touring toledo, savoring spain

our night train from lisbon was pleasant enough, given that we were in reclining chairs. (the compartments are all separated by men and women, we found out. some trains have couples' compartments but of course not this one.) i slept fitfully and JR didn't sleep much at all but luckily he can make do with amazingly little sleep so once we arrived in madrid we cleaned ourselves up in the bathroom and were on our way from chamartin to atocha. from there we were off to find a train to toledo. this proved harder than expected since the 9am train was already booked. we went to a kiosk to try to buy tickets for 10am train. my credit card, that had worked so reliably throughout the trip, failed me. the machine demanded a pin which, though it does have a chip, my silly american card does not have. so we got in a huge line with the rest of the schmucks who needed train tickets. we were waiting in line for 20 minutes and when our number was called - you guessed it - the 10am train was full. (which annoyed me mostly because the majority of the people in line probably could have just used their european chip-and-pin cards in the stupid kiosks.) anyway we got tickets for the 11am train and set up shop in the train station to wait.

it all turned out pretty well in the end. we made it to toledo in 30 minutes but it seemed like even less. even the train station there is beautiful. in its email to us the hotel made it sound as though it was a short walk from the station so we figured we'd go for it. what the description failed to make clear is that this amounted to a 30 minute walk entirely up hill. we wound up and up the hill the city is poised upon, passing through one of the city gates as we went. we were exhausted and very sweaty when we finally got to the hotel. still, we were anxious to get started on our day in toledo since we had already been delayed.

stone and bricks of toledo

our first stop was an old mosque - cristo de la luz. like just about every building in toledo, it seems, it's made of tan brick. it's quite small, but with brick decoration and vaulted coffers inside. like every religious building in spain it was repurposed and later used as a church (hence the name cristo). also like seemingly every other building the capitals were borrowed from earlier roman and visigothic structures. we made it in and out just before it closed for the afternoon.

carcamusas (fun to say too)

most everything else we wanted to see was in the southern part of the city. JR did well at navigating, as usual, and before long we felt as thought we knew our way around the city. our next stop was the museu de taller de mouro, otherwise known as the moor's workshop. to my disappointment it was closed for renovation, but again i can't begrudge them that. it's a shame, though, since it sounded pretty unique. it was about siesta time for most tourist places so we gave up in search of lunch instead. we walked around the central part of town searching for something somewhat affordable. toledo is definitely more touristy than the other spanish cities we'd been in. or maybe it was just that it was all concentrated in a smaller area. then again, it's so close to madrid you can imagine tourists would want to make a day trip of it. most of them don't stay overnight though which is their mistake, in my opinion. anyway, we were eager to find some lunch that wasn't overpriced. we happened upon a cafe inside the old university which was fantastic. we got a three-course meal - paella with mussels, shrimp and chicken, carcamusas (a toledan specialty, pork in tasty sauce), and flan for desert. all that and a drink for 5,20€. unbelievable. we were feeling pretty shrewd after that hearty and frugal meal.

synagogue stucco

our next stop was the iglesia de santo tomé, which was built to house the famous el greco. we couldn't take pictures, of course, but it was humbling to see the massive painting amazing enough for a church to be built around it. from there we went down to the jewish quarter. just like in córdoba, the jewish area was marked with little medallions embedded in the cobblestone streets. we first visited the sinagoga del transito - much bigger than the mosque we had visited earlier. the main room is huge, about three stories tall and the upper half covered with stucco decoration, much like mudejar mosques but with hebrew instead of arabic. there was a small collection of artifacts that traced the history of the jewish people in spain.

the cathedral and alcazar behind

we set out after that in search of swords. they're famous in toledo, and JR was set on getting one as a souvenir. we passed a number of shops and interesting antique stores but we were low on cash. incredibly, in this tourist town there's apparently only one ATM in the entire city. we made our way back across town and on our way back we stopped into iglesia san il defonso. the church itself wasn't remarkable but we knew the view from the top of the tower was worth the climb so we did it. the view was as described, although it was a little nerve-wracking walking out on the metal walkways so high up.

arcade

at this point we figured we'd earned a little stop in a teahouse. again, even though we got a late start to our day, with the late sunsets and opening hours we were doing pretty well. we made our way down to teteria dar el chai, almost at the edge of the city, and stopped in for a little chai and rest. the decor was the usual mix of moroccan lanterns and leather pouffs, wooden tables inlaid with mother-of-pearl and cushions lining the walls. we were the only ones there so it was a quiet place to stop. from here we were pretty close to another synaguge, this one called maria blanca. this one was quite different from the last synagogue, a little simpler, with rows of whitewashed columns and arcades, punctuated with stucco decoration and more repurposed capitals. this one, too, was later used as a church. it's interesting how different synagogues can be. i guess there are no architectural requirements for a synaoguge, unlike an altar in a church or a mihrab in a mosque. remind me to learn more about synagogue architecture.

courtyards are such a nice element

after that we had just enough time to visit the el greco museum. we even got in free as museum employees (perks!). it's unclear where exactly he lived in the city but the guess was that this location was pretty close. the first part was a recreation of el greco's house - or, at least, what a typical house in the late 16th century would have looked like. the paintings at first were those of his protegés and son. then we got to the el greco galleries, and they were pretty amazing. when you consider el greco's art in light of other artists at the time, what he was doing was truly unique. his brushwork still hasn't been recreated to date, i would say. it's so expressive and fluid. they did a nice job of offering foils to el greco's work in the form of his contemporaries' images of similar subjects. really well done.

toledan sundown

as we walked up toward the center of town the shops were starting to close. we hurried to find a sword shop with reasonable offerings. fortunately we found one and JR picked out a modest sword with a unique handle. lots of them are modeled on swords of famous historical figures (or fictional ones, like lord of the rings characters). as the nice sword salesman wrapped up the goods he reminded us about the light show later that evening. in the same area i stumbled upon a little shop where i found an old tile taken from the wall of a spanish home. after our shopping we thought maybe we'd stop by the rooftop of the hotel since the sun was just about to go down. the view was worth the climb to the top floor, as you can see.

