Barcelona, Spain to Nice, France

Up at six am for the preparation of our trip to Nice. We made it to the pick up point half an hour early, only to find the bus running two hours late.

Yet another relatively uneventful trip, although we saw Luvo, Jo from Albufeira and Andrea from Sudoeste. We made stops along the way, including at the Spain-France border.

We arrived in Nice at seven pm and saw Johnny, Jen and Karla getting on the bus. They referred us to a hostel around the corner from the drop off point, which was cheap and where Kern and Beck were staying. When we turned up the owner said that Troy and Beck had actually checked out that morning. We were in a room with Andrea and Matty from New Zealand, and they went to a Chinese restaurant that they’d been to previously, so we went along with them for a feed.

Afterwards, we walked down to the beach and sat and watched the water. It’s a tough life! After a hot day on the bus, sitting on the beach’s promenade with a slight breeze was a blessing. Matty knew of a place that sold cheap beers, so off we went for a couple of drinks. This place had an internet café, which turned into a nightclub, but we left when happy hour was over.

We walked back to the hostel via McDonalds, to try a new desert discovery, as made by Andrea – the McFlurry. A whipped sundae, blended with peanut M&Ms. A definite winner. While standing out the front of McDonalds we ran into Julian from our Contiki trip. He has completed the northern and central circuits of Eurobus and was about to join the southern route, so we spent the best part of an hour giving him tips from what we’ve done.

We finally got back to the hostel at two am and who should be asleep in our room – Troy and Beck. So, obviously, we woke them up to surprise them. It will be good to spend the next couple of days with them.

Barcelona, Spain

Our last full day in Spain is spent in the seaside town of Sitges.

We left the hostel at ten am and caught the train from Barcelona Sants to what we thought was Sitges, but ended up on the wrong line and got off at St. Vincence. Fortunately, a train back to Sitges was only five minuets away, and only a 20-minute trip. So, our 40-kilometer trip ended up taking two hours.

When we arrived, we walked through the town to find a place to eat. We ended up at a chicken shop, where we ate inside.

Afterwards it was straight to the beach. Even though Sitges is a very touristy town, the beach is beautiful, and relatively uncrowded. We spent three hours lazing around and swimming in the Mediterranean, until 3.30 pm when we started our journey back to Barcelona.

Me, Sitges, Spain

The trip home only took us half an hour, as the train followed the coastline.

After showering and changing, we went out again. We ate dinner at a pizza place on La Rambla.

After dinner we walked along the street as they had some markets set up. We walked back over to one of the outdoor areas and had a couple of beers, once again watching all types wandering by. We were back at the hostel at one am to struggle for some sleep in our hot room.

Barcelona, Spain

We covered plenty of ground today, in a short period of time.

We started the day off walking to Barcelona’s Arc di Triompf. I have no idea what triumph it is for, but it is another monument visited to add to the collection.

Me, Arc de Triompf, Barcelona, Spain

From here we walked to Passage de Gracia to see two more Gaudi buildings, Casa Batllo and Casa Mia - Le Pedrera.

 Casa Batllo, Barcelona, Spain

 Casa Mia - La Pedrera, Barcelona, Spain

From here we walked west along Arango, stopping at a café along the way for lunch, until we got to Parc Joan Miro. This barren park is named after its designer, who also made the mosaic/giraffe-looking statue. It will be easier to explain when you see a picture.

 Dona i Ocell, Parc de Joan Miro, Barcelona, Spain

It is only a short walk to Placa Espanya. From here, where you have a great view of Palau Nacional.

Unfortunately, I started to feel a migraine coming on so we caught the Metro home instead of going to have a look. Back at the hostel we both had a siesta, even though we had only been out for four hours. I woke up feeling worse, so Roberta went to the pharmacy and bought me some Fiorinal for the migraine. She also bought back some KFC for dinner. The magic of greasy food. With that we stayed in for the night.

Barcelona, Spain

Happy anniversary to us. It was four years ago today that Roberta and I first met at the Baxter Ball at the Coogee Bay Hotel. And here we are, celebrating in Barcelona. Who’d of thought!

Our day started off at the market on La Rambla. Here we bought some fruit, cheese and a baguette for a picnic.

