timistravels

Flamenco dancers; Casa Patas, Madrid

by timistravels

Dec. 21, 2014

Thanks to our sweet hostess Blanca we had front row seat tickets to see the Flamenco dancers. Flamenco is a traditional folk dance in Spain. It originated in the southern region of Spain, in Andalusia.

The show we attended contained all the traditional components, “cante” (singing), toque (guitar playing), baile (dance) and palmas (handclaps). It was very strong and powerful. Reminded us of the strength of Alaska Native traditional dance. This form of dance is related to the Romani people of Spain and dates back to the late 1700’s.

Our tickets were for the Casa Patas show. They were all the traditional guitar player, violin player, percussion player, and 2 main vocals, as well as three main dancers. We left there feeling as if we’ve had a very powerful cultural experience. My only disappointment was that the vision I’d had in my of head of many women in beautiful dresses was not in this show. Only one female dancer with no flowery flowing dress.

However the two male dancers were powerful and we enjoyed it very much.

If you want to go get tickets in advance and reserve a front row seat, the dancers are in your lap and you even get some sweat tossed on you 😕http://www.flamencotickets.com/casa-patas-madrid

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Spain Travel Uncategorized

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Andorra; the smallest state in Europe

by timistravels

Dec. 26, 2014

Glad we got an early start as we headed north out of Barcelona to Andorra. We had no trouble getting out of the city as it was the day after Christmas and seem to be no one was working today. We headed north and hit a lot of fog to start with however it cleared and the views became beautiful. Once we reached Andorra we thought we had to possibly clear customs or something, but we simply just crossed the border into a new country, guess that’s the European Nations way!

We stopped in the first little town center St Julia, for some breakfast and coffee and enjoy just walking around town for a bit. The town of Andorra is very reminiscent of an Aspen or Vail, a typical resort/ ski town. Andorra is in the heart of the Pyrenees mountains, sandwiched between France and Spain. It is only 180 square miles and a majority of that is forests, lakes, rivers and mountains only 8% is urbanized. Just over 75,000 people live in the country and Today tourism is it’s leading economy however agriculture was its traditional economy.

We learned that Andorra did not even become a country enjoying the UN until 1993. No wonder many are unaware it is a country.

Our visit was only about an hour and a half however on our way out of the country line to enter had extended to at least a mile to a mile and a half, Spaniards were heading to Andorra for a winter weekend getaway. We lucked out!

We had debated whether to take the highway through the mountains or the straight highway below! We decided start on a mountain route ~ for about 1 mile, until we discovered while driving a stick shift on those curvy, curvy, curvy, slow roads I’d probably kill myself or Harry before the trip was done. Backtracked the miler so and headed out on the highway we were still blessed with amazing views of the scenery around Northern Spain and the Pyrenees mountains.

Another town we stopped in was Jaca, as we noticed a beautiful fort surrounding a hillside. Upon inspection we discovered it was Castillo de San Pedro.

But I do have to say that the highlight of the day after being on the road for about 10 hours was pulling into our sweet little town up in the mountains called Sos del Rey Catoilico. The sun was setting as we drove towards it which made it even more magical. We easily found her hotel and we’re delighted when we walked in and saw the beauty of this quaint little town. The family that owns the hotel and mentioned to us that there was a concert starting at 7 PM in the church down the way. We opted to go be one with the community and enjoy the show tremendously.

No pictures of the community to add to the blog yet but I’ll try to add some tomorrow. All the other shots from today are either from Andorra for the road trip.

Andorra Spain Travel

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Basilica de la Sagrada Familia

by timistravels

Dec 25, 2014

Basilica de la Sagrada Familia is the 2nd most visited site in Europe after the Eiffel Tower with about 3 million visitors a year. Gaudi spent 43 years working on this project and the “life” side was finished before he died. The rest has been, and continues to be, built from his vision and models. 75% is completed but the last 25% will be the most difficult.

There will be 10 more towers built and the main entry. They will need to tear down over 1000 apartments to finish the basilica. The goal is to complete it by 2026, which would mark the 100th anniversary of Gaudi’s death ( by accident, he was hit by a train 74 years old).

The side he finished which we entered through represents Life; Faith, Charity and Hope. Mary and Jesus are symbolized in the birth while there are the three wise men, Angels playing music, the star of Bethlehem. On the other side is the life of Jesus, this is sometimes called the “Bible in stone”.

At the base of the two main columns are turtles. One a sea turtle and the other a land one. This is because this Basilica is in the exact center of town 1/2 way between the water and the mountains.

Gaudi used nature as inspiration. He would say that he felt most near God when he was in the forest with giant trees and the sun filtering in through the trees. This is the feeling you get inside the church, the light flowing in through the stain glass is stunning and ever changing. It was just breathtaking.

Also inside are 52 pillars symbolic of the 52 Sunday’s a year. The balcony will hold up to 1200 choir members. Each of the windows have a name in the middle reflecting locations in the world with special sanctuaries.

The current exit side of the building reflects death, including the last supper and the burial. After Gaudi’s death another architect was brought into finish this facade. Ironically he was agnostic yet wanted to take on this challenge and insisted on living in the structure as Gaudi before him had done.

