Lost in Barcelona

March 27th--Today started off a little crazy with our first experience with the Barcelona metro system. We left our apartment heading for the Metro station, but once we arrived there, we couldn't located the route we were looking for. So, we took a train heading to Placa de Catalunya thinking that it was a large metro stop and we would be able to find our route from there. Once arriving there, I felt like we just turned circles trying to figure out where to go from there. We finally figured out that Barcelona has more than just a Metro line. It also has a separate FGC line. So, what we got on originally was the FGC line that basically just runs north through the city from Placa de Catalunya. We should have walked further down the street and actually entered into the Metro station. I just kept thinking "wow, it was a lot easier to move around the Madrid subway than here". However, once we found the actual metro line station at Plaza de Catalunya, we easily mapped out our route to the Barceloneta stop which is the stop closest to the beach. We had to walk about 1/2 mile to get to the beach. There were a lot of people on the beach, but most everyone had their clothes on versus bathing suits. The sun was shining, but it was very windy which made it a little chilly. We sat in the sand for a little while doing some people watching while the kids played. There were a lot of American kids here on Spring Break. After a little while, we decided to walk the boardwalk area. It's a nice walk along the coast line. We saw a lot of sand sculptures, bicycle riders, and dogs. At the end was the Olympic Village which, in 1992, housed the Olympic athletes. It is now apartments. Once reaching the end, we enjoyed a snack as we turned around and walked back. We were going to head to the tower to ride the cable cars to Montjuic but once arriving there, the tower was closed. So, we got on a bus that dropped us off at the bottom of the Ramblas. We then walked for what felt like miles and miles up Parallel (walking right into the sun). We were heading to Placa d'Espanya in order to get there by 7:00 to see the Magic Fountains. What an unbelievable view we saw from both directions of the steps by the Magic Fountains. Above the fountains (which was behind us on the steps) was the Catalan Art Museum. It is a massive National Palace. In front of us were the fountains, then Placa d'Espanya and in the distance, the church at the top of Barcelona's highest peak. The Magic Fountains (Font Magica) was a 20 minute show of music, colored lights, and huge amounts of water. There was a huge crowd for this as the fountains only come on on Friday and Saturday nights during the winter months. When the fountains were over we headed back to the apartment via the subway. We are pretty confident that we figured out the subway system now. The thing I'm not confident about is finding my way back to the apartment, with just Abby, in the dark. On our walk back to the apartment, we stopped at a deli nearby to pick up some food for dinner. Abby and I decided to go back to the apartment while Mike and Austin picked out our food. Well, somehow, we went the wrong way and got lost even though we were only a block away from the apartment. Instead of the intersection corners being squared off, they are rounded. At one point, Abby and I were just circling an intersection trying to figure out which direction the apartment was. I finally figured out which direction the apartment was and had my own "Jimmy Jones" laugh. Mike and Austin had obviously beat us back to the apartment. By then, I was laughing so hard, I was crying and no one else could join in. I told Mike that I never panicked and Abby said "yes you did because you said "Oh No!" a couple of times and that means you were panicked." So today started off with us being "lost" on the metro and ended with Abby and I being "lost" on the streets. Hopefully, we have it all figured out now!