We caught the Metro up to Valicarca and went to Park Guell. The park overlooking the city was Gaudi’s attempt to landscape gardening. The garden is filled with monuments that are distinctly his style and in the middle of the park is a museum that was once Gaudi’s home. We found a park bench on the small amount of grass in the park that was not being used, and had our picnic.

Me, Park Guell, Barcelona, Spain

Roberta, Park Guell, Barcelona, Spain

We got a couple of photos of us and the scenery before catching the train back into town. We got off at Catalunya, where Roberta went into El Corte Ingleses to do some shopping, while I waited in the park across the road, where I wrote in my diary and people watched.

When she had finished, we went to the Picasso Museum. This museum houses over 3000 pieces of Picasso’s work, from the time he was 13 until his death, in 1973, at age 92. Before he was 25, he was an outstanding painter and drawer, especially with portraits. When he reached 35 was when he started painting his cubism and abstract work, which, to me, got a bit samey after a while, and not something I am really into. The exception is his series of interpretations of Velazquez’s La Meninas, which we had seen just a couple of days ago at the Prado in Madrid. Although he flogged it to death this was the highlight of the museum.

By this stage, 6.30 pm, we went back to the hostel to get ready to go out for dinner.

We went to an Italian restaurant, La Perla, where Roberta had been on a previous trip in 1996. The meal was absolutely delicious, and worth every peseta.

After dinner we walked up to La Rambla and sat at one of the terrace tables to finish the night off with a drink and enjoying all the people to watch.

Barcelona, Spain

I woke up on the bus at 7.45 am to arrive in Barcelona. Thankfully the sleeping tablets worked and I slept most of the night.

As we got off, we ran into Troy, Beck, Karla and Jenny, as well as Simon and Kirsty, who were all getting on the bus to Nice. We stopped and chatted to them.

Because we’d heard the drop off hostel wasn’t very nice, we tried a couple of other hostels, but these were full. Most of the places listed in the Lonely Planet were also taken, and those that weren’t had significantly raised their prices since being in the guide book. We ended up at Hostel Palermo, pretty much in the center of town. It’s more expensive and not as nice as we would like, but it will do for the next four nights.

We went and had lunch before we were able to get into our room. And once in a sleeping tablet hangover let us have an afternoon nap.

We woke up at 3 pm and went to Sagrada Familia. Construction on this church began in 1882 and is said to be only half complete, but the façade is magnificent. At one end the façade is covered in scenes depicting the birth of Christ, while the entrance end, the more recently built, and modernly designed façade depicts many scenes surrounding Christ’s death. The cathedral was designed by Gaudi, and his old workshop is now a museum within the church, displaying many designs of his models and photos for the grand church. It is hard to view the building all at once, and it is not until you see a view from far away that you realize how huge this cathedral is.

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

We caught the Metro back to Catalunya and found a restaurant to have a cheap dinner at.

We then walked down La Rambla, which is the main road, that contains a wide walkway down the middle. The walkway is filled with buskers, henna tattooists, artists and eateries, and is a very lively place. We followed this all the way to the end, where the harbor is, and the most prominent feature is a statue of Christopher Columbus.

On the harbor, at a place called Port Vella, is where we went next. It was a Darling Harbour-esque complex with cinemas, shops, an aquarium, etc. We walked around for a while and had an ice cream to eat. This place was very popular with all types of people, i.e., families, tourists, young nightclubbers, etc., as it seemed to be getting busier as we headed for home.

Madrid, Spain to Barcelona, Spain

We had another fairly late start today, and checked out at eleven am. Fortunately, we can leave our backpacks stored at the hostel, so we can spend the day wandering around before the bus picks us up at 11.30 pm.

A ham and cheese roll for breakfast, before walking one and a half kilometers to Museo del Prado. This museum is full of art from 15th – 19th centuries, created by mainly Spanish and Italian artists. The half hour queue to get in was well worth the wait. The three floors of mainly religious art were both spectacular and fascinating. It was also great to compare each artists’ view on the history of Christ from birth to resurrection. Amongst those artists were the Spanish El Greco and Goya, whose works we’d also seen in Toledo, and the Italian Raphael. In all it took us four hours to go through the entire exhibition. It would have been longer had one floor not been closed for renovations.

We walked back into the center of Madrid, having a 4pm lunch on the way. We wanted to see a movie to kill time, but the next session is not until 7.25 pm, so we keep walking to Plaza de Espana to find a shady spot and have an outdoor rest.