The side not built will be themed Glory, and those working on the completion continue to use the models Gaudi built and keep his vision in the forefront of all they do.

All in all stunning structure.

Spain Travel

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A full day exploring Barcelona!

by timistravels

Dec. 24, 2014

We stayed on the outskirts of town but 2 blocks from the metro, so first stop tickets for metro! Bought a 10 pack for about 10 euro and headed into the center of town. First stop, the Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia. We are always in awe of the churches in Europe, so detailed and beautiful. We were able to go inside, and take photos while in there.

Work began on this cathedral in 1298 and did not finish until late in the 19th century, though most of the work was done in the 14th century. Surrounding the building are many gargoyles both real and mythical animals fare represented. The inside had a stunning dome and countless stain glass windows. The organ was not in the traditional location rather along the wall on the right side.

We continued towards the water front and opted for a boat ride on a “golondrinas” which we hopped on right near the Columbus statue. The ride was about 45 minutes but gave a great view of the city.

We continued on foot to Las Rambras street probably the most famous street in Barcelona. We ate lunch here, drank sangria, walked through the market and soaked in some culture. We even saw a guy with an Alaskan Brewery shirt on! (Figured he was most likely a cruise ship employee).

Next came Gaudi’s apartment that had been designed for a wealthy couple at the turn of the century. Though interesting, NOT interesting enough to spend 20 euro/pp to go inside!

A few blocks away we spotted the Casa Terrades, Another castle in the Gothic style. The spires of this castle can been seen from many blocks away and they made us want to venture out and see it.

Last stop of the day was The Arc de Triomf. It was built as the main access gate for the 1888 Barcelona World Fair, and is a gathering place for many locals and tourist, a place to enjoy an evening walk, sit and people watch or be entertained by street vendors.

Spain Travel Uncategorized

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The Royal Palace in Madrid.

by timistravels

Dec. 22, 2014

The Royal Palace of Madrid is a great way to spend a few hours while in Madrid, and absolutely should be on your list. It is not lived in today though they are ceremonies that do take place in the castle. It is near the Opera station of the metro and costs 11euro to enter or is FREE from. 4-6 daily. Don’t confuse lines. The one you will see first is for group tours, go around the corner for individual tickets.

The original Castle was in 16th century but sadly burnt in 1734 and the current castle was built on the same site. It took almost 20 years to build the current structure in which Charles III first occupied it in 1764.

There are 3,418 rooms though on the tour you may only see 20-30 rooms. It is the largest square foot palace in Europe. Unlike the Versailles in Paris much of the interior of the palace is original and in tact. There are many famous paintings, much porcelain, gold, silver and even Stradivarius instruments.

All in all a must see when in Madrid. Ironically our host family here have never been! It takes guest sometimes for people to see a touristy thing in the back yard! NO PHOTOS allowed inside the palace rooms so photos are of postcards or off the website.

Spain Travel

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Toledo, Spain nothing like Toledo, Ohio !!!

by timistravels

Dec 21, 2014
A perfect day trip from Madrid by car, bus or train, Toledo is a treasure not only because of its history (the former capital of Spain) but also because has a number of important monuments. It is called the “city of the three cultures” because Christians, Arabs and Jews lived together there together for centuries, leading to much diversity. The city Is surrounded by River Tagus which helps frame the city on a hill.

It was quite easy to get turned around and lost as the streets maze in and out in the historic downtown. Small alleys almost so narrow you could touch the walls on either side are 100’s of years old, and many are not wide enough for vehicles. There are churches, mosques, and synagogues as well as convents and monasteries all in the downtown.

One of the first standouts is the Cathedral (8 euro entry) is thought to be an outstanding part of Gothic art. It was started to be built in 1226 but did not finish until the 1400’s.

The first official stop was Iglesias de Santo Tome to see the famous painting; El Entierro Del Señor De Orgaz or The Burial of the Count of Orgaz. It is a painting by El Greco, a famous painter who moved here from Crete, Greece. It’s a very large painting (we could not take pictures so this is from the museum site) that experts point out is “heavenly above and terrestrial below, but it gives little impression of duality. ”

We left there and headed to the Greco museum only to get lucky as they closing in 15 minutes so we ran and saw some of his other famous paintings.

All and all Toledo is a MUST SEE if you ever get to Spain!

Cathedral in Toledo, Spain

Spain Travel

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Madrid’s Museums Reina Sofia and Prado!

by timistravels

Dec. 20, 2014

What a wonderful day to begin exploration of Madrid. First stop, The Reina Sofía National Art Centre. We came here specifically to see som Picasso’s and Dail’s paintings. There is much work from the Surrealism period and covers artwork from 1930’s through 1980’s. As I expected some of it was just bizarre to me personally. It was as if all these artist friends tried to out wired each other for a certain time period.

Onto our next stop the Prado Museum which was just blocks from Sofia.
However unlike Sofia this museum is full of European art dating back to the 12th century, stunning oil paintings lined the walls. We viewed much work by Francisco de Goya, Diego Velázquez, El Greco, Titian, Peter Paul Rubens and Hieronymus Bosch are some of the highlights of the collection. No photos are allowed to be taken inside the Prado!