the moors in toledo

we set back out in search of a little bar where we could get a drink and maybe some tapas. after a bit of a walk we found a spot where we got both. i had a delicious tinto de verano - a sangria-like drink that rivaled the ginja for my favorite drink. we got some simple tapas for each round. once the sun was down we made our way to posada el cristo de la luz, a little hookah/teahouse that we had seen near the mosque at the beginning of our day. the place was pretty deserted, which is a shame because despite being out of the way it was so pleasant. we sat in a table under a palmetto tree, facing the old city walls. we shared hummus and baba ghanoush plus some lovely apple shisha. the syrian man, ghalib, who ran the place was so nice and seemed delighted when i spoke my pitiful arabic with him. we left only because we were hoping to see the light show we had heard about earlier. we just happened to be in town for this festival, so we were happy to take advantage. (see, this is what those people who only stay for the day are missing.) we struggled to find it at first but eventually we found an area full of people in a little area that we hadn't seen before. it was full of bars and humming with activity. the light show, projected on the facade of a building, gave a visual history of the city set to music. it was - no surprise - largely about the various religions that existed there. with a bit of el greco mixed in. except for the little eave there we had a pretty great view. we stayed out later than we should have, given the hour we had to wake up to catch our train, but it was well worth it.

basically as soon as we fell asleep our alarm went off. or at least that's how it seemed. we figured the walk back to the train station would be easier, since it was downhill and all. it was still quite a distance and it took us the better part of 30 minutes. we made it to the station with eight minutes to spare before our train though. i was set on rushing through, trying to get through the x-ray machine quickly so we could get situated. JR was a little more prescient than i was though and was already thinking about what was about to go down. soo.. turns out you can't bring a sword on a train. apparently the souvenir that just about everyone brings back from toledo must be packed in a box. (because of course if you were a sword-wielding maniac you would certainly be deterred by a box around your weapon.) we argued in our broken spanish that we didn't know and how could we get a box and we already had a ticket for the train. to no avail. we went inside where we were told we could get new tickets or something. the (much nicer) attendant was confused as to why we wanted to change our tickets when we hadn't actually missed the train yet. then we explained about the sword. "oh you have a sword? no, you can't take the train." we were directed instead to the bus station which was, luckily, walkable but, frustratingly, back in the direction we had come from. it turned out alright in the end as the bus was cheaper and just as fast. what hurt was the extra sleep we could have had.
oh and if you're wondering why swords are allowed on buses it's because the bags are stored down below.

anyway, once in madrid we took the metro to our stop and followed the directions to our airbnb. the place was compact and cozy and the gentleman who owned the place kindly showed us around and offered us some stale croissants. we knew we only had one whirlwind day in the city so we were itching to get started. we set out on foot, as is our wont, and set off toward the prado museum. much to my chagrin we got no discounted admission this time, since we were not from EU museums. although their employees would be free in any of our museums! (i realize this probably seems petty but we're on a budget and every little euro counts.) i reluctantly paid the hefty admission price - worth it, of course, i was just grousing. i have no photos because of course none are allowed. in a lot of ways the prado hadn't changed much since i'd been there almost 10 years earlier. still no photos allowed (almost unheard of in museums in 2015, fyi), velvet ropes around paintings, and cranky security guards. i even heard one shush people who were just talking! and not on their cell phones, but discussing the artwork together. hello, that's exactly what you want people to do in your museum! (museum rant over) the collection itself really is astounding though. in both size and quality. it's almost an embarrassment of riches - i mean there's no one who can fully appreciate room after room after room of velazquezes. we saw everything we wanted to see, including hieronymous bosch, el greco and a whole lot of goyas. it was incredible but also incredibly overwhelming.

at this point we were already pretty exhausted (i've said it before, museum-walking is the most tiring kind of walking.) and ready for lunch. one of the most impressive museum collections in the world, as you might have guessed, is surrounded by a fair amount of tourist traps. lots of restaurants promising paella and sangria or prix fixe menus for 13,50€. we figured we could do better so we walked on until we found a tapas place. even when we got inside we were given prix fixe menus (that included spaghetti... uh, no) but we diligently asked about the tapas and were given new menus. we had a smattering of dishes - salmorejo (not as good as in andalucia, predictably), cured meats (good but greasy), fried cheese with some sort of jam (tasty), and a dish with potatoes, fried egg and cured ham that was incredibly delicious. it's the perfect brunch dish. i savored as much tinto de verano as i could (last day mode!) while trying to write all my remaining postcards. we were both happy for the chance to be off our feet.

crystal, glass. whatever

the next stop was the palacio cristal based on - you guessed it - the original crystal palace in london. this one was much smaller and, as we discovered, a pretty long walk from where we were. it was cool to see the palace but probably not as cool as we were expecting. it sometimes houses art exhibitions but while we were there it was just empty and HOT. we walked back through the massive parque de el retiro, passing a little cafe and a small man-made pond where families were out on little rowboats enjoying the sunny weather. spaniards seem to really enjoying boating in very small bodies of water.

we walked and walked until we made it to atocha train station. despite having been inside it already on two separate occasions i don't think we'd ever seen the outside of it. just beyond it was the reina sofia museum. (got a discount this time!) it looked different than i had remembered which i later confirmed was because they had subsequently added a huge new addition with a new entrance. it reminded me of the pompidou for some reason, maybe because of the massive library and modernist facade. we made our way up to the collection which was also bigger than i remembered. the guernica was still as arresting and awe-inspiring as i remember, as were the newsreels that accompanied it. it's incredible to think about troops marching through the massive city we were in. beyond it, a lot of the collection seemed to center around the spanish civil war. there were some interesting pieces but also a lot of obscure ones. it seemed like the galleries just kept going and finally we had to give up.

golden light on the arches, the temple behind

we were flagging and desperate just to sit down so we walked up the street in search of a cafe. after a few blocks we found a deserted pastry shop where we got some cafe bombons. not the best, but mostly we needed to sit down anyway. after a few minutes we rallied and made it to the nearby metro station. the first time we'd taken it since we got into town. we were exhausted but also wanted to make it to the temple of debod before it closed. we made it with about half an hour to spare. the egyptian temple is one of four in the world that have been removed from their original sites. between this one and the met's we've now seen half. the interior itself is quite small and the hallways are narrow (they limit how many people can go in) but the hieroglyphs are nicely preserved and even the shallow reliefs are still pretty easy to make out. from the same park we had a nice view as the sun was going down.