Armageddon was the movie we saw, with Bruce Willis and Ben Affleck. It was a good movie, full of action and plenty of “America saves the world” cliches to laugh at.

When the movie was over, we picked up our bags from Josephina’s and waited downstairs for an hour until the Eurobus arrived. It was funny to see the looks from the locals we got, while waiting in the street. Considering how many homeless people there are in Madrid, you’d think we were a gang adding to the problem. You’d think they’d be used to the odd Aussie traveler.

After our first service stop, I took a sleeping tablet to get me through the long night’s drive.

Madrid, Spain

We had a sleep in this morning, before heading off around town at midday.

After brunch at Dunkin Donuts, we caught the Metro out to Retiro, where Roberta went to see a doctor for a general check-up. All good.

Across from the train station is Parque del Buen Retiro. This park is a magnificently serene garden, which leaves behind the noise of the city. There are numerous statues and fountains in the park, but most significant, and controversial, is El Angel Caido (The Fallen Angel). This 1878 statue is said to be the first ever statue depicting the devil.

El Angel Caido, Parque del Buen Retiro, Madrid, Spain

After a couple of hours strolling through the garden and making the most of the huge amounts of shade, we opted to head back to the center of Madrid. On the way back to the hostel we stopped for a late lunch, eating kebabs and salad. We also stopped and looked at a shop or two before getting back into the hostel at 6.30 pm.

We had an early evening siesta and left again at 9.45 pm in search of dinner.

We ended up finding a restaurant just south of Puerta de Sol, which had a cheap three-course meal (975 pesetas) and an outdoor eating area.

After our vegetable soup, veal and ice cream, we walked to La Alhambra bar, where we had been before, and had a few drinks before returning home at midnight.

Salamanca, Spain to Madrid, Spain

We left our luxurious hostel at eleven am and headed to a café for breakfast.

After this we did the second walking tour of the town, from the tourist map. Our first stop was Casa de las Conchas, a 15th century mansion, with its inner staircase and patio being the highlights, with a blend of Moorish, Gothic and Italian design. Most of the other sights were closed, but we walked south to the Rio Torres, which is crossed by Puente Romano, a bridge well over 500 years old. Also, down by the river, was a local market, which we took our time strolling through.

We walked back up into town and had lunch at a café near Salamanca University.

After lunch we, we walked out to Campo de San Francisco, a park, where we read and wrote in diaries to kill time.

We walked back to Plaza Mayor to go to the internet café to email for a quick half hour.

We then returned to the hostel, picked up our backpacks, and walked over to the Eurobus pick up, where we had to wait an hour before the bus arrived. We departed Salamanca at eight pm and stopped only once in our three-hour drive to Madrid. We went straight up to Hotel Josephina again, to find Roberta’s Spanish had worked and we have a room for the next two nights. Before going to bed we ducked downstairs to Burger King for a quick bite as a late dinner.

Salamanca, Spain

Our room today is heaven, and a sleep in cannot be helped.

Our self-guided tour through Salamanca started at the town’s churches, near the hostel. The “new” cathedral is 260 years old and is grand in the same style as the cathedrals of Toledo and Seville. This gothic sandstone building took 220 years to build.

Nueva Cathedral, Salamanca, Spain

Salamanca, Spain

Adjacent is the 800-year-old Old Cathedral, whose age is showing, with deteriorated paintings and sculptures. It is, none the less, still a fantastic building.

Around the corner is the university, which has a decorative, sculptured entrance. One of the skulls on the portal façade has a frog on its head. It is said that if you can pick out the frog without being helped, then you will be married within in a year. Roberta found it, while I just looked where everyone else was pointing. (I hope she sends me an invite).

University, Salamanca, Spain

We then went into the tourist office and picked up a map of the city, which had two walking tours on them. We followed the one that started at Plaza Mayor and went north. Plaza Mayor is the 18th century town square, which houses numerous outdoor eateries, and the town hall.

Plaza Mayor, Salamanca, Spain

The walk then took us past many of Salamanca’s historic buildings (all built with sandstone). From the 15th and 16th century convents De las Ursulas and De las Augustinas, to the Palacio de Monterrey, built in 1539, to the 12th century circular Romanic church – San Marcos. The walk took us an hour in total.

