His architectural style was Catalonia Modernism. It favors the curve over the straight line, rich decoration and detail. It uses vegetation in its design. Things are not necessarily symmetrical. Ceramics are sometimes used. In other words it is DIFFERENT. 

The basilica was built to honor the holy family:Jesus, Mary and Joseph. It has 3 facades called the nativity, the passion and the glory. Depending on where you are standing outside determines which facade you see. 

The nativity depicts the birth and childhood of Jesus. It is divided into 3 portals representing faith, hope and charity. (These 3values are part of all the facades) It has statues depicting the nativity. It has flowers, vegetation, animals, birds. The four   towers are part of this facade and they represent four of the apostles.

The passion facade is completely different and is meant to look like bones, to look more austere. It depicts the death and resurrection. There are 3 levels to this facade and scenes within each depict events at the time of Jesus death. There are another 4 towers representing four more apostles. 

The Glory facade was only started in 2002. It will represent the glory of Jesus. Four more towers for 4 more apostles. This one will have 20 flash lights that will shine on clouds incorporated into the towers and the clouds will surround an image of God. He wanted this to be visible from the sea.

The glory facade will be completed in 2026, 100 years after Gaudis death. He knew the church would not be completed before his death. 

This church's exterior is incredibly complex. I can only imagine what the interior is like There is truly nothing like it in the world.

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October 21, 2022 at 08:35PM

Barcelona wants out of Spain

One thing you will notice wandering the streets of Barcelona are the Catalunya (Catalonia) flags. They are draped from balconies, high on flag poles. Catalans are a proud people and the majority want independence from Spain. 

Catalunya is an autonomous community in Spain based on nationality, meaning it has a historic cultural identity. They have self government but send representatives to the national legislature. They can have their own laws, but are also subject to national laws. They pretty much control all aspects of their community. They pay taxes to the national government.

The independence movement started in 1922 with the formation of a political party advocating independence. They proclaimed a catalonia republic in 1931 and had autonomy. Franco abolished that in 1938 and catalan activists for independence were jailed.

After Franco died and Spain became a "democracy", Catalan leaders concentrated on autonomy rather than independence.

After Spains financial crisis in 2007-2008 and a political party's challenge to the autonomy statue (parts were declared unconstitutional), referendums were held on independence.

In 2014 a large majority voted for independence. There was a boycott of the referendum by pro unity parties so only half of voters turned out.  By this time the pro-independence parties controlled the Catalan legislature.

In 2017, a new referendum caused controversy nationally but the Catalan legislature passed a motion to declare independence .At the same time the Spanish legislature voted to take control of the region until elections could be held. Government leaders were arrested, some fled the country. They were put in prison. They were pardoned in 2021.

As of now, it's a holding pattern. There are ongoing negotiations which anger those who are adamant for independence. I don't think Spain will ever allow independence, Catalunya generates too much money for the country.

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October 20, 2022 at 07:32PM
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October 20, 2022 at 07:32PM

the deserted beach of Gava Barcelona

A foggy day in Barcelona. We will be in Barcelona for 2 weeks so not frantically rushing to see everything. Today we stayed in Gava where the airbnb is. It is cool around here just on its own. 

Beautiful Aleppo Pines line the streets. We walked down to where you can get a good view of the mountains. The range is the Montserrat mountains. They are beautiful and you can get a view of the details of the mountains about a half mile from here.  

Back to the beach this evening. How can we resist a beach that is 4-5 blocks away and has beautiful sunsets? We can't. Gava beach is 2.3 miles long. It gets 2 millions visitors a year There are lots of bars along the beach. The scene must be very different in the summer. . 

There are very few people on the beach now in the part we are near. Especially today. It is hazy and cloudy, a little chilly.There are fisherman here with very tall poles.

I've never seen ocean fishing so it's interesting. These guys come with a zip case with parts of the fishing pole. It's starts wit a stand that goes down into the sand. The fishing pole goes on that once it has been cast. It's a very tall fishing pole. It takes a lot of effort to cast it. I wonder if they catch fish? Didn't see that.

They arrive at dusk which is the best time to catch fish I guess. 

