Seville, Spain

One of the things I said I would do on this trip is very cliched, but today was the day. A haircut from the Barber of Seville.

After my 1100 peseta haircut, we got some food from the supermarket and headed into town.

We stopped at Parque de Maria Luisa, which is like Seville’s Botanic Gardens, where we ate our breakfast, before continuing on behind Plaza de Espana. This is where many government offices of Spain are, and the outside of the buildings contain mosaics representing the different regions of Spain.

Plaza de Espana, Seville, Spain

Plaza de Espana, Seville, Spain

We had lunch at an Irish pub just behind the cathedral.

After lunch we went to the Royal Palace. Yet another superb building, with its great architecture, interior design (being Moorish, it was very similar to the Alhambra) and spectacular gardens dating back as far as the 10th century.

Royal Palace, Seville, Spain

After a couple of hours in the palace, we went back to the hostel, cranking up some much-loved air conditioning to combat the 40ºC heat.

Dinner was at a Chinese restaurant near the hostel. We arrived at eight pm with nobody around and had finished our meal before another customer had arrived. The meal was delicious and extremely cheap. For 750 pesetas we each got a large spring roll, fried rice, main meal, drink and desert/coffee.

We caught a bus into town after dinner to meet Matt & Jen for a drink. We had a couple at a Tex/Mex bar that they had dinner at, and then moved to a bar down by the river. It was three am before we called it a night, and closer to 4am by the time we got home in a cab. By this stage we were genuinely freezing, even though the temperature had only dropped to 23ºC.

La Linea, Spain to Seville, Spain

This morning started in the dark. A 7.30 am take-off.  Another good opportunity to take a photo of the Rock, except the fog was twice as bad as the night before.

Our trip to Seville took in one service stop, where we came across our first celebrity. Of all people, Les Murray, who seemed to be known by only a few of the Aussies, had finished his World Cup duties and was heading to Lisbon via the Spanish south coast. Poor bloke was never expecting to be recognized in the middle of nowhere in Spain. It was bizarre someone famous, especially considering he could have been every other Spanish person.

We arrived in Seville at 11.30am and immediately went for a walk into town via the tourist office.

We had lunch at a sandwich bar before going to Seville’s cathedral. This cathedral is said to be the largest in the world, and definitely the most spectacular we have seen thus far, just pipping Toledo’s. The most famous monument in the church is the tomb of Christopher Columbus. The 12th century cathedral, originally a synagogue, also has a tower, La Giralda, which gives you a great view of the city from 35 floors up.

Cathedral, Seville, Spain

Christopher Columbus Tomb, Cathedral, Seville, Spain

La Giralda, Cathedral, Seville, Spain 

We caught the bus back to the hostel to check in and do some washing and have our siesta.

Tonight is going to be our Spanish culture night, seeing the ultimate, a bullfight. 9 pm on the dot was kick off time at Plaza de Toros de la Maestranza. Three matadors were on tonight’s card, and each had a go at two bulls. What happens is the bull is released and it chases a few extras around, getting all fired up. The, when the two trumpeters do their introduction, two people, including the matador for that fight, get two little spears and charge at the bulls (one at a time) and lodge the spears along the spine, just below the neck. When the bull has 5 or 6 of these spears in his back, the matador gets his, or in tonight’s case, her (Spain has only 2 or 3 female matadors and tonight we were lucky enough to see one of them) red capes and the real battle begins. Sometimes these matadors begin by throwing their hat in the air, if it lands the right way up, it’s good like and if it lands upside down, the crowd gasps, as it is considered bad luck for the matador. After the matador has performed their tricks and the bull is worn down, the matador drives a sword into the area where all the spears are, which almost kills it. Within a minute or two, the bull collapses and is killed. The bull is dragged around the arena behind three horses and the crowd goes nuts for the matador (waving white handkerchiefs, throwing roses, etc.). This happens six times in the night. This blood thirsty sport is pretty intense, and while I’m glad we went, I don’t think I’d go back for more.

Bullfight, Plaza de Toros de la Maestranza, Seville, Spain

Bullfight, Plaza de Toros de la Maestranza, Seville, Spain

Matador Carmen Torres, Plaza de Toros de la Maestranza, Seville, Spain

Roberta, Plaza de Toros de la Maestranza, Seville, Spain

After the bullfight we met up with Matt & Jen, from Brisbane, and fellow Eurobus travelers, and went for drinks, getting back to the hostel at 2am.

La Linea, Spain

We started the morning in the supermarket on the hunt for a cheap breakfast. We then walked to where the map said there was a park to eat. As it turned out, this park was a desolate concrete plaza.

Nearby there was a bullfighting museum, which we wanted to visit, only to find it closed.

We walked back to Plaza de Constitution, where we finally found a shady spot to eat. The temperature here is the mildest it’s been since Bordeaux, but the humidity is an absolute killer.

After our late breakfast, we walked along the beach on the port-side of town and kept going to get a look at the coastal area of La Linea. On the way, we passed through some markets where Roberta bought a sarong skirt.

The beaches, when we finally found them, were duds. Grey and black sand, dirty looking water, rubbish everywhere and because of the fog, you could hardly see five meters in front of you.

We then made the long walk back into town, where we stopped for lunch at an outdoor café, catching up on some reading and writing.