We had a lazy lunch at Burger King before booking accommodation for tomorrow and Monday in Madrid. We went back to the room to continue our Spanish tradition of the siesta.

We were woken late in the afternoon by a hail storm. This is the first sign of rain we have had since we were in Trafalgar Square seven weeks ago.

We went to Plaza Mayor for a drink and to meet Johnny Joiner for dinner. We ended up at a Tex-Mex restaurant on Rue Mayor, not far from where we are staying.

Afterwards, we went to a bar that Johnny had been shown, that served liter beers for 350 pesetas. We stayed here until 2.30 am, before stumbling back home.

Porto, Portugal to Salamanca, Spain

After checking in for the next two nights, we went out for dinner. Literally around the corner from the Pension were dozens of outdoor dining areas. We found one and had us a good, cheap meal. We finished there at 11.30 pm and came back to our room, after a quick walk around the block.his morning, except get a quick breakfast, before catching the bus back out to the youth hostel where Eurobus will make their pick up to Salamanca. I wish we were staying here for another couple of days, as two was definitely not enough.

The bus departed at 12.30 pm, with our guide being M. Tatum, a guy a couple years younger than us at The Entrance High. Johnny also got on the bus, as the last standby. We also caught up with Rohan, who is making the Lisbon to Barcelona trip starting today (24 hours on the bus).

The bus made one last stop at a roadside servo in Portugal before we arrived in Salamanca at seven pm. The drop off point was a bit expensive, so we headed to a cheap place that was suggested in the Lonely Planet – Pension Estefania.

After checking in for the next two nights, we went out for dinner. Literally around the corner from the Pension were dozens of outdoor dining areas. We found one and had us a good, cheap meal. We finished there at 11.30 pm and came back to our room, after a quick walk around the block.

Porto, Portugal

We slept in a bit this morning, and still haven’t had a decent shower, as the hostel has water pressure not much better than dribble.

We started the morning at an internet café around the corner, where we spent some time sending messages home.

We had lunch at the same place as yesterday, before walking down to the river to do a tour of one of the many port producers in the area. Sandeman’s is a London company started in 1790, and based in Porto since 1811. The store has a small museum with a history of the company, which we walked through, while waiting for our tour to start. The tour goes through Sandeman’s cellars, and talks about the company and its processes for making port. At the end we had a taste test of two types of port, the white port and the tawny port. I didn’t go much on them, but Roberta bought a bottle for her parents.

Train Station, Porto, Portugal

Rio Douro, Porto, Portugal

After the tour we went back to the room to freshen up before dinner. Johnny and Luvo met us at our place, and we walked down to the same restaurant as last night.

When we finished there, we went further along the river to some outdoor cafes, where we had drinks until two am. We caught a cab, a Mercedes no less, back to the hostel.

Lisbon, Portugal to Porto, Portugal

We were up early again this morning, as Eurobus leaves at 7am. A minor dispute with the rep, who wouldn’t let us have breakfast because we had not checked in at a regular Eurobus time. Eventually this was solved, but left a black mark on Eurobus’ reputation.

The trip to Porto took five and half hours, with one stop being made in Fatima. It is said that on 13 July 1918 a vision of Mary appeared here in front of three local children. Mary told them to be there on the 13th for the next tree months, where she would give them instructions. One of those instructions was to have a chapel built on the site in her honor, which is the magnificent building that stands in the square today. There is also a path that runs the length of the square, which Catholics crawl along, on their knees, to show their dedication to the belief. With tomorrow being the 13th, many believers are camped in the area, hoping for the return of the vision of Mary.

Basilica of Fatima, Portugal

We arrived in Porto at 12.30 pm and met up with Kern, Beck, Luvo, Karla, Jennie & Johnny, who gave us a map and referred us to Hostel Europa, in town. It was a small room, but for P$2500 a night it was impossible to knock it back.

We went in search of a laundry after lunch, as we had a ton of clothes to be cleaned. While waiting for the laundry, we killed two hours walking around town.

We met up with Johnny and Luvo for dinner down near the river at seven pm, and afterwards headed to an Irish bar nearby, where we stayed until one am.

Lisbon, Portugal

It was 5.30 am when the rooster started making noise this morning. Much to the delight of nobody! I was still feeling ill today, but I wanted to make the most of our only day in Lisbon.

