So for the past few weeks I’ve been traveling around with my Interrail Pass hoping to save a bit on the transportation costs on the train. The pass is easy enough to use but in the end I don’t think I saved much money on it at all – in fact it was probably a waste of money for me. For a start I’m old so I wasn’t eligible for any sort of youth (under 26) discounts. Secondly we ended up having to reserve most of our train trips anyway and with reservation fees ranging from 5 euro up to 30 euro these soon started to add up and I’m thinking it might have been cheaper to buy the individual ticket – one ride I saw that the reservation fee was almost the same price as the train ticket. Sigh. So, what I want to know is – what’s the fuss with these train passes!!!

Rant over. Bed time.

I was in Madrid about four months ago so it feels like I’m visiting an old friend by coming back here. Well, technically I did visit an old friend as I caught up with Mirela over tapas! It was great to see her because the next time I see her could be many months away.

I was keen to see what summer in Madrid had to offer which was different to Madrid of winter though I think actually I was quite lucky when I came here last as it was not bad weather then. The main difference I’ve seen this time around is that there are a heck of a lot more people eating and sitting outside than the last time I visited so where some squares were empty now they were covered in tables and chairs!

Photos, Photos, Photos.

Visiting Madrid felt kind of strange because in effect I was only here for a day and then I’d be flying back to London which would bring me to the end of my summer holiday 🙁 so actually I wasn’t really feeling as much of a tourist as I had in previous cities. One of Teesh’s ex-workmates had generously offered us the use of their flat too so that made me feel even more of a local. Their flat was absolutely amazing and I wanted to stay there forever! Ha ha.

Teesh and I walked a fair bit around the city but in hindsight didn’t really do much more than that. Oh, other than having some very lovely meals!! Naturally. I finally managed to eat at the oldest restaurant in the world, Botín, which I’d tried to get to last time. Actually we were pretty luck that our walking tour took us into the restaurant during the day (and we got to see them preparing the roast suckling pigs for which they are famous and also Hemingway’s table) so we managed to score a booking for later that evening. And just to prove that the world really is a small place – we ran into this guy that I’d met on my tour to Belgium last year. I couldn’t believe he was actually seated next to us!

There is one thing I want to go back to Madrid for – to find the nunnery where they make their own candy! So we spent a couple of hours tracking down this elusive nunnery. According to our tour guide there is this nunnery whose members have never seen or been seen by the outside world. The way it works is that you buzz a door to ask for the sweets, once inside there is a dark hallway you walk to the end of, there is a turntable of sorts where you drop your money and then it spins around and there are your sweets! Unfortunately they proved elusive to us on this occasion …

I don’t feel as if we’ve really done Barcelona any justice by dedicating basically only two days in this beautiful city but that’s all we had to work with so we did our best with the small amount of time. This was the closest we’d gotten to the beach really during this summer holiday plus we had an absolutely beautiful hotel with its own pool so I was hoping to get in some by-the-water time … unfortunately things didn’t work out that way. The closest thing we got to being on the beach was having a late lunch of paella beachside! Ah well, it wasn’t meant to be. But that’s okay – our two days were very full and often it was past 9pm before we got home most days .. before heading out again for the night’s adventure! Heh heh.

Photos, Photos, Photos.

Highlights

We arrived in Barcelona pretty late from our flight out of Milan and actually were all set to go out and sample the night life of Barcelona but once we got to our hotel room going out again was the last thing on our minds. We stayed at Hotel Barcelona Universal and it was the most fantastic hotel room we’d had all journey (which, to be fair, was not unexpected considering we’d tried to opt for B&Bs, cheaper hotels or hostels where we could.) Our room was really quite modern, with a giant balcony and a giant bathroom. Plus air-conditioning! We were in heaven and as a result just could not be bothered heading out to be honest! But soon enough the next day rolled around pretty quickly and it was back to pounding the pavement to explore Barcelona.

La Rambla

La Rambla is one of the first things to come to people’s minds when they talk of Barcelona. It’s a more than 1km tree-lined pedestrian walkway linking the Barri Gòtic and El Raval and is where tourists and locals flock. Its busy, its crowded and its full of life and there won’t be one person who won’t find something to draw their interest as they amble their way along La Rambla. It actually makes for quite a lovely walk even on the hottest days because of the lovely trees that provide the shade. The main things to catch my attention were the pet stores with their, quite cruelly, small cages overfilled with pets and the statue artists who featured some rather original poses and themes.

However, having expressed some positive thoughts about La Rambla, once I’ve seen La Rambla I’m not sure I would be a regular visit to the walkway – especially if I’m in a rush to get anywhere. It is positively heaving with people at all times of the day.

Boqueria Market

I could have spent ours in the Boqueria Market especially gazing at all the absolutely beautifully set up stalls. Everything was just so pretty and well presented that you couldn’t help but be drawn into the market. The fruit stalls were spectacular for their colour and it didn’t hurt that they offered some very delicious juice combinations (a pineapple and coconut drink was one of my favourites.) Moving past the fruit stalls you then have the meat section (where we saw some rather confrontingly skinned rabbits and we think goat heads or something!) and the seafood section. There was even an egg stall! All very attractive. The market also has to be one of the most modern looking I’ve seen and I was super-impressed that the market seemed really hygienic and not at all smelly!

