6 Apr

Day 2 in Barcelona. This city can be divided into essentially two halves. The first half is the coastal area and the regions immediately adjoining it. Sights in this part include the Columbus Column (which is the Spanish version of Nelson's Column in London), the financial district, the harbor, stadium of FC Barcelona, and of course lots of shops and restaurants. On a hill you can also visit the Olympic stadium for the 1992 Summer Olympics that were held here, as well as an amazing 'magic fountain' found at the base of hill near an old palace. I've got pictures, never fear.
The second half is far more inland and includes the Sagrada Familia, a famous unfinished church designed by Gaudi and is unlike any church you've ever seen, I guarantee it (wait till you see pictures on the next post). This region also contains the unique Eixample district which is filled with strange and modern architecture. A museum dedicated to Pablo Picasso is here, as well as a museum dedicated to chocolate! (guess which one I went to).
In order to better appreciate all these sights, we bought a two-day buss pass on the 'Bus Turismus' and road around that for a while.

5 Apr

All right, first let me be perfectly honest (as if I have been anything else in the course of writing this blog). I am writing this entry on 9 August 2006 from my desk at GlaxoSmithKline during my lunch break. There. I said it. Some time ago, I decided to take a break from writing. I intended this break to be rather small, but as you can see, it has grown to unconscionable proportions. My memory being what it is, the entries following and including the current one may not be entirely accurate recounts. Bear with me, and do give me the benefit of the doubt. The detail you have witnessed (perhaps to your dislike) earlier shows that I can remember enough to be specific, if not always entertaining. With no further ado...

5 Apr 2006

We managed to enjoy a peaceful ride to Barcelona. There was just one other girl in our 4-person all-female compartment and, being Spanish and knowing very little English, she hardly said a word to us the whole trip. Could have been worse. I was eager to get off the train and get moving again after staying in a cramped space for so long. We unloaded our luggage with relative ease and headed for the Metro to take us into town. The map is very easy to follow and the system is rather well designed. I still think the Tube is one of the better one's I have ridden and certainly most London stations were cleaner and neater than this.
Since I was the only one who had studied a map of Barcelona before arriving (shocking, I know), it was up to me to find our hotel. I got us off at the right stop, but unfortunately led us in the wrong direction for a couple of blocks before realizing my mistake. Such a misturn would have been so bad if I wasn't so terribly eager just to get to our hotel, take a shower (trains don't do much for making you smell good) and put our luggage away. Toting around a heavy duffel bag can get real old after a while, especially when it's warm outside, you're dressed a little too heavily for the weather, you're in a new and crowded city, you're not 100% sure where you're going, and your parents aren't helping with directions or keeping your patience. I pride myself on being a rather patient person, but this morning I just lost it. Finally, after what seemed like half an eternity, I found the hotel.
It was an awfully nice one too, 4 stars I believe and in an excellent location, right on one of the main boulevards of Barcelona. With great relief, we checked in. After resting for a bit and showering, we left in search of a funky looking music hall Dad and I had found in a guidebook. Note: Barcelona is very famous for its modern art and architecture. It is also a bilingual city in a bilingual part of the country known as Catalonia. Catalan and Spanish are the official languages of Catalonia. Just when I was getting used to Spanish, another language comes up that looks like a mix between Aztec and French. Perfect.
The music hall looked pretty neat from the outside, though when we found out the tour of the inside costed far more than we were willing to pay, we decided a nice look at the exterior was enough and moved on. In the alley outside the hall leading to the main street, a huge troop of schoolchildren were playing, screaming, and eluding the control of their chaperones. I was wearing the hat I bought in Ronda and as I walked by a small group, a little Spanish boy of about 8 years old cried out 'Indiana Jones! Indiana Jones!' and pointed to me. I turned immediately at that and gratefully tipped my hat at him. That little boy saved my day.
It was getting around dinner and we decided to try out a salad bar place I had noticed on the walk to the music hall. Dad said he'd been craving salad for some time and since they also pizza and such, we thought the place sounded just fine. Typical of Europe, or at least just Spain, a drink was included with the price and you had a choice of wine, sangria, or some fountain drink. What the hell, we were in Spain so I chose the wine while Dad picked the sangria and Mom just had water. Too bad the white wine wasn't too good, but then again, I couldn't expect much. The food was decent and after eating, we headed back to the hotel.
There is a plaza near our hotel that is rather nice with several fountains, some green spots and trees, and a huge open space where pigeons love to scuttle around. We walked around here for a spell before heading to the hotel to rest and make plans for the next day. Cheers!

4 Apr

We got to a really early start today. We had some quick breakfast of cereal and bread in the apartment before catching a cab for Alhambra. It’s not that far from the city and is within walking distance, but it’s a bit of a hike to the top and in the interest of time, we decided that riding just made more sense. The Alhambra palace is composed of three main areas, you have the Nasrid Palace (where the Moorish kings used to live), the Generalife gardens (hen-er-al-leaf-ay), and the Alcazar (yet another fortress). You’re required to choose a time in which to visit the Nasrid Palace but once you’re in you can stay as long as you’d like. They make it very clear to you that if you miss your window, they will not let you in. We had some time to kill ‘cause we were early so we decided to walk down to the gardens for a bit. They were quite beautiful and afforded and excellent view of the city below.

We wandered about the flowers for a while and listened to the audio guide we had purchased. They really like to talk about their elaborate use of water here which was nice but nothing spectacular. The flowers were really pretty though, and it was nice to stroll around them in peace before the crowds gathered. Our entry time neared so we started on the fairly long walk back to the palace and reached it in plenty of time. We took a quick bathroom break and headed in. Some of the rooms were rather dark but enough sunlight broke through to make them rather pretty. The courtyards were really special, whether dominated by statues of lions and surrounded by thin yet beautiful pillars or filled with a gigantic pool and fountains. The sun was shining brightly and yet the water helped the complex keep quite cool. It took some time to admire all the rooms but it was outside that I enjoyed myself the most. A palace is a palace but gardens are uniquely and singularly beautiful because no two are ever alike, and their beauty is more profound because it is so transient. We visited the Alcazar for a little while after the palace. It wasn’t as cool as the palace but still nice because you could see a killer view of the city from one of its watchtowers. We didn’t leave the whole complex until late afternoon.

Instead of catching a cab down, we decided to ride a bus instead that makes a trip up and down all day. It was a pretty short ride that dumped us right into the heart of town. There was this really steep hill at the end of the ride that was lined with souvenir shops so after alighting from the bus, we spent the next half hour or so popping in and out of these stores in search of gifts for home. We came up empty-handed, unfortunately, but didn’t mind too much. The sun was still shining so we walked along some streets and found a little falafel/sandwich place to eat lunch in. I liked the sandwich and our waiter was Pakistani who knew Hindi and some other languages so my parents had fun talking to him in Hindi.

After lunch, we strolled around for a while and I grabbed some ice cream for dessert while Mom looked in more souvenir stores. The weather was beautiful so we just chilled out on a bench for a while and planned out our next day. We had a night train to Barcelona tonight that wasn’t leaving until around 9 p.m. so we still had a good part of the day. We walked over to a church which Dad felt like seeing but Mom and I weren’t too interested in. We hung out outside drinking some water that I left to buy and just waited for him. After he got back, we headed back to the hotel to find a place to grab a quick light dinner. I figured we wouldn’t find anything good at the train station so I thought we might as well get something filling then. We looked around for a bit before finding this little sandwich shop quite near the apartment. The waiter was exceptionally rude but at least understood our request to not put too much mayo on the sandwiches. The service was fast enough and when we were done, I stayed back to pay while Mom and Dad went back to the apartment to take care of ordering the cab. We had already checked out in the morning and left our stuff in the lobby ‘cause checkout time was before 11 a.m. We didn’t have to wait too long at the apartment before our cab arrived and it only took about 8 minutes to reach the station.

There weren’t many platforms (four!) so I thought it would be easy to find our train. There was one waiting at platform 3 which was the same platform that I thought ours would be arriving at. Turns out, that train was ours and after we checked that with the conductor, we searched out our compartment. Dad waited outside with the luggage while I got mom settled in and then I brought the rest of the luggage onboard. It was an overnight sleeper train in which the compartments were separated by sexes. Fortunately, ours were next door to each other so we could hang on to most of the luggage and it would be easy for Dad to reach us. There were four bunks to a compartment and it only took a few minutes for us to get settled in. There was one other girl in our compartment with us who didn’t speak much English but seemed to be waiting for someone.

The train left right on time and we just had to wait for the conductor to come check our tickets. He kept them, to our surprise, but told us that he would give us a wake-up call 30 minutes before the train reached Barcelona. I thought that was really sweet of them and it makes a lot of sense. I read and listened to my iPod for a little while before getting comfortable and going to sleep. We wouldn’t be reaching Barcelona until about 8 in the morning so we had plenty of time to rest. Cheers!

