Phrase of the week: Sorry, we're behind on our postings and can't think of anything clever to say . . .Observation of the week: See above. However, it is worth noting that we love, love, love Southern Spain vs. Northern Spain - people are generally nicer and the weather is warmer!
Tim’s friends Brian and Jenny came to visit a few weeks ago – weather was great on Saturday, so we hung out at a paella restaurant near the ports for the majority of the day. Before they arrived on Friday, we took a day trip to Figueres to see the Theatre that Salvador Dali designed and is now his museum. Building was amazing, the artwork inside was a bit disappointing because none of his major works were there. The town had a cute square off their “Rambla”, so we sat outside and had sangria and lunch before heading back to Barcelona.
Alicia’s mom got into town on Feb. 27 and hit the ground running (ok just walking A LOT) from day one. The first day we introduced mom to the menu del dia, then walked around the La Rambla area and down by the ports. Tried to have a glass of wine at one of the paella restaurants outside but they wouldn’t let us because we weren’t eating, regardless of the fact that they were all completely empty. Spaniards and their rules. Visited Gaudi’s Casa Batllo, which was amazing. He was so ahead of his time and literally designed every aspect of the homes he built, down to the ventilation. We went to dinner at our favorite place, Cerveceria Catalana, which is now one mom’s favorite places too! The next day we went to Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia, the work for which he is best known for and spent the majority of career working on, even though it is yet to be completed. We discovered a great place for dinner in the Mercat Santa Caterina in the Borne called Cuines Santa Caterina – so good. Great mix of different types of food and not a tapa in sight. The next day before leaving for Granada, we continued our Gaudi tour of the city and went to Casa Mila. I think we all thought Casa Batllo was more impressive, but this one had some of the furniture from the decade it was built to give a sense of what it looked like when people lived there. In the temporary exhibition space downstairs, a retrospective of the artist Zoran Music was on view – amazing exhibition.
Ok, so off to Granada to see the Alhambra. Alicia has wanted to go here since she was backpacking in Europe 10 years ago, so it was a bit like Christmas. We stayed at a charming place on the hill near the Alhambra, Carmen de la Alcubilla del Caracol. Manuel, the owner, was the perfect host and helped us plan our time while we were there. Granada is a fantastic town, completely different from other areas of Spain we’ve visited. There is obviously a large Moorish influence on the architecture, especially in the old town. The best thing about Granada – free tapas! Every night restaurants and bars have one or two tapas that they serve when you order something to drink. Again, the tapas are regional and completely different from the Catalan and Basque regions. After tapas bar hoping, we went to a great place for dinner, Puerta del Carmen. So good! We spent the majority of the next day at the Alhambra – pictures can’t really do it justice, but we tried. Had a great lunch near the river – finally Spanish food that we’ve been waiting for, gazpacho and good paella. We only made it to a few tapas places that night and headed back to the hotel for an early night.
The next day, off to Sevilla via a 3 hour bus ride through olive country. It was an absolutely perfect day, so we had a long lunch outside at Modesto's near our hotel, Hotel Alcantara, and then walked around the city for the rest of the day. Sevilla is what most people envision when they think about Spain – flamenco music and dancing, lots of orange trees, bull fights, sangria, Spanish-style homes, etc. We saw a flamenco show at Los Gallos, which we highly recommend. The performance was absolutely mesmerizing – again, pictures don’t do it justice but we tried.
The next morning we headed back to Barcelona and went up to Parc Guell (see previous posting) and toured the Palau de la Musica, had mom’s last dinner at Cerveceria Catalana, and called it a night. We had a great time while she was here, but it went by too quickly, she was just starting to get used to the time change! I think we all slept for the next two days straight.
Alicia’s mom got into town on Feb. 27 and hit the ground running (ok just walking A LOT) from day one. The first day we introduced mom to the menu del dia, then walked around the La Rambla area and down by the ports. Tried to have a glass of wine at one of the paella restaurants outside but they wouldn’t let us because we weren’t eating, regardless of the fact that they were all completely empty. Spaniards and their rules. Visited Gaudi’s Casa Batllo, which was amazing. He was so ahead of his time and literally designed every aspect of the homes he built, down to the ventilation. We went to dinner at our favorite place, Cerveceria Catalana, which is now one mom’s favorite places too! The next day we went to Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia, the work for which he is best known for and spent the majority of career working on, even though it is yet to be completed. We discovered a great place for dinner in the Mercat Santa Caterina in the Borne called Cuines Santa Caterina – so good. Great mix of different types of food and not a tapa in sight. The next day before leaving for Granada, we continued our Gaudi tour of the city and went to Casa Mila. I think we all thought Casa Batllo was more impressive, but this one had some of the furniture from the decade it was built to give a sense of what it looked like when people lived there. In the temporary exhibition space downstairs, a retrospective of the artist Zoran Music was on view – amazing exhibition.
Ok, so off to Granada to see the Alhambra. Alicia has wanted to go here since she was backpacking in Europe 10 years ago, so it was a bit like Christmas. We stayed at a charming place on the hill near the Alhambra, Carmen de la Alcubilla del Caracol. Manuel, the owner, was the perfect host and helped us plan our time while we were there. Granada is a fantastic town, completely different from other areas of Spain we’ve visited. There is obviously a large Moorish influence on the architecture, especially in the old town. The best thing about Granada – free tapas! Every night restaurants and bars have one or two tapas that they serve when you order something to drink. Again, the tapas are regional and completely different from the Catalan and Basque regions. After tapas bar hoping, we went to a great place for dinner, Puerta del Carmen. So good! We spent the majority of the next day at the Alhambra – pictures can’t really do it justice, but we tried. Had a great lunch near the river – finally Spanish food that we’ve been waiting for, gazpacho and good paella. We only made it to a few tapas places that night and headed back to the hotel for an early night.
The next day, off to Sevilla via a 3 hour bus ride through olive country. It was an absolutely perfect day, so we had a long lunch outside at Modesto's near our hotel, Hotel Alcantara, and then walked around the city for the rest of the day. Sevilla is what most people envision when they think about Spain – flamenco music and dancing, lots of orange trees, bull fights, sangria, Spanish-style homes, etc. We saw a flamenco show at Los Gallos, which we highly recommend. The performance was absolutely mesmerizing – again, pictures don’t do it justice but we tried.
The next morning we headed back to Barcelona and went up to Parc Guell (see previous posting) and toured the Palau de la Musica, had mom’s last dinner at Cerveceria Catalana, and called it a night. We had a great time while she was here, but it went by too quickly, she was just starting to get used to the time change! I think we all slept for the next two days straight.
1 comment:
What a fantastic trip. You were both perfect hosts. I wouldn't change anything about it if I could - except getting a better exchange rate on the Euro. I think about something we did and think that was my favorite part. But then I think of something else and think, no, that was my favorite part and so on, and so on and so on. Thanks for an unforgettable week. Love you both, KK
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