You know I had to post some of these delicious pictures:

For those after an immediate nibble there are also a number of tapas bars spread throughout the market – though is easy to get a little bit lost in the market so if you see a stall you like make sure you buy/drink/eat immediately because there’s no guarantee you’ll find your way back there again!

Paella-on-the-beach

One must indulge in a paella-on-the-beach if in Barcelona and, guided by my internet research we headed off to try and find a place called Can Majo which is reportedly one of the best places to indulge in this experience. When we finally found the place (amazingly difficult to do when all you have is a name and all the people you see along the way are tourists!) we were very much looking forward to indulging. Can Majo is beautifully situated and its apparently a favourite of the locals. In fact we were sitting next to some older ladies who apparently came to Can Majo all the time and I think were a bit miffed to find it had been picked up in a guidebook! But they didn’t begrudge us being there and were helpful enough to supply us with the name of the best tapas restaurant/bar in Barcelona (more on that later!)

After a long walk (where we had the pleasure of seeing lots of old men naked! Don’t ask – apparently nudity off the beach is totally acceptable. To each his own but I tell you seeing a guy on a bike naked – well, even I’m crossing my legs!) from the bottom of La Rambla to Can Majo (it was hours and miles away) Teesh and I were more than happy to get stuck into a Spanish feast. We started with battered white bait and fish balls before moving on to the paella. If I were to be absolutely honest the paella was quite a bit saltier than I expected so from that aspect was a little disappointing. However, the atmosphere and the setting was worth the entrance fee so to speak. I’m also loved the pa amb tomàquet (bread that has been rubbed with the pulp of a cut tomato and drizzled with olive oil) that the Barcelonian love to serve with all meals – truly divine.

Cerveceria Catalana

From one food highlight to another – I bring to you our experience at Cerveceria Catalana. Barcelona is not known for its great tapas so good tapas places are far and few in between but Cerveceria Catalana was absolutely divine and deserves all the kudos it gets. The ladies we’d met at lunch who told us about the place were absolutely spot on – one of the best tapas places I’ve ever been to.

By the time we turned up at Cerveceria Catalana it was nearing 10.30pm (Spanish eat late here we read – with dinners not getting into full swing until at least 9.30 apparently) and the place was crowded with people out the door. Interestingly, however, we were seated straight away so we concluded the crowd of people were all waiting to either sit at one of two or three tables outside (I personally wouldn’t have bothered as it was perfectly lovely inside) or at the long tapas bar (now that would have been cool!) Inside the restaurant the walls are lined with shelves filled with beer bottles so it was very funky indeed.

Teesh and I, I’m afraid, got a bit greedy with our tapas and ended up ordering at least three rounds of the tasty stuff though by round three, eyes being bigger than our stomachs, we were hard pushed to finish. Along with the sangria I ended up getting quite merry indeed that night if you get my drift (which made our next day very hard indeed!)

The tapas was fantastic with our favourites being these cute little bite-sized burgers and the simple potato bravas served with a slightly spiced mayo.

Antoni Gaudi Architecture

If there is anything that is synonymous with Barcelona it has to be Antoni Gaudi’s amazing work. He definitely has a most unique and attractive architecture style. His vision was simply stunning and ground-breaking even to this day. To describe his style I guess you would call it organic based on the influence that nature has on his works – I was interested to hear, for example, that there are no straight lines at his Casa Batlló house. You could spend a lot of money on entrance fees (which we did) to visit all his major pieces of work which include the two most well-known buildings, Casa Batlló and La Pedrera, and of course probably Barcelona’s most visited sight – the temple Sagrada Familia. On the other hand you can visit Park Guell for free – this park, in addition to featuring more Gaudi, also features his mosaic work.

Casa Batlló, locally named the House of Bones, from the outside it looks like a big giant skull or collection of skulls. Absolutely remarkable the building to me really demonstrated his genius and thinking. An audio tour takes you throughout the whole building until you emerge on the roof with its multiple chimneys and what may look like a dragon. Except for other Gaudi work I’m sure you’ve never seen anything else like it.

Besides some funky furniture and cool door handles the interior of La Pedrera, or Casa Milà, was actually quite ordinary in comparison to Casa Batlló. However, the highlights were looking up or down into the atrium and going out on to the roof. Indescribable and featuring more of Gaudi’s chimneys – the roof has to be experienced:

Do not be turned off by the crowds at La Sagrada Familia because it is something worth seeing up close and personal. This temple has astonishingly been under construction since 1882. Whether it will ever be finished will depend both on donations and entrance fees but finances notwithstanding they say that it will be within 30-80 years before it is all done and dusted. Wow. I could go on about all the symbolism etc. to be found in the building, including the use of the fruit and animals at the pinnacles of the columns, or about the kinds of materials that Gaudi wished to be used in the construction of the temple but what I was impressed with, again, was his genius and vision. This is the kind of guy that rather than building a model up (which apparently caused all sorts of logistically nightmares) he found it easier to build it down and use a mirror to see what it would look like right side up. This man is a true inspiration to architects everywhere.