3 Apr

We left a little on the late side today (10-ish) and caught the highway bound for Granada. Granada is quite a big city and it took us a while to get our bearings and find the way to our apartment complex. Once we finally made it there, we didn’t find a place to park that was close by, so Dad ended up parking way down the street and over. Mom was working out details for the room while I was the go-between (not so fun!). Two little girls, daughters of the owner I guess, were our guides and maybe they were being spiteful but they must have led us on the longest and dustiest path to the apartment. All I know is that when I found my way back to the car to pick up as many bags as I could carry and then headed back, I got back much faster. We quickly dropped things off before getting back into the car and going to the Hertz center to drop it off. Finding that place took some time too and the traffic was terrible. Not horribly congested just busy and loud; not nearly as pleasant as the traffic in Sevilla. Dad didn’t realize how big Granada was but I knew more or less what to expect. At long last we ditched our car with no problem and caught a cab back to the apartment.

Once there, I started arranging things while Mom and Dad left in search of groceries and internet, respectively. I was hot and tired and just wanted to rest for a bit. When they got back, we were rather hungry so we started making preparations for dinner. We decided that we really just wanted to relax and not go out that night. Dinner was pretty good and then we went straight to bed. Tomorrow we travel out to the Alhambra palace that really puts Granada on the map and is supposed to be spectacular. We’ll see! Cheers!

2 Apr

Ronda! We got to an early start and hopped onto the highway for Ronda. The ride there was fairly pleasant and it was nice to drive through Spanish mountains. Intrepid motorcycle riders took the often steep corners at daring speeds, much to my amusement and delight. It wasn’t until the ride down that I had the sense to take some video of the guys (but hey, they were moving pretty fast). One thing that really struck me about the scenery was how old all the stones and rocks looked. I’m used to countryside and have traveled through quite a bit of it, but you’re used to wildflowers, grasses, and the occasional little village so you don’t see many ruins. The rocks on these mountains looked as though they had been laying there for ages, perhaps hundreds of years. I have no scientific evidence or proof for these guesses, but just a intuition. The sides of the mountains looked much fresher and newer in glistening whites emerging from somber grays. It was late morning by the time we reached Ronda and what a cute city this is! Our first priority was finding a place to park, and it took us some time before we finally did. We also drove perhaps a little too deep into the city too, ‘cause it took us a while to reach ‘civilization.’ We finally reached a little park where we got directions to the tourist information place. We picked up directions and then went to the bathroom before continuing. There was a bullring nearby, one of the older ones in Spain, which we didn’t walk into but looked around at. There were also some military guys there with heavy-duty guns who started playing with this dog that wandered into their group. It was cute.

Maps in hand, we searched for the most famous site in Ronda, the Puente Nuevo (new bridge). A 15-min walk brought us there and what a sight it was! Delicately spanning the river and gorge below with strong, arching struts of white stone…The ravine it hovered over was no small beauty either and we gazed at it and shot pictures of it from various angles for about 30 minutes, along with dozens of other tourists. After the bridge, we headed a little further into town in search of souvenirs and just to enjoy walking down the cobblestone streets flanked by quaint whitewashed buildings. We saw a few leather stores and in one of them I found this beautiful, Indiana Jones-esque hat that I immediately fell in love with. I’ve wanted a hat like that for the longest time, but never thought I would seriously wear it until now. I found one that fit perfectly and though the price felt a little steep, 25 Euros, I knew it was made of solid material and that I would definitely treasure it. Dad picked up a wallet and I decided to go with the hat. It smelled wonderfully of leather and I walked out with it on.

We were hungry after our little shopping trip and so we went in search of some lunch. We looked at some small places but didn’t like the look of them much and didn’t see too many vegetarian options. Finally, we made it back to the Puente Nuevo and saw this nice looking restaurant that afforded a fantastic view of the ravine. The menu was a bit pricey but quite agreeable and when we got a table outside, we knew it was perfect. We ordered two soups, one almond and garlic, another gazpacho (cold tomato soup) and one asparagus pasta dish. I thought the almond and garlic one was the best. Dad also ordered a tomato and mozzarella salad that ended up being sliced tomatoes with olive oil, garnish, and fresh mozzarella cheese. It was delicious. Mom really liked her asparagus dish and told me that the white asparagus they used was relatively rare and quite expensive. It was truly a delicacy, and I’m glad she had a chance to savor it in such a beautiful setting. We asked a nice guy near us to take some pictures of us which he obligingly did.

After lunch, we decided it was time to head back so we grabbed our things and started on a long walk back to the parking lot. On the way, we picked up some fruit and small groceries from this little store. It took us some time to finally leave the city and after we went back down the mountain, we stopped at another big grocery store that Mom had seen on the way up. Parking was another nightmare for that place and by the time Dad and I found a spot, she was almost done shopping. Once we finished there, we drove back to Marabella and got there by early evening. The sun doesn’t set until late here and places are open even later so timing wasn’t a big deal. We rested in the hotel for a little while before heading into town to find a place to eat and see some of the other famous places in Marabella, like the plaza or oranges or something. The city was not as cute as Sevilla and other places but definitely had its own charm. The park we crossed to reach the city center had some neat works of Dali in iron or bronze which I took some pictures of. Food options in the city were mostly restricted to seafood and since we obviously couldn’t partake of that, we headed back to the beach instead. After walking for a bit, we found a pizza place that looked okay so we sat outside in the rather cool air near the sidewalk so we could people watch.

While Mom was in the bathroom, the waiter/possible owner and another woman took our orders and then set our table. Dad and I were very impressed by the quick and efficient way in which they laid out the napkins, silverware, and poured out our Cokes. We half expected our food to be ready in a few minutes they were so fast. Unfortunately, they were merely mortal so we did have to wait a bit for our food, but it was really good. Dad and I had pizza while Mom got this pasta dish with a spicy sauce that was definitely spicy but had a wonderful flavor. It’s not often that pasta sauce tastes that good. We enjoyed our meal and reflected on our trip so far before making plans for the next day. After the meal, we went in search of some gelato that we would eat while strolling along the beach. We didn’t actually walk on the side, rather on these small yet wide roads that run near it (rather like boardwalks). The evening was a little cool and I was glad to get back to the hotel to warm up. We were leaving for Granada the next day so we wanted to make sure we got plenty of sleep. I’m going to miss the coast! Cheers!

1 Apr

We woke up early, checked out of our apartment, and grabbed a cab for the train station. The Hertz rental facility was there, and since the rail station was a good distance from our apartment, we couldn’t just walk there with our entire luggage. It didn’t take too long for us to get our keys and fill out all the paperwork. We walked out into the lot and found our car; a tidy, black Ford Focus that was looking sharp in the morning sunlight. We loaded our luggage and Dad took a few minutes to figure out the controls. It’s been a while since he’s driven a stick shift (except for Mr. O’Connor’s truck when we moved in last fall) and he wanted a bit of time to get the feel of it. The next thing we needed to know was how to reach the highway. We asked a parking lot attendant who unfortunately knew no English. Using a mix of broken Spanish and hand gestures, she was able to communicate directions to us. I understood a few words such as ‘puente’ which means bridge and gathered that we were supposed to essentially go in a box until we reached the bridge. After the bridge, we had to drive for about two kilometers until we saw signs for the highway. Good thing we had a couple of maps in the car, too! We buckled in, and then we were off!

Despite little recent practice, Dad handled the car quite well. We were fine direction-wise for a while until we accidentally missed a turn for our highway and then had to circle back using a U-turn. Thankfully, the traffic wasn’t very heavy and no one got too mad at us for being dumb tourists. The drive became very smooth and comfortable once we reached the highway. Our first destination was La Linea and Gibraltar! I’ve wanted to see the Rock of Gibraltar ever since I first heard about it and especially after last fall when in my Shakespeare class with Armitage we read that Cleopatra has this vision of Antony’s greatness in which he straddles the Strait of Gibraltar. It’s a fitting image since in the play ‘Antony and Cleopatra,’ Hercules is said to be Antony’s patron god who unfortunately abandons him towards the end of the play to the sound of trumpets (one of the few bonus questions I missed that semester, which is of course why I remember it so well now!) The legend of the Pillars of Hercules (which is made up of the Rock of Gibraltar and it’s sister rocky formation in Morocco) states that to complete one of his twelve labors, Hercules had to cross over a mountain that was once the Titan Atlas (same one who held the world on his shoulders, the one Ayn Rand wanted to shrug his shoulders) in order to reach a flock of some famous sheep. Instead of going around the mountain, Hercules used his invincible mace to split the mountain in half, thus shortening his route and connecting the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Who would not desire to visit the site of such a legend! Anyone, we drove along the coast merrily heading for the place of antiquity. The ride was much shorter than I thought it would be, since after only a couple of hours, Mom pointed out that she could see the Rock. I didn’t believe her at first, until I became convinced that it couldn’t be anything else. It was beautiful! And HUGE! No wonder the ancients must have believed it to be part of the gateway at the edge of the world!

