Blogs from Catalonia, Spain, Europe - page 11

I've always wondered what it would be like to go to Spain. The Philippines was under Spanish rule for 333 years so the Spanish influence is big. So big that we think it's our own. Spanish words are part of language and I was surprised when I studied Spanish that words that I thought were Filipino were actually Spanish just spelled the way Filipinos spell. Like how we ask "How are you?". We say "Kumusta?" and only later in life did I realize that it came from the Spanish phrase "Como esta?". Made me wonder how pre-colonial Filipinos greeted each other before we had the word Kumusta. I landed in Barcelona and had no idea how to get out of the airport. I saw a group of Filipinos and asked them. It seemed that there were ... read more

There are some rather nice photos of the Sierra Nevada, they may have made it onto a second page. Please look for them Salou on the Mediterranean Sea. The town thronged with happy holiday makers, mostly Brits. They walked around town in their swimsuits, smiling, contended and happy. It is easy for us to take our sun and sand for granted. It was good to see people so relaxed and happy. Catalan activists on Monday marked the first anniversary of their disputed independence referendum by blocking train tracks and roads across Spain’s restive northeastern region and trying to break into the Catalan Parliament, underlining how charged the conflict over separatism remains. We saw demonstrations and heavily armed police and military. There are yellow ribbons everywhere. I hope they work it out. Interestingly Catalan language is very ... read more

10/6/18 - Our 2nd day in Barcelona, we met up with our guided tour excursion. Our first stop is up the mountain of Montserrat were we visited the site of Our Lady of Montserrat, better known to the locals as the Black Madonna. This place is so beautiful and peaceful with it's natural scenery, you can feel the sacred ambiance of the surrounding. Mass was being celebrated at the Cathedral during our visit and we were lucky enough to have been part of the gathering from start to finish. We spent a good amount of time outside the basilica enjoying the beautiful landscape surrounding the mountain. After a while we head back down the mountain to our next stop the La Sagrada Familia. The Sagrada Familia is an expiatory temple, that is to say, a place ... read more

Toulon pictures were attached this morning, while we were docked in Barcelona. I don’t know why it takes so long to upload in the evenings, but it is much faster in the mornings. Hello from Barcelona. GOOD NEWS – Janet is feeling considerably better. A combination of the medicines, smooth sailing, and extra rest has gotten her back to feeling more like a passenger rather than a patient. However we had decided previously that it would not be a good idea to take our excursion to the La Sagrada Familia Basilica so we cancelled those tickets. Instead we had a fairly restful day in port but still on the ship. It would have been interesting to see what new progress they have made in the past 2 ½ years, but we knew how much walking it ... read more

Sometimes life decides that the path you are directed on is not actually the path for you, in my case this just happened in a massive way. Ready for a new adventure and to start again in a wonderful new county fate stepped in. Although I was torn between staying and leaving I had some traction spurring me on from when I had first made the decision to move September 2017. I have always dreamed and discussed moving to Canada and a sudden now or never feeling crept over me. The process of the visa application is a long and expensive one, made extra difficult because I don’t currently live in my birth country I spent months getting all the paperwork together. In July this year I was in London making money for the move, in ... read more