Theme music has been added for your enjoyment. HAHA

Danny the Romantic Matador Spain Day 5

We woke up super super early to take a taxi to the train station for our 7 am train to Rhonda. Danny of course took awhile getting ready and we almost didn’t make our train. But we did. Good thing we had packs and not rolling suitcases because we had to run! Since our train left so early we missed out on our free breakfast at the hotel and had to settle for the pastries we had bought in Barcelona. I was a little hesitant about choosing to take the earliest train to Rhonda and wanted to stay around Granada a little longer. Granada was super cool and Rhonda was just a little town in the middle of no where that was supposedly nice. What were we going to do all day in Rhonda? But there were only 3 trains to Rhonda 7 am, 1 pm, and 6 pm and it was a 2 hour trip so if we wanted any time in Rhonda we had to take the train at 7 am. Also, Danny was most looking forward to our trip to Rhonda so of course we were going to make the best of the day.

We arrived in Rhonda and my first thought was, “Here we go again. We are going to fight or get lost or take 2 hours to find where we need to go. We have a large learning curve and little patience.” But we read Rick Steve’s directions from the train station to town very carefully multiple times and continued to read them aloud as we followed them step by step.Once again we had the dilemma as to what to do with our packs as it was 9am and we couldn’t check in until 1pm and whatever we decided we would have to walk back to get our packs and walk to the hotel with them and we all know how fond I am of walking!! Luckily the bus station was half way between the train station and our hotel and it had lockers. So we left our packs there and continued on to find the main square. We got lost (of course) but at least it was a tiny tiny town and a nice resident noticed we were lost and pointed us in the right direction. We ended coming to a nice park with a gorgeous view…it ended up being right in front of the main plaza and famous bull fighting ring.

History: Rhonda is one of the Andalusia White Hill Top Towns. It was originally a strong hold for the Moorish Kingdom (capital was Granada). Rhonda sits way up high on the edge of a hill and is divided by a large Gorge into the old (Moorish) town and new town. A large bridge connects the two sides. Rhonda is also home to the first bull ring.

Picture of Danny and view from park (at this point we are still lost)

Once we turned the corner of the park we saw the bull ring and Danny got really excited. In a flash he had purchased our entrance tickets and we were on our way to visit the Bull Ring and its museum. The museum actually ended up being pretty interesting. I learned a lot about the origins of bull fighting and the symbolism behind all the pageantry. We saw Goya sketches of bull fights, paintings of famous bull fighters, a massive collections of old guns, and learned the rules and reasons behind dueling. The best part however was the bull ring it self. The whole museum and bull ring were pretty empty as we had stumbled upon it right as it was opening so we thought we had the place to ourselves. You can imagine what fun we had when we discovered the floor to the bull ring was open. Danny ran out to the center with the only red thing we had, our paper guide to the museum, and began to matador against an invisible bull. I yelled out to him “I expect to get an Ole out of you!”

Danny doing his bull fighting dance to the seemingly empty stands

Next thing I know we hear “Ole!! Ole!!” coming from the stands. Turns out we were not alone and some Spaniards were enjoying Danny’s demonstration. Danny had the biggest grin on his face the whole rest of the day. I got a good laugh out of it too.

After the bull ring tour we decided to walk back to get our packs, buy our bus tickets for the next day, and check into the hotel. Everything worked out great. Our hotel was nicer than our previous hotels AND IT HAD AC!!! Danny was very excited. The lady at the front desk of our hotel also told me I was pretty so I liked it better already. It also was only a 30 second walk to the main square. I was very happy with Danny’s choice of hotel!

For lunch Danny suggested we go to the grocery store and buy food for a romantic picnic (I think he knew I had reservations about what there was to do in Rhonda). We headed to the only grocery store we could find, a mini mart, and purchased some Salami, Havarti cheese, cookies, mini toasted bread, bottled water, and a 2 liter of Coke Zero. Next we set out with our bag of goodies to find a nice place to have our picnic. We crossed the new bridge and walked the Moorish quarter until we found a nice park (nice meaning there was shade) along the cliff and near the start of the trail for our hike, yes I said hike (ugh). Our picnic was especially delicious (I am now a big fan of Havarti) and we were even serenaded with some classical Spanish guitar.