we figured we'd walk back toward the center of town (which is also basically where our airbnb was). on the way we passed gardens as the sun was going down and walked past the imposing national theater. in a little while we came to the plaza mayor, which is basically just a big square buzzing with tourists and activity. there was scaffolding on some of the apartments but you could still see the more ornamented facade. we were glad to have seen it but wanted to keep moving. we made it back to our place and all but collapsed on the bed for a much-needed rest. incidentally, this was the day we had walked the most - clocking in at 34,600 steps which is about 15 miles. we averaged about 12 or so miles each day so after a week of that it's no wonder we were so tired!

so long to spain

after an hour or so we set out in search of dinner and maybe a grocery store to get some goodies to take home. we were hoping for some sheep's cheese (like what we'd had in seville) and salchichon (which is basically salami but so good). we found only little convenience stores so we had to make do with a random cheese and a very cheap sausage. still, it was better than nothing. for our last meal we decided i wanted to try to find salchichon and JR wanted a nice tortilla española. and you know what? about a block from our place we found a little artsy cafe (atelier cafe de la llana) that served both. those two, plus a few more dishes accompanied by tinto de verano made for a perfect last evening in spain. the tortilla had just the right ratio of egg to potato (which is easy to screw up) and the meat and cheese topped it off. we knew we were going to miss the tapas, the cheap and delicious wine, and lingering over our leisurely meals.

sometimes sunny sevilla

our next stop was sevilla. the train ride was so quick that i didn't even have time to finish the pastry i had bought for breakfast. (oh, pro tip: if you're traveling with four people look for the four train seats facing each other. they're usually much cheaper than the rest and on a short journey like this, totally worth it.) by about 10 we were in sevilla and it was off for another walk to our hotel. again we walked through some commercial areas, then past some busy streets peppered with old churches and under las setas ('the mushrooms'), a modern structure which is said to be the largest wooden structure in the world. eventually we made it to our hotel, tucked into a side street in the old quarter.

our first stop was the nearby toro del oro, a military watchtower. there was a little maritime museum inside (lots of paintings of boats) that was okay. the view from the top wasn't bad, but the skies were fairly cloudy. after a little stroll by the river we headed in search of lunch, hungry after our long walk that morning. we made our way to the main square and found a little place with more tapas. we ordered a few sandwiches while jan and lewis tried to find enough dishes to suit both their preferences. lewis eats certain meats but not pork and a few other things, and jan eats no meat and won't go anywhere that serves foie gras, things like that. so after a little negotiating with the waiter we determined that the hamburger was made out of 'cow, not pork'. we thought we'd better check and just as he walked away we discovered it was in fact veal. lewis hastily summoned him back and chose something a little safer.

light filtering in from the courtyard

it was overcast and actually a little cooler but we thought it might rain the next day so we figured we should make it to the alcazar first, just in case. it was familiar, although more of it was gothic and less islamic than i remember. still, the mudéjar rooms were no less stunning than i recalled.

mesmerizing

gorgeous stucco patterns climbing up 30 foot ceilings and gorgeous carved wooden doors. easy to see why those parts stuck out in my memory.we spent quite a while exploring, all through the rooms surrounding the central courtyard and then out into the massive gardens, exploring the hedge maze and stopping to admire the wandering peacocks. we went down below to the cistern, with vaulted arches glowing gold, perfectly reflected in the water below. and throughout we saw no fewer than four brides and grooms having photos taken. by the time we reached the end of the gardens we were exhausted and in desperate need of a cafe bombon. or really anything caffeinated.

after the requisite stop in the gift shop (we got some lovely tile-patterned glasses for dessert wine) we ventured out to try and find a little coffee shop. this proved harder than expected as every place we passed seemed to have food and alcohol, and some with coffee only at the bar. eventually we found a place that had sugary coffee drinks which was good enough for us. the three of us got our new favorite and lewis tried some nescafe concoction that he said made the cafe bombon seem healthy. as we sat we watched as a group of bachelorettes passed by with the woman of the hour dressed as barbie complete with a box. people seemed to get a kick out of the gimmick but it seemed like practically it would be very annoying. by then we weren't far from the hotel so we thought we'd stop by for a little siesta.

churros con chocolate

we napped a little, relaxed, and chatted over beers from the vending machine int he lobby. that's also when we discovered there was a light switch that controlled the music coming from the speakers in the ceiling. that was a first. it was drizzling but we made our way out in search of churros. we found a little place on the corner of a crowded square on a busy shopping street that looked like it was where the locals went. a little place, standing room only where they had churros and espresso and our tab was written up on the metal bar. the churros were on the skinny side for my liking but the chocolate was nice and thick.

from there it was on to look for a little bar for an aperitf. in other words, a beer before dinner. but doesn't it just sound better that way? we found one with a marx brothers theme and that was good enough for us. we got a few drinks and had rather depressing, although interesting, discussion about the migrant crisis in europe and race relations in america. really uplifting stuff. we had some bocadillas and patatas roquefort with cheese sauce that was so good we practically licked it off the plate. jan ordered something with 'huevas' in the name which seemed safe enough. eggs couldn't be bad, right? well it turned out the eggs were fish eggs, made into some kind of paté. she discovered what they were after only detecting the fishy taste. not our best day for ordering.

from there we kept walking on, in search of bars with sangria (which is apparently only for tourists.. locals drink a similar but weirder red wine with lemonade) or hookah (which we were later told is illegal in the city now). we settled on a little wine bar with heavily religious decor and a man on his way home who we watched blow his 50€ in the electronic slot machine. more interesting but faintly depressing discussions about climate change before we headed out to find another place.

meats on meats. and veggies.

based on lewis' research we headed toward the 'new' part of town figuring they might have more bars and perhaps some of the hookah variety. instead we found what seemed to be some kind of renaissance faire, a large square full of tents and vendors selling everything from jewelry to cured meats. we explored it all and then settled on some bread and sheep's cheese to bring back to our hotel. we did make a pit stop for a pitcher of sangra from the guy with giant vats of vegetables and sausages strung in the air. he didn't love us taking up a table to order sangria, we gathered. once we left there and found some wine (jan had a little adventure with her frenchified spanish - "beaucoup queso. quel vino?") we made our way to the roof of our hotel and feasted on our bread and cheese. when it got too late to be out talking outside someone's room we retired to our room and played cards over more lobby beers. it was a pretty perfect evening, hookah or no.