We went back for our siesta before going over to Gibraltar for dinner. We ate at an English pub, The Cannon, and had fish and chips. Gibraltar was dead, no one around at all, so we just went home after dinner. We wanted to take a photo of the Rock at night, but when we walked over the tarmac at the airport, the fog had come across the ocean and the Rock could not be seen.

La Linea, Spain

We got up this morning with a day in Gibraltar in mind. First thing was to find the tourist information for a map of the town. Our first attempt at accommodation was met with a “Completo!”, but the owner recommended us to another place, Hostel Paris, which was nice and cheap, with rooms for 3000 pesetas a day.

After we got everything in the new room, we made the walk two kilometers to the border. We walked through passport control and then across the airport, before getting into town.

Me @ Gibraltar

Rock of Gibraltar

Basically, it’s like a tourist mall with heaps of duty-free stores and eateries.

We stopped at the Horseshoe for lunch. With Gibraltar being controlled by the British, almost everyone spoke English, and there was some traditional English food to be found, which is kind of a mid-trip relief.

After lunch we continued our walk-through town to the bottom of the Rock.

We caught a cable car to the top for a superb view of Gibraltar, La Linea and the harbor. On the east, overlooking the beach, however, was nothing but fog, which when it reached the top of the Rock (only 20 feet from us) it turned into a swirling cloud. We followed a track to halfway down the hill, which saw us see some of the Rock’s natural inhabitants – monkeys – and St. Michael’s Cave. St. Michael’s Cave is a natural limestone cave within the Rock. It is generally in its original condition, except for tourist paths and a huge area which has been modified to hold concerts, weddings and the like. When we got to the halfway point, the cable car took us the rest of the way down the Rock’s steep cliff face.

Gibraltar

St. Michael's Cave, Rock of Gibraltar

After this, we made the hour walk back across the border to the hostel.

We had a quick siesta before going a couple of blocks to Don Giovanni’s Pizzeria for dinner. We then came back to the room, wishing everything would cool down.

Granada, Spain to La Linea, Spain

Earlier in the trip I said I’d never complain about the Pacific Highway again. Well now, I will never whine about Australia Post. This morning we posted some stuff back to Australia in order to lighted our backpacks. Granada’s post office does not have post packs, sticky tape and, of course, and English-speaking staff (to be expected), but they do have a dozen forms to fill in, and they will tell you each, every time you go to the window, but not all at once. So, after two and a half hours, our package was, hopefully, on its way.

The afternoon consisted of a walk through a mall, some lunch, and the purchase of a book to read on the bus, before going back to the hostel, buying an Alhambra t-shirt, picking up our bags, and catching the bus back to the hostel where Eurobus takes us to La Linea at 5.30pm.

When the bus hadn’t arrived by 6.30pm, someone had the sense to call Eurobus and they found out the problems meant it wouldn’t be arriving until 9pm, so its off to the pub we go. Roberta and I found a bar with Sharon and some new people – Adrian & Debs, from New Zealand, and Kirsten from Victoria.

We got back to the hostel at 8.50pm to find the bus waiting for us.

Four hours later, after one stop along the way, we arrived at La Linea. We pulled over near the hostel to see the Rock of Gibraltar all lit up. We stayed in a room with two others – Sharon and Rochelle, from Sydney, for the sake of saving money.

Granada, Spain

The local Granada people take their rest days very seriously. We emerged out of the room at 11 am to find no one around. Roberta rang Paul for his 21st birthday before we went in search of brunch.

We then went for a walk around, though nothing was open. We walked past the cathedral and then up the hill to try and find the Walls of the Albaycin, but couldn’t find a way in.

We just ended up wandering the back streets, taking in the city itself. In the end we went looking through the souvenir stores in our street, before going indoors to escape the heat.

We did come out for afternoon tea, sitting outside at a café, writing letters and completing diaries.

We went back to our room for an afternoon of cards and emerged at nine pm, slightly cooler and ready for dinner. We walked up to the area where we had a couple of drinks last night, and had a pasta dinner – lasagna and spaghetti.

After dinner we had drinks and coffee at a café in Plaza Nueva. We got home at midnight, for want of an early night, only to have the heat, noise and then cards keep us awake until 3 am.

Granada, Spain

Guess what? It’s hot again! We checked out of the hostel early this morning and caught a bus to our new hostel at 9.45 am.

A quick bite to eat, and then we caught the bus up the hill to the Alhambra. The Alhambra is a 9th century Islamic fortress built on 132 hectares on Cerro de Sol (Hill of the Sun). This is the north east of the city’s center. This is the phenomenal fortress that I have been waiting to see this whole trip. Mainly because it is the name of a Tea Party album.

We went to four different sections of the fortress. The Alcazabar was where the Alhambra’s military services were kept. Here were military quarters, along with numerous watchtowers. This part of the building dates back to the 14th century.

Next was the Palace of the Nazaris. This is basically the old royal palace. To think that the art in this building, i.e., alfresco, intricate Islamic writings in limestone and marble, ceramic tiles, etc., could last so long, is not really the amazing part. What blows me away is the immaculate detail and sheer volume of it, and when you think what has been destroyed over time due to wear and tear, you can only come to the conclusion that this place must have been the most admired it its time.