Danny decided it was so romantic he had to take of pic of me eating my food

As we were finishing up our meal a devil dog came to beg for some food. This was a sign that it was time to start our hike. The down hill part was not bad but I was definitely worried about the hike back. It was all worth it though because we got to take some really cool pictures and see the ruins of the old roman wall.

Liz at the beginning of hike

Rhonda divided by the new bridge. Old Moorish town to the right and the new town to the left.

The New Bridge (Danny wanted to continue the hike down to the waterfall and go swimming, however I did no come prepared enough for that hike…next time)

Danny on top of the roman ruins with Rhonda in the background

Danny on top of the ruins of the roman wall and entrance

Best Europe shoes ever! You rock Puma Romas even though you looked hideous with my outfits and Danny made fun.

The hike back up the hill was horrible and worse was when we got to the top to rest… a bird pooped on Danny AND he sat in moss that stained the butt of his white shorts. HAHA. Poor kid.

After our rest we walked around the Moorish town, visited an old palace, the old gate, and the roman bridge; had some ice cream and cold sprite; and looked for souvenirs for family and Christmas ornaments (found none of both).

Me and a cute street

Danny and the old Moorish Gate

Danny and views from a palace garden

The gorge from the opposite side of our hike

Me with the Sultan’s Palace in the background

Finally dinner came around. Danny wanted to eat at a tapas bar but when we got there and read the menu there were no “Liz friendly food items”. So Danny let me pick where we would eat so of course I picked a place that served pizza (and other good things but pizza is always safe). Danny was pleased with my pic and it ended up being his fav place we ate in Spain…yeah for Liz picks! Our waiter was extremely nice. I ordered vegetarian pizza and I think Danny ordered chicken (they were both fixed menu items that day). He was excited to try Gazpacho (his salad or soup choice) for the first time and I must say it was delicious. I picked a salad of course (or I should say Danny picked it for me because I couldn’t read the menu). It was good as well. Our entrees were good and for dessert I chose a chocolate tart and Danny had flan. The flan was better of course (Danny always picks better than me. This time I chose. I could definitely understand chocolate). Next came the interesting part. Our waiter brought us shot glasses and filled them with this green liquor. We instantly became extremely awkward, exchanged a quick glance at each other, and then Danny explained to the waiter in Spanish that we didn’t drink alcohol. The waiter laughed at our shocked expressions and explained it was non-alcoholic apple liquor. We were hesitant but it was actually pretty good. Kind of like a liquefied apple Jolly Rancher. We’re on the look out to find the stuff in the US so if you see any…let us know. Our shot glasses are ready.

Doing apple shots

Which cost more? Water or Coke? (Ketchup bottle included in pic for scale)

After dinner we went back to the hotel because all the stores were closed. Danny had turned the AC in our room to the coldest setting so when we got back to our room it was freezing cold. Finally! We had plans to wake up early so we could buy some souvenirs in the morning but Danny decided he wanted to get to the bus station early to make sure we got seats next to each other. Neither of us was particularly looking forward to our long bus trip the next day. Up next, Seville!

Don't judge my spelling or grammar. Spain Day 4

We woke up on the train in time to eat our pastries we purchased the day before for breakfast and brush our teeth. Once off the train in Granada Danny and I attempted to find the bus stop. This turned into quite the scene. Tired, anxious (we arrived at 10 am and our time for touring the Alhambra was 12 and we know how good we are at finding our way around when we first get to a city...see previous Spain Day 0), and probably smelly, we soon entered into a very heated debate as to where the bus stop was located. We asked a couple of people (most seemed to be drunk...quite odd for the time of day) and no one seemed to know. We walked downhill, we crossed streets, we tried following other people, we screamed at each other, and even tried to go our separate ways. Finally I saw a red mini bus that said "Alhambra" on the side of it and ran to get on (a feeling of pride that I found the bus and Danny did not...a bit mean I know but he was a jerk). I got on and finally Danny did too. We rode the bus up and up and up to the Alhambra where I was praying they would have lockers for our packs since we didn't have time to check into the hotel and the train station didn't have lockers like Rick Steve's had said. They did have lockers thank goodness as we were in for a long day of walking in the sun. We got our audio guides and walked to the entrance of the Generalife gardens.