peaceful plaza

the next day we figured we had a lot to do. we accidentally slept in and just missed the hotel breakfast. instead we got ready and grabbed a pastry from a little shop around the corner. the weather was much nicer - blue skies and no rain in sight, it seemed. so we headed to our outdoor stop first. the plaza de españa was crowded with people - probably a nice way to spend a sunny sunday morning. there were little rowboats on the tiny waterway. we walked all over and explored the little mosaic-ed niches before heading into the parque maria luisa, shaded walkways with pretty fountains and lots of little families. we noticed that all the families seemed to be rather well-dressed, sunday and every other day. also pretty much all the children were adorable. we came across two museums - one archaeological, and the other a museum of culture and costumes. i went in the latter while everyone else explored the former. apparently the archaeological museum had some interesting pieces but wasn't nearly as nice as cordoba's. the cultural museum looked a bit old fashioned too but had some interesting exhibits.

sevillana streets

by then it was nearly 2 and we figured we should get some lunch before making our way to the cathedral. (side note: the nice thing about spain is that even when you oversleep you can usually still fit everything in since most places are open so late.) the walk back toward the center of the old quarter was peppered with whitewashed walls and yellow trim and the occasional horse-drawn carriage - all with their characteristic yellow wheels. i'm not sure there's a better color to capture spain. after vetoing one place (foie gras) we made our way to another little new-looking cafe that had salads and sandwiches. probably our least spanish meal but it was nice for jan to have a whole meal she could enjoy that wasn't just potatoes and olives. we tried a glass of wine - just a random white on the menu - and it was delicious. so delicious that we picked up a bottle in a grocery stores later on.

even the ceilings seem gold

by the time we got to the cathedral it was downright hot. no sign of rain at all. we waited in a short line outside and realized that - unlike south carolina - it actually was cooler in the shade here. we got inside and the space was enormous. it's the largest cathedral (not basilica) in the world, we learned. we wanted to be sure to see the tomb of christopher columbus. you really can't miss it - the thing is huge. it's held up by four figures in crowns and regalia. i guess he wasn't an understated kinda guy. the rest of the place was full of the spoils of colonization too. the 'treasure' (not treasury) rooms were filled with all manners of gold and silver. then, in the midst of it all over an unassuming doorway was an artemisia gentileschi painting. you'd almost miss it if you didn't realize it was there. from there we climbed the tower to get a view of the city. it's a pretty genius design - to go up it's just a series of ramps, no steps. it seemed less tiring that way. of course i guess i'll never know. the view of the courtyard (because of course this used to be a mosque also) full of orange trees and the streets of the city were lovely, but the breezes coming in through the giant windows may have been even better. of course everyone was jostling for spots to get their photos.

sabroso

after that much walking, climbing and swearing we figured we had earned some ice cream. we made our way to a famous heladeria that we both a) managed to find and b) was open. amazing! we got some interesting flavors from a rather impatient woman and spent some time relaxing in the quiet street.

we had hit all the big sites we'd wanted to see so we figured we'd check out the over side of the river and venture outside the touristy areas. (okay, confession: we were also maybe trying to find this hookah bar we had read about.) we were shooting for the middle of three bridges but ended up on the northernmost ones. once across we found ourselves in triana. it's the part of town where the ceramics were historically made. it looked pretty workaday - lots of apartments and closed shops.

fraidy dog

needless to say, the shisha/teahouse we were searching for was closed. this one for good. but eventually we found a little bar with a couple of locals hanging around. we figured it was time for a couple beers and then, realizing it was almost 7, figured we'd get some tapas too. we didn't think it was possible but the tapas were even cheaper there. i mean, not by much obviously. but still. we even got a little plate of paella. the best part was the entertainment. lots of locals passing by and stopping to talk, including two obviously chain-smoking women who sounded a lot like men. everyone seemed to have a dog, which was hilarious mostly because of one of the aforementioned women's little dog. he kept barking at these big dogs but as soon as they got a little bit closer he'd hide inside the sandwich sign. we were most amused.

once it started to get dark we set off back toward the river. we were shooting for the middle bridge - again - and somehow made it to the southernmost one. what can i say, we're not the best with maps. but you know what we saw almost immediately after we crossed the river? that's right, the forbidden hookah place. it was a kind of a newer bar and there was only one flavor but we went for it. it was a good end to our time in seville and seemed like an appropriate way to send our friends off. when we left the bar we knew our friends had a very early morning ahead of them but we had to finish off the cheese we had started (by now very sweaty) and sample the orange wine (apparently a sevillian specialty) we'd had bought. so we went back to the hotel and spent the end of the night literally breaking bread (by now slightly stale) over the rooftops of the city.

catching up in córdoba

my latest trip was one i'd been planning and anticipating for nearly six months. my boyfriend and i traveled to spain, somewhere he'd been wanting to go and that i'm always glad to go back to. fortunately for us, it's also one of the most affordable countries in europe to visit, and the struggling euro helped us even more. the time of year ended up being just right, too. in september we missed the high season for european tourists, which peaks in august, and still had absolutely beautiful, warm sunny weather.

our flight to madrid was largely uneventful (except for the free wine, score!) but when we arrived we realized getting to the train station across town might take longer than anticipated and we could be cutting it close for our first train. we walked through what i'm sure is the longest hallway in any airport ever and waited for what i'm also totally sure was the slowest elevator of all time. it passed by us, empty, on several occasions. very strange. after our first encounter getting directions in spanish (i think i mostly followed everything?) and getting our train tickets from the machine in german (i couldn't figure out how to change it) we were on the train to the train station. we made it to atocha with just enough time to get a ham sandwich and fanta for the journey. so far, so good.

we passed by la giralda right at dusk

fino straight from the barrel

we had a layover (is it a layover on a train?) in a small town in la mancha so we got out to explore the streets and have our first beer and complimentary tapa - cruzcampo, the cheap beer of choice. other than a statue of don quixote there wasn't much there and it was siesta time so very sleepy. we arrived in córdoba in early afternoon, just in time to meet our friends. the benefit of living in england is that you can take long weekends in europe basically whenever you like. must be nice, right? we decided to walk to our hotel (we searched hostels and airbnbs but in the end with four of us, inexpensive hotels ended up being the cheapest bet. odd, no?) - we started in the outskirts of town, walked through the more commercial areas and along the main shopping street and into the old quarter. our hotel was on a little winding street - as it should be. we quickly explored the terrace as the sun was going down and then made our way out in search of tapas and aperitifs. the latter came first, as we found a taberna i had come across in my reading. they served fortified wine (fino) out of giant barrels that looked like they had been there for centuries, along with sherry and other wines. we stood along the old bar munching on olives and catching up. jan - the vegetarian/animal lover - even overlooked all the black and white bullfighting photos covering the walls.