Flamenco

Although I’ve said this was a highlight it wasn’t so much a highlight but one of those things you should do when you’re in Spain – and that’s to go see some Flamenco! The show we went to was typically touristy (no locals at all in the room) but for a night’s entertainment it was alright. .The dancers gave it their all though to be honest some solo pieces went on way too long than they needed to.

Last Words

Barcelona is a brilliant city. It kind of reminds me of Brisbane in a way because you can tell it’s a very livable city with its very relaxed lifestyle, lovely beaches close by (though true diehards will actually travel outside of Barcelona to get to a decent beach), fabulous food, and nature nearby (the mountains.) Loved it.

These last couple of weeks are really the most amount of time I’ve spent in Italy and there were a few things that really stood out for me during the experience.

We had probably about three hours in Milan traveling between Florence and Barcelona which Teesh was keen to make the most of. Like Zurich we couldn’t really venture too far away from the train station so we basically had time only to visit the major square. To be honest the last time I was in Milan nearly two years I didn’t spend that much time in Milan itself anyway!

What I didn’t notice last time was the obsession people seemed to have with the pigeons. They were everywhere in the square near the Duomo to almost infestation type levels. It didn’t help that enterprising people were going about the square selling bird feed to crazy tourists.

Not sure you could really call it a celeb spot (we tried very hard to find some models) but we did see Giorgio Schultze, the European spokesperson for New Humanism. Obviously he was campaigning for something. He looked really friendly is all I can say!

My greatest memory of my trip to Florence was the magnificent eats. We were in Florence for two nights but with the traveling from Pisa on one day and leaving early for Milan the third day we only really had one full day to explore Florence. Our full day was also a Monday so with some things like the two major art galleries, the Uffizi and Gallery of the Academy, being shut and with the weather not being the greatest we resorted to treating our stay in Florence as a kind of rest break before heading to our next country which included relaxing and indulging in lovely long drawn out dinners.

We were staying at a place called Hotel Balcony and the owner/manager (not really sure which category he fit into) was so very helpful and friendly providing us with two really good local restaurants to go to. Unfortunately I can’t remember the names of them but they were very good. Especially the first restaurant where we had some amazing grilled meats and the garlic broccoli. TO DIE FOR.

When we weren’t eating giant meals and gelati (going to miss the gelati when we leave Italy!) we were taking long walks to explore the many squares of Florence. I was loving the romanesque style of the churches which were a bit different from what we’ve seen in the last couple of weeks. Of course we took a walk along the Ponte Vecchio (Old Bridge) which survived the German destruction of all other bridges during World War II apparently on the express orders of Hitler. Perhaps he felt it was too beautiful to destroy.

One of the local customs in Florence is apparently for young couples to attach locks to the statue of Cellini on the Ponte Vecchio and throw the key into the Arno river to seal there love. Another story goes that the tradition began when young men had to leave their home towns to do military service. The attached lock was a promise to return. Whatever the tradition now thousands of tourists every year follow this tradition and it has become a bit of a bane on the part of the local council to remove the lock. It’s a very sweet and romantic thought but watch out for the police who will fine you at the drop of a … uh … key. Sorry, couldn’t resist.

We couldn’t see the real Michelangelo but we did see the replica in the Piazza della Signoria (which actually was quite a cool open-air museum of sculpture) and the one up at Piazzale Michelangiolo. The Piazzale is a serious climb up a not to be understated hill. Hard work but worth the effort for the panoramic views.

If we were all brutally honest there is only one reason people come to Pisa and that’s to see the Leaning Tower. Sure the city has more than enough historic churches, several palaces, and bridges to probably fill a day but by the time you get to Pisa you’ve probably had your fill of such things. The Leaning Tower, on the other hand, is pretty unique. In fact we even heard one couple lamenting the fact that they were staying in Pisa overnight!

A side trip to Pisa can be easily done traveling between cities – in this case on our journey between Rome and Florence. In practical terms this meant leaving our luggage at the train station, hopping on a bus to get to the tower and pre-booking our timed entry into the tower. Entry into the Leaning Tower is not only expensive (17 euro!) but also strictly managed with limited numbers being allowed up it at any one time, a limited visit time-wise and absolutely no bags allowed (handbags included!)

Because of the lean in the tower climbing up the steps to reach the top actually didn’t feel like hard work at all. Some people may feel a little vertigo however so watch out for that. Otherwise, it was a relatively peaceful climb and because they limit the numbers going up and down at any one time it didn’t feel crazily crowded or rushed. I love how the steps were so worn from the people climbing it.

The typical picture of Pisa is of people holding it up but I kind of liked the ones of us pushing it over better. 🙂