What a great place for people to live: nice neighborhood, the sea blocks away. Beautiful mountain view's. Doesn't get much better.

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October 19, 2022 at 08:

The drunk lady on the bus singing Spanish songs

Today we went back to Barcelona. M much better. So on the bus we go back to Plaça de Catyluna. From there we decide to walk to Sagrada Familia basilica, one of the most famous places in Barcelona.  But first...

We head down some long, narrow interesting alleys with interesting shops, art. We stop at one place with art, jewelry. I bought a couple postcards. There was an open interesting looking area in back of the cash register. I asked him if it was his house. It wasn't. He told me how he bought the space before covid and somehow made it through but was still struggling. 

The Sagrada Familia is unlike any church you've ever seen. It is unique looking to say the least. It is a combination of gothic and art nouveau architecture. After looking into it online (as I do), you cant take it at face value. It's very complicated on the exterior alone. It has 3 facades called the nativity, the passion and the glory. They depict the life of Jesus, the apostles, the saints and lots of other things. Elements of nature and ceramics are mixed in.

It was started in the 1800's and the artist, Gaudi, knew he wouldn't finish it, so he left detailed plans to do so. Work still continues and is scheduled to be done in 2026, 100 years after his death. 

I sat down to rest my weary bones and met a couple from Canada who have travelled extensively and were friendly and interesting.

Back on the metro to head toward home. There was a man on the train. playing the saxophone. When he was done, people clapped and gave him money.  I remember being on the NYC subway with these guys who would dance, sing and everybody ignored them. 

On to the bus only to be entertained by a drunk woman singing Spanish songs, sometimes with rhythmic accompaniment. Made bus ride go faster.

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October 18, 2022 at 08:37PM

hello Barcelona, goodbye Barcelona

So today we went to Barcelona and had to come right back because M didn't feel good. 

We got off the bus at Plaça de Catalunya which separates the old town from the newer part of the city. The plaza  has a fountain and a big plaza with benches around it. There must have been 599 pigeons in the plaza. They were so used to people they would sit on peoples shoulder, eat out of their hand. Cute but I don't think so and I actually like pigeons. 

M and I were walking back from the store this evening and he said: "Can you believe we are walking through a neighborhood in Barcelona Spain? Every once and a while it will hit us where we are and how unreal it sometimes seems. 

It is really cool staying in the neighborhoods where the locals live. People are going about their lives like we would back home. We shop with them, take the bus with them. Ask them questions often. When we do they say they don't speak english but usually can a little. They seem so happy to help us. So kind. 

The best part of the day has been going to the beach a couple hours before sunset and sitting by the water. Watching and listening to the waves roll in. It is so relaxing and peaceful. The sun goes down near the mountains. When it is going down the light reflects on the water and I wish I could capture how beautiful it 

I won't miss a night of watching the sun set.

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October 17, 2022 at 07:45PM

Gava, Barcelona is perfect

Is Gava, Barcelona the perfect place? It comes close.

We are staying in a very nice neighborhood with lots of apartments, some homes. The homes looks expensive. Everything is behind a gate here. Break ins are a problem in Spain and can be violent. 

The neighborhood has these tree lined streets. I think they are called Aleppo pines.  The beach is literally about 4 blocks away. It is a very clean sandy beachfront. Not crowded. There are people surfing paddle boarding, fishing. Lots of restaurants and bars. 

Today I walked to the business district. Along the way the mountains that seemed far away, were closer. Beautiful tree lined mountains were visible in more detail. 

Along the way there was a canal that was being used for recreational sports like boating.  They had this set up with a cable that was oval in shape and long. In the middle were ski jumps. You could grab on with water skis on and go up the ramps and jump holding on to the cable. Hard to describe but very unique. 

The business districts has all kinds of stores, restaurants, movie theatre. Very nice. Nice big grocery store in the mall. Took a bus back to the airbnb. The bus stops right in front of where we are staying.

Went dow to the beach to watch the sunset. Probably do that every night.

