Saturday 21 April 2012  - Barcelona City

Day 9 and 149 to go

Well with 1 kahlua and coke under my belt I am now perched in the café area of our camp ground with the changeable blue waters of the Mediterranean dancing ahead of me. Paul has just joined me and has decided to put his feet in the pool to ease his sore ankle. We have had yet another full day of walking and sight seeing and the bottom of my feet are now screaming at me! I am hoping the weight is falling off with each step.

Last night after dinner, which was early by our standards 8pm, we headed out for a walk along the beach-front this time heading towards Barcelona. It was still light so we took full advantage heading as long as we could before turning back to the camp and another night of rest.

In the morning Paul was up and ready to start the next adventure. Being Saturday the train to central Barcelona (Catalunya) was a little less packed. We changed some money on La Rambla before getting onto the underground for Vallcarca the nearest metro stop to Parc Guell. We were heading here as it is a Guadi inspired area. Originally designed to be a self-contained community, it has since become a tourist mecca to see the magical world of Gaudi. 

We firstly had to get to the park which meant traversing ridiculously steep streets with the throngs of people. In some places there were escalators to ease the journey. Once at the top of the hill we entered the park and the first stop was the lookout over Barcelona and to the Mediterranean. What a view. 

 

We continued into the park to see Gaudi’s work. It is like walking into a wonderland where he has been free to create whatever he likes and cover it mosaics. We took pictures while squeezing into gaps for the best vantage points.

We made a quick exit and began walking to La Sagrada Familia. A large, unfinished cathedral that was started in the 18^th century and is likely to be finished in 2020! MAYBE. The tourist crowds had the line going around the perimeter of the building so we decided to just do a walk around the edge and not go in. Again Gaudi was commissioned to complete some of the architecture and he oversaw work for 40 years.

  

 

Getting back on the train we headed to the Placa de Toros monument. This is a bullfighting ring, which did not appear to have been used in many years. It appears the Catalunyan’s are not in favour of this barbaric sport any longer. We had a wander around inside and checked out the centre before heading out and finding somewhere for lunch.

It is always interesting stopping to eat out on the street as you get to people watch. Being Saturday it was quiet on the roads.

Our next walk was to the Arc de Triomf. Along the parkway a street market of alternative clothing, jewellery and produce was set up. The street was swarming with people checking it all out. It was a lucky find. 

 

Getting to the end we set the GPS for Catalunya metro and walked back to the centre of the city. This allowed us to walk through the narrow back alleys behind and between people’s homes. It was great taking this option as we got a feel of life amongst the city.

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Returning to the metro we made our way back to the camp-ground. We got off at 1 stop after in the hope of going to the supermarket but were thwarted by siesta which occurs from 2 – 5pm. Bugger.

So now I am still sitting outside the café with Paul. It is pleasant but breezy. We will need to start thinking about dinner shortly as it is 6.30pm. Early for the locals but not for us. Tonight Barcelona is playing Real Madrid We might get out to check out part of the match at one of the local bars. We now need to start thinking about tomorrow’s adventure as we will be starting up the van and heading south along the coast and into Tarragona. We will more than likely then continue our journey towards Seville. But of course anything could happen. 

Friday 20 April 2012  - Barcelona City

Day 8 and 150 to go

Awake and feeling rested this morning I dragged Paul out to the beach for an early morning walk. The sun was only just up as we looked out towards Barcelona watching the light bounce off the city. I reached into the Mediterranean just to say that I did. The water was quite warm. Despite the clear and fine morning there was no one out enjoying the water. On day like this many of the Perth beaches would have been packed. 

 

We returned to the van for breakfast and to clean up before heading back out and onto the train into Barcelona. It was only a 15min trip and we were in the heart of it emerging at Font de Canaletes a large fountain in the middle of crazy streets packed with traffic. The same place we drove the van through yesterday. Ahhhh!

