Blogs from Pitres, Granada, Andalusia, Spain, Europe

The past three days have been perfect. We did two things that I had hoped to do but wasn’t sure we would. On Monday we drove to Capileira and did a hike that took us up the gorge towards the high sierras. It was about a 10 km hike with lots of ups and downs. We could hear the rushing river the entire time. We passed many abandoned farms, and others that were so far out in the middle of nowhere they seemed to be abandoned, but the land was clearly being cultivated. We saw numerous old stone threshing circles and stone terraces. We passed springs and crossed streams. The views up and down the valley were stunning and when we came back around towards Capileira and glimpsed the village down below us we sat and ... read more

We have been in Spain since Wednesday. The flights over were uneventful and we liked going through Washington D.C. Basically we flew for 4 hours, relaxed and walked around for 4 hours and then flew for 6 ½ hours - much better than the Portland to Frankfurt flight that took 12 or more hours without a break! Our first night was in Valdepenas, which is known as the “city of wine.” We stayed at a bodega - surrounded by grapes. After naps and showers we drove to Almagro, a small city about 30 kms away. The drive there went through miles of grapes and olives and windmills. We parked on a cobblestone side street and made our way to the Plaza Mayor. It was so interesting - shops, bars and cafes, surround the plaza and up ... read more