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October 16, 2022 at 08:09PM

Travel day #567

 

It was 3 hours from Madrid to Barcelona by train. Beautiful country along the way. It started with the red clay soil with lots of trees and ?grapevines.  Then it became more desert like with what looked like sand and very dark green vegetation and this is where the hills started. Last 3rd of the trip was more red clay and  lush green hills with trees. Mountains in the distance. 

We arrived at the train station and first order of business : where is the bus stop for our bus to the airbnb? Turns out it's right in front of the train station! We are staying in Gava, 45 minutes from Barcelona. There were 31 stops. We got there in less time because it went on highway part of the time and driver went about 50. Stopped right in front of place we're staying. 

We are a 5 minute walk from the ocean in a fancy neighborhood. Beach is beautiful. Sunset was beautiful. Wish we weren't so far from Barcelona but this is really how we have been doing it. Staying at least a half hour outside the city most places. More affordable. 

I could probably skip Barcelona and sit on the beach every day. Of course I won't do that. It was 77 today and sunny. That's a dig at you all. I know you had your first snow. 

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October 15, 2022 at 07:35PM

My favorite part of Madrid

 We have been in Madrid, a city of 3.2 million, for 1 week as of tomorrow. Madrid is a big city that is very busy, lots of traffic, lots of people. I cant imagine how busy it must be at the height of tourist season. 

I feel like I have seen the highlights of Madrid, most of the landmarks, it's beautiful buildings. Went to a museum, botanical gardens.  Walked through the big park 3 or 4 times. Ate out. 

I could navigate my way through the city anywhere at this point using metro or bus. Easy system to use and understand. I am not afraid to go places by myself in these cities. Google map so is my best friend.

I see so much because I walk everywhere. To get to the central part of the city I can walk through a big park or take the bus or train. I've mostly walked. Walking through the park is really nice.  I walk everywhere. 

On a trip like this, you learn real quick how to navigate your way around. What bus or train is near where I'm staying? How do I pay for it? Where is the stop? Which direction do I go. We have only stayed in Dublin in the central part of the city. Mostly we have stayed in neighborhoods. We quickly learn where is the nearest grocery store, pharmacy.

Even navigating the trains has become easier. The European train system is a lot easier to use than the UK. Less chaotic. More direct.

One thing I have discovered is there is a myth that people over here in Europe speak english, especially in the big cities. Not really true. People may speak un poquito, but many don't speak any at all. 

I also thought the fact that I had a pretty big group of spanish words I knew, that it would help me. You learn them just living in the U.S. Doesn't  really help. 

My favorite thing about Madrid? I'd have to the Parque del Retiro. I love these big parks in these cities. They have a variety of trees and flowers. They have really been designed well. The royal botanical garden is part of it. There is always something going on in the park. It's really fun. The last two cities have had gorgeous parks!

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October 14, 2022 at 05:47PM

European cities so much less frantic

One thing I have noticed in Europe is how livable the cities are. They are designed so people will enjoy their life. There are often times large parks which are beautiful with gardens and sports and lakes. Lots of people use the parks. There are restaurants and kiosks.

I have walked through the Parque Del Retiro three times since I have been here and been delighted each time. I have seen people running, walling, roller skating, dancing, meditating. There are always a couple of musicians playing.

Today we spent some time in the park. Lots of people there because of the national holiday. There were street performers putting on long shows with juggling, magic. There was Micky & Minnie, Transformer man,etc figures taking pictures with people. There were musicians. Lots of people were just sitting enjoying the day. 

Another thing that makes these cities liveable are the transportation systems. You can get anywhere in the cities easily on subways, trams, buses. They are easy to use and cheap. (1.50 in Madrid)

There are so many mom and pop restaurants that are cheap. Lots of outdoor cafes. Groceries, drug stores, retail stores are right in the neighborhood so you really could get by without a car. 

People here seem so much more relaxed, less frantic. They spend long periods at dinner, drinks with friends and family.

There are lots of benches to sit down and relax. They actually want you to sit and relax.

I know that I am looking at this from the outside in. I don't live here. I don't have the daily grind like people do in their lives. I get that. Its just that when a city is made more livable, life is easier. 

