Blogs from Spain, Europe - page 1387

Ceuta, Spanish Morroco Though it’s a holiday, and most things are closed, we have enjoyed our day. It’s a three day holiday in celebration of May Day , much like our Veterans Day. There was a parade held in the square where we watched the military band play and wondered who the dignitaries were, and at the time, why the parade. (We didn’t find out until later on the ship.) John and I spent the morning walking along the promenade by the sea, observing the differences in here and America. It is hard not to sound like an ungrateful American when you first arrive in Europe, with its different attitude and cultures, with its history, and ancient architecture and art surrounding you. Observations We eat a “no fat, low calorie, no carb diet “ yet are ... read more

Malaga On the train to Malaga , John and I were separated because only one seat assignment on our reservation for two. I sat across from a Spanish woman. Her husband and their newly made friends were across the aisle. Through sign language, my limited command of the Spanish language and her lack of understanding of English we managed to carry on a nice little conversation. I was able to find she had two children and three grandchildren, their ages and names. That she lived in Madrid but going on vacation to Malaga, that the one gentleman had visited NYC , California and Nevada. He told me that Malaga was a lot like Carmel by the Sea. Of course his other interpretation, was of Tennessee- Jack Daniels, Dolly Parton and bare feet. After which I felt ... read more

Our last day here. It was very warm again today. We came this morning into a nicer part of town - much busier, and more filled with tourists. We are staying at a nice 3-star hotel. It's a big step up from where we stayed the last two nights. We went to the Palacio Real and took a tour - it's a crazy place. Very lavishly decorated, but fun to see. Got hungry earlier than usual, so we found the Hard Rock Cafe here, and got some drinks, food, and a very tasty dessert. We saw the cool skyline bar they had too -- it was the New York skyline hanging from the ceiling. On the way back to the hotel we went into a store to look around and I found a really cute skirt. ... read more

Today we tour the Alhambra Palace. We arranged 10:00 am reservations while back in the states, as all the guidebooks highly recommend. We were so glad we did, because several other tourists we ran into were turned away when they tried to get tickets. This was my favorite thing (and Angie’s) that we did on our trip. The Palacios Nazaries is the Moorish Royal Palace, built in over a span of three centuries beginning with the 14th century, and yet incredibly well preserved. The palace was visual feast: made up of archways, patios, terraces, honeycombed ceilings, fountains, pools, wells, geometric designs and intricately detailed art work. What were most interesting are 2 things - the use of water throughout, and the stark contrast of the Moorish palace’s Islamic artwork, with its intricate geometric patterns and Arabic ... read more

I started not feeling well today. I hope i'm not getting sick. But at least if I do, we are at the end of our trip. But I still hope I don't -- nothing worse than a long flight when you're sick. Anyway... This morning we got up, checked out and went for a "traditional" breakfust of Spain: Chocolate con Churros. It was really good. We got some Churros (no sugar on them or anything) and a small cup of thick hot chocolate-like liquid. We dipped our churros in and it was delicious! We need breakfust like that at home :D We then went to Passeig de Gracia, which is a street that has some Modernist buildings. We saw two by Gaudi -- La Pedrera and Casa Battlo. They were both cool, but I liked Casa ... read more