We found our way easily into La Linea and then sought a place to park our car. You can drive into Gibraltar from Spain, but the line is long and it’s more of a pain than it’s worth. We put in money for about five hours and then grabbed our things and headed for Gibraltar. ‘Customs’ didn’t take to long and at Passport Control I asked the guy if he would stamp my passport which he obligingly did. Hooray! We took a quick bathroom break at the airport (which is so tiny I think that only British Airways operates there and the only flights coming into Gibraltar leave from Heathrow and Manchester). Dad went in search of a map and some tourist information but was surprised and disappointed to find that all the guides and maps were in Spanish only! This was English territory! While he looked for those, I wandered into the gift shop in search of my shot glass and a pin for Saket. I found both of just the kind I wanted and I fortunately had some pounds with me. I’m sure they would have accepted Euros, but it was nice to be able to use my pounds. I was also thrilled to find that the Gibraltar pounds are different from the English ones. I set some aside for safekeeping. With my new treasures, I returned to my parents and then we headed out into the city.

Our guidebook said that you could take a bus all the way into the city and then to the top of the rock for a small fee. As soon as we reached the bus stand, I knew I was really in English territory. I saw a bobby (policeman with those tall black hats) and a red double-decker bus and even the bus stop signs were the same that they use in London. The same ‘look left’ and ‘look right’ signs were painted on the road to prevent dumb tourists from crossing the street at inappropriate times. Ah, good old England, er, Gibraltar. After waiting for what seemed like an awfully long time, we caught a bus into the city and bought a return ticket, which I hung onto. The day was beautiful if a bit windy and it was nice to ride in the open air. The ride didn’t take too long and before we knew it, we were in the city proper. We got off and walked about ten minutes to the center of town. We saw pubs and Indian restaurants. You can’t keep a Brit too far from his curry and ale…

As we were searching for a lift to the top, a tour guide in a large van pulled up beside us and offered to take us to the top and to all the main sites on the Rock for 20 Euros per person. There were already five girls in the car and he told them that they would get the same deal (he normally charges 25 Euros). A tram/bus ride would have cost us about the same so we decided to go with this guy. Turns out that was a great idea. He was a friendly guy who knew a lot about Gibraltar and was happy to answer questions. Funny accent too; not really English but not Spanish either. Two of the girls were from Wales and the other three were traveling together from I’m not too sure where. I think they were on a company vacation or something. Our first stop on our way up the mountain was at a little promontory that had an excellent view of the strait. The horizon was a little hazy but you could still clearly see Africa. Africa! The very first time I have ever laid eyes on that dark and rather mystical continent. This trip was also my first real interaction with the Mediterranean; flying over it doesn’t count! I could clearly see the other pillar and some undulating green hills near it. Beautiful.

We went a bit higher to see the famous macaques/Barbary apes that are the only wild monkeys of Europe. Legend has it that if these apes ever leave the Rock, so will the British. Many Spaniards hope this will happen but the British government and the people of Gibraltar (who are overwhelmingly in favor of British rule + self-government than Spanish rule) think otherwise and therefore these monkeys are very well looked after. These monkeys are adorable but show a great deal of irreverence for personal space. I walked out to this little ledge to take some pictures of the breathtaking view, and when I put the camera down, I was completely surrounded. One just sat there about a foot away, possibly waiting for food or something. I know they’re not dangerous, but it was a little unnerving. I gingerly stepped around them and headed back to the van.

Looking out over the top of the mountain into the strait really made me believe how the people of old felt that this place was the edge of the world. A dazzling blue that slowly melts into a hazy grey is all the eye may behold. Once you leave the sight of land, you’ve entered nothingness…it must have been terrifying for the first adventuresome sailors who braved the unknown and entered an expanse where unimaginable dangers could lie. ‘Here be monsters…’

From the edge of the world I traveled through the very gates of Hell. Or, rather, the gates of a great cave that runs for kilometers inside the rock. The old Romans who visited this place thought they were gazing into the Underworld once they excavated part of this cave. I can understand the impression because although the caves are not as impressive as Carlsbad Caverns or other ones I’ve seen, it’s still a neat sight with all the stalactites and stalagmites.

The cave was the last real stop on our journey around the rock. After that, we drove down and then our guide dropped the girls off in the center of town before taking us back to the border. We cheerfully paid him our 60 Euros and then crossed back over into Spain. I missed a chance to get my passport stamped with a Spanish stamp, but oh well. I was concerned that our parking time limit was about to expire so I hurried as fast as I could back to the car. Thankfully, no one had noticed that we were fifteen minutes late. We pulled out the lot, and Dad idled the car near the road so I could get closer to the shore and take some final pictures. It was simply gorgeous.

We left Gibraltar and then got back on the highway bound for Marabella (mar-ra-bayah) on the Costa del Sol. The drive was quite pleasant though we started anxiously looking for affordable hotels since this was the stretch of our trip for which we had not yet booked hotels. Near the outskirts of Marabella, we saw some nice looking hotels. We stopped at one of them only to find out that it was a golf resort that was charging over 100 Euros per night for a single room, and over 200 for a triple. We simply said ‘no thanks!’ and drove further into the city. As we neared the center, I saw a sign for a 3-star hotel on the right and then directed my dad to it. We circled this little shopping center area for a bit before we found it. Fortunately, he pulled into a parking spot right near it and stayed with the car while Mom and I checked the place out. It had a triple room that was spacious and nicely outfitted and for 90 Euros a night, we were set. I made payment arrangements while she helped Dad get stuff out of the car. I joined them and together we managed to haul all of our things up in one trip. We rested for a little while to freshen up before leaving in search of dinner. I had seen an Indian restaurant just a few shops down from our hotel (how convenient, right, and we were worried about food…) so we decided to try it.

The wait was rather long because it appeared that only one man was running the whole show. He probably had a cook in the back, but we were rather doubtful of that. There was a small British group near us who said that it might be a while before we got our food. We didn’t mind too much ‘cause even though we were pretty hungry, we didn’t have anywhere to go so we weren’t in a rush. We gave our order and since I had seen cava (Spanish champagne) on the menu, Dad decided to order a bottle of it. After some time, our waiter came out with the bottle, popped it next to me, and then poured me a little bit to taste. I thought it was all right so he poured everyone a glass. He overfilled mine a bit so it spilled over which was kind of funny but kind of sad too. After he left, Dad commented that he didn’t know what he was doing. Apparently, a waiter never gives the lady champagne to taste like that, and he certainly doesn’t overfill the glass! We toasted each other and had our sips. I’m such a sweet tooth that a drink practically has to have chocolate in it for me to like (or some other sugary/fruity liquid) but I did like this champagne. It wasn’t as strong as some of the other things I’ve tried which was nice. We were done with our first glass before our food came. It was fun to sip champagne while eating. Another woman came in who was much more experienced with serving alcohol. She quickly and expertly refilled our glasses and we thanked her for it. The food was pretty good, though by the end of the meal I was feeling kind of funny. This was the very first time that alcohol had ever affected me. It struck me as simply hilarious that the first time I felt even slightly tipsy would be in Spain with my parents. That’s all I was, just a bit tipsy. We paid and then headed for the beach where we could stroll and work off some of dinner in the cool coastal air. I wasn’t just imagining things, I was definitely a little tipsy because I walked a little unsteadily at first. Champagne doesn’t have a terribly high alcohol content, maybe 11-12%. It’s the bubbles that get you.

We strolled along the path near the beach and kept an eye out for gelato shops and places to eat tomorrow. We decided to stay here another night because we liked it so much. When we got back, I spent a little time online checking my mail and such. We also made plans to visit Ronda, a little mountain town north of Marabella, that Mom had heard was simply gorgeous. We turned in a little early in order to have a good start the next day. Cheers!

31 Mar

Our only full day in Sevilla! One of our first orders of business for the day was finding an internet café to properly write home and check our mail. This took some time, but afterwards we got down to some real sightseeing. The first stop was the Catedral. This cathedral is the 3^rd largest in Christendom and the building that really puts Sevilla on the map (though, according to http://www.andalucia.com/cities/seville/cathedral.htm, this church is the largest in the world; I’ve seen both St. Paul’s and St. Peter’s and I’m not sure if I can verify or disprove the claim). As I expected, the interior was simply beautiful. Gothic in style, the tall, sweeping vaults are designed to overwhelm even the most irreligious visitor. We spent a good amount of time walking around and listening to the information on our audio guide (we found that these guides are nice to have if you have no prior knowledge about the place you’re visiting). The reputed tomb of Christopher Columbus is also here. As befitting a national hero (even though he wasn’t Spanish!), old Chris gets a fabulous, dark, impressive tomb of wrought iron. The main altarpiece of the Catedral is one of the most stunning works of art I’ve ever seen in a church. In gold and silver, the key scenes of the life of Christ are told from holy conception to birth to death and resurrection. And those panels are just four out of literally hundreds! The entire piece stands at least 20 feet high and a strong set of gates guards it. Beautiful!