eventually we made our way up the street and found an inviting tapas bar. we were able to get many of the dishes we'd been looking forward to - including salmorejo (sin jamon, for jan), which is a lovely creamy cold tomato soup, ensaladilla rusa, sort of like potato salad, and some cured hams for us meat-eaters. we talked about all sorts of things and just had a lovely evening catching up.
the rest of the evening we spent searching, in vain, for some nice spanish guitar music. we walked to the other side of town and found nothing but a sort of eurotrash bar with pricey (but not bad) cocktails. on the way home we passed by some roman ruins with lots of kittens so it wasn't all bad.

the next day we were up fairly early, figuring we had a lot to fit into our full one day in córdoba. the archaeological museum was closest so we headed there first. for such a small city it was a surprisingly modern museum! built over some of the roman ruins, they've built walkways that go over them and created projections that explain what certain parts were originally. that coupled with great artifacts and good explanations made it well worth the 1,50€ entry. us museum folk were impressed.

gothic elements with traditional moorish ornament

from there we headed to the jewish quarter - la judería - which you know is the best because it has old, winding streets. there were a number of synagogues, mosques, and patios (córdoba's specialty) that we wanted to visit. they're all fairly compact though and luckily were all within a pretty small area. the synagogue was simple but had some great stucco decoration. i continue to be fascinated by those stylistic similarities you see throughout buildings of different religions or regions. i think my favorite was a little mudéjar chapel, capilla mudéjar de san bartolomé, a tiny little chapel that's covered with beautiful decoration, from blue and gold paint to arabic elaborately carved in stucco to gorgeous geometric tiles. my kind of place. mudéjar literally comes from the word 'to remain' so it refers to the moors who were permitted to remain in spain and later the architecture that incorporated more christian and gothic elements. fascinating, right? i know.

old courtyard

we explored a few more patios on the same street. one was made to be something of a small museum of life in the city. lots of beautiful antiques from the region and lovely plants along the walls. it seemed a little fake somehow but there were still some lovely elements. plus they had some great postcards so i can't complain. another larger patio had been redone as an artisans' atelier, with studios lining the courtyard and a shop below. it was a little bit like the we visited han in bursa, but smaller.

we poked around but it was past noon and it was just about lunch time. lewis decided he'd like a coffee first though so we stopped in a little cafe where we made a very important discovery. it's called a café bombon, and it's basically a shot of espresso and a lot of condensed milk. it's incredibly sweet and the perfect mix of caffeine and sugar to give you an instant energy rush.

picturesque restaurant in the jewish quarter

after that we found a perfect little tapas place across the street, casa el malacara, with tables set up just outside one of the main gates in the old city walls. it reminded me of jerusalem somehow. we had fabulous tapas - even more variety than the day before, including albondigas (delicious meatballs), patatas alioli (potatoes in very garlicky sauce), chicken curry, spinach with chickpeas, pickled mussels and bread. tapas are usually in the 1,50-3,00€ range and even though each couple usually split about four of them it always seemed to be plenty of food. the perfect amount without feeling too full or having any go to waste. the spanish are doing something right.

gorgeous gardens at the alcazar. this isn't nearly all of them.

from here we made our way quickly to the alcazar, which was only open for another hour or so before siesta time. we made it in just enough time to get a wonderful view of the city and explore the expansive - and beautiful - gardens. from the top of the tower we could see the roman bridge, the top of the mosque/cathedral, and the rest of the alcazar. although we didn't have time to see much of the palace's interior we felt confident we hit the highlights.

figuring we were doing pretty well seeing the sights we thought we would heard toward a moorish tea house i had read about simply called salon de té. on the way we stopped by the mezquita for a view of the grand umayyad doorways on the various sides. they are impressively large. we continued on to the tea house which was beautifully appointed. we found a little cushioned corner to relax and enjoy our beverages. after some mint and fruit teas we ventured out for a little shopping along the nearby streets. along the way we stumbled upon a courtyard that promised a guitar performance in the evening. we took note for later on.

arches for days

next up was the long-awaited mezquita - or cathedral depending on how you look at it. it's pretty humbling to walk inside. not in the same way most cathedrals are humbling, for expansive vertical spaces, but horizontally, with colonnades that resemble a forest of arches. i had been before and it was incredible then. sadly my camera died at that very moment so i have few physical mementos of that part of my first trip. it's pretty amazing to be inside a building that's one of the oldest and most important examples of islamic architecture. and you can clearly see the progression of the mosque's expansion over the years with the placement of the original mihrab.. and then the takeover of the cathedral. it's so incongruous to see the understated beauty of the islamic ornament next to the overly ornate gilded everything of the later spanish cathedral. or maybe i'm just biased.

after we thoroughly explored the mosque we figured we had earned some churros con chocolate. because, given the possibility you always have churros, right? we wandered all the way back to the more commercial part of town in search of a traditional place i'd read about that seemed fabulous. of course it was closed when we finally arrived so we settled for a place along the big square. not the giant churros i remember but they were still pretty good links of fried dough.

waiting for sunset

from there it was back towards the mosque and to the roman bridge just behind it. honestly most of the bridge is no longer roman (probably in our best interest since we crossed it) but it was great to get a view of the mosque and the city behind. we tried to wait until the sun was fully down and we got a peek at the sunset but to no avail. we were worried about missing our guitar show so we headed back across the river and back to the restaurant we had seen before, el patio cordobès (another pretty direct name).

flamenco in the patio

the dinner (in other words the requirement for us getting a free flamenco show) wasn't bad but the main event was the music. it started off with just some guitar and foot tapping, then singing and clapping. eventually an older man joined in, with a raspy voice but obviously very passionate. the younger and older man took turns singing, the young one later coming in to dance. that was some very fancy footwork. they performed for what must have been at least an hour and a half and who knows how often they do this. it was clear they were very passionate. so, we didn't see any frilly dresses but we still got a great flamenco show, and without shilling out the 28€+ they charge at other places around town.

we were hoping to cap off our night with a bit of hookah, which we'd seen evidence of at the tea house earlier. we made it back there but sadly it was closed. guess we'd stayed too long at the flamenco show. instead we settled for buying a bottle of wine and drinking it on the roof of our hostel - complete with a very slight view of the giralda (bell tower). and so we rounded out the last of our hours in córdoba. i hadn't expected to, but i liked it even more than i remembered. it ended up being our favorite city on the trip - small enough to fully explore, with hidden treasures. a perfect reintroduction to spain.

