Europe Spring 2020 – Page 3

Valencia to Almagro

Here is the link to my video with a few of the sites we saw in Barcelona and Valencia.

This morning we picked up a rental car in Valencia and drove 210 miles west to Almagro in the Spanish region of La Mancha. One of the highlights of our day was when we stopped at a grocery store in a small town to buy some picnic food for tomorrow. The staff behind the meat and deli counter were super friendly. They gave us cheese and ham to sample and showed us a few of the many things they stock.

Pig face that you can buy in the meat section.

The young woman behind the counter is a expert ham carver. She has competed in competitions and won many awards. She showed us her album.

La jamonera

The Parador we are staying at in Almagro is a former Franciscan convent that was originally built in 1603. It was expanded in the 17th and 18th centuries but was in ruins when in 1977 they began the work to make it a Parador. The reconstruction took seven years.

We spent quite a bit of time exploring after we arrived. We had our welcome drinks in the former wine cellar.

We had a delicious dinner in the Parador restaurant. We had steak for our main course and various yummy deserts.

Barcelona to Valencia

This morning after breakfast we visited Barcelona Cathedral. They started building the Cathedral in 1298 and provisionally finished it in 1450.

Our train to Valencia left at noon so our visit to the Barcelona Museum had to be short. The Museum tells the history of Barcelona since prehistoric times. The archaeological ruins in the basement of the museum are really fascinating. There are the remains of Roman building from around 300 AD. On top of them are the remains of a Chapel from around 600 AD. As you walk through the ruins more and more recent buildings are revealed.

The Archaeological Ruins below the Barcelona Museum

Our train to Valencia took about three and a half hours. It was a smooth and uneventful ride.

Valencia is a beautiful city. We spent a couple of hours walking around and admiring the squares and the buildings.

We had a wonderful dinner at a restaurant near our hotel.

Barcelona

This morning we took the metro out to the airport to meet our friendS Rick and Elaine who will be traveling with us for the next two weeks. After they checked into the hotel we went exploring. First we went to the cafeteria at the top of the Corte Inglés department store on Plaza Catalan. for coffee and pastries.

Having coffee in the Corte Inglés department store on Plaza Catalan

Next we strolled down Las Ramblas.

We stopped to rest our feet and people watch for a while. While we were sitting there we saw a seagull kill and start eating a pigeon. It was gory!

Next we went to the top of the Columbus Monument overlooking the harbor.

The view from the top of the Columbus Monument.

Next we Walked through the Gothic Quarter on our way back to our hotel.

For dinner we went to a restaurant called Raó. The atmosphere was great. The people were friendly and the food was wonderful. We had several small plates each of which we shared.

Gran Canaria to Barcelona

Here’s a link to my Gran Canaria video on YouTube.

This morning after breakfast we went for a great hike from Cruz de Tejeda along the ridge top. We could see all the way down to where we stayed in Las Palmas in one direction and in the other direction we could see the island of Tenerife.

Along the way we had a nice chat with a couple from Yorkshire in England. When we mentioned we were going to Barcelona they said “Beware of the pickpockets!” We agreed because we also know people who have been robbed in Barcelona. Of course we always try to be very careful and aware.

When we got back to the Parador we packed up and checked out. We drove to the airport, turned in our rental car and got a flight to Barcelona where we are tonight.

In Barcelona we took the metro to our hotel. As we were changing trains we started up a series of escalators. Then the escalator stopped. There was a well dressed couple right behind us. I started to climb up the stopped escalator and the guy behind me helped with my suitcase. We got on the next escalator and then it stopped. This time the guy was up by Duke and the woman tried to help me. As I ran out of breath and insisted on stopping I looked up and saw Duke push the man away from him and yell very loudly “You’re a f***ing thief!” By the time I got to the top of the escalator the couple were heading up the next escalator. We regrouped and I asked Duke what happened. He said he had realized the man had his hand in Duke’s pocket. The couple were pickpockets! They were stopping the escalators as a diversion. Luckily we didn’t lose anything. It was a very disconcerting experience.

We found our hotel, rested a bit, then found a tapas bar for a great dinner.

Las Palmas to Cruz de Tejeda on Gran Canaria

This afternoon we rented a car and drove up into the center of Gran Canaria. We are staying at the Parador Cruz de Tejeda. It feels like we are at the very top of the island. We have magnificent views in every direction.

This morning we walked to El Corte Inglés department store. They have a post office where we bought stamps and mailed a couple of post cards. Then we went to their restaurant and had a bit of breakfast.

We wanted to have a picnic dinner tonight so we bought food in El Corte Inglés grocery store.

When we arrived at the Parador this was waiting for us in our room.

Here is our picnic dinner.

	beautiful030f64feaf on Puerto Madryn Day 3
	beautiful030f64feaf on Trevelin Day 2
	lindalovesbooksblog on Tandi to Buenos Aires
	lindalovesbooksblog on Tandi Day 2
	lindalovesbooksblog on Reta to Tandi