Salon de Embajadores, Palacio Nazaries, Alhambra, Granada, Spain

Just outside of the palace is the palace of King Carlos V. This is a simple, square, two-storey building with a round courtyard. The building houses the Museo de la Alhambra, which contains many artifacts from the 12th – 15th centuries, including a 600-year-old Koran, furniture, vases, coins, parts of fountains, to name a few.

Palacio de Carlos V, Alhambra, Granada, Spain

Court of the Myrtles, Alhambra, Granada, Spain

Alhambra, Granada, Spain

From here we walked up to the Generalife, the Summer Palace. Here the palace is not so much spectacular, but the gardens and grounds have been well kept. It is also a great, cool place to be in the heat.

Generalife, Alhambra, Granada, Spain

Alhambra, Granada, Spain

Granada, Spain

After our visit, on the way back down the hill, I picked up a souvenir book and had lunch at a café right near our place. Roberta then went for a rest, while I headed off to an internet café, so as to not fall asleep. Upon my return I had a small nap (damn it!) before we went out for the evening.

We went to one of the bars from Thursday night for a drink and some tapas.

From here we watched the Alhambra come alight as night fell. We walked up the hill for a couple of photos of the fortress before going to another bar for a drink.

We walked back to Plaza Nueva, where a group of guys were playing some songs to anyone who would listen. They had a fairly good crowd, on top of all the people eating in nearby restaurants. That was until midnight, when the police came and put a stop to it all, to the sound of many boos and catcalls from the crowd. We went across the road, bought ice cream, and then headed home.

Granada, Spain

The morning after the night before. A combination of that and no sleep the previous evening, and the heat, meant we didn’t emerge from the room until the early afternoon. When we did, we went into town and had a greasy lunch (McDonalds again) and then trotted off to the tourist office for all the necessary information needed – maps, internet cafes, prices, etc.

After this we went and found some accommodation for the following two nights, as the hostel is full. We went to Pension Gonzales, as it was recommended by the Lonely Planet.

After this Roberta wanted to go and find where we might be able to find a flamenco show, so we walked up a hill only to find places that only offered dinner/show/tour combinations for about AU$80, so we may have to give this a miss.

An internet café near the tourist information kept us amused for a couple of hours. I even get an email from Nags, who has been unheard from for months.

At 8pm we left there, into slightly cooler weather, and walked around town for a while, having only an ice cream dinner.

We then caught the bus back to the hostel (the long scenic route) where we saw John and Tina getting on the bus for another night out. We, however, stayed at home.

Toledo, Spain to Granada, Spain

We left Pension Castilla at nine am to head up to the pick-up point, to see if we could get on the bus to Granada today. We are booked for Saturday, but I think two days were enough in Toledo. Fortunately, there were a lot of people booked on the bus who didn’t show up, which left plenty of room for the 20-odd of us on stand-by.

The trip to Granada took six hours, including a 45-minute lunch stop. We arrived at Albergue Juvenil Granada under the promise that everyone would have accommodation, only to be told, once again, that this is not the case. Roberta and I were the first in the door and got a twin room. The trip down was hot again and it would have been at least 40 degrees when we arrived, so we stayed in our room and showered and rested until it was cooler before we went out.

We got on the bus into town at eight pm and met up with John (today’s Eurobus driver). He had a map of all the tapas bars in the city, so we stuck with him in search of a feed.

Our first stop was Casa de Pepillo, where we ran into a Tina, from Sydney, who was also travelling via Eurobus. Tina had been at this place the previous two nights and said the food was good, and Pepillo loved having everyone in. We stayed there for a few drinks and were fed all kinds of tapas, before moving on.

Tina, John, Roberta & I, Granada, Spain

In all we went to six bars, drinking and trying local food, before catching a cab home at two am.

Toledo, Spain

The day started off with the now some what traditional croissant breakfast at 11 am, before walking to the town’s Cathedral. This huge church (140m x 60m) is unbelievable. In between its marble floors and 45 mm ceilings, are 85 columns and over 200 stained-glass windows, 20 chapels and some of the most amazing art I have ever seen. One end of the cathedral had cherub paintings along with numerous sculptures (including the Guests of the Last Supper) just underneath a glass ceiling, which made it literally look heavenly. The main pulpit had a silver statue of Mary surrounded by 20 pieces of art depicting various stages in the life of Jesus. The choir area was fronted by a statue of Mary and Baby Jesus. The wooded statue is considered invaluable, as it is one of a few pieces in the world that actually shows Mary smiling. Amongst the chapels were four rooms, which were filled with art, clothing and jewelry of a religious nature. Most of the art was done, once again, by El Greco, but also contained works from Valazquez and Goya.

We returned to Plaza de Zocodover for lunch, before escaping the afternoon heat with a siesta. Our plan for the afternoon was to go to the Alcazar, Toledo’s main landmark, and one time fortress come military museum, but for reasons unknown it was closed, so we walked to the south west part of town to one of the synagogues, Santa Maria la Blanca. This is a sparse 12 century church, considered a masterpiece architecturally for its time. Besides that, and a religious mural from where services would’ve been performed, there was not much else to the building.

Santa Mana la Blanca, Toledo, Spain

After cooling ice-blocks in this 40ºC heat, we found a small café for dinner. After this we headed to an outdoor bar which looks north west over the outskirts of town. We sat there for a couple of hours, happily watching the town’s lights and traffic go by.