Adios Costa del Sol, Hola Barcelona

March 26th--We successfully survived another travel day yesterday. We left the apartment and took a bus to Malaga where we caught the train for Barcelona. We actually decided to break up the trip so we took a 2.5 hour "fast" train to Madrid and then had a 50 minute layover before the 3 hour "fast" train to Barcelona. We probably could have done without the stop, but there is only one direct train from Malaga and it doesn't leave until late in the day. We've decided that we don't like arriving in new cities after dark if we can avoid it. We all made the train ride fine. The kids have totally adjusted to travel and are really good at this point. It helps that they can move around a little on the trains as well. We arrived in Barcelona around 5:30 and took a taxi to the apartment. The sister of the lady who owns the apartment met us and let us in. It is a very nice, quaint apartment in the Eixample district of downtown Barcelona. It is small but very "homey" feeling. We made our normal run to the local grocery store for the basics after we got settled in. We got up this morning and decided to walk to the Placa de Catalunya, the very central square that divides old and new Barcelona. The square is only a few block away from the apartment and has a information office where we were able to pick up some maps and local guides. We then began walking down the Ramblas. This grand boulevard is full of various pedestrian activities including an outdoor bird market, flower market and various street mimes and artists. Its non-stop people watching. Along the way, we stopped off for lunch at La Fonda, a local restaurant with a great Spanish and Mediterranean cuisine. It was recommended to us by the guys we met on the trip to Morocco. The Ramblas leads to the port where a wooden pedestrian bridge extends into the harbor and leads to the Maremagnum (a big mall). On Abby's suggestion, we sat down for a while on the dock overlooking the water to "sunbathe". After relaxing at the port, we turned around and walked back up the Ramblas towards the apartment. Along the way, one of the favorite street mimes of the kids was a guy sitting on a toilet (imagine that for Austin). It sounds weird to spend a day walking a street, but believe me the 1 mile stretch is filled with tons of activity. Plus it was a beautiful, sunny day. After our long day of walking, we came back to the apartment and fed the kids dinner as they were tired and hungry. I went downstairs to an Italian restaurant next to the apartment and got takeaway for Amy and I to enjoy once the kids fell asleep. It was awesome food and the lady that owns the restaurant, Sam, was super nice. She spoke great English and was very helpful and full of local suggestions. Something tells me we will be back there again.

Sevilla Happens! – Day 2

March 22nd – Well, as much as we would like to center this blog around the great sights on our 2nd day in Sevilla, there is one event that left an indelible mark in our memories. We have commented before that while we are traveling and having lots of great travel experiences, we are also “living” and having real life experiences. One of those real life experiences is potty training Austin. Before I get to the “story” of the day, let’s start back at the beginning. Today, Austin woke the rest of us up since he fell asleep early last night and the rest of us enjoyed a late night in Sevilla. I left the hotel with Austin on a journey for a large Starbucks coffee while Amy took a shower and Abby played on Disney.com. It was my first Starbucks since we left and I didn’t really need the Starbucks as much as a large cup of coffee. The small café con leche just wasn’t going to do it this morning. As you’ll understand later, it’s a good thing I had my caffeine. Anyway, we got the coffee and went back to pick up the girls at the hotel. We walked a mile or so into Bario Santa Cruz, Sevilla’s once-thriving Jewish quarter, to enjoy breakfast at a small café in Plaza Santa Maria la Blanca. We had a great breakfast outside on the square; enjoying the sunny weather and the various Cathedral bells ringing for Sunday mass. The kids were playing in the plaza while we were waiting on our check. All of a sudden Austin shouts, “uh-oh, poopy”. Amy jumped up with him and thought she had caught him quick enough to get him to the potty; or worse case, contain the damage. No such luck. Apparently, Austin is the first one to get the “traveler’s trots”. He had pooped (read “diarrhea”) everywhere. I will spare you the entire gory details, but suffice it to say that after about 15 minutes, Amy and Austin finally appeared from the tiny bathroom in the cafe with his underwear and socks having been lost as casualties. His shoes and jeans would have gone in the trash too if they weren’t his only pair of shoes we had and we weren’t halfway across town from the hotel. To make matters worse, the light in the bathroom was on a timer (with the switch outside) so every minute or two, Amy had to open the door to turn the light back on. We took off for a quick journey back to the hotel and had many “Jimmy Jones” laughs. Along the way, we passed some horse drawn carriages and honestly couldn’t tell if the smell was the horses or Austin. We got back to the hotel and threw Austin in the shower. I will say this, I’m not sure about the normal use of a bidet, but it makes a great impromptu jeans washer. After we finally got everyone cleaned up, we headed back out to restart our day. We headed back the direction we had just come from to see the Alcazar. The Alcazar was originally a 10th century Moorish palace. However the palace was destroyed during the Reconquista period so what exists today is a 14th century rebuild done by Moorish workman for the Christian king Pedro I. As a side note, it’s been interesting learning the history of Spain. We are now beginning to be able to spot architectural influences from the various periods. For example, the horseshoe arches in buildings, green doors, ceramic tiles, etc. that are Moorish legacy. After leaving the Alcazar, we stopped by a deli to pick up items to make sandwiches. We then headed up the pedestrian street Avenida de la Constitucion to Plaza Nueva. We sat on the steps of a statue in the Plaza and enjoyed our picnic. We left the plaza and went back to the hotel to pick up our bags and head to the train station. We left Sevilla at 3:40 and arrived in Malaga at 5:30. The Malaga train station is connected to a mall so we went to the food court for a light dinner and ice cream before heading back to Marbella on the 7:00pm bus. It was a great trip to Sevilla and a day our minds (and noses) won’t soon forget!