After we left the interior of the Catedral, we headed for the Giralda tower in the courtyard outside. The courtyard itself was quite beautiful. It is called the Patio de los Naranjos, which means the Courtyard of the Oranges. Indeed, orange trees were arranged symmetrically around the courtyard. As always, I was tempted to pluck one down but they were forever out of reach.

The climb up the Giralda tower was quite unusual in that there were no stairs but instead what was essentially a ramp that winded round and round until you finally reached the top. Talk about being handicap friendly! Apparently, Pope John Paul II delivered an address from the top of the tower to the people of Sevilla in the early 1990s. Faithful followers wheeled the Pope all the way up to the balcony that provides one with an incredible view of the city. After shooting many pictures, we trotted down and out. On the way up, I could swear I recognized someone from UNC, but before I could make a positive identification, she had already gone well past us on her way down. Who knows?

The Catedral done, we headed to the famed Alcazar (fort) of Sevilla and toured around it for a while. It was nice but not as nice as the Catedral so we did not spend too much time here. We were feeling pretty hungry so we went in search of food. We came across a tapas bar that was supposed to be pretty good, but the wait was awfully long. I began to despair that we would ever get a seat at the bar (there were about 8 stools for 15 people!) and then miraculously two seats opened up. Mom and Dad sat while I stood until a third opened and we all got comfortable. Being vegetarian ain’t easy in most places (except India) and here it was especially difficult. We tried to explain to the guys behind the bar that we eat no meat, but it wasn’t getting through real clear. To our immensely great fortune, there was an American couple next to us who were extremely friendly and helpful. The woman was adorable. She recommended a few dishes and so we tried them. One was called ‘pisto’ which is basically eggplant and onions done in this delicious way; sort of a stew, nice and hearty with a good amount of flavor. Usually pisto is covered with jamon (ham) but the nice lady ordered it ‘sans jamon’ for us. She also recommended this almond and garlic soup which turned out to be one of the best dishes I’ve tasted in a long time. None of us have ever had this combination before and it was fabulous. I think we just ordered dishes of these and along with a glass of red wine for Dad (I just took a sip) and some of the crispy little pieces of bread they had, we had a delicious and satisfying meal. Turns out the couple had children who attended North Carolina schools (one was at Davidson, I don’t remember the other one) and the woman herself attended NC State. They’d been traveling in Spain for a couple weeks and she knew a fair bit of Spanish. We ended up finishing our meals at the same time and we thanked them profusely upon leaving the restaurant. Talk about luck! I’d been hoping to sample some tapas for a few days and we were happy to have enjoyed some in such an agreeable manner. Sevilla is quickly becoming my favorite city.

From the restaurant we walked to the Plaza de Espana (pretty much every Spanish city has one of these). It is quite an impressive square with a gorgeous fountain in the middle where some tired Brits were taking the time to cool off their feet. We walked along the sides to admire the arches and nice architecture of the buildings. On a wall at the base of the buildings and going all the way around the square is a set of ceramic tile murals for the cities of Spain. Each city gets a little square where its name is written and its most famous sites are depicted. Very appropriate decoration for a ‘Plaza de Espana,’ don’t you think? It is also here that George Lucas chose to film part of his recent Star Wars trilogy. In a scene in Episode II where Anakin and Padme are standing on a pretty bridge overlooking some pretty scene, they are actually standing on a bridge in this square. The bridge was beautiful but the water beneath it not so much, so I don’t blame Lucas for using some CGI for this scene. When we were nearly done, I politely approached one of the Brits and asked him to take our picture. He greeted me with ‘Hola’ before finding out very quickly that I spoke perfect English. We may look Hispanic, but we certainly don’t look Spanish (they’re too pale for us). He kindly obliged and took a couple really nice ones.

From the Plaza we walked through some lovely gardens on our way back to the apartment. Mom and Dad were a little tired so we decided to rest for a bit, eat dinner, and pack some before heading out again at night. My appetite was back in a big way and I enjoyed some more Indian food from home. A nighttime stroll sounded really good so we left to find the Catedral and just see some of the Barrio Santa Cruz at night. What a great decision! The Catedral was lit up beautifully and to our surprise, we saw a huge crowd of people lining a street next to it. We felt like some gelato for dessert so we quickly popped into a café/restaurant to order some and head back out onto the street in time to catch whatever it was the people were waiting for. I remembered that Semana Santa (Holy Week) was rapidly approaching and that Sevilla celebrates the occasion in a big way. After some time, a sort of bier was carried out the doors of the Cathedral with a statue of Christ kneeling on it. Minutes later, a priest or other religious figure placed a cross onto the shoulders of the Christ statue. That being done, a procession of altar boys and small children as well as adults with tall white candles and long staffs began moving along the walls of the Catedral. Like everyone else, we watched them for a while until they turned the corner. Figuring there wasn’t anything else to see (and eager to get away from the crowd), we left the scene and decided just to circle the church before heading back to the hotel.

As we entered the square between the Alcazar and the Catedral, we saw the procession once more, except this time we were much closer and the crowd wasn’t so bad. Excitedly, I began taking pictures while we speculated what it was all about. A teenage girl next to me glared at me after a time before she approached the statue and crossed herself before leaving. What an idiot I am! Here I was, clearly a tourist, talking rather irreverently during an important religious procession! No wonder she was upset. I immediately shut up after she left and stopped taking pictures. Happy, and very pleased with the city of Sevilla, we walked back to our hotel to do some final packing and to get some rest. We would be renting a car the next day so we had to be extra alert! Cheers!

30 Mar

We had train tickets to Cordoba and then to Sevilla that day so we got a very early start and checked out of our hotel. The train ride wasn’t a lot of fun ‘cause we were exhausted from not having slept much. I was dozing most of the ride so I don’t remember much of the outside scenery. I do remember it being rather dry and grassy.

At the Cordoba train station, we stored our bags in a locker and then sought out the information desk. The man there was very helpful and for a single Euro we bought a nice map to the city. Our first destination was the Mezquita which is an ancient and famous Muslim mosque.

This mosque is grand in scale and beautiful for its interior design. What struck me most about this Mezquita were the rows and rows of red marble pillars that created both a sense of closeness and infinity within the building. Unlike many of the Christian churches and cathedrals I have visited, this place did not seem to try to overwhelm you with high vaults and sweeping arches that force one to strain their necks skyward. Instead, this mosque enshrined beauty and heavenly grace largely at eye-level and within reach of the common man. After we had admired its beauty, we visited the tourist office located outside. The woman there was quite friendly and gave us several free posters after Dad inquired about one.

Cordoba is also famous for an old Roman bridge (Puente Roman) that has been straddling the rather small river there for hundreds of years. Unfortunately, the bridge was closed for renovations and we could only admire it from one side. It was getting to be lunchtime after we finished with the bridge, so we went a bit further into town in search of a place to eat. We found this little falafel place which was empty except for us. The food was okay and the service not too great. Dad decided to get some sangria but I was disappointed to see the server just pour it out of a liter bottle. I know the stuff is really popular, but it’s still depressing to see it served that way.

After lunch, we walked around the city some more. I bought a postcard and we searched for souvenirs for the other two but couldn’t find the right things. We didn’t want to reach Sevilla too late (it’s still a couple hours train ride from Cordoba) so we headed back to the train station in the early afternoon to pick up our bags and buy our tickets to Sevilla. I had a bit of trouble finding the right ticket counter to go to, but once we did, getting the tickets was a simple matter. We were pretty early for the next train, so we just chilled out for a while. Dad and I tried to get some wireless internet but, expectedly, failed in this endeavor. When the time came, we headed over to the baggage scanner. After my bag went through, the guard motioned me to open it for him. I obliged and moved around some of my clothes and such before miming an innocent ‘what did you want to see’ question. He just looked at me and silently pointed to the X-ray screen. I could see the figure of my dagger in solid black against the white around it. ‘Oh’ I mimed, ‘that’s what you wanted to see.’ I immediately pulled out the box and let him examine it. He quickly discerned that it was just a toy (not really) due to the colorful and childish print on the box, and let me go. Hilarious.

A whole troop of schoolchildren followed us onto the train and I figured it might be a long ride. Still tired, I managed to doze most of the way. I must say, the Sevilla train station is one of the more impressive ones I’ve seen. One feature I really liked was in the bathroom where there was a panel on the far wall with LEDs. When a stall was occupied, the light would be out and vice versa. It was a simple and elegant means of letting people know how long they would have to wait and if a stall was vacant, exactly which one was. It’s the small things that matter. We first went to a tourist office to get some info and maps, and then caught a cab into the city. Unlike Madrid, Sevilla is a relatively small, relaxed town that is still bustling but not frantic and congested. The streets got narrower and more twisted as we headed into the Barrio Santa Cruz (one of the older and most famous parts of the city) until we stopped in a small square with a giant, elaborate iron cross and orange trees.