Madrid, Spain to Toledo, Spain

This morning we left Madrid for Toledo. I took in as much scenery of Madrid in before writing some postcards. By the time I’d finished two postcards, Toledo was in sight. Toledo is a beautiful old town, once Spain’s capital, situated on a hill in the middle of nowhere.

Toledo, Spain

We got off the bus at 10.30 am and set about finding accommodation. We went and found a cheap pension that was recommended by the Lonely Planet, but we went too far. Fortunately, we found the tourist office and got a better map, only to find our desired pension full. We walked back to the Eurobus suggested hostel, checking out some places that were too expensive along the way. When we arrived, the owner didn’t want us staying there because we were Eurobus travelers. Me and my big mouth. There was a hotel around the corner, which was too expensive, but offered us a cheap room, once it become vacated. So, we went and had some lunch, and upon return found out that the room had been rebooked for another 2 nights. The owner, though, went ahead and booked us into a pension just down the road. As it turns out, this place was beautiful and cheap, and literally around the corner from our first choice.

After checking in, we headed straight to Museo de Santa Cruz, which looks like it may have been an old monastery. This museum is filled with two floors of religious art, furniture and tapestry. There is a lot of paintings by El Greco here. El Greco is a Spanish artist who actually lived in Toledo between 1577-1614. His two most famous paintings here are La Asuncion (Assumption of the Virgin) and La Sagrada Familia (The Sacred Family). This painting was restored during the 1980s to reveal an undisclosed Joseph, after many centuries.

When we finished at the museum, we went back to the pension for our siesta.

We got ready later, and walked around town, before meeting Alison, Carolyn, Anna from Melbourne, and Sharron from Birmingham, to go out for dinner. We ended up at Ludena, a restaurant listed in the Lonely Planet, which had a 3-course meal for 1200 pesetas.

After the filling dinner, we walked down to Plaza de Zocodover to have a couple of drinks at an outdoor café. It was great here – sitting outside, drinking, and chatting in the evening heat.

Madrid, Spain

We got an early start this morning and found a little coffee shop for our morning croissant.

We continued our walk in a milder temperature – 36ºC. We walked along Gran Via to Plaza de la Cibeles. It is like a huge intersection that has many banks on its’ corners, one of which is topped by the most ornate dome, and Palacio de Communicaciones, a post office which looks like a grand palace, both inside and out. We headed north past the Biblioteca Nacional to the Monumento a Colon (Monument to Columbus). Behind this was another monument, Monumento al Descubimiento, which commemorates the discovery of America. From here we headed south, passing the Museo Arqueologico and the Prado, both of which are closed.

This was the end of the suggested walking tour, but what we did was walk back up Calle de las Huertas, where we stopped for some lunch, through Plaza Mayor, along Calle Mayor, until we came back to Palacio Real. We went in and had a guided tour through twenty of the 2070 rooms of the Royal Palace. Each room is extravagantly decorated (one room taking 40 years to complete), floors are covered in marble, built in the 18th century, some walls are silk lined, most of the ceilings are alfresco painted and the palace boasts twenty square kilometers of tapestries. The tour took an hour, so you can only imagine how long a proper look around would take. Once again, another monarchy shows off its’ excesses. The worst thing about this place is that it is no longer used as a royal residence. It is only used for official receptions and tourism.

Palacio Real, Madrid, Spain

We went back to our room after this, to recover from the heat. We showered before having a siesta. We went and got pizza for dinner, before going to two bars and having a couple of drinks to finish the night off.

Madrid, Spain

It’s still so hot! Another cloudless scorcher as we go into the first of two days checking out Madrid.

We started by catching the tube across the street to Atocha, where we got out and went to Centro de Arte Reina Sofia. This art museum houses mainly 20th century Spanish art including Picasso and Dali. One of Picasso’s most famous works, Guernica, is housed here. It is a painting that was done in protest of the Germans bombing Guernica in 1937. Because the museum was only open for half a day, being Sunday, it was free, which was an added bonus. Unfortunately, like St. Petersburgh, Madrid’s museums close on Monday, so tomorrow we will be unable to visit any, especially Museo del Prado, said to be one of the world’s great art galleries.

After a quick McDonalds lunch, we took in the sights via the walking tour suggested in the Lonely Planet.

We did as follows: We started at Puerta del Sol, like a town square, which has a statue of a small bear climbing a tree. Why? I have no idea. From here we walked to Caja de Ahorras, a building built for King Felipe V in 1733, across from the 16th century convent, Cenvento de las Descalzas Reals.

Cenvento de las Descalzas Reals, Madrid, Spain

We then walked to Plaza Mayor, which is renowned as a trendy café area. The huge square is filled with outdoor cafes surrounding a statue of Philipe II, who commissioned the building of the square. The northern wall is covered in colorful murals, which enlightens the square.

Plaza Mayor, Madrid, Spain

Real Casa de Panaderia, Madrid, Spain

The next plaza, Plaza de la Villa, is where Madrid’s City Hall is, as well as two of the city’s oldest buildings. We passed Capitania General. The national military headquarters, and Inglesia de la Almudena, a cathedral that was more than 110 years in construction, on our way to Palacio Real. We were there too late to go in, so we’ll come back tomorrow. Across the road is Plaza de Oriente, a park with many statues and a beautiful fountain.

