eydieinmn

BARCELONA THURSDAY - 24 NOVEMBER Drove from Les Brunels through the Pyrenees and into Spain. The Pyrenees are already capped in snow on the highest peaks. Very pretty, especially since we could enjoy them from a distance. Architecture has changed again. Also, the vegetation changed as we left the “Midi” in the Pyrenees and turned toward the East. The highway follows the Med from Narbonne in France to the Spanish border. We turned inland a bit, and stopped for some lunch and a break. Directions were right on, this time! Yay! Found our hotel and checked in. Well, this is probably the largest and nicest place we have stayed in so far. There are 4 rooms—kitchen(YIPPEE!), 2 bedrooms and a sitting/dining room. Plus nice terrace off the sitting room and a small one off the kitchen. ... read more

14 NOVEMBER - MONDAY As we bid Sevilla farewell, we headed out of town and toward Salamanca. The highway, as most of the roads in Spain, was excellent. The clouds were gathering, however, and we encountered rain about 30 minutes out of town. The terrain changed, as we climbed into the mountains. We left Andalucia province and entered the Extremadura. The terrain stayed mountainous as we traveled near Merida. Going further north the land flattened out and we could see farms and fields for grazing. As we got closer to Caceres, there were at least a dozen castles we could see from the highway. Found out later that they are abandoned and you can just walk in. Good thing we found this out later, otherwise we might have ended up living "Under the Caceres Sun"! Easily ... read more

GRANADA 6 NOVEMBER - SUNDAY A rainy day to depart from Valencia, but we have enjoyed this beautiful city. Retrieved our car from the car park, loaded up our luggage, and off we went. As with most European cities, Valencia has many one-way streets. Fortunately, round-abouts are a navigator's (and driver's) friend! But we still had a little time trying to get out of the city getting lost only once. Stopped for directions at a fuel station in the city and the gentleman was most gracious and told us how to get out and on our way. The terrain changed quite a bit as we drove through the countryside. Valencia is on the Med, and Granada is in the mountains. Lots and lots of orange groves outside Valencia, then olive trees. Sun broke through mid-trip. There ... read more

LANDED IN DUBLIN 13 OCT. After a very small amount of sleep on the flight from Chicago, we picked up our rental car at 10AM. So, now Mike is driving on the left side of the road, shifting manual tranny with his right hand, and we need to get out of the city. Well, we did it and arrived in Kilkenny very early in the afternoon. Only once did we have to turn around. Stayed at Ashbrook House, a beautiful B&B about 6 miles out of town. Our hosts graciously allowed us to check in early. Took a little walk down the lane. Needed to do what we could to stay awake until dark. Had a fine steak dinner at Paddy's just down the road from the B&B, then heavenly sleep until 8 the next morning. ... read more