It took us a few minutes to find our bearings, but once we did, it was a simple matter to check into the hotel. The woman at the desk was kind and spoke perfect English. We were exhausted so fortunately our apartment was completely ready. Saket, the dear soul he is, had left us a message that the receptionist gave us. He wanted to make sure we were okay and since we didn’t have internet access, we had to write out a letter and then give it to the receptionist to type back, which she obligingly did (this was after we had settled in)

The apartment was amazing. I was blown away by how well stocked and arranged it was. I was extremely tired and feeling a little sick so I got into bed in the master bedroom and took a little nap. I woke to hear the phone ringing, but by the time I realized what it was, the ringing stopped. Moments later, the receptionist knocked on our door to inform us that Saket had written a second letter asking if we had made it to the hotel safely (this was before we sent the reply). Dad immediately drafted a reply. Mom wanted to get some groceries like fruit and bread so she got directions from downstairs and went out in search of food. After I woke up, Dad and I arranged the place a bit. For dinner, we had some fruit, bread, and some of the Indian packets Mom thoughtfully brought from home. I was still feeling unwell so I just had some strawberries while Mom and Dad ate. After they finished, we made plans for the next day and then got ready for bed. I slept in the living room on the sofa bed that was surprisingly comfortable. Cheers!

29 Mar

We got off to an early start this morning bound for the Atocha train station and then Toledo! It took a rather longer time to find the proper ticket office than I reckoned and thus we made our train with a slightly smaller comfort zone than I would have liked. Our cabin wasn’t terribly full, and we were rather lucky to find a small group of four American ladies traveling in the seats near us. We quickly rearranged our seating arrangement such that both parties could sit with their respective members. We chatted briefly and discovered that they’ve been in Spain for some time now and that one of them apparently acts in London. She divulged that information to us after I told them I was studying abroad there. She amusedly said that since I had not been to see her performance, any hope of friendship between us was lost. I was a little bewildered by this behavior and simply attributed it to thespian eccentricity and possibly some alcoholic influences. Between them they possessed a decent command of Spanish and consequently managed far better in gastronomical and sightseeing affairs than we did. Oh well. Upon our arrival in Toledo, we wished them a pleasant trip and I suspected that, Toledo being a tiny town, we would probably run into them again before the day was out.

Not wanting to make a trek up the hill into the town proper, we hired a cab at the train station that took us to the top in a matter of minutes. Toledo was formerly the capital of the Spanish empire and when you’ve seen the place, it’s rather surprising to think of it as such after seeing Madrid. Madrid is much like London in that it has preserved a good deal of its regal past and maintains its diminished regal present quite well. Toledo does not invoke images of austere majesty but rather quiet, floral scented evenings spent wandering its narrow, winding cobblestone streets while listening to the drifting notes of street musicians playing on its many squares. The whitewashed walls give the place a refreshingly cool, clean feeling that turns exuberantly joyful when sunshine clings to them.

Our first destination was the Alcazar (or fort) Toledo is famous for. After circling the entire complex searching in vain for the opening, we inquired of a nearby police officer as to the possibility of visiting the fort. He informed us, in broken English, that the place was closed to the public for renovations. Oh no! That plan having failed, we headed instead to the next item on our list, the Cathedral (nearly every Spanish city has its famous church).

This cathedral reminded me of some we had seen on our Central Europe tour. Gothic (I believe) style with tall, delicate arches and beautiful stained glass. We were impressed not only by the finery of the church architecture but by the remarkable art collection. Mostly Spanish and religiously based, the paintings were nicely arranged among other valuable church artifacts.

Upon leaving the Cathedral and emerging once more into the light of day (it was a beautiful day!), we headed for a tourist center to get more information about the city, and especially to find a good place to eat. The woman at the tourist office was very nice and even gave us a set of free posters! Apparently, El Greco’s most famous painting, "Entierro del Conde de Orgaz," is found in one of the churches in this city. We decided that since we were here, we might as well see it. I wasn’t as impressed as I hoped I would be, and what was worse, is that we had to shell out several Euros just to catch a glimpse. Lame. You really shouldn’t have to pay to go inside a church. Once we left San Tome, we were all hungry so the first order of business became finding a place to eat.

We ended up choosing this little place in a quaint, sun-drenched square. The staff was quite helpful in pointing out vegetarian selections. Mom got a paella (hearty rice dish indigenous to Spain) while Dad and I got pizzas. I think she made the better choice. It was nice to eat in that square and listen to the voices of other tourists walking by. We still had some time left to us after lunch, so we decided to look for some souvenirs. The whole day, I had noticed swords, daggers, and small arms being displayed in many souvenir storefronts. Along with delicious looking confectioneries and elaborate dining ware, weapons seemed to be the local pride of this place. That being the case, I was determined to take a dagger home with me.

I saw some nice ones in a few of the stores we visited, but concerns over security on the trains stayed our purses until one shopkeeper repeatedly assured us that there would be no problem. People bought this things all the time, she said. I found a beautiful and elaborate dagger for 12 Euros. If security took it from me, I would be sad and disappointed but it would not be a big loss. We decided to chance it.

We still wanted a good night in Madrid so we left for the train station immediately after buying the dagger. As we walked into a square where the taxis dropped people off, I just had to stop and shoot some panoramic video. The scene was just too perfect. A sun drenched square with happy children running about and tourists busily taking pictures. Gorgeous! Toledo truly managed to charm all of us in a matter of hours. As we took our taxi back to the station, I shot as much video as I could before the memory card became full.

We were a little early for our train so we had to wait for a while. The ride back to Madrid was uneventful and we first headed to the nearby Retiro Park. It was still afternoon so the sun lit the place up brilliantly. We walked around here for a couple of hours before catching the Metro back to the Plaza del Sol (Plaza of the Sun) which was near our hotel. Dad and I decided to get some gelatos before joining Mom at the hotel. They took a nap while I took some time to update my blog and take care of pictures. After they woke up, we freshened up a bit and went in search of an Indian restaurant Mom had looked up before leaving.

I found the place on my map but misjudged its distance from two metro stops. We ended up getting off at one that looked much closer to the restaurant on the map than in real life. We just kept on walking until finally we found it. Food was pretty good and since a light rain was falling, I was determined to enjoy it to make up for all the trouble we had in finding it. We left and found the truly nearest Metro station very quickly.

What happened on our way back to the hotel from the Plaza del Sol I will never forget and do not desire to record it here. Suffice it to say the experience nearly ruined our vacation and that the rest of the night passed quite, shall I say, disagreeably and it was late before we finally laid our troubled and angry heads to bed. Cheers for the day, but not for the night.

28 Mar

Our first full day in Madrid! Our first stop today was the Royal Palace (“Palacio Real”, I think) near the commercial part of the city. On our short walk to the outdoor court, Dad and I noticed some guards by a government office who were packing some serious firepower (AKs, I think they were). It’s one thing to play with these weapons in a video game, it’s something else to see them in person in the hands of a guard who doesn’t look like they have much of a sense of humor. Despite the abundant sunshine, the court was a little chilly with the cool and steady breeze blowing. I guess it’s still a little early in this part of the country for really warm weather. The grounds were entirely stone and though expansive, rather plain. Before our guided tour of the palace and its rooms began, we wandered through the royal pharmacy (never have I seen such elaborate containers for everyday chemicals) and royal armory (too dark to really be impressive).

If the outer area didn’t impress much, the inner rooms certainly did. Elegant, almost baroque at times with ornate bronze, these rooms were works of art. Hand-woven rugs from famous cities in Spain adored the floors of many rooms and glittering chandeliers dazzled our eyes. Some of these state rooms are still in use today for special occasions, such as visits from foreign leaders (presidents and prime ministers) or other important business of the state, such as the signing of the European Union Constitution or whatever document it was that declared Spain as part of the EU. We saw a dining room table long enough to seat over 80 people (and that’s when it was not fully extended!) and centerpieces made literally out of silver and gold.

After we left the Palace, we wandered through the nearby areas of the city. It was most pleasant to stumble upon gardens and little patches of refreshing greenery that really added life to the sterile stone and glass everywhere else. After grabbing a quick lunch, we made our way to the Prado Museum. This museum holds one of the finest art collections in Europe and certainly the best in Spain. From classical greats to modern marvels, its exhibits span the ages of Spanish (mostly) and international art, including some gems from Raphael and Titian. I think Francisco Goya almost had a wing to himself though other major Spanish artists, Velazquez, El Greco (Greek originally but he did most of his work in Spain), Murillo, and others had sizable collections. Again, pictures (without flash, of course) were allowed in this museum. I like the National Gallery in London better, but this place was still impressive. We were a little tired towards the end and took a tea/coffee snack break downstairs before finishing off a final few exhibits and then leaving. I really liked how EU students got in for free! I’ve had good results for student discounts here so far, and I would very much like this trend to continue.