Plaza de la Villa, Madrid, Spain

From here it was on to Plaza de Espana, which has a monument to Miguel de Cervantes, the Spanish writer, with statues of his characters Don Quixote and Sancho Panza at his feet.

Statue of Miguel Cervantes, Plaza de Espana, Madrid, Spain

We got back to the hostel at six pm and opted to go to the movies. We walked back down Grand Via, then a short way along Calle de la Princesa, where we found a cinema which had English speaking movies with Spanish subtitles. We ended up seeing “Kicked in the Head”. It was bizarre, but funny, in an offbeat kind of way.

It was still 38ºC when we got out of the movies at 10.30pm. We did finish the day the way we had started, with a bite to eat and a cup of tea at Dunkin Donuts. We then took a short walk home.

San Sebastian, Spain to Madrid, Spain

We checked out of Pension Lizasto at ten am to head to the Eurobus pick up point for our seven-hour drive to Madrid. Of course, we couldn’t get off without a hitch. The bus was half an hour late, then found out they had left three people at a different pick-up point. We ended up about two hours behind schedule.

The closer we got to Madrid, the hotter it got, and air conditioning on the Eurobus means opening the emergency hatches. The scenery between San Sebastian and Madrid was arid and mountainous, with lots of eagles.

Once again, we used Eurobus to help us with accommodation to be told everything was sweet. We arrived in Madrid at eight pm in 37ºC heat to find, once again, that there was not enough room for everyone. Fortunately, Roberta and I raced up two floors to Hotel Josephina and got the last double room. It is on the seventh floor overlooking Grand Via and the city’s south. Simple enough, but most importantly – clean.

We went out for dinner to a café just up the road. I love the Spanish pricing system i.e., my lasagna would have cost 675 pesetas had I have eaten it at the bar because I sat at a table, it was 870 pesetas. A table outside would have made it 1100 pesetas.

We ran into Kate from the Gold Coast and Kirsten from Melbourne who were on the bus today. We went looking for the rest of the group, but gave up after half an hour and ended up having a couple of drinks at the bar. We were home at midnight, with the temperature still at 34ºC.

San Sebastian, Spain

Another croissant breakfast on the promenade this morning before walking around some of the local shops. We found an internet café and spent an hour sending and reading messages to and from everyone.

We went to the supermarket and bought some food for lunch and some snacks for tomorrow’s bus trip.

The midday heat was a bit much, so we went back to the pension to have lunch. After lunch I stayed for a nap and my back was causing some problems. Roberta took the opportunity to go and spend her last day on the beach for a couple of weeks.

When she came back, we went out for dinner. First choice was the Pizza Bar under the pension, which proved to be too expensive. Our second choice, the Italian restaurant we went to on Tuesday was completely booked out, so we settled for an outdoor restaurant just around the corner, Dover. We both had a 3-course meal of vegetables, veal and ice cream for me and hors d’oeuvres, hake and ice cream for Roberta, as well as a bottle of wine all for AU$40.

We were going to go to the Iguana Bar afterwards, I assume it’s an Australian bar, but Roberta was feeling unwell, so we went home. It was 11.15 pm, anyway.

San Sebastian, Spain

Don’t you love the sound of jack hammers in the morning? After staying up until all hours last night trying to sort out account balances and phone card re-crediting to no avail, we were awoken early due to work being done at the church across the street. We got out quick, before being driven crazy.

We went and bought some croissants and sat on the promenade at Playa de la Concha for breakfast.

We spent the morning looking for sunglasses for me, as I sat on mice yesterday and broke them. I couldn’t find any suitable, so we went back to the pension, got changed into our swimmers and went back to Playa de la Concha for a couple of hours in the sun and water.

We came back to the hostel in refuge from the sun. We went back out at 7.30 pm in search of dinner. We bought some take-away chicken and went and sat on the break wall overlooking the river mouth and the eastern beach. We spoiled ourselves with ice cream before walking along the town’s river, Rio Urumea Ibaia, for a while.

As it became dark, we got the camera and walked to Buen Pastor Cathedral to get a photo of the church under lights.

Buen Pastor Cathedral, San Sebastian, Spain

Tomorrow is our last full day in San Sebastian. We’ll have to try and get to the beach because it will be our last chance until Albufeira, although we won’t be there long, due to today’s sunburn.

San Sebastian, Spain

I’m still a bit sore today, but it’s far too nice a day to stay inside.

The day started with a cup of tea and a croissant, before walking to Santa Maria’s Church. This place looks great from the outside, but is simpler than any other churches we’ve seen, on the inside.

The church was at the bottom of Mount Urgull, so we made the walk up. The walk gives a view of all parts of San Sebastian, and the ocean, at different points, and when at the top, under the huge statue of Christ, there is a small museum on the history of San Sebastian.

Christ Statue, Monte Urgull, San Sebastian, Spain

We walked back down a different way and had lunch at the foot of the mountain in a café. We met two older couples, who were sitting next to us, who were from Sydney and on a 14-day Trafalgar tour. As it turns out, we had another game of six degrees of Roberta Lindbeck, as one off the couples’ son went to university with her. The world just gets smaller.

After lunch we went to the Aquarium, which was fairly lame, but you’ve got to try something different from museums and churches every once in a while.