I attempted to get my bearings but it wasn’t really happening so we followed the crowds down the main street La Rambla. It was packed with tourists and at times I felt like a salmon swimming up stream. We stopped at a small café along the main strip mainly because of the size of the beer glasses. I told Paul I wanted the glass for a small goldfish it was that large. It was wonderful just sitting and watching the world go by. Barcelona is a lot different to Madrid. It is quite obviously a modern city.

Our walk continued down La Ramble to Mirador de Colom, a large statue marking the port. We wandered along the waterfront checking out the vessels, including Victoria, a recreated ship of the 15^th century.  

 

Wanting to find the Palau Guell, we headed back up a different street only to get ourselves lost and ending up in hooker ave. The girls were of all shapes, sizes, ages and races. In every doorway one stood. It was quite sleazy.

Quite by accident we ended up at the Catalunya Biblioteca and I realised we had walked too far again. The Biblioteca was yet another interesting building with a courtyard in which many students were gathered enjoying the sunshine.

Back out on the main road and retracing our steps, much to Paul’s delight, I found the street I had missed the first time that led to the Palau Guell. The façade was an intricate carving of stone and steel adorned above by interesting turrets covered in coloured tiles. This was the first artwork created by Gaudi for the Guell Family. 

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Now with some understanding of direction we headed across the road to check out the Plaza Reial and on to the Cathedral a magnificent gothic building dating back to the 13^th century. 

By now the walking was paying off and lunch was required. We found a café off the main streets to eat at. It was a welcome relief to be off the feet and to have food in the belly.

With the major architecture ticked off the list we decided to end our day in Barcelona and head back to the van. By 4pm we were enjoying a cold drink.

 

Thursday 19 April 2012  - From Lake to Sea

Day 7 and 151 to go

As expected our night was somewhat restless. Getting used to the noises of the van and being in an unfamiliar and open area aren’t recipes for a good night’s rest. Ducks that sounded like yelling people in the middle of the night had us on edge for a short while and wrestling for bed space were all over come. One thing we didn’t need to worry about was being cold. The van is super toasty. 

By 730am Paul was awake and ready to start the day. I on the other hand wanted to stay put in bed and I did for a short while, then it was up for breakfast and a super quick shower. When you are surrounded by a shower curtain, like a caterpillar in a cocoon, you aren’t looking to have a 10 min bathe.

So with the run of the mill stuff out of the way, e investigated the lake and the old ruins on the spit. We later found out it was an old church, but is now a roofless building encroached on by the scrub and vines.  After checking out our night stop we headed into the town site of Nuevalos. We parked the van and wandered up the steep main street to reach the church that was perched on top of the rocks. It had a spectacular if somewhat precarious position in the town. 

 

With the walk under our belts it was back to driving positions and on the road to Zaragoza about an hour and half away. We watched the winding roads disappear behind us, the landscape was desolate in places with some farming areas. We wound our way up the hillsides and onto the plains fighting with the large trucks that were sharing our road. The rock formations in places were just spectacular. You could see the layers folding over each other like ribbons.

The lands ahead looked dark and stormy. We could see sheets of rain falling in the distance and hoped it would not meet us. 

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By 11am we had followed the GPS to the centre of Zaragoza great, parking not so great. After a couple of goes round and Paul getting a little frustrated we decided we were a tour bus and parked with them.

We walked to the tourist bureau building (Zuda tower)which has roman ruins beneath it. We walked the 5 flights of stairs to check out the view of the religious buildings. We then wandered the main square, Plaza de Pilar. The Basilica de Pilar was beckoning. The architecture of this building is spectacular and the artwork on the inside is incredible. It truly was an amazing place. Apparently it is one of the most important Christianity pilgrimage sites.

 Following our meander down the plaza we ducked into a supermarket for some food before wandering back to the van in the rain. Yes it finally caught up with us and we were soaked by the time we got to the van.

We made our selves lunch while it bucketed outside and then decided to cut short our visit to Zaragoza and hit the road again this time for Barcelona another 2 ½ hours away. So with Paul in the drivers seat and me navigating we continued the road journey.