There were several vendors selling all kinds of souvenirs outside the museum and we browsed through their collections. I picked out a nice silver and black wrap. We looked for Saket’s pin but couldn’t find the right one. We had a flamenco show tonight at 20:00 so we needed to find some dinner before getting there. The show was in a small restaurant near the Plaza Real so it was there that we chose to find some food. Not many of the menus seemed to appeal to mom and dad (though I wasn’t too picky) and at last, we decided on an Italian place. The sun had mostly set by the time we finished and with the steady wind, I started feeling quite cold and eager to be inside somewhere. It was nice to people watch though. The food was okay.

A short walk got us to our flamenco placed and we were guided to a table pleasingly close to the stage. There was a troop of schoolchildren at the place and they were thankfully well behaved. They sat there with the Coca-Colas and juices while the rest of the crowd sipped beer, wine, and sangria (essentially a wine cooler; like wine mixed with punch). One drink was included with our ticket price so we all decided to try sangria. It wasn’t as strong as most of the stuff I’ve tried in London but I still didn’t fancy it all too much. Some tables around us were sharing pitchers. The show started right on time.

Four musicians took the stage and three ladies in dresses sat on chairs in front of them. The music started and the women started clapping and tapping their feet to it. I, dumb tourist that I am, started clapping along until one of the waiters politely told me to stop. Boy, did I feel like such an idiot! I learned my lesson and was quiet for the rest of the night. After some singing, one of the ladies got up and started dancing. I’m not sure how many of you are familiar with flamenco dancing, but it is rather different from most American and European dances. It’s very stop and go, individual, deeply personal, and always improvisational. The dancer uses her entire body for the performance and though these ladies were not wearing the traditional, flowy, gorgeous dresses typical of flamenco, they made use of whatever material they had to enhance their performance. While one danced, the other two clapped and said “Ole!” as encouragement. The ladies danced a couple of sets apiece before a young man joined them on stage. He was amazing. He seemed to throw his entire body into his dancing, especially when he did this wonderful tap routine where his legs flew while his arms reached out to the audience for support. He and one of the ladies did a “duet” for a short while. Flamenco is an individual dance, and thus there is little if no touching between the male and female dancers. They would circle each other but never get too close. It certainly played out as an interesting dynamic that enraptured the crowd. Discretely, I shot as much video as I could (though pictures were allowed, video was forbidden). I got some nice shots too.

After the show, we paid our bill and then headed back out into the Spanish night. It wasn’t too late, but I still didn’t like wandering around too much in an unfamiliar area. We finally went to bed around midnight. Tomorrow we take a train to Toledo (which is only an hour or so by train from Madrid). Cheers!

27 Mar

The inconceivable happened this morning. I overslept!! I swear, my alarm must not have gone off. The deal was that I would call them as I was getting ready to leave to make sure they were ready to go. Dad, in his infinite wisdom, decided to call me around 7:20 to make sure I was doing my part. If it wasn’t for his phone call, I’m pretty sure I would have not woken up ‘til much later…

Frantically, and ever so thankful I had packed nearly everything the night before, I got ready as fast as I could and practically ran to the train station. I got there several minutes early and had enough time to declare myself an idiot several times before boarding. I found Mom and Dad waiting and ready at Victoria, and I first apologized to them before heading over to the ticket office to buy two Zones 1-6 passes for them. As soon as I got them, we grabbed our things and headed for the Victoria Line. The Tube ride to Green Park and then to Heathrow went quite smoothly with me kicking myself for almost ruining this all the way. My alarm clock has worked nearly flawlessly the whole time I’ve been here and it picked one heck of day to screw up.

Once at Heathrow, we checked in smoothly except to find out that our flight was delayed. We moved up to an earlier one that she told us we had to hurry to catch. Ah, what a great start to the trip! We made it the plane with about five minutes to spare before the hatch was closed. The flight went very smoothly and within a few hours, we were in Paris! Oh, but not for long! We hurried to our gate as fast as we could but were stopped a couple of times by security checks. Anger was mounting in our fellow passengers, especially one Italian woman who was convinced that this ineptitude of the airport officials was going to cause her to miss her flight. One man attempted to bypass the line on the excuse that he too would miss his flight, but was turned away to the approval of people already in line who told him they were worried about their flights too. ‘Then we’ll stay in the same hotel!’ the cutter retorted as he headed to the back of the line. Welcome to Charles de Gaulle airport, ladies and gentlemen.

After all was said and done, we made to our gate with time to spare and since I hadn’t had any breakfast, my own fault completely, I took the time to grab a big and delicious muffin. I finished it just minutes before boarding. I may hate Charles de Gaulle, but Air France is a decent airline. Our flight to Madrid was uneventful and rather pleasant. We managed to pick up our bags quickly and smoothly and then immediately sought a taxi to get us into town. I’m not sure how many airports do this, but I thought it was neat how the taxis would shut off their engines and put their cars in neutral while waiting for customers. They would push their cars to the front of the line and only turn them on after their customer(s) got in the car. Fuel efficient and quiet: a perfect combination. Our driver quickly loaded our bags into the trunk and then we were on our way! Warm air blew in through the windows and brilliant sunshine lit the city on fire.

To mom and my alarm, our driver proceeded to show us on a map of his all the sights of the city. Not just at stoplights, mind you, even while driving! He was an excellent driver which was a very good thing for us…In no time at all, we reached our hotel and I liked our driver up until the point where he tried to cheat us out of a few Euros. We had agreed on a price before leaving and he at first did not give dad the proper change until dad demanded it of him. Our hotel was nice and we settled in a little and refreshed ourselves a bit before heading out for the famous Sophia Museum (which was the only one open that day).

In a pleasant welcome to the city, a big group of artists and theater people were demonstrating/celebrating in the square right in front of the museum. We watched them for a few minutes before heading into the museum. Like the Louvre in Paris (though not nearly of the same scale and grandeur), the Sophia Museum is a palace converted into an art museum. It’s a modern art museum and consequently I did not understand very much of it. Many of the exhibits were interesting yet virtually incomprehensible. Pablo Picasso’s most famous work, “La Guernica” is on display here. It covers most of a wall and is quite a work to behold. Pictures were allowed in this exhibit, something I found quite unusual, yet “La Guernica” was the only painting special enough to have its own retinue of guards plus at least five security cameras (those were the ones I could see in the room). We looked a few more exhibits after that before leaving the place in search of dinner.

Mom printed out a list of vegetarian places to eat at and so we struck out for one. On the way, we took a side street and found a sign pointing to an Indian restaurant. Curious, we checked out the place and decided to eat there. It had only been open for a couple of weeks. The staff was sort of helpful in telling us about the city, though the food wasn’t anything special. It was getting dark as we left and since we were tired and in a new city, we decided to head straight back to the hotel. The nice thing about Spain is that people here keep very late hours, so the streets are still bustling even near midnight with diners and coffee drinkers.

At the hotel, we all got some much needed rest. Cheers!

26 Mar

Cursed British Summer Time! Also known as Daylight Savings Time. The clocks jumped ahead and thus I got less sleep than I was hoping for, even though I woke up a little late. I grabbed my empty duffel bag and ran down to the train station and just caught the train for Victoria. When I reached the hotel, Mom and Dad were still getting ready. Mom decided to abandon her plan to go to Alton since the morning had already progressed further than would have been suitable for such a trip. Today was Sunday so Westminster Abbey was closed. We had already finished most of what I had planned for them, so the question remained as to what to do today. I proposed a walk in Hyde Park followed by some time at the Imperial War Museum and then dinner in central London. Mom was still acting morose from yesterday’s unfortunate experience and it wasn’t until we reached the Speaker’s Corner in Hyde Park that things began to brighten for all of us. There were religious speakers on the soapboxes today, one apparently Muslim and the other Christian. The Muslim leader fielded questions about the recent riots and protest concerning the publishing of cartoons offensive to the Prophet Mohammed. One British woman started arguing with him about free speech and, considering the political leanings of this country, it wasn’t surprising that the audience was almost completely on her side. Woman: 1 Speaker: 0

We ate lunch at a Pret a Manger (a shiny, ubiquitous, café-styled food chain owned by McDonald’s Corporation) and then caught the Tube south for the Imperial War Museum (IWM for future reference). Mom and Dad were delighted to see a piece of the Berlin Wall outside the museum and were impressed by the large, 15-in naval gun out front that could hit targets over a mile away! The shells for that gun are actually taller than Mom…

They enjoyed the IWM more than I thought they would which was quite pleasing. We went through the Trench Experience and Dad and I sat through a simulation of Britain during the Blitz. After the IWM, we went into town in search of food. For my benefit, Indian was once again chosen and dad picked out a place called Mela from one of our London guides. It was situated in Piccadilly Circus and so to get there we caught a bus from a little ways outside the museum right into Piccadilly Circus. Although the guide said PC, it might as well have said Charing Cross road because the restaurant was much closer to that road than to PC.

Mela is a funky place with a polite and attentive staff, cool décor, and EXCELLENT food. The presentation of the dishes was superb, especially my paneer tikka masala. This was the first Punjabi dish I’ve ever tried that was not curry based and boy did they do a good job of it. Mom and Dad ordered wine while I stuck with tap water (so boring, I know). Dinner took some time and then we caught a bus for Victoria.