We came back to the pension and I had a lie down for my back, which turned into a two-hour nap. Roberta left for the beach in the meantime.

We went back to Paella-a-hut for dinner again and grabbed an ice cream before coming home.

San Sebastian, Spain

Here’s another day of let’s get Shayne sick and try and ruin his holiday. As if diarrhea from St. Petersburgh to London and an allergic reaction to Bordeaux was not enough, this morning while packing my bag to head off to a camping ground in San Sebastian, a small cough gave me the most excruciating back pain, that it flattened me.

After deciding to stay in the pension for another night, Roberta and I went off looking for a doctor. A new adventure! The tourist office referred us to one but gave us the wrong street. This was soon corrected by a pharmacist we went into. The receptionist in this surgery had too much trouble with our English / Spanish conversation that she sent us elsewhere. This other office had no one that spoke English, but saw me anyway. Dr. Fernando Coello Zabala listened to Roberta do her best Spanish – which he understood “perfecto”. He prescribed me some Panadol and a relaxant, Myolastan, and told me to take it easy for a couple of days. This I did.

We went back to the pension and had one of the tablets, and was out like a light.

Roberta spent the day at the supermarket and the beach and I slept until she came home and woke me at six pm.

We went and did a load of laundry before walking to an Italian restaurant near the water. When we got there, it turned out to be a seafood restaurant and out of our price range, so we walked to another part of town until we found a restaurant called Farfalle. We had out Italian meal here, and it was the best we’ve had on our holiday, so far, so I think we may be back before we leave San Sebastian.

We walked home via the Town Hall as a brochure we’d seen made it look amazing all lit up at night. Tonight – no lights, but we could see the statue of Christ on Mount Urgull all lit up, which was just as good.

San Sebastian, Spain

A bit of a sleep in today (11.30am) after last night’s big night, but it’s now time to look around San Sebastian and find the camping ground for tomorrow.

We did the long walk around the promenade to Playa de la Concha and Playa de Ondarreta, all the way to Punta Torrepea, and saw the bizarre Wind’s Comb Sculpture. I have no idea what these twisted bits of rusted steel were all about.

The point looks across to Isla de St. Clara and the bay with two beaches. From here we walked back to the bottom of the Monte Igeldo, where we caught the funicular to the top. At the top was an amusement park, which was all but closed. The view from up here is sensational, even though it was a cloudy day. You had a complete view of the town and its beaches, as well as the green hills which enclose it. I can only imagine how spectacular this would be on a clear summer’s day.

San Sebastian, Spain 

By the time we came down the funicular, it had begun to rain. We sat at a bus stop waiting for the rain to stop, when a bus going into town pulled up with two girls we had met in La Rochelle on board. So, we caught the bus back with them.

We went back to our pension to get some warm clothes, when we decided to enjoy the Spanish tradition of the siesta. When we woke up, we walked around town trying to find a restaurant to eat at. We ended up stopping at a tapas bar. Here you order your drink and a plate and you pick at the different finger foods at the end of the bar. Not so much a meal, as a snack.

Afterwards we walked around the streets of Parte Veija until it was too cold. This is when we headed back to our room for the night.

Bordeaux, France to San Sebastian, Spain

We left the hotel at seven am this morning, for a quick walk up to the Youth Hostel, where the Eurobus was picking everyone up to go to San Sebastian. After a minor hiccough, one passenger leaving her passport in her room, we were on our way.

We were stopped briefly at the France/Spain border for a quick inspection of visas and arrived in San Sebastian at midday, only an hour late.

We found a room in Pension Lizaso in the heart of the old city.

After a quick phone call home and hamburger lunch, we walked around to the “beautiful people” beaches at Bahia de la Concha, before walking east of the city to the surf beach, Playa de Gros, to laze the afternoon away.

After our swim, we came back and got ready for dinner. We walked around the area where we are staying (Parte Vejia) and found a Spanish version of Pizza Hut that served some traditional food in a fast-food style. Both of us ended up having paellas, mine being chicken.

After this we went to a nightclub called Zibbaba, where a whole heap of Eurobus people were meeting. We spent the night there, drinking and watching France win the World Cup until 1.30 the next morning. It was a great night. We met heaps of people and all swapped travel stories. It’s a bit different to Contiki in that because you travel at your own pace, it’s harder to keep constant contact with people and build friendships, but it’s good in the sense that nearly every time you step on the bus, you meet new people.

Bordeaux, France

Day two in Bordeaux saw us start the morning off the same way, with a long walk into town. This time, though, it was via a football store to see if I could get any bargains, seeing the World Cup was coming to an end (I couldn’t). We also found an internet café, so took some time to send messages back home.

After this, Roberta and I separated, as she went on a wine trip to St. Etienne, while I stayed in town.

I walked up to Jardin Public (Bordeaux’s Botanic Gardens) and sat and read in the park for a while.

I then walked all the way up to Mondial Café. This is a “park” set up on the Garrone River for the World Cup. It had some bars and eateries and a huge screen showing highlights of the previous matches. I sat and watched for ages. It’s a shame we won’t be here tomorrow night when France plays in the final. I imagine it will be nuts.