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October 12, 2022 at 

Madrid: grandiose and weird

If I had to pick a word to describe Madrid it would be grandiose. Per dictionary it means: "impressive and imposing in appearance or style". That's it all right.

When I walk down the street in the center I feel very small because everything is so big. The buildings are giant and imposing. Grand. They are often topped with ornate round domes that make them even bigger. 

The plazas are big, often with roundabouts. in the middle is usually a large statue commemorating some ancient dude on a horse. Around the plaza are very tall fancy buildings. Nothing is small here.

Even the subway (metro) is grandiose. Today  I took 3 trains back to the hotel. Going to the exit of the station, I took 5 escalators, one staircase and walked 1/2 mile to the exit. That is an epic exit.

Even our hotel is grandiose.Starting at about 8 pm there is a giant neon sign that flashes off and on for 2 hours and then quits.

It's a place where there are random people in giant transformer costumes. This is weird: A guy (or girl) was dressed in this giant (their  head was in the middle of the costume) teddy bear type costume. They were standing against a wall doing nothing. They had a cup in front of them. They wanted money for dressing in the costume. I almost slapped them and shouted: Get outta here with that shit! Har

There are random men who come up to you and greet you like you are their long lost brother or sister. As they ask where you are from and say they have family there, they slip a couple beaded bracelets on your hand and say they are "just for you". When you say thanks and turn to go, they beg you for money. This happened a couple of times. It's like a roving band of hustlers. 

So Madrid is grandiose and weird and just normal all at the same time.

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October 11, 2022 at 09:09PM

The reality of traveling long term

This is a realistic picture of what it is like to be a 67 years old woman and set out on a year long trip through many countries. 

This trip has been one of highs and lows. The highs have been the beautiful cities we have seen. The lows are how hard it is to travel like this. I wouldn't recommend it.

 When I thought of this trip, it was a dream. Then the dream became a reality in January of this year. I rented an air bnb and bought plane tickets to London. I talked my son into going.

Planning this trip, thinking about this trip, helped me not to think about my husbands death so much. I don't know if that was good or bad. 

We thought we would go to 12 countries in 12 months. That didn't work out, large cities are  too expensive in Europe. I'm not sure what I was thinking when I thought we could afford that. I wasn't thinking. I was dreaming. So things changed after the UK. We stayed in places for less time and in more places. That was good and bad. Good because you see more places. Bad because you are constantly moving. 

Moving all the time is hard. A new place every week is rough. Especially in airbnbs. You never know what you're going to get, as I've said before. I honestly wouldn't recommend airbnbs to anyone. They are a crapshoot when you are staying in them all the time. The majority have been mediocre. If you don't have $200 a night to spend well...you get what you pay for. 

Then there are the trains. When you are riding them so often things will go wrong. Just ordering tickets can be confusing.

Riding the trains themselves and seeing the countryside between cities has been a highlight. Dragging bags to and from train stations and airbnbs has been hard. I'm 67 years old after all.

Speaking of age, this kind of travel isn't for someone my age. It's physically hard. Dragging luggage. Walking miles a day. Ive lost 15 lbs on this trip so far. When you are older, you want some peace, you want stability, you are particular.  Moving so much is not peaceful. It's stressful. You aren't stable. I am living out of a suitcase and backpack. I miss having my own home, my own stuff, my own neighborhood.  I never realized how persnickety I am. 

So disclaimer here: You might think I sound like I regret this whole thing, that it has been a bad experience. Hell no! This has been one of the greatest experiences of my life. I wouldn't change it at all. Being able to do it with my son has made it even better.

Has it been easy? Far from it. Its been one of the most challenging things I have done. I have learned to navigate foreign countries - their neighborhoods, transportation systems, grocery stores, etc. I have learned to ask questions of, and talk to, strangers. People are kind everywhere.  

I have been amazed, bewildered, frustrated, sad, ecstatic on this trip. Would I do it again? Not like this but I would travel for shorter periods. I would even go alone. There's a whole big world out there.

 

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October 10, 2022 at 06:49PM

Who's the guy with the handlebar mustache?

Today I went on my own to Central Madrid.I walked to the but stop and found out the bus wasn't coming due to some event. So I decided to walk the 2.2 miles. It was a beautiful day. 