History: If you are like me and didn't know that the Moors (North African Muslims) ruled Spain for 700 years...well they did. Granada was their grandest city and the amazing Alhambra fortress was the last strong hold of the Moorish kingdom in Spain. In 1492, Ferdinand and Isabella (the Catholic Monarchs) defeated Sultan Boadbdil and marched their troops through the fortress gates. It was in the Palacios Nazaries (insides the Alhambra) that Christopher Columbus is said to have received the "go for it" from Queen Isabel for his expedition to the new world. After years and years and years the Alhambra was forgotten and fell into disrepair. Gypsies eventually moved into the Alhambra. In 1829 Washington Irving moved into the Alhambra to live with gypsies and write their tales. His book Tales of the Alhambra sparked public interest and restoration began.

First impression, “This place rocks."

View of Granada from the Alhambra

Generalife Garden

Sultan’s summer palace in Generalife Gardens

Second impression…”Aladdin’s Palace in real life.”

Summer Palace gardens

(The tree trunk in the very left of the picture is ORGINIAL. It is said that a certain sultan used to speak lovey dovey to his concubines under this tree. Or something like that.)

Danny on the top balcony at the Summer Palace

After visiting the Generalife Gardens and summer Palace we still had a few minutes before our schedule tour of the Palacios Nazaries so we walked around Charles V’s Palace (there wasn’t much to see) and the town area inside the walled fortress.

Fortress/ town gate

(I think it’s pretty awesome.)

Finally our time came to tour the Palacios Nazaries which is THE JEWEL of the Alhambra…the Moorish Royal Palace. The moors didn’t believe in decorating with pictures of things (consider it ideal worship) so the whole inside is hand carved with verses from the Quran.

Can you see all the carvings on the wall? Amazing!

It’s rumored the wooden screens on the windows were to allow the women of the house to look out but not be seen.

Granada in background

The “Throne Room” for lack of a better term

It is here that Christopher Columbus made his pitch to Isabel and Ferdinand.

Looking out to the courtyard from the Throne Room

Courtyard of Lions

Courtyard of Lions (without the Lions)

This courtyard is supposed have an amazing fountain of lions that spurt out water to tell the time but it is being restored…bummer.

The pool and pool house

Moorish Quarter of Granada from the Alhambra

After the palace we went to the old Alcazar, aka fortress. By now it’s really hot and there is no shade and I’m ready to go. We got our packs and contemplated taking the Alhambra mini bus back to the main square and trying to find our hotel from there (horrible memories of never-ending walking in Barcelona filled my head), but we decided to pay the extra 2 euros for a taxi to drop us at the door. Best money ever spent. This set a new precedent for the trip. We arrived at the Hotel Monte Carlo and to our dismay there is no AC again, but at least it’s clean. We cleaned up and headed to the Cathedral. The Royal Chapel is where Isabel and Ferdinand are buried.

Cathedral from the Alhambra

Me and the cool painting

(This painting shows Boabdil giving the key of Granada to the conquering King Ferdinand. Legend (and this painting) claim Boabdil wanted to fall to his knees, but the Spanish king, who had a great respect for his Moorish foe, embraced him instead.)

Unfortunately we were not allowed to take pictures in the Royal Chapel. Very sad as the Chapel was a highlight of our trip. Usually I don’t care much for Cathedrals but this one was worth the $$$. The treasury contained all things Isabel and Ferdinand including, their clothes, bible, hymn book, sword, and crowns. Also on display were two Spanish flags flown at the Alhambra the day the Catholic Monarchs marched through the gates of the Alhambra and the gold cross Cardinal Mendoza carried through the gates of the Alhambra on the same historic day. The rooms also containeds the first great art collection ever established by a woman, Queen Isabel. The remains of her art collection were on display and included works by Botticelli, Perugino, and Hans Memling - quite impressive. Unfortunately, none of the items in the treasury were labeled but lucky for us we had Rick Steves’ whose self-guided tour we read aloud for our own benefit and what later developed into quite a following of fellow English speaking tourists. I think I have a future as a tour guide (more proof to come in later posts).

We also visited the Chapel where Ferdinand, Isabel, their daughter Juana (the Mad), Juana’s husband Philip (the Fair), and Juana’s brother Michael are buried. Philip was so “Fair” that it drove Juana “Mad” when he died young. For two years Juana kept his casket at her bedside, kissing his embalmed body goodnight. She was later locked up for being crazy. Poor girl.