After my daily football intake, I headed back south, through the shopping district, until I came to Musee d’Aquataine. This is a museum that explained the archeological history of the Bordeaux region, dating back 700,000 years. It showed the usual ceramics and tools through the ages. It also contained a Roman section, as the Romans occupied this area from 52 BC. (At which time the area was called Burdigala.) The exhibition continued through medieval times right through until today, showing its grape growing / wine making and oyster farming facilities.

When I finished up there, after two hours, I walked back to the hotel and arrived 15 minutes before Roberta. We walked up the road to a Chinese restaurant, Palais de Jade, where we had a huge meal.

Bordeaux, France

Today is our day wandering around Bordeaux.

After booking into the hotel for another two nights, we made the three kilometer walk into the center of town, via the two main streets, Cours de Mains and Rue St. Catherine.

Our first port of call was the tourist information center, and from there we walked Esplanade de Quiconces. This is a fountain monument erected in the 14th century in memory of those who fought in the French Revolution.

Two blocks away from that is Musee d’Art Contemporian, which had a display on called Cities on the Move II, which was an exhibition about art, culture and architecture in Asia, and well worth the 30FF (AU$8) we paid to get in.

We walked to Place Gambetta, which is a small garden island in the middle of the city. It was once the area in which guillotine executions took place.

After this, we walked to Cathedrale St. Andre. This church had construction dating back to the 9th century, with the more modern work in the 1400’s. This fantastic sandstone building is currently being renovated and the work done already is amazing. Some of the artwork has been completely restored and the areas on the outside of the building, that have been restored, first by hand cleaning, then by laser, look brand new.

Dinner is to be a home cooked meal, so on our way home we stopped at the Champion Supermarket to pick up some food for a cheap meal, i.e., baguette, bananas, camembert and orange juice.

Once again, the day took a lot out of us, so we stayed in. Besides that, the hotel we are staying in is near a pretty seedy part of town. Once again, I found it hard to sleep as our bed slopes down from the foot of the bed.

Ile de Re, France to Bordeaux, France

Unfortunately, we have to leave our little campsite today.

We met a young English couple last night and ran into them again catching the bus back to La Rochelle. They had hundreds of questions to ask about Australia, and we were only too happy to oblige. They may move to Australia at Christmas to work for a year or so.

From La Rochelle train station, we trudged back to the Youth Hostel, dropped off our bags and kept walking around the marina to the restaurant area where we had been on Saturday and had lunch.

Afterwards we headed back to the hostel and waited for the Eurobus. Our name was marked off the list and we boarded the bus to Bordeaux.

We arrived at 7 pm and because there are only 13 places in the hostel available, and 45 of us on the bus, we didn’t stick around for long, as we raced for a place to stay. We found a hotel 500 meters away called Hotel Deux Mondes, which had cheap, reasonable rooms.

A quick take away dinner was had before going to bed, because we want to cram in as much as possible in our next two days in Bordeaux.

Ile de Re, France

Camping = Lazy. Today started off as another dull day which meant cards and reading in the tent after our croissant breakfast.

Mid-afternoon saw the sun come out and once again we headed to the beach. Today was not as nice as Sunday. It was windier and colder, and not as many people were around when we arrived, but as the tide came in, so did the people.

We left the beach and had an afternoon sleep before we cooked another pasta dish with our little gas stove.

At eight pm we went and booked some Eurobus legs and accommodation before going to the small café next to the camping ground. Here we had a couple of beers and watched the Coup de Monde semi-final (I’m so French) between France and Croatia. The way the locals went on it was as if they had actually won the Cup already. I think they’re in for a rude shock on Sunday against Brazil.

While the locals celebrated, the camping lifestyle we have been leading left us exhausted, so we went to bed. This it turns out, may have been a good thing, as the camping ground gates were closed and locked for the night.

Ile de Re, France

Grey skies over Ile de Re made for a quieter day today.  We got up late and had our croissants for breakfast.

After a few games of cards, we decided to walk to La Couarde, which is two kilometers west of Le Bois Plage. The walk was pleasant, although it looked like we were going to be under the threat of rain the whole way there. La Couarde is a small village not unlike Le Bois Plage, with its quaint terrace houses and small gardens. I take it, though, that one has to be loaded to live on Ile de Re as I could not see a place under AU$300,000.

 

La Couarde, Ile de Re, France

La Couarde, Ile de Re, France

We stopped at a small café for a late afternoon tea of crepes. Mine being a sweet chocolate.

We walked back from La Couarde via the market for tomorrow’s breakfast.

We decided to go all out and eat at the restaurant across the road from the camping ground, Halo Pizza. We were well fed, including our overindulgence in deserts.

From here it was back to the tent for sleep.

Ile de Re, France

We packed the tent up successfully, after two attempts, after our muesli bar breakfast this morning and headed to our new camp site. 700 meters from town, 50 meters to the beach.

Once we’d set up, we walked into town to have a look around and have some lunch. We found a little sandwich shop and had chicken, cheese and tomato on panini bread, which we went and ate at a shady carpark because we couldn’t find a proper park.

We then posted some postcards and headed back to the tent for an afternoon of reading and gin rummy. It was another absolutely beautiful day, but the effects for yesterday’s sunburn kept us inside.

We cooked another meal tonight, chicken noodle soup, which as absolutely delicious. After dinner we went for a walk along the beach, four kilometers west, while watching the sunset at 9.45 pm. The tide on the beach changes very drastically here and this evening it was a long way out, exposing lots of rocks and rockpools. 

