Spain*

Spain: March 24 – April 1

Sevilla
I arrived in Sevilla at approximately 5:45 in the morning. The bus ride was quite humorous with four 75+-year-old women backpacking Europe sitting behind me. They were bickering and trying to keep strangers out of their seats. This was my first overnight bus journey and to be honest it was not too bad. At the bus station, I stored my belongings in a 3 Euro locker for the day, being I planned on catching a bus to Malaga that evening. With it so early in the morning, I read the section in my guidebook on Sevilla over and planned my day. I headed out into town in search of the tourist office, knowing it would not open for a bit. I watched the sun rise over Rio Guadalquivar and witnessed the city come alive. First the trash collectors, then your runners and dog walkers, and then the rush to work; police directing traffic, horns, constant buzz of scooters, and the like. I really enjoyed the scene. I sat in front of the massive cathedral for a bit and then returned to the river to the tourist booth. I pocketed a map and headed out for some intense one-day exploration. For the morning, I decided to wander, and wander is what I did. With only a little sleep, I tired quickly and stopped to read in the Plaza de Espagne. Next I toured the Plaza de Toros de la Real Maestranza, a bull-fighting ring. Being in the heart of bull fighting country, much history and artifacts were kept in the museum. The ring itself was spectacular and an interesting site. Unfortunately no bullfights were being held that evening. After the tour, I meandered through the Centro and had lunch. A tour of the Catedral was next with a relaxing lounge in the Catedral’s courtyard. Following the Catedral, I visited the Alcazar (the oldest European palace still used as a private residence for royalty) and its warm and beautiful gardens. I walked and walked and walked some more through the gardens, I could not get enough! So many exotic plants and the architecture of the Alcazar itself was gorgeous. From here I returned to my original bus station, retrieved my pack, and proceeded to walk across the entire city to the other bus station. Here I caught the 19:30 bus to Malaga.

Malaga
I arrived late in the evening, about 22:30 and had to try and find my hostel. I managed to get turned around several times but at last found it. I was staying in a two-bed room with a girl from Norway, a bit awkward. In my walking I realized my place was situated along the major pedestrian shopping street, so I went out and explored for some time…then off to bed (here I must note how the Spaniards LOVE their ice cream).

The next morning I got up quite early and went for a tourist map. With it in hand, I visited the Mediterranean yet again, walked the steep hill to the castle, and took a good walk around the Cathedral. At this point of the trip, I felt I had seen enough cathedrals, so I opted to only view this one from the outside, not the inside. From here I crossed town to buy my bus ticket out of town in addition to stopping at the train station to buy my train ticket from Granada to Barcelona. For lunch I stumbled upon a seafood market and had freshly fried shrimp and some other seafood dish and then off to the beaches for the rest of the afternoon. That night I discovered a very interesting aspect of Malaga’s culture: young and old pack bags and bags of alcohol and food and go chill in all of the little plazas throughout the city. I observed this long into the night, waiting for people to find bars and the like, but it was one big party until 1:00 when I retired.

The next morning started with a nice hard run along the Mediterranean beach. The clear blue skies and the burning sun made for a sweaty experience. The beach itself was not too impressive but the water was a nice blue and pretty warm. After my run I managed to miss my bus! I was fifteen minutes early and I could not understand for the life of me why the bus driver kept shaking his head no. At the ticket desk I was told that day light savings time occurred and therefore my ticket was for the prior bus-crap- the pitying ticket counter woman printed me a new ticket and I caught the bus. This was the perfect scenario, a once an hour bus, not a flight or train. The two-hour bus ride was uneventful.

Granada
Here was a major frustration…getting to my darn hostel. I had to make three transfers on public buses and ended up in a small mini van where I could not stand and had no room to place my pack. Since I was forced to stand with my pack (crunched and unable to control my body around the many curves) I could not see any stops. I fortunately guessed my stop correctly and finally found my hostel, soaked in sweat and very annoyed. This hostel was another surprise, what I picture hippy life to be. Large, filled common rooms, hammocks, pot, debating intellectuals, and a very non-rushed atmosphere. The friendly guests helped calm me a bit with their smiles and willingness to chat. The true reason for my annoyed attitude was actually the kidney being consumed by my empty stomach. I realized I had not eaten all day except for a package of cookies and an orange! It was 16:00 so I found the infamous pastella (seafood and rice). Fully refreshed I set out to see the town. I walked for about five hours through residential Granada and managed to find the people (it is Sunday and no one was in the Centro). I walked along a heavily used trail down the river and to the base of some mountains. My guess is that every family was out for their Sunday walk. People were playing football and tennis everywhere. It was quite nice to see so many families devoted to family time on a Sunday. That night I experienced the bar scene solo but did manage to eat some free tapas…a huge plus and the main reason I went out. The biggest surprise of the evening was finding Rob and Max and going to an African teahouse. I had mint tea and we were harassed by a crazy gypsy, which really creped us out (the woman came in, started shouting, sat at our table, refused to leave, and finally the owner gave her a Euro and she left). All in all, a great night!