Two pieces that stood out to me were: Las Meninas, as We have statues of it given to us as a gift years ago. To see painting was stunning. We are NOT allowed to take photos so theses both came off the website of the museum.

Second stand out was The Garden of Earthly Delights by Bosch. To me it’s a painting before its time. It was painted sometime between 1490 and 1510. It is a 3 panel painting done with the 2 side ones being shutters. The left shutter is Adam and Eve, the middle has a lot of nudity, animals, fruits, etc and the right shutter then displays hell or what happens after adultery etc. they say it shows what happens with life’s temptations. The reason it stood out to me was because it seems ahead of its time. It is more Salvador Dali like than something done in 1490-1510!

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Bus 69, the Eiffel Tower, and Rue Cler.

by timistravels

Afternoon dec. 18, 2014

On your last visit to Paris we saw the Eiffel Tower in the evening only. We decided this year would be interesting to see it in the daylight so we headed there after the castle. After seeing you both in the daylight in the evening it’s stunning both times however I feel the evening is when it is at its romantic best. Starting at 5 o’clock every hour on the hour the tower lights up and twinkle which is just a surreal experience.

Since we were at the Eiffel Tower we decided to follow the advice of one of our tour books on the city bus 69 for a cheap tour of the city. According to the bus stop sign the bus was to come every 15 minutes however after waiting for 30 and rereading the sign it indicated it would not be there for another hour we decided to venture elsewhere.

We went exploring Rue Cler a quaint small community not far from the tower. We enjoyed walking up and down the streets and looking in the queen little shops. On our way back towards the Eiffel Tower we noticed a Nother bus stop with both 69 soon to arrive we opted to happen on. (We are still not sure why there was a delay earlier in the day, even locals were curious.) The bus ride ended up being a pretty positive experience however because it was late in the day the sun started to set by the time we got over to the Maris region of town the sun has gone down and Paris had turned into the city of lights.

We spent a little more time exploring that region of town before hopping on the metro back to the Eiffel tower where we were just in time to watch the 7 o’clock late twinkle. We opted to head over to Rue Cler for dinner and eventually walked back by the Eiffel Tower just in time to watch the 9 o’clock sparkles-it was a brilliant day all.

Paris

Palace of Versailles in Paris

by timistravels

Dec. 18, 2014.

We were so excited when we bought all day train/bus passes to realize we could go all the way to The Palace of Versailles on the total opposite end of town from where we stayed. We awoke early and headed out arriving about 8 am knowing it did not open until 9, but wanting to avoid lines we’d read about. Let me assure you we were the first in line at 8;45, there were no lines for tickets in Dec!

Originally a cottage or hunting lodge this castle sits in what used to be the country for those living in Paris. Now the area is a suburb for people with money! It is easy to find the castle once you get off the train just go around the corner and head in the direction you are facing when you get off the train.

Louis XIV moved to the castle in the late 1600’s and began the elaborate decorations and expansion of the palace. That is of course until the beginning of the French Revolution when the family was forced out of the castle and back into France due in part to His arrogance and extravagance while many lived in poverty. During the Revolution much of the original furniture was auctioned off or pillaged by Parisians unhappy with the monarchy.

On the tour one of the most stunning room was the Hall of Mirrors. The chandeliers that line this room are stunning. The windows (mostly original glass) help make the room bright and airy. There were rooms/apartments for everyone, the king, his wife and their daughters. Another standout room was the Public Dining Room where common Parisians would come by nightly to watch the royals eat dinner. Such arrogance.

Another beautiful area of the castle are the gardens. Though they were dormant in Dec it is easy to imagine these gardens in the spring/summer. The fountains were off and the statues were all covered for winter. However, from reading posts it sounds like many of the fountains are off all summer as well.

We also ventured to Marie-Antoinette’s estate which is a (poorly signed) 1 mile walk from the castle through the gardens. It was worth the visit but almost a let down after the castle. NOTE: This does not open until noon!

All in all we spent about 4 hours exploring. Thankfully there were not as many tourists as in the summer months though there were many “tour groups” entering vs independent travelers like ourselves.

oration

Paris Uncategorized

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The Catacombs of Paris

by timistravels

Dec. 17, 2014-Day 1 in Paris, we were so jetlagged but decided to hit the ground running til we dropped. We decided to visit the Catacombs, which was interesting to say the least. 6 million people buried in the limestone caves under Paris.

A bit of how this came to be. For years Parisians buried the deceased near churches and along their neighborhoods. By the late 1700’s these burial areas were very large and growing. Parisians wanted more of the real estate to build homes houses not for burial grounds. King Louis XVI decided to investigate the abandoned underground limestone mines as an option for burial.

In 1776 Graveyards all around Paris were dug up and moved in mass to the abandoned mining area, now called the catacomb. Cemeteries were moved to this location for many years. To this day there is still a lot of space for burials however there are no large buildings in this area because the foundation is so unstable as the tunnels are right below the streets.

The visit left me a bit uneasy but it was intriguing though I’m glad we visited.