CAdeeth

our last stop was cadiz, which we had heard was just a typical beach town. to get there we had to take a bus to sevilla, walk across town to the other bus station, and catch the bus there to continue on to cadiz. thanks to an accent (`) and the spanish lisp the name of the city is pronounced rather strangely. it took me several minutes to realize our british couchsurfer was not talking about cardiff.

we arrived in cadiz's new town, which doesn't mean too much considering that cadiz is the self-proclaimed oldest city in europe. they've dated it to at least 1000 BC (though hercules was said to have founded it 2000 years earlier) and their claims seem to hold up to scrutiny (perhaps not the hercules one). the city is actually an island so you're never far from the water. shortly after we arrived our host matthew took us up to a nearby tapas place on the beach for lunch. we sampled some local specialties, including a tasty swordfish, chicharrones (little fried squids), bull's cheek (delicious!), and salmorejo (like gazpacho). we were lucky to have such a knowledgeable host/menu guide.

we continued walking along the water towards the old town. as we approached we could see the cathedral with its dome of the rock-like (e.g. gold) dome. we stopped in a very pleasant square in front of the cathedral for a coffee before matthew left us to fend for ourselves. we set out but didn't get very far as we found a cute little store next door with all kinds of fun stuff we didn't need. apparently we did need earrings though so we bought those (never a bad decision). we continued on, wandering through the streets marveling at how many shops were closed - the joys of siesta.

we gave up on shopping and had an ice cream which we enjoyed at another nice square - cadiz is full of these. we walked on until we hit the water again and decided to follow the shoreline around the island. the french guide book we found compared this city to st-malo, a small beach town in brittany, and i could see the resemblance. we continued walking along the city walls, stopping whenever we found a nice looking garden or park, which was quite often. we found various benches, fountains, gardens, and even a waterfall. kelly was particularly excited about that one. we continued on to the marina where the sun was starting to go down over the boats in the harbor.

we hurried to meet matthew since we were running behind (what with all the waterfall-finding and picture-taking). after beer and a bit of a philosophical conversation we walked on to find dinner. he took us to a great little tapas place he knows where we had even more of the local delicacies. this time we enjoyed a montadito (a bocadilla - sandwich - but hot, we think) de lomo (like virtually every meat in spain a kind of ham), abondigas (delicious meatballs in a tomatoey sauce), and gambas (shrimp), which the southern coast is especially known for. afterwards we went with matthew to the weekly intercambio (language exchange), where we met mostly spaniards, but also a dutch girl, an american, and a very peppy norwegian. luckily we were there for the english hour, so we had no trouble. when we went back to the apartment we may have thought the night was over but not so. one of matthew's roommates had just returned from a massive beatboxing convention (very professional, i know). he calls himself ram-z. as you can imagine, he was quite a character and very excitable after the big weekend. he gave us a sample of his work and showed us some of the videos he took there. if you want to see more, you can find him on myspace (he gave us his card). and if that wasn't enough our host did some card tricks for us too. we were thoroughly entertained.

the next day was our last in spain. we decided to head up to jerez de la frontera, from where our bus would leave that evening. the town is known for sherry, horses, and flamenco. when we arrived we were disappointed to find that it was rainy and cold but even more disappointed to find that there were no lockers in either the train or bus stations (luckily located next to one another). it seemed there were once but they had been taken out. as kelly pointed out, why take out lockers? once they're there they don't cost any money to keep up. and the space was certainly not being used - the whole terminal was very empty. we left, rather annoyed, with all our luggage.

we decided to try to see the town anyway. we spent a very long lunch (and several games of phase 10) in one bar before venturing out again. the city itself was fairly unremarkable though it did have a nice cathedral and some pretty streets. we didn't see any horses or (being daytime) flamenco but we did entertain ourselves by shopping. we found a grocery store to stock up on cheap supplies before going back to french prices. and across from the bus station we found a nice place to enjoy some tea and hot chocolate. next door we had our last spanish dinner, appropriately paella and tapas with tio pepe, the brand of sherry that jerez is best known for.

then at 11.30 we boarded the night bus (it was full!), dozed off, and woke up the next morning in madrid. we were dropped off at the airport and spent our last few hours snacking and playing cards. overall a really nice vacation. and made even nicer by the fact that kelly joined me in returning to lyon.

huelva y vuelva y huelva

our next stop on this little adventure was huelva. this city, like most on our itinerary, was decided on randomly. basically outside of sevilla we chose cities where we either found an affordable hostel or a couchsurfer willing to host us. (a quick plug for couchsurfing, thanks to which we had a much better spanish experience and saved some money)

this is how we ended up in huelva. even our host, a really lovely american girl who loves the city asked, 'so how did you end up in huelva for three days?'. it's a nice coastal town and we had a great time but there's just not a lot to do there. our host nicole took us around and showed us the major sights in the city. she took us to the beach for a relaxing afternoon and some (essential) ice cream and took us out to a really authentic tapas place she knows. on our own kelly and i did some exploring of the city which mostly included shopping and stopping for cafe con leche or hot chocolate.

the rest of our time in huelva we spent outside the city itself. one day while nicole was at work we decided to check out la rabida (which is fun to say if you roll your r just right) where there's a monastery of note and replicas of colombus' ships. we were told to take a bus to 'campus carmen' from where we could walk to the town itself. we got conflicting information from the woman at the bus station info desk and the bus driving buying lotto tickets but eventually we got onto the number five bus. we got off at a stop where we saw 'campus del carmen' only to realize that we were in the city and nowhere near any water. we came to the realization that the number 5 bus goes in a loop around the city and was decidedly not what we wanted. we went back to the bus stop, paid for another ride, and rode around the other half of the loop back to the station.

so we were literally back to where we started. we tried again, this time asking for a regional bus that went to la rabida. the ticket was actually cheaper and we got on a nice looking bus to take out of the city. this time we got it right. after confirming with the bus driver that it was indeed the stop we wanted, we got out and walked towards the monastery. along the way we enjoyed the little gardens and statues. we arrived at the monastery only to realize that it was monday, so of course it was closed. such a rookie mistake, ugh. we walked pitifully around the monastery (and around the locked public bathrooms) before decided to try and find the ships. we wandered down the hill, past a giant ampitheater, and down to the water only to discover that the ships, too, were closed. go figure. we tramped around the marshy area nearby to take some pictures before admitting defeat and heading back. we found a fun little playground on the way though and after rediscovering the joys of the teeter-totter all was forgotten.