My train was set to leave about 20 minutes after we reached Victoria station which barely gave me 10 minutes there (since the walk to the station was about 5 minutes each way). They hastily stuffed the duffel and another handbag with all the clothing and supplies they wouldn’t need for Spain and then I left. I made it to the train with only a couple of minutes to spare, and then had to walk miserably up Champion Hill in the steadily falling rain with an incredibly heavy handbag and a sort of heavy duffel slung over my shoulder. Oh, and the backpack to boot. J Eh, it wasn’t that bad. I was just a little concerned because I still hadn’t packed for Spain (I couldn’t really, since I was going to use the duffel bag) and I had to be at Victoria early the next morning.

I packed as quickly as I could but couldn’t make it to bed before midnight. Spain tomorrow and for the next two weeks! Huzzah! Cheers!

25 Mar

The Tower of London! I dragged myself out of bed and made it to the Tower nearly 30 minutes before I was supposed to get there. It wasn’t a bad wait; I got to people watch, eat some leftover sweets, and sit in the sun for a while. It was still a pretty cold day though, and I was more than happy to see my parents finally come down the hill. We bought our tickets and then had to wait about 20 minutes before the first tour started. We made use of our downtime by taking pictures with some of the Tower Guard who were happy to oblige. Those guys are amazing! It used to be that a person could buy the post of a Yeoman Warder (the official title of the Tower Guard) for 250 guineas (no small sum at the time) but the Duke of Wellington (the same one who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo) abolished that scheme. Instead, these men are chosen from various military branches after having at least attained the rank of Warrant Officer, Staff Sergeant or Flight Sergeant. It remains a highly respected position and one not taken on lightly, since appointments are held until the age of 65 and one becomes a special constable of the Metropolitan Police to boot. These are merry and jolly men who laugh and joke with each other and the tour groups whom they guide around the Tower. Most of them live on the Tower grounds, some in houses centuries old (and frequently renovated).

Our guide did a wonderful job and I was entertained as much as before when Sachi, Saket and I all went. I told him that I was studying at King’s and he wished me best of luck in my studies. Aww. Unfortunately, the famous Tower ravens were not out and about as usual because of the fear of avian flu. There were black birds around and I excitedly took pictures of some before Dad pointed me to the sign telling of their safeguarding. Pity. After our tour we visited the crown jewels and the armoury. My goodness those jewels are magnificent! I didn’t care much for the silver and gold diningware but the jewels were beautiful…I’m a sucker for diamonds and almost anything shiny and sparkly for that matter. So like a barracuda…

The day was surprisingly fair after we left the Tower so we walked over to Tower Bridge (the beautiful bridge on the East End that everyone thinks is London Bridge but it’s not) and crossed it to reach the south bank. We walked a ways heading west to find a bus to Westminster and ran into a surprising symphonic performance on the way. They were under a makeshift tent and performing near the City Hall (a very modern and flashy building). I thought I had heard music on the bridge but did not realize it was live. We stayed for a while to watch and I shot some video of the performance. We slowly but surely made our way to a bus stop where we caught one heading for Westminster that took us on a little tour of the south bank. Unfortunately, Westminster Abbey was closed by the time we reached it. I had forgotten that it closed as early as 13:45. We had just missed it by an hour. The weather also worsened and it began to rain lightly. We spent some time at Trafalgar Square and then the National Gallery and National Portrait Gallery. There was a big free speech rally going on at Trafalgar and I got to shoot some pictures and video of it before we found a café in a bookstore and hung out there to get some tea and warm up.

We had our show of As You Like It tonight at the Novello on Aldwych and so we decided to go near King’s and buy some tea before eating an early dinner and catching the show. We accidentally took a bus a bit too far and then had to walk back in the rain to find Twinings, a fine tea shop, closed. My school was also closed and it was nearly 5:30. London is so frustrating when it’s raining because it’s hard to find a nice place to go. Mom and dad were getting rather crabby and I just wanted to get out of the rain. I stopped at a Thai restaurant near King’s and waited outside until their doors finally opened for dinner business. Dinner was a miserable affair, especially when Mom said she had decided she really wants to go to Alton (to see the Jane Austen Museum there) whether we wanted to join her or not. Some way to spend Mother’s Day.

I was more than relieved when we finally left the place and got to the theater super early. It wasn’t a terrible wait since the theater was all right if not a little small and a bit stuffy. So stuffy near the back that one poor woman fainted during the show. That’s what a humid rain will do for ya.

As You Like It was an enjoyable experience, though I felt the second half was much better than the first. I think my parents liked it too. It was late when the play ended and so I showed them to their bus station right next to mine on the Strand. They could catch one directly to Victoria while I could catch my 68 back home. I got on mine just moments before their bus arrived and thankfully they got home safely. I looked up train times and prices to Alton before going to bed. Cheers!

24 Mar

Since I don’t have seminar for Sociolinguistics, I’m all done with classes! Our first stop today was St. Paul’s Cathedral. Unfortunately, my parents did not spend a very good night at their hotel. Their experience was so bad, in fact, that they really wanted to leave and find a better place. While my mom got ready, my dad and I left to do just that. We found a nice room at a nearby Quality Inn and were all set to cancel at the B&B and move-in there, when we were told by the B&B staff that they would not refund us the remaining nights. Unfortunately, my parents had went ahead and paid for the remaining nights and the manager’s claim was that they approved of the room and thus had no right to complain and demand their money back. We disagreed and though we couldn’t get a refund, we demanded a different room. It was slightly better and after a much delayed start, we finally left for St. Paul’s.

This cathedral is amazing. I can see why it is the pride and joy of Christians all over England. It’s the second largest church in Christendom after St. Peter’s in Rome. The gildings, paintings, and delicate yet stately architecture truly make it a marvel. We visited several cathedrals and churches in Europe and this place certainly rivaled if not surpassed many of them. Although photography was forbidden, I saw other people shooting and decided to do the same. I made sure not to use the flash (as that is what they were really concerned about) and managed to take a few decent shots. I was worried about getting caught while my dad was egging me on to shoot more openly.

We climbed to the dome together and then Dad and I went all the way to the top with a bunch of Canadian rugby players. What a view! I told Dad that this was arguably the best view of London from any point in the city and one of the rugby players overheard me and said that he had been on the London Eye (big “observation wheel” on the Thames that was built for the millennium) and that this view was much better. It was cold, windy, and rather gray but still stunning.

Once we got down, we had lunch at a nearby café before catching the Tube to Tower Hill. The journey took much longer than I thought since the Tube stations we had to change at were much larger than I had anticipated. It probably would have been easier to walk! When we finally reached the Tower, we were told that although the place wasn’t closing for another couple of hours, the last guided tour was just on its way out and that if we hurried we could catch up with them. We didn’t think it was worth it and decided to visit Brick Lane instead. We walked down the street for a while and stopped in a couple of grocery and sweets stores. We looked at different restaurants before choosing a Balti House. The food was okay and I was happy to leave the place since it was quickly becoming smoky with a new wave of smokers.

We bought some delicious sweets before catching the Tube back to Victoria. While I waited for my train, my parents stayed with me and we ate some of the sweets. I made it home around 22:00 and met Katie at Checkpoint Charlie. She had just returned from a day out at the library and then a play and dinner with some friends. I wasn’t feeling too tired so I hung out in her room for a while. We talked about all kinds of things from scuba diving (she’s swum with sharks!) to the X-Files (she’s a huge fan) and my theories on how the Harry Potter series will end. What a cool kid. Before we knew it, it was near 1 a.m. and I had to get up early to meet my parents at the Tower of London. Eek! Cheers!

23 Mar

Mom and Dad arrived this morning! Unfortunately, I still had to go to class so I could not meet with them until just past 14:00. My last Court Cultures class was as entertaining as ever and I know I’m going to miss Rivkah’s lectures. She’s a gem. After class, I had a brief meeting with Devyani during which we discussed my final paper for that class. She said I’m on the right track with my ideas as long as I focus on the history, policy, and individual experience of bilingualism. Sounds good. Our meeting ran a bit late and then the Tube was a bit delayed so I was a bit late getting to the B&B at which my parents are staying.

And then Mom was! Standing outside in the English sun waiting for me. Ah, it was sooooo good to see them again! And so much food! Cookies, chuckrie, packaged Indian food, shero, so good!! I have such wonderful parents. They seemed fairly fresh and refreshed after their flight so after about 10 minutes in which I got to eat some mutya, we headed for the British Museum. I’ve been dying to play tour guide (did I mention this?) since I got here, and today I finally got that chance. The trip to the Museum was pretty straightforward and we got to chat pleasantly on the way.