The next day was devoted to the world-renowned Alhambra. I trekked up the steep hill and finally reached this Spanish gem; it is so popular I had to wait 35 minutes in line before being admitted. The wait was well worth it. The Alhambra and its North African influence was a palace like no other. I truly felt I was in Morocco again for portions of my self-guided tour. The mosaics, horseshoe arches, breath taking views of Granada proper, well manicured gardens, and the history that surrounds this elevated palace.
Here I cannot really place words to describe the structure; only pictures can do proper “justice.”(without actually going to the Alhambra). That afternoon I toured the Royal Chambers and visited with Isabella and Ferdinand’s bodies. My hostel was located in the Albaicin (the intricate cobbled stones formerly the Muslim quarters) so I literally got lost several times. The streets are poorly marked and twist and turn in every direction…one wrong turn and you are toast for at least 25 minutes. I found a magnificent lookout directly across from the Alhambra and stared off into the distance for sometime. I quickly realized that if I sat for much longer, I would miss my train to Barcelona. Catching a kebab on the run, I picked up my bags and boarded my 10-hour night train to Barcelona. Waving one final goodbye to the hippy loved city, I found myself sharing a car with a French man and two Spanish men that strongly dislike Americans. They were nice enough to share some wine and cured ham with me though. The atmosphere was definitely hostile and I could pickup a word here and there and decipher the nonverbals to be very unfriendly. I opened my book and finally fell asleep. I awoke many times and had completely soaked the sheets it was so hot in the cart, not to mention the wine sharing Spaniard snored worse than my father.

Barcelona
9:50 our train arrives. I inadvisably decide to walk to my hostel (by this time my pack was becoming an annoying burden) and found it much farther than anticipated. The walk was great! Barcelona had an amazing feel to it and I instantly knew I was going to enjoy myself. The buildings were pretty tall for European standards, 10 stories on a consistent level with wide, wide, wide streets (5 lanes in both directions). This portion of the city was definitely planned and on a grid system. My hostel was on the exclusive shopping street and very nice for hostel standards. I dropped my bags and caught a train to the beaches. I took the advice of a passing stranger and left Barcelona on a 45-minute train to find sandy beaches that were not too crowded. I actually stumbled upon a nude beach and went skinny-dipping in broad daylight…an exhilarating experience I must say. I sat on the beach until the sun went down and finally returned to my hostel where I unsuccessfully attempted to experience nightlife. The club I entered was a flop (much too early and not very good anyways).

The next day I walked to Mont Juic, walked around the parks, past the Museu Nacional Diart de Catalina, the Palacia Nacional, and sat atop the castle over looking the Mediterranean. The weather was phenomenal and I probably walked close to 15 miles. The parks were decent and I also looked at some of Barcelona’s Olympic village, including the stadium. At 17:00 I met SQ, her two friends from her program, Claire and Mara, and Sarah (SQ’s friend from high school studying in Barcelona). We walked past two Gaudi buildings, sat along Arago for a pastry, and then headed to the port to walk along the sand beaches. We finished the walk with a nice pint while watching the sunset. For dinner we went to Sarah’s favorite restaurant and devoured some delicious tappas (garlic potatoes, hot potatoes, mushrooms, and meatballs) and consumed a jamon sandwich. Finally we were off to Bar 23 for some cheap mohitas and a very intellectual, moral challenging discussion.

Thursday was a packed day full of Gaudi goodness. I met SQ, Claire, and Mara and we walked to La Sagrada Familia, Gaudi’s infamous cathedral. With its towering spires and intricate surfaces, it did not let down. We entered and climbed the spires for a grand view of Barcelona. We hopped the metro to Las Ramblas, another famous feature of Barcelona. The always jammed packed pedestrian street cluttered with street performers, live music, pet shops, and loads of food vendors busied us for nearly an hour and a half. The performers were doing anything and everything possible. On a side street was an immaculate market with fresh fruit, vegetables, meat, cheese, bread, and other foods. We bought some gorgeous fresh food, assembled a tasty picnic, and ate it at Park Guell (Gaudi’s park). We sat along the longest bench in the world and goggled over his various statues and structures. SQ, Sarah and myself headed to the interactive Catalonian History Museum. After the museum, we took a siesta, made dinner, and hit the clubs for the evening.

Friday had a rough but worthwhile start. We wanted to watch the sunrise over the Mediterranean but with only 2 hours of “sleep” under our belt, we had a bit of a struggle getting there (we had to take two trains and SQ was not in the speediest mood). After the sunrise, I went to bed and then headed for the out of town beaches again. A nice relaxing day in the sun really hit the spot. On my way back I stumbled upon the Barcelona fountain light show at the National Museum, which was pretty good. I wandered Las Ramblas and the Cathedral again.

Being the bus I needed did not leave until Sunday morning, I extended my stay another day and guess what I did, I hit the beaches! I had seen quite a bit of Barcelona as well as doing loads of touring throughout Ireland, Portugal, and Spain, so I thought I could take another break at the beaches. RELAXING AND WARM!!! I watched the Barcelona vs. Madrid match that evening, packed my bags, and headed out into the night to see what I could find.

The next morning I caught the metro for my bus to Andorra.