we waited on a nearby bench for about 30 minutes for the next bus. once on, kelly realized that in our haste to make sure the bus driver didn't pass us, she had left her scarf. so we got off and walked back. it was there, luckily, and we waited a few more minutes for the next bus. and incidentally anyone reading this who thinks it wasn't worth going all the way back for a scarf just doesn't have their priorities in order. so, total number of bus trips made/paid for that day: 5.

on our last day in huelva we had planned to spend the day shopping. but after a few hours we realized we may have exhausted our shopping options. we headed back to the bus station (probably the single place we visited the most in huelva) to see where we could go. after consulting our tourism office booklets and the bus information we decided on niebla, an old walled city. thirty minutes later we arrived in niebla and the clouds rolled in. we quickly realized we were not dressed appropriately in our capris and light jackets. we blamed spain. still, we enjoyed wandering through niebla's white streets and little squares. most impressive, we found a bar serving pizza that was open during siesta for a nice lunch. the rest of our time there we spent wandering around and whining about the cold and the wind.

all in all we had a great time in huelva and its surrounding area. there were a few hiccups but any vacation where you can shop, eat tapas, and go to the beach can't be that bad.

maravillas de sevilla

semana santa was definitely a site to behold but sevilla unquestionably merits its own post beyond these celebrations. we visited several charming cities on this tour of southern spain but sevilla remained our favorite. there was something about it that just made it especially inviting and of all the places i've been in europe it's the only other place (besides lyon) where i could see myself living. i'm sure there are many smaller reasons for this but here were some of the main attractions:

the alcázar.
wow. i was expecting some sort of alhambra-lite but this place faaaar exceeded expectations. the moorish architecture was absolutely phenomenal; the stucco work and carved ceilings were sublime. and the bright yellow walls make it look so warm. i could have wandered around this place for hours and if i lived here i would probably do so on a weekly basis (it's free for students, or people who happen to have outdated student IDs). i'm at a loss for words here because the architecture itself is just so stunning. and if that weren't enough there are the gardens, which include palm trees, hedge mazes, orange trees and all sorts of flowers and fountains, and apparently peacocks (though we saw none). the amazingness of this place was only enhanced by the gorgeous weather we enjoyed - clear skies and low to mid 20's (that's 70s for you fahrenheit folks). we didn't want to leave. ...and then we hit the bookshop. these people saw me coming a mile away. everything was just details of the tiles. sold!

la comida.
one of the things europe seems to do well is bar food. italy's got its aperitivos and spain has tapas. though we had more tapas elsewhere in spain, i just thought i'd pay homage to the general brilliance of the idea, yet another thing sevilla's got going for it. what we did enjoy in sevilla was sweets. ice cream was plentiful and delicious (dulce de leche was a fan favorite) but the churros were downright ridiculous. that amount of grease on a plate is just obscene. still, we managed to fit in a few helpings of churro con chocolate every day. just beware: if you only get even one razione, be prepared not to eat for a long time. or in our case, another helping of churros a few hours later.

plaza de españa.
there's not really much to this square; in fact i don't even know what purpose it actually serves. all i know is that it's a big square with a fountain, lots of fun brickwork, tiles and bridges. to add to the charm there are picturesque horse-drawn carriages with bright yellow wheels that are constantly circling the square carting around tourists. each of the little niches in the edifice showcased (in tile) a representation of one of the bigger spanish cities. what fun. my only complaint was that half of them were shrouded for what i imagine was restoration.

parque de maría luisa.
this place is a gem. not surprisingly it's been called one of the best parks in all of europe. from what we saw it seemed pretty big. we didn't have time to explore the whole thing but everywhere we went to discovered a new fountain or section of palm trees. we found this nice spot where kelly enjoyed a catnap while i watched a cute spanish famillia take a family portrait. doesn't it look incredibly lush and green? well it is. oh and then have tandem bikes (with little roofs) you can rent. which reminds me. did i mention that sevilla has the same public bike system as lyon? (not like the weird barcelona ones) no wonder i loved it there.

la giralda/the cathedral.
the cathedral, like most big sites in andalucia, has muslim origins. today la giralda (the former minaret) remains while the ceiling inside the now-christian church is almost as impressive. the rest of the church seems to be filled with typical busy spanish decorations and design. also the remains of christopher columbus are in there for some reason. we climbed to the top of la giralda to take in the view of the city. from there you can see the alcazar and the gardens beyond, the plaza del toros and the rooftop pools of all the people you really hate.

i think we did the city justice in the few days we had but i could see myself staying longer. in the words of vince, 'who knew sevilla was effing awesome?'

semana santa, sevilla style

well i've just returned from my last vacation here in france. that's right, i have to endure a whole two weeks without vacation before i return home. honestly sometimes i don't know how i'm going to handle 40 hour work weeks and american vacation time. it's going to be a struggle. at any rate, i thoroughly enjoyed my last vacation, traveling through southern spain and even a bit into portugal.

i flew into madrid where i met my good friend kelly (of almost 10 years, we realized). she somehow managed to get herself 3 weeks vacation, and from the coast guard no less. we spent a pleasant afternoon in madrid (found a free fauvism exhibition) catching up before hopping on a bus to sevilla. we had wanted to witness the madness of semana santa for ourselves and additionally visit my friend annie. we arrived that evening in the midst of the craziness. i think craziness might even be an understatement. from the bus station things appeared normal. so we walked on blindly, into the heart of the insanity. the streets began to get more crowded as people assembled for the processions. as we continued on we found the path to our hostel blocked at almost every turn. naturally, it was located right in the middle of the festivities. at various times we were stuck in the crowd, between the marching brothers (or floats, see above) and the crowds of onlookers. we even had to walk through the procession once or twice. and all this dragging our suitcases around as well. if we heard the word 'maletas' one more time, we might have lost it. in short, we arrived and hour and 20 minutes later at our hostel that should have been a 10-minute walk.