A big part of the walk was through a large park. I came to the cause of no bus service. It was an annual event called "Run for the Child" which benefits the Nino Jesus hospital (childrens) research foundation. Ten thousand people participated. It was just ending.

As I walked through the park there were many roller skaters.It seems to be so popular in Spain. There were classes for children happening and lots of adult skaters. 

I came across a group of  maybe 30 people meditating in a group. The funnest thing I saw was a group of people doing a salsa dancing class. Looked like fun. 

I got through the park and came into central Madrid and could hear loud music like a concert, so I walked toward it. There were maybe 5,000 people gathered in a plaza listening to Camilo. He is a very famous and popular singer from Columbia. He has a handlebar mustache. Lots of people of all ages were singing along. 

I walked up the street and asked a lady about the music. She said it was part of an upcoming La Fiesta Nacional de España on October 12. It celebrates Columbus claiming the Americas for Spain in 1492. It led to the Spanish Empire. 

October 12 is also official Spanish language day, the Feasts of both Our Lady of Pillar and the Virgin of Guadalupe as well of the Day of Spanish Armed Forces. (per wikipedia) There is a big military parade, ceremonies with the Spanish flag. Government officials and the Royal family participate. It celebrates Spanish culture and history. Its one big fiesta! Cant wait!

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October 09, 2022 at 06:42PM

Hello Madrid!

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October 08, 2022 at 08:39

Valencia: the ideal place? Or not?

Valencia is a place you could easily live. It has 100,000 non-Spanish foreign nationals living here, fourteen percent of the local population. It has been ranked the best place for expats in the world in the past.

The rents are relatively cheap. It is about $800 a month for a one bedroom in the city center. That's a lot cheaper than Minneapolis.  You might need another 1,000 a month for other expenses. 

One of the reasons I wanted to come to Valencia was because I knew it was popular with expats. I wanted to see what it it is like if I decided to live in Europe for a while. 

Valencia is a remarkable city. It sits on the beautiful Mediterranean and has a nice clean beach that is miles long. A nice harbor and marina. It has the old town with architecturally gorgeous beautiful and interesting history. There are lots of restaurants, museums. In the middle of the city is a 6 mile long park that used to be a river. There is the city of arts and sciences. It's really got everything you would want.

The weather is mild in winter, pleasant in summer. The sun shines all the time. I should like a sales rep for Valencia.

You would have to get used to the culture. Everything here is done at a leisurely pace. People sit at dinner here for hours. It feels very different from American culture which is frantic and frazzled. We don't have much tolerance for waiting or bad customer service.

You would have to accept that things are different here. Nothing is changing if for you. You will be the one to change. You will have to calm down.

Would I live in Valencia? Probably not. I wouldn't want to live in Europe. I'd rather just visit.

BTW, the best thing about Valencia is the beach.

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October 07, 2022 at 07:42PM

Black people ruled Spain for 500 years

The Moors ruled Valencia for 500 years starting in 711. Who were the Moors? They were north Africans who were part of the Berber tribe. They actually controlled all of Spain and Portugal.  In other words, they were Black. They were also Muslim. 

What Black people conquering white people? Huh? Who ever heard of that? Hardly anybody because it is not talked about. 

Valencia thrived during the time of Moors and became prosperous. They introduced an irrigation system to the area around Valencia which allowed land that was unable to be used prior to then, to have a variety of crops. They introduced different crops. This caused the city to prosper.

During their rule education, arts and sciences flourished.

Moorish design is evident in older parts of the city.  Neighborhoods were a labyrinth of narrow, zigzagging streets that widen into small squares. Muslim neighborhoods were based on privacy and religion. Streets were only used to access housing. 

The Moors brought algebra and chemistry to Spain. Flamenco music comes from Moorish history. It is similar in structure to the music of North Africa. Food and spices still influence Spain today. Language has Moorish elements.

When a christian king took Valencia in 1238, most Muslims were forced out. Those remaining were put in an area outside the city called Moreira. In the 1600s the king ordered the expulsion of Moors from Spain. This particularly affected Valencia because 30% of the population was Moorish.