Me, Le Bois Plage, Ile de Re, France

We headed back to the tent for another restless night’s sleep on the ground, with no pillow, but at least tonight I have a bedroll, bought at a local shopping center today.

La Rochelle, France to Ile de Re, France

This morning we checked out of the hostel and walked to the train station, SCNF Gare, to catch the bus to Ile de Re. Ile de Re is an island four kilometers off the coast from La Rochelle, linked by a huge bridge. The island is broken into about 12 villages, with a population of around 2,000 each.

We got off the bus at Le Bois Plage, which is in the middle of the island, with a beach facing south. We walked to the tourist bureau before heading to Les Burjottes Camping Ground, where we put up the tent for the night. The camp site was half way between the beach and town, so in the afternoon we walked down to the beach, via Les Amis de la Plage Camping Ground, where we booked in for the following three nights. We ended up being right in the middle of this beach that ran for miles either way. It was a day where not a cloud was to be seen and people lay on the beach and swam in the water as far as the eye could see. The water here was a bit cold but absolutely sparkling, without a bit of pollution to be seen. I’m so glad we are staying here for four nights.

When we got back to our tent, we decided the time had come for us to finally get out the gas burner. So, three packets of two-minute noodles were filled with hot water that we boiled and dinner was served.

Roberta, Les Burjottes Camping Ground, Le Bois Plage, Ile de Re, France

I still can’t get used to the sun setting so late here. It was ten pm when we went to bed and it was still only just hitting dusk. As the evening went on it felt like I was back at North Narrabeen again, as all the families in the camp ground started playing Boulles, like they used to when we went to watch dad windsurf all those years ago.

La Rochelle, France

Today was our day for wandering through La Rochelle. We went to the tourist information in the morning and ran into a girl from Roberta’s room, Cheryl from Canada, and spent the day walking through the food markets and stalls which covered a lot of the city.

We bought food and headed to a park, which overlooked a channel and the harbor’s entrance, where we had lunch. Afterwards we went to the supermarket to stock up on food as we are going to Ile de Re, an island four kilometers of the coast, tomorrow to camp for the next four nights.

La Rochelle Harbor, France

We had our supermarket microwave dinners at the hostel and then went out for a drink. There was me, Roberta, Cheryl, Tash from Brisbane, Felicity and Aleese from Newcastle, Helen and Sarah from Auckland, Ariana from the US, Melanie from Canada and another Kiwi, Fiona. We went to a local bar and sat outside for a drink in the new part of town. This is an area we hadn’t even discovered until then, but we should have more time to explore here when we return for the Eurobus to Bordeaux.

Paris, France to La Rochelle, France

We left the hostel this morning, on the bus to La Rochelle. We are on the bus with Todd, Reggae and Jason.

We made two service station stops before arriving at our hostel. Roberta and I are in separate rooms and most of my room mates don’t speak English – but I’ll survive. The hostel is relatively new and quite comfortable.

As soon as we checked in, we headed into town to find the local tourist office. We also found a pub that was playing the France vs Italy game. When France won, the place, as you’d expect, went berserk.

From here we went to an Italian restaurant around the corner for a cheap meal. The food was fantastic!

We decided not to walk around town, due to my stinking headache, and went back to the hostel instead, where we watch another World Cup match in the hostel’s bar. Brazil beat Denmark 3-2.

Paris, France

Now for a day of sightseeing in Paris.

We met up with Michelle again, this time under the Eiffel Tower and went for a wander around town. We walked west along the Seine River, passing the Grand Palais, Crazy Horse statue and the Obelisk, before coming across the Louvre. This is a huge museum that looks like it will take forever to look through. We’ll do it when we return to Paris – too many people at the moment.

Pont de Neuf, Paris, France

Louvre, Paris, France

We continued to Notre Dame. This is a marvelous church, which is Luvo’s favorite building, and one he said not to miss. We didn’t even realize we were at the church because of the scaffolding surrounding the front entrance. Its stone, gothic style is like no other and inside it is just as brilliant, with the highlight being a statue of Joan of Arc.

Rear of Notre Dame, Paris, France

Notre Dame, Paris, France

After the walk through Notre Dame, we had lunch at a café in view of the side of the building.

Me, Roberta & Michelle, Paris, France

After eating, we decide to head back east, where we walked up Avenue des Champs Elysée’s, all the way to the Arc de Triomphe. The Arc was built by Napoleon for Josephine on her arrival to Paris. It is now a memorial for victims of World War II and has a Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and an eternal flame. The Arc de Triomphe sits in the middle of a mad roundabout, which branches out into 12 different roads. It is crazy! It is the only roundabout in the world where the traffic on the roundabout gives way to traffic entering. The result is absolute chaos and on average an accident happens every 12 minutes. All insurance (car, personal or travel) is null and void on this section of roadway.

Arc de Triomphe, Paris, France

We were going to go to a restaurant but couldn’t find one in our price range, so we bought some food at a supermarket and went back to the Eiffel Tower for a picnic. Once again sitting in view of the Tower was great. As we were nearly finished dinner, we turned around to see, who else, Reggae and Todd, and their mate Jason, with the same idea. We spent the night with them and ended up walking back to the hostel at 11.30 pm.

Roberta & I, Champs de Mars, Paris, France