I had a blast in Barcelona. My journal is filled with adjectives like “super”, “incredible” and “fun”. It was the vibrancy of the city; the fun company (we were touring with our energetic friend Carolyn); the lovely weather; the spontaneous Easter egg hunt in our hostel (thank you Sarah!) We laughed, we had good time. I was fascinated by Antoni Gaudi. I had absolutely no clue about this famous architect. Never seen any photos. So his creations were a complete surprise … and bizarre and unusual. Perhaps that made the discovery all the more thrilling. We wandered in a park with a “huge cascade of fountains, statues and stairs galore”…

We drank sangria and learned that nightlife only gets going after midnight in Spain. The nightclub was practically empty at 11:00 pm, but the music was loud. 🎵 Don’t go, don’t goooo, don’t go away… I’m begging you to stay… The club was a short walk down the beach from our beachfront youth hostel on Playa Piles. On another night, we watched the sunset and made a fire by the beach with the other travellers staying at the hostel. We were all there for the same reason. A beach holiday within our holiday. After three weeks of checking off European cities (12 in total!) and three sleepless overnight train trips,…

We were greeted at the train station by a little old lady. She was drawn to the large Canadian flag on my pack. As usual we rolled into town with no place to stay. This is generally not a problem. But it was Semana Santa, and this is a big deal in Spain. We had not consulted a calendar or our common sense before heading into Spain during the event of the year. So when she approached us offering us a room in “mi casa”, we figured it was our best bet. “Venga” she motioned for us to follow. We tightened our huge packs around our waists and were off.…

When I returned from my trip, my family gave me the postcards I had sent them during my travels. I thought this strange at first, but now I realize the postcards are helpful as I piece together my memories. In a postcard to my dad (a retired architect) I wrote about the construction of the bridge spanning the dramatic gorge in Ronda. The Puente Nuevo (“New Bridge”) is an impressive architectural feat. It is the largest of Ronda’s three bridges. In a side view of the bridge, you can see how the bridge was built in three stages, each with its own layer of arches (google it, the bridge is…

I am standing in a small plaza filled with orange trees. The trees grow out of small square openings in the cobbled ground, filling the air with the smell of sweet blossoms. The surrounding buildings are warm shades of yellow and ochre. People are lounging at small tables, sitting on fanciful white metal chairs, sipping a drink, nibbling a tapa. A man is strumming a guitar. Sevilla. This is the feeling of Sevilla I remember. We spent most of our time searching for a bank and food, and chatting with some Canadians preparing to work at Expo 92. We were lucky to get the beds we did for two nights…

Overnight trains can be an efficient way to cover long distances cheaply on a Eurorail pass. Free accommodation, and you wake up in new country. Our short stay in Madrid started and ended with overnight train rides. Needless to say we arrived in Madrid, from France, exhausted. A side effect of this great efficiency. With a garbage strike in full force, we did not experience Madrid at its best. But we still had a pleasant time. We strolled around Plaza Mayor, picnicked in Parque del Retiro and perused the artwork, including Picasso’s famed Guernica. I ate paella. The second day we went to Aranjuez, described in our guidebook as the…