Many advances in Spain, particularly in Valencia, would never have been possible without the the Moors. They influenced every aspect of society. UnfortunatelySpain, gives only lip service to its Moorish past.

 

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October 06, 2022 at 07:12PM

Spanish customer service and horse left overs

 Today M and I went our separate ways for a day. We do this periodically. I went to the beach because it's supposed to rain the next 2 days. It was cloudy with some sun. Perfect. No sun beating down. 

I have a large scarf that I used to sit on. I stayed there for 2 hours and and relaxed. It was so nice. Occasional interruption from guys selling sunglasses and beach sheet type things. 

I walked to the beach from the airbnb. It's about a mile. First you come to the harbor and marina. The port with its big cranes is visible in the distance. The marina is full of yachts and big boats. There are people kayaking, windsurfing and paddle boarding. 

The beach itself goes on for 3.7 miles of fine grained sand.

Before I went down to the beach, I walked along the promenade by the fancy restaurants. I came to a Burger King and decided to get a shake. It was here that I experienced the notorious Spanish customer service.

When I came in, there were 2 other people at the counter and they were together. They were waiting for 2 kids meals and it looking like they had been waiting for a while.  There were 3 people working the counter. They were walking back and forth, disappearing like they were on a mission to get something. Lots of talk between them. It felt like nobody really knew what they were doing. It was like the keystone kops make a kids meal. OK they get their order. So I'm the only one left.

Now by this time I am almost laughing out loud. It was comical

So I had already ordered the shake and paid for it at the kiosk. Just a matter of dispensing the shake from the machine right? Of course not. More talking, disappearing. Finally the guy sits the shake on the counter in back of him and walks away. Huh? I finally get it. Now mind you, it is after lunch, there is no one else there. What do they do when there's a rush?

So I go out to sit on the wall along the promenade to drink the shake. in the middle of the promenade and there are 4 horse poops perfectly lined up one after another. The police had some big event going on for themselves down the way and I assumed it was their horses. I had more of it on the way there. Apparently they were not going to clean it up. I don't know why but it struck me funny. Four horses had to go at the same time and synchronized the drop precisely.

I love Valencia.

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October 05, 2022 at 05:08PM

Valencia from a bus window

Valencia is like Vienna, a different architectural marvel on every corner. Again, I am struck by what it would be like to live in the middle of all of it. 

I know we are here at a low tourist time. There are tourists here now, but I imagine in the middle of summer, this place is teeming with tourists. 

It has a beautiful waterfront on the Mediterranean. There is a promenade with hotels, bars and restaurants.

The old town area is filled with beautiful old building with churches, a cathedral and palace. Then there are the rows our regular buildings that are also stunning. There are large markets. Lots of shopping.

A beautiful large park sitting in an old riverbed sits in the middle of the city. Then there is the city of arts and sciences, another architectural marvel. it has art, gardens, science, aquarium, concerts and events. 

This city is made for tourists but people live here too. They live in the neighborhoods. We see them on the bus, walking the streets of our neighborhood. Going about their daily lives.

Some neighborhoods have beautiful apartments with stylish wrought iron balconies. Some are more ordinary. Some are run down. Just like any other city. They are going about their lives in the middle of a city that attracts thousands of tourists. Fortunately there are periods of respite like right now.

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October 04, 2022 at 05:49PM

Valencia home of the Holy Grail, bullfighting, cats and psych hospitals

Here's 8 interesting things about Valencia 

1) Valencia still has bullfighting.. There is a bull ring in the city center. the season is April to October. It is still legal in Spain, although some cities have outlawed it. it's a cultural tradition. No comment. 

2) The Holy Grail (the cup Jesus drank from at the Last Supper) is in the Valencia cathedral. Note: Some other places claim they have it too.

3) The Mercado Central is the largest indoor market in Europe. They sell produce, meat, fish, cheese, poultry. There are also restaurants. It started as an open air market in 1839. The current building was built in the early 1800's. 

4) There is a Water Tribunal  outside the Valencia cathedral. It happens every Thursday at noon. Eight elected farmers sit in leather chairs in a circle wearing the traditional black blouse of the farmers of the area. They solve disputes between farmers about water involving the irrigation system around Valencia. 