As I knew they would, both of them loved the Museum. After we ogled the Rosetta Stone, I led them to the Greece and Rome section where we admired the Elgin Marbles of the Parthenon for a long while. We rested for a bit and enjoyed some tea and coffee before Dad went to Egypt and Mom and I went to India, China, and Japan. Both exhibits were amazing. I was feeling very hungry (since I’d all but skipped both breakfast and lunch) and Mom and Dad were feeling a bit hungry too, so we left the Museum around 18:00 in search of some food. They knew I’ve been craving some good Indian food for a while and so we went to this place called Hasan Raja on Southampton Row. I remember this was the place that Jess and her mom recommended, and oh were they right. The food was delicious and the service polite if a little slow. After dinner, Mom and Dad were pretty tired and I had to get back as soon as possible to finish my last paper for my Causes of War class. I dropped them off at their hotel and then caught the 21:41 train from Victoria to Denmark Hill.

As soon as I got back to the dorm, I began furiously typing and researching to finish up. Lainey, Gregg, and Liane popped in briefly, Lainey to celebrate finally being able to see the light at the end of the tunnel and Gregg and Liane to rejoice in the fact that their papers were already done. I kept typing away and finally finished at 1 a.m. Hooray! As soon as I was done, I went to bed. We’ve got a long day planned for tomorrow…Cheers!

22 Mar

The last day of 1^st WW Lit and Sociolinguistics. Tear. Well, at least a tear for the second class, certainly not the first. Was I ever glad to leave that lecture room this morning! Socio was fun as we discussed various topics in bilingualism. It was also a very useful class for me as I will be writing my final paper for that class on bilingualism. Sharma did bring us juice and biscuits which were a tasty treat. This was also the last class I’ll have with Qamer, but I’ll make sure to keep in touch with her even after leaving King’s. She’s a neat kid.

Tomorrow we’ll be discussing portraits of Queen Elizabeth for my Court Cultures class so I made it a plan to visit the National Portrait Gallery this afternoon before class tomorrow. This gallery has a beautiful collection and the Tudor pieces within it, though small, are magnificent.

Before I entered the Gallery I bought a sandwich to eat it in Trafalgar Square (which is right next to both the National Gallery and the NPG). Seconds after I sat down on one of the stone benches on the east side, a swarm (and I mean a swarm) of little British schoolchildren alighted on the ground and benches around me. Within moments, I was completely surrounded. I really wish I could have had someone take my picture like that. It was hilarious. I did take a shot of them after I left. They were still young enough to be cute and old enough not to be annoying. In the gallery, I admired several paintings of Lizzie and some of her courtiers before heading downstairs to look at some paintings and photographs of the current Queen Elizabeth II. There’s one of the Royal Family with the Queen Mother (who passed away in 2002) that I really like. Prince William looks especially dashing in it and is rather surprisingly at the forefront and much taller than his father Charles. Strange, yet not unpleasant, choice.

After the NPG I wandered down Regent Street in search of a Waterford and Wedgwood store for some gifts for home. I finally found one, but it didn’t have the patterns I was looking for. I also walked through an amazing toy store called Hamley’s on this street which would rival FAO Schwartz for the variety and quality of toys. It looked like a really fun place to work.

From Regent Street I caught a bus back to Aldwych and then another one back to the dorm. My parents arrive tomorrow so I really need to finish as much of these papers before they come. Eek! Cheers!

21 Mar

My Causes of War class ended last week, so I had neither class nor seminar today .Hooray! All the more reason to get more paper writing done…which I did, eventually. I’m so psyched about my parents coming and have to do some last minute decision making for that, as to which gifts to buy now, later, send home, etc. My papers and research for those took up most of the day. Cheers!

20 Mar

Today was the day on which King’s would release our pre-disclosed examinations so I headed into town in the late afternoon in order to pick mine up for the 1^st WW Lit class. After looking through the exam briefly, it doesn’t look like it’ll be too difficult. I then left King’s to grab some lunch and then head back to the dorm. I did a lot more work on my papers today before calling it a night. Cheers!

19 Mar

Yet another fairly low-key Sunday. My papers for Causes of War are due on the 24^th and my parents arrive on the 23^rd, so needless to say, I’d better get cracking! I did some more research and a bit of writing for my papers, and I’m not too worried about getting them down on time. They’re tiny papers anyway, and instead of having to print these out, I just have to e-mail them in. No problem, right? We’ll see in a few days…

The rest of the day passed peacefully, and I went to bed a bit late as usual. Go figure. Cheers!

18 Mar

So today Lainey had her official birthday bash and what a night it was. Since I’m not the pub-crawling club-hopping type, I stayed back and did my laundry instead. A lot of the other JYAs and her friends went with her to celebrate and oh they did. Poor girl didn’t even remember much of how she got home until people told her later. By the vague recollections and photographs, it looks like she had a swell time. Cheers!

17 Mar

Happy St. Patty’s Day! As expected, this place makes a rather big deal of the occasion; enough of one in fact to have the parade the weekend before the actual date so that people of all ages can safely enjoy the celebration. Brilliant. Due to my lack of interest in such drinking holidays, I did not participate in the festivities and instead stayed in the dorm after class and got some work done. Well, I did wander around town for a bit after class, but more or less headed back to KCH.

Today was the last day of my Sociolinguistics seminar. Devyani, my professor, said she had planned to bring us juice and biscuits but ran out time this morning, so she would get them for us for our last class next week. Aw, how cute.

The evening passed rather uneventfully. I managed to get some work done for class, but pretty much wiled away most of my time. Cheers!

16 Mar

I’m not sure if I’ll be able to soon top the experience of yesterday, though I know my trip to Spain with my parents will come awfully close, if not actually surpass it. Court Cultures was entertaining as always. I’m really going to miss Rivkah Zim. She’s just so funny and such a dear old lady. This was our penultimate class and the 3^rd years are getting a little excited and nervous about the months ahead. This is their final semester of undergraduate college, after all. I asked one of them, Sam, what she will be doing after college, and she answered “more of the same, probably.” She also noted that most people go to work directly after obtaining their BA. I know the situation is more or less the same back home, and I think my number of grad school prospects is slightly clouded by the type of friends I have.

Today is Lainey’s 21^st birthday! When looking for a place to eat with Andy and Jess, I came upon this little Italian placed called The Blue Olive that I decided to scope out before we met there. Good thing I did too! Though nothing of the sort was mentioned online, the place was boarded up! Seeing that I thought, great, Plan B. Except I didn’t have a Plan B and Lainey was counting on me! I went back to the dorm and looked up some more places. I found a service called TopTable that conducts online reservations at restaurants all over the UK and in some places on the Continent. I signed up with them and tried booking a place called Amaretto on Tottenham Court Road (near the British Museum). TopTable had a special arrangement with the place in which a party could get 50% off the total food bill if everyone (max 20 people) ordered at least 2 courses (main+ dessert/appetizer). I sent in my reservation request with these guys, but since they were taking so long and I wanted to make sure we had a place to go, I called Amaretto and booked it straight out for 10 people at 18:30. It wasn’t until 17:20 that TopTable got back to me and informed me that I had the discount. Score!!

Lainey came back around 16:00, already quite drunk. She had gone to the KCL bar after class with some kids from her seminar and a couple of JYAs. They just kept buying her drinks…She managed to sober up a bit before we headed for dinner. I had to send her friends directions on how to get to Amaretto. It was pretty hilarious.

The place was a small, cozy, family-run place and the portions were big and delicious. Most of the people opted for appetizers while Kate, Gregg, and I chose dessert. Talk was fast and fun and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. I had a “mint chocolate bomb” for dessert that was wonderful. It was a core of liquid dark chocolate surrounded by mint ice cream that was covered with a hard, thin layer of dark chocolate. It took a couple of pokes to break the surface, after which some of the inside chocolate started oozing out. Lainey, who was sitting across from me, said, “It’s bleeding!” Thanks for that imaginary, dear.

Soon after we left the place, I realized that we hadn’t sung for her. So there, on the sidewalk in central London, we started singing “Happy Birthday” nice and loud for all the passersby to hear. Hardly any of us drank anything (some of her friends split a bottle of wine) but I’m sure the people around us must have thought we were just another bunch of drunk college kids. Oh well, it was fun and I’m sure Lainey liked it. We had just missed the next train back so Gregg and I decided that we should just catch a bus from Elephant and Castle instead. Upon leaving the station and reaching Waterloo Road, Sarah spotted the 176 and shouted “there’s our bus! Let’s run for it!” And so we did. It was hilarious. After we reached the stop, we noticed the 68 right behind the 176 and since it’s slightly better, we hopped on that instead. The bus was extremely crowded but we managed to find six seats nearly together in the back. The ride home was pretty fun.

After we got back to KCH, we were determined to gin Lainey. I’m sure I’ve explained the process before. She tried to resist, but agreed to a half ginning. She was a trooper through it and finished it off without a problem. (Again, I am soooo glad I've already had my 21st birthday!!) As she settled, Sarah and Gregg ordered some drinks to keep her company. Kate and I had work to do, so we bade her good night and happy birthday before heading back to our rooms. After I got back, I finished my reading for class and talked with the family at home for a while.

All in all, it was a great day. HAPPY 21^st BIRTHDAY LAINEY!!! Cheers!