Sevilla, Day One

March 21st--Today was our first overnight outing. We just packed a small bag and left the apartment in Puerto Banus at 7:15 a.m. We caught the 7:45 a.m. bus from Marbella to Malaga. Once arriving in Malaga (about 8:30), we walked to the train station, purchased our tickets and boarded the train. We departed Malaga at 9:10 and arrived in Sevilla at 11:00. It was a pretty uneventful trip...we like those kind! Anyway, we took a taxi to our hotel and were able to check in early. We are staying at the Hotel Maestranza. It is your typical, small European hotel with only 18 rooms; which is exactly what we wanted to experience. We all have our own individual twin beds and the hotel is located in a busy area of Sevilla. We immediately tried to make plans for our 2 days here in Sevilla. Our original plan was to go to a bullfight tonight, but kids under 14 are not allowed...too bloody. Imagine that! So we changed our plans to go to a Flamenco show. More on that later in the day. By the time we wrapped up our plans for the evening, it was time to eat lunch. We ate a light lunch at Horno San Buenaventura located on Avenida de la Constitucion (a pedestrianized boulevard), across from the cathedral. Since we were right by the cathedral, we decided to go there next. Sevilla's cathedral is the third largest church in Europe and the largest Gothic church anywhere. Before the cathedral was built, a mosque of brick was in it's place. The only part remaining from the mosque is the bell tower. We climbed to the top of the Giralda Tower. It is 330 feet up with a spiraling ramp which was designed to accommodate riders on horseback, who galloped up five times a day to give the Muslim call to prayer. We walked through the entire cathedral seeing things like the high altar, the choir, and the tomb of Columbus. Christopher Columbus was buried first in Spain, then in Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, then Cuba, and back again to Sevilla (when Cuba gained independence from Spain around 1900). After leaving the cathedral, we walked to the Bullring where we did a 25 minute guided tour of the bull arena, its museum and the chapel where the matador prays before the fight. The tour was done in Spanish and English and was a great insight into the 4 steps of a bullfight. There are 3 matadors and 6 bulls that consume an entire fight. It takes 20 minutes to kill each bull with a 4 step process that has 5 minutes each. Abby had been a little upset that we weren't going to a bullfight until she found out that the bull was actually killed and there would be "bleed". Once she found that out, she wasn't so sure she wanted to go, but then decided that you can just get up and walk out before the end. Funny child. After the tour, we walked back to the hotel to rest for about an hour before heading to our Flamenco Show. The show we saw was at tablao El Arenal de Sevilla. There was a lot of guitar playing, singing, dancing, hand-clapping (called palmas) and castanets. It was very good and cultural. Austin enjoyed the first part until he decided to go to sleep. I don't how he slept through all the noise, but I guess he was really tired. Abby really enjoyed it. In fact, as I type this, it's 11:00 p.m. and she's still up, playing her own castanets.........