We took the non-toll roads which meant we saw a little more the country-side but we also shared it with a lot more traffic, mostly large lorries. It was slow going in places but generally easy driving.

By the time it was 4pm we were driving with the nutters through Barcelona centre and no idea where we were heading to. We managed to head out to the seaside and find a park. We were looking for an information bay, but none were found. It was great to get out and stretch, but again the walk was hampered by the rain. By the time we returned I had cleared my head enough to remember that the GPS was likely to list camp- grounds and it did, so we were back on the road to head 14 km away from Barcelona to Masnou where we were able to book into a crappy looking place. But you can’t be too choosy and it was across from the beach and train station.

We found a space for our van, plugged in the power and then had a drink. One that was well deserved.

We checked the map of Barcelona to work out what we would do for the next few days and then we decided to go for a walk along the beach front, not that we could see it over the train line. We made another pit stop at a supermarket for some extra vege and then made our way back to the van to cook up dinner at 9pm. Paul was fading fast so it was a small meal before getting ready for bed. Another 10pm night hopefully more restful than the last.

 

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Wednesday 18 April 2012  - Madrid before a day of new adventures

Day 6 and 152 to go

We are enjoying the luxury of a lay in as not much comes to life before 10am. Today however, we had to be up and packed and checking out at 10am. The staff at Room Mate Laura Hotel have been terrific and it is sad to have to go but a new adventure awaits.

This morning we spent our time walking to Retiro Park, a little like Kings Park as it is large and in the middle of the city. They have many lakes, water features, palaces and gardens to wander around and enjoy. There were many tour groups also taking time out amongst the greenery. Paul and I also found 2 black swans at the Crystal Palace pond! Just a touch of home.

After wandering the park for a couple of hours we headed back toward the hotel, stopping along the way for lunch and then collecting our bags and beginning the trek to the campervan yard in greater Madrid. 

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As you can imagine carrying suitcases and backpacks through the local subway, squeezing onto carriages, feeling lost, asking for directions were all quite stressful but somehow we managed it and we will have the pleasure of doing it all in reverse in a couple of weeks.

In the meantime with the subway and train journey behind us. We caught a cab from Alcala de Henares and were dropped at the campervan yard only to find it closed. With little else to do we parked ourselves outside to wait. JOY! 

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About 30min later Marcos arrived to run us through the van and by 5pm we were on the road. Again stressful but once we were used to the right hand drive we set the GPS to a lake spot I had found on the net which looked like a good place to whole up for our first night.

We drove through small towns, many crumbling around them. Everything is just so old. Eventually we stopped in one of the small towns and bought a few groceries before finally making it to our lakeside destination by 730pm.

First thing to do; unpack, then familiarise ourselves with the van. Paul went for a wander down to the lake while I organised dinner.

By 915pm dinner was complete and we were crawling into bed. Exhausted!

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Tuesday Part 2

Our second excursion had us wandering past a Chocolateria where we stopped for Churros and chocolate. This was yum! The cup of dark chocolate for dunking was to be drunk when finished. I found it too rich so Paul enjoyed two cups. 

We then continued on towards Plaza de Cibeles and the Palacio De Ciebels. Another enormous and extravagant building, for which we admired the architecture. Everything is so grand and old. Something we just can’t experience in Perth and as such I always find so awe inspiring. 

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We meandered along the parkway and past the Fuento de Neptuno (a large sculpture) before ducking into the small lanes once graced by writers from the 1500’s such as Lope De Vega, Miguel de Cervantes. The area is known as the Writer’s Quarter.

Our sightseeing complete we returned to our hotel retracing many of the lanes we had already traversed.

That evening we went in search of Tapas while we walked for a while we returned to a small restaurant near the hotel. We ordered what we could decipher from the menu, squid, salad, salami it was all delicious but I don’t think it was traditional tapas. Nevertheless we returned to the room with a full belly after wandering the streets at night to see Madrid from a different point of view. I am quickly learning that a night owl lifestyle is one that they enjoy and we are slowly converting our natural body and food clock to their norm.