5) People in Valencia love cats. Their botanical garden has more than 50 resident cats. Explains a guy we saw on the street today with a cat on his shoulder.

6) The first psychiatric hospital in the world was in Valencia.

7) Valencia has the narrowest building in Europe : La Estrecha. It is between two buildings and has 5 floors. it is a little more than 42 inches wide. it was originally built as a family home.

8) Valencia has the incredible City of Arts and Sciences. It is part of an old riverbed made into a park. It is an architectural marvel with buildings shaped like a human eye, whales bones and a lotus flower It houses an art museum, Europes biggest aquarium, science museum, a giant garden, concert halls, event centers.

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October 03, 2022 at 06:43PM

Spain has not been a democracy for very long

It is so interesting to learn about these European countries. 

I didn't know that Spain has only been a "democracy" since 1975 after Franco died. That is only 47 years. There are lots of people alive today who lived under Franco. 

Franco came out on top in the Spanish civil war. He led the nationalist, conservative, monarchist side. The other side was a leftist coalition. During his time he used forced labor, concentration camps and executions to kill 50-100,000 people. In the end, he was responsible for the deaths of up to 200,000 French people when the war dead are included. 

Spain is one country but it's decentralized. It has 17 autonomous communities  based on region, nationality or being a historical community. There are two autonomous cities. 

According to the Spanish constitution, the communities have limited self government. They have their own legislative assembly, council and council President and justice system. They manage their finances.

There have been movements to gain independence, or to be their own equal separate country within Spain, by a couple of nationality communities, particularly Catalonia. They have voted to be independent but have been refused and their parliament dissolved by the prime minister at one time.  Some of the parliament have been jailed. 

Spain is also divided into provinces and members of the congress and senate are elected there. The prime minister is the leader of the majority party that was elected. 

They are a constitutional monarchy government just like Britain. The monarchy had been dissolved but was restored during the time of Franco. 

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October 02, 2022 at 06:47PM

What it's like travelling all the time

 So we are are leaving France for now. Next stop Valencia, Spain. I will miss the sound of the French language. My favorite phrase: s'il vous plait (if you please). I just like the way it sounds. We heard it often.

We took Transavia airlines to Malaga, Spain on the southern coast of Spain, quite far from Valencia. It was the cheapest way to go. Never heard of Transavia but the flight was fine except for that hard landing (dude.....). Flying on some of these planes, the space is so small between you and the seat ahead of you makes me long for the back of a C130. 

So short layover and on to Ryanair, which we've been on before. (Another hard landing) These budget airlines have their flight attendants come through with a cart with all these products for sale like cologne, jewelry, etc. Pretty bizarre. Ryan air has more leg room.

Off the plane and now to find how to get to the airbnb. Google maps is a wonderful thing. We have to go on the metro. Cities have zones with fares and we weren't sure we had the right number for the ticket so we went to the info desk. Stood in long line and when we got up there older woman no habla English. So we went to the ticket machine and bought tickets and hoped for the best. We got through the ticket entry, got on metro, got off at our stop. Walked half a mile to the airbnb (not unusual)

This has been our life for the past 18 weeks. Navigating train systems, airports, public transportation. Now they're in different languages. 

We have taken 6 plane flights, 11 long ride trains (some with transfers). We have used 2 subway systems, 4 tram systems, 4 city trains, 2 bus lines and one place we just walked.  We have stayed in 9 airbnbs, 5 hotels. We have been to 9 countries, 12 cities. And a partridge in a pear tree.

I had no clue what this trip would be like . I had stars in my eyes about spending a month in 12 countries. That changed almost immediately. It's just too expensive to rent an airbnb for a month in the height of tourist season. So we starting spending less than a month most of the time, a lot of time a week. Moving so often is stressful. 

Living in airbnbs is hit or miss. We have a had a couple of really nice ones. The rest have been mediocre to bad. The hotels have been fine, expect for one.

Interspersed with all this has been a wonderful trip of sights that I never expected to see in my life. 

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October 01, 2022 at 06:26PM