perhaps i should take a moment to explain what semana santa is. as best i can understand it's the celebration of holy week whereby each brotherhood marches through the street carrying giant candles, crosses or a giant float. the floats are invariably filled with flowers, covered in silver or gold and adorned with a shiny plastic jesus or mary or any other various gaudy (pardon my judging) decorations. the brothers wear the large pointy hoods (jarring for most americans) and walk slowly for hours often in bare feet - a bold move in any european city.

the weird thing was, nobody seemed to care. sure there were people everywhere, crammed into every corner of the old downtown. families got together, dressed up the kids, and saved seats near the front for hours. but when it came to the actual spectacle, nobody actually seemed to pay any attention. people were eating, drinking and generally socializing into all hours of the night but very few people seemed to take the process seriously, much less piously. maybe this is because the celebration in sevilla is so popular but for whatever reason it didn't seem like a very serious occasion. one fun tradition, which i imagine was invented to entertain the children through these hours-long processions, was the collecting of the wax. little spanish children would roam the streets, looking for friendly brothers to give them some wax from their giant candles. i'm told this is a big deal and the kids keep the wax balls for years to come.

kelly and i watched the processions for quite a while (as we couldn't get more than 50 meters from our hostel without a struggle) which turned out to be much more pleasant without our suitcases. still, after one night of processions we figured we had seen all we needed to of semana santa. (they carry the same floats every night.) i was glad we had experienced it, but after realizing it tacked on an extra mile to get to virtually any destination in the city, we were over the excitement.

barceloner

months ago i had planned a short weekend trip to catalunya. i already have wednesdays and fridays off so i thought i would 'faire le pont', as they say, and skip thursday to make it a nice five-day weekend. fortunately for me, france decided to choose this thursday to go on strike, so they did it for me.

after a late night before (st. patricks day..) i set out early on wednesday for my 9.45 flight. in a quick hour i was in spain. i took the bus into the city where it struck me how big the city is. outside of paris it's the biggest city i've been to in the past year. parts of it seemed very new york-like (though i suspect that had something to do with the helvetica in the metro). i arrived at the top of las ramblas, having a full afternoon ahead of me. having been to the city once before, i didn't feel too rushed and was able to take my time, enjoying the nice weather and all the weirdos that street seems to attract. the city is just undeniably colorful and lively. i found it particularly entertaining to watch the so-called 'living statues' take a cigarette break or walk around in normal clothes with bright green all over their faces.

my first stop was la boqueria, the fantastic produce market that courtney and i stumbed across our last time in the city. it did not disappoint; it had all the fresh fruits, nuts, (etc) and juices that i remember. i found myself some strawberries and pineapples and a sunny spot to enjoy my homemade sandwich. it was a perfect welcome to spain. well, until i got totally ripped off by this guy selling chocolates. somehow i got roped into buying some; i just thought i'd sample a few; it couldn't have been more than six individual pieces. the price? 3,25€. what?! lesson learned: never buy anything that doesn't have a price.

i tried to shrug that unpleasantness off and continue on, looking for the cathedral. the entire facade had been shrouded in scaffolding the last time courtney and i had been there and i was looking forward to seeing it for real. guess what? three years later, and the scaffolding hasn't moved. though i think they have added an ad across the front.

i continued on to the passeig de gracia where some of the many gaudi buildings can be found. if you don't know, antoni gaudí is a turn of the century catalan architect who seems to have single-handedly shaped the dynamic of barcelona. his works border on fantasy, mixing color with a weird fetish for nature. at any rate, i made it to the street where i saw the casa batllo, one of his most well-known and bizarre works. this, and its truly unique interior, have bumped the entrance fee up to over 16€. i passed and instead opted for the casa mila just down the street. it has a very distinct shape itself.. it kind of looks like where a smurf might live. a progressive, early 20th century smurf. i went inside and was captivated by all the little details that either gaudi or the successive families had added. i thought the light coming in through the lace in the windows was particularly nice. the real show was on the roof, where gaudi has constructed a strange landscape with amorphous yet somewhat menacing pseudo-heads.

from there it was back down to barceloneta where i finally saw the actual beach. my CS host showed me around a bit before serving up some homemade indian food and awkward conversation.

the next day i got started early and mounted montjuïc, something courtney and i had regretted not doing the previous time. it was quite high though the view wasn't necessarily that great. i walked around a bit and saw some of the gardens but i'm guessing there was still more to see. on the way down i saw the massive fountains that i imagine are pretty spectacular at night. at the foot of the hill i found the so-called barcelona pavilion. (funny i didn't connect the dots on that sooner.) it was constructed by mies van der rohe for the world's fair in 1929 and, if prof. dreiss has not misled me, was then deconstructed (and lost?) but later rebuilt. it's a total 180 from gaudi, very simple and spare but with really high-quality materials. so.. austere yet luxurious? it was good to actually see it in person.

from there i metro'd to parc guëll and climbed (or.. you know, escalatored) up the big hill. at the top i went to the main square - if you can call it that - to have my makeshift lunch and enjoy the sun. after lingering over my sandwich and fruit i made my way around the curvy mosaic-ed benches that encircle the area. i wasn't shy about butting in right next to napping tourists to take pictures of the tiles. that seems to be what people do, incidentally. they find a nice sunny spot on the bench, park themselves, and nap. besides sleeping tourists i spotted obnoxious american girls and some really choice mullets, a spanish necessity.

from here i descended and found myself back on the passeig de gracia, home to more gaudi. i was looking at the facade of casa batllo and compulsively decided to go up and buy a ticket. i got the student price, a mere 13,50€ (ouch) and rationalized it by telling myself i didn't know when i'd be in barcelona again. the audio guide (thankfully included in the price) was a bit much.. "gaudi, the most universal genius in history".. but the house itself was pretty impressive. it's said that it has no straight lines, though i wondered about the floors. it definitely has a nature-inspired vibe, reminiscent at times of mushrooms, amoeba, sea urchins, and dragons. though i've never labeled anything as 'whimsical' myself this would probably be the closest i've seen.

after this stop i popped over to the sagrada familia to cram in a little more gaudí before heading back to my CSer's place. one B bollywood movie and a few hours of sleep later i left early to catch the bus to andorra. i took a last stroll along the beach and made my way to las ramblas where i had to pop into the market one last time. i got some choice fuji apples and an entire kilo of strawberries for one euro. fantastic. of course now i'm completely spoiled. i don't know how i can go back to paying upwards of 3€ for a small basket of french strawberries. these made for lovely snacks on my international bus ride.