The Places we stayed

Europe » Spain
July 11th 2005

Published: July 12th 2005

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nickandmom

Baraka B&B, Ronda

Inside Garden Terrace

Before we left for Spain there came a point when the arrangements of details for overnight stays became a bit tedious. Nevertheless, I was able to pre-book each reservation on the internet, and I must say the end result was a pleasant variety. When we arrived we stayed with Montserrat, who ran House Family B&B in Barcelona. She was a wonderful person, and was a treasure of information for us newbies. I had arranged a single room, but this was unavailable, so instead she gave us the one bedroom flat above, which was a total treat. From Barcelona we moved to the small town outside Port Aventura, the pool was a welcome reward after all the heat. Next was the B&B in Toledo which overlooked the town. This was really cool, as it was in the country on a huge estate. The breakfast in the morning however was likely one of the worst, consisting of dried out/hard toast and warm juice! The people here spoke only Spanish, so there was lots of opportunity to practise our spanish.
After a crazy drive through the old Jewish quarter of Granada (twice) our host at the B&B here was gracious and full of information

House Family B&B

Entrance door is kind of small!

about the city. His B&B overlooks directly to the Ahlambra and is only accessed by foot, once the vehicle you are driving is parked in a tiny parking spot (thank goodness for the mini). Nick and I enjoyed the views both day and night and the walk down to the old part of Granada took only minutes.
The Baraka B&B in Ronda was run by a wonderful woman who had lived for 23 years in San Fransisco, originally from Armenia. She took a trip to Southern Spain and ended up buying her place in Ronda on the first day! Her courtyard was open air, in the middle of the home, and she had painted it herself, which was very beautiful. She woke us up to the tunes of Nora Jones (Sunrise, sunrise...). Lovely.
Tarifa was next, and what more can you say, but to find a laid back hotel right on the beach with no pretenses is so rare these days. This place was a delight. The owners spoke no english here, so again it was time to use our spanish. The lounge chairs were fabulous futons and were so comfortable.
Selville-our time here far too short- but the hotel

House Family B&B, Barcelona

Our own flat!

pool was a welcome reward after siteseeing in the city in 39 degrees.
Matalascanas-This beach side hotel was not at all what I expected, but Nick and I had a relaxing time here. Again, lots of Spanish to practise here!
Our first experience with staying in a Parador, the state run hotels was in Cordoba. I would definitely recommend this to anyone. The one in Cordoba was absolutely beautiful in a garden setting with orange, lemon, cypress, olive trees (to mention a few) a refreshing swimming pool, and a view across to Cordoba. And a fantastic resteraunt! Exquisite.
Our very next night we spent in the Parador de Cuenca, with a room which looked directly to the hanging houses of Cuenca, with a large bay window which I enjoyed sitting in, sipping a glass of wine while relaxing and taking in the view. Absolutely gorgeous, this building was a 13th century convent.
Our last stop was Madrid, and we stayed at the airport hotel, so that was not much to mention, except to say that it was close to the airport and the place was a mess due to renovations! Oh well, you can't win them all!
My personal favorite