ChrisWPdx

This morning was my favorite moment of the trip. I woke up in Paris, the Eiffel Tower in view from the window. Showered, then before the crack of dawn, was on the cobble stone streets of Rue Cler, with the locals. Walking to the Boulangerie to get the best croissants in the world. The only other people were the staff of the hotels doing the same thing, getting the croissants and baguettes for the morning breakfast, including the staff of our hotel. “A quick on Jour Deux Croissants si vous plait.” Two fresh croissants handed to you for 2.80 Euros about $3 (would pay 8 in NY). “Merci, au voire.” Walking back in the crisp Paris fall air, I stopped, took a deep breath, and truly savored the moment, I am in Paris, I truly belong ... read more

Our last stop in Spain before turning back towards home via Paris and London. Is Donostia/San Sebastian. The US traveler would only know it as San Sebastian, the playground of the rich and famous. However, here it is referred to as Donostia/San Sebastian both Basque and Spanish. The Trip to Bilbao was the last journey on the Spanish Renfe, we are now using the Euskatren, a Basque Country commuter line. We were initially thinking it would be like NJ Transit, turns out it is very modern and fairly comfortable with bathrooms on the train. Yesterday, Jerry had mapped out our route from the Hotel to the Metro to the train station that the E1 leaves from. It was very easy. We walked about two blocks to the metro stop, took an elevator to the platform and ... read more

Another early and long travel day, this was the longest of the trip. Our train was at 7:47 so we did not have time for the nice breakfast, but again the hotel packet us a picnic for the train. This was by far the best of the three that were prepared for us. It was just another rainy day in Santiago as we loaded the luggage in the taxi and were off to Bilbao. We arrived at the train station a bit earlier than normal, because a couple of days ago, I received an email from Renfe, that part of our journey had been changed from train to bus. We had questions so we arrived early to make sure we would have a smooth transition. It all turned out fine, as far as making the connections. ... read more

Today is the day we learn to cook pulpo (octopus). It was not an early day, but still the alarm went off at 6, but I didn’t get out of bed until seven. The hotel is pretty large, so breakfast has timed seatings so they can make sure everyone gets seated. The breakfast room was on the second floor in the first building. It was your typical layout, meat, cheeses, breads, fruit. There were no hot items, as they were all cooked to order. The coffee was the best of the trip, your own individual pot and a smaller pot of hot milk. Not to mention, instead of having the communal serving pieces each place setting had their own tongs to take to the buffet. You didn’t have to worry if someone didn’t wash their hands, ... read more

Well rested, but sore from my fight with the wall and sight walk, our last day would also be our only full day of experiencing Seville. Before I begin, I failed to mention when we came back from dinner last night the hotel had left us a bottle of sparkling wine, I have no idea why, but it was a very nice touch, even if it was Italian and no Spanish. The alarm went off at six, thirty minutes of snooze time, and I was in the shower, I can barely lift my left arm above my neck, so the shower was an experience. My knee is quite purple, and my ring finger also managed to sustain an injury and is a bit swollen, Jerry is stuck with me now, since the wedding ring is not ... read more