We caught the bus to Montijo and just missed a ferry into Lisbon. It was 90 minutes until the next one, so we found a palm tree to lie under in the vein hope of recovering from whatever it is I’ve got. The eventual ferry ride was relaxing. Nice and warm, and I felt better with the wind blowing in my face.

When we got off in Lisbon, I started to feel even worse than yesterday. I needed an easy day. We caught the train to the Botanic Gardens. Roberta bought herself some lunch and while I spent the afternoon covered in shade, Roberta had a short look around town.

At 5.30 pm I was well enough to walk to the city center, where we had a look around at some of the old buildings. At this point my fever had subsided and I even attempted some dinner at one of the many restaurants along one of the city’s malls. I didn’t eat too much, but at least I was feeling better.

We caught the 8.30 pm ferry back to Montijo and was back home by 9.30 pm to see everyone from the festival, including Pedro, who had decided to hang with us while we were all in Lisbon. I wish we were staying for another two days now. We all went for a drink at the bar before pulling up stumps at midnight, when temporary goodbyes were said, as I’m sure we’ll keep bumping into each other for the next few Eurobus stops.

Zambujeira do Mar, Portugal to Lisbon, Portugal

We got up nice and early this morning to guarantee we get back into Zambujeira in time for our four pm bus to Lisbon.

After a freezing cold shower, we packed up the tent, said goodbye to everyone and headed over to the buses with Julian. Once again it was a scrum to get on the bus with everyone else, this time with everyone carrying backpacks and tents, but we managed to get on the second bus.

When we arrived in Zambujeira we got some breakfast from the supermarket and ate it in the shade across from the tourist information office. Julian left us a midday to catch his bus to Lagos and we remained in the park, chasing the shade, for lunch and a couple more hours before we headed over to the station to catch our bus to Lisbon.

The trip took three hours, and was non-eventful.

Getting from the bus station to the campsite was another story. An adventure in itself. We had to find a Metro station and catch two trains before the 500-meter walk to the ferry. The ferry took half an hour to Montijo. Then, we got on another bus that took us to the campsite. All in all, it was almost as long from Lisbon to the campsite as it was Zambujeira to Lisbon.

Anyway, we set up the tent at 9.45 pm, in the dark, and by this stage I was not feeling the greatest, as I seemed to have picked up another bug, or maybe food poisoning, probably at the festival. A few dashed to the restrooms were followed by a horrific night’s sleep in the world’s dodgiest and overpriced campground. The site is an old orchard, and it had been half cleared by the owners who have used it as a campsite since the recent World Expo.

Festival Sudoeste, Zambujeira do Mar, Portugal

The last day was spent lazing under our makeshift tarp that the group put up between four tents to keep us shaded and cooler. Very little was done today because of the heat. The showers stopped working for three hours, so there was no relief even there.

Camping, Festival Sudoeste, Zabujeira do Mar, Portugal

Simon, Kirsty, Roberta, Andrea, Me, Katrina, Jeff & Rohan, 

Festival Sudoeste, Zabujeira do Mar, Portugal

At eight pm we went back into the arena for the final surge of music.

First up tonight was Placebo, an English guitar band. The rest of our gang new this band, but I’d never heard of them. But they were great. Sound was good and I really enjoyed their songs. I hope they come to Australia. I’d see them again. Their lead singer has a unique voice, which compliments the good music. A good find!

PJ Harvey was next. This is another excellent set. Harvey has such a strong voice and a huge stage presence, making her a popular choice for this festival crowd. Another person whose music I need to look more into (I only know her from her Henry Lee duet with Nick Cave.)

The last band of the festival was Portishead. There trip-hop style is not something I’d normally listen too, but this was a fantastic show. I knew a couple of songs and am now swayed to look for some of their albums. Portishead left the stage to thunderous applause and seemed genuinely humbled by the whole experience.

While there was still another band to come on at 1.30 am Portuguese Silence 4, we decided to go out on the high and call it quits, heading back to the tent.

The Crap Facts

This is my 151st concert.

This is my 3rd concert at Herdade de Casa Branca.

This is my 3rd concert in Zambujeira do Mar.

This is my 3rd concert in Alentejo.

This is my 3rd concert in Portugal.

Placebo are the 199th band I've seen.

PJ Harvey is the 200th band I've seen.

Portishead are the 201st band I've seen.