Once again Rick Steves’ came in handy. On the train we read Rick’s warning about Gypsies (yes they are real) and their scheme with the sprig. Their plan…to hurry and give you a sprig (free) and then a “gypsy blessing” (not free), and then refuse to take coins (because they are bad luck) and of course the smallest bill in euros is a 5. Nice try! On our way out of the Cathedral there were Gypsies everywhere, but lucky for us I have a very firm “NO” which they seemed pretty annoyed with but they left us alone.

Next we decided to take the Alhambra mini bus up thru the Albayzin (Moorish Quarter) to San Nicolas viewpoint which boasts a fabulous view of the Alhambra and a hippie colony.

San Nicolas viewpoint, Danny, and the Alhambra

President Clinton visited here in his youth and the view made such an impression on him that in 1997 on a trip to Spain he made the point of bring his family to Granada to see his favorite spot.

After San Nicolas view point we decided it was time to eat (lunch consisted of a coke zero at the Alhambra and a granola bar brought from home). We chose a café on Plaza Nueva were we had some decent food and encounter an interesting dilemma….”Are you supposed to tip in Spain?” We never really figured it out.

Rick Steves’ recommends eating at a Carmen (a typical Albayzin house with a garden and a memorable but expensive experience) but we decided we didn’t want to pay the money. I later regretted it. Do it.

After dinner we walked the narrow back streets looking for a silk market but all we ever found were normal stores and to my dismay…no Christmas ornaments (I collect Christmas ornaments from places I visit). We also walked around forever trying to find a grocery store to get Danny some large bottles of water. After passing about 20 missionaries and Danny refusing to ask them, we walked backed to the hotel and asked. We finally got some water for Danny and he was a happy camper.

We went to bed early because we had to get up super early to catch a train to Rhonda. I was a bit sad to leave Granada because it was so cool. I mean…it had real gypsies who lived in caves, hippies (who also lived in caves), and Aladdin’s Palace (the Alhambra). How could anything top that? (I now regret not taking pictures of the gypsies, hippies and caves. I do not regret my decision to nix Morocco from our itinerary. Granada was everything I thought Morocco would be but probably 1000 times cleaner.) Granada is magical.

Every single time it comes out the same...

You Are Cinderella!

Dignified and hard working. With a gentle and soft-spoken manner you have something many people don't Patience. Even through the moments of heartbreak you're still able to hold onto all of your hopes and dreams. Bide your time; your dream will come true.
Which Disney Princess Are You?

VOTE TONIGHT 4 CHELSIE!!!

Danny's cute cousin is one amazing dancer!!! Vote for Chelsie!

A break from the Spain Posts

I saw this on the news and thought it was amazing. And yes...I cried.

The funniest Spain Day 3 *** Danny has made edits to my original text. See if you can tell where***

So on Day 2 (Wednesday) we decided that we would do a day trip on Thursday to Montserrat. Montserrat is a really old (900 AD) monastery build on the cliff on top of a mountain. It also happens to be a really big pilgrimage site (will explain later). We purchased our package tickets the day before and we had a choice between train then railway or train then cable car. We didn't really understand the options so we choice railway which we later discovered was the less fun way to get up the mountain.

I got up early on Thursday so we could get a good start on our day. There were multiple trains per day we could take (about 2 hours to get there) and of course we wanted to get our money's worth out of the trip. Danny, I later learned, had a different agenda (you can ask him about it in person). So after waiting 2.5 hours for him to get ready (when I say Danny, I really mean myself), we leave to go to the train station (where our train that night was leaving) to put our packs in lockers and then go via metro (good thing we had that t10 ticket and by now knew how to use the metro) to the other train station where our Montserrat train was leaving. After lots of confusion and little signage we found our train. We arrived at Montserrat at noon.

Cable Car
(the funner way to get to Montserrat)

Montserrat
(Um, Danny, its Catholic. Not buddhist)

View

It is crowded. We decide to do Rick Steves' self-guided tour from his book which takes us around the main sites of the monastery's main square and basilica. Then we decided to see the main attraction La Moreneta (aka the Black Virgin).

A little history. So in medieval times some shepherds saw lights coming from a cave in the mountain, went to check things out, and found a black statue of the Virgin Mary. (Actually, la Virgen Morena, that's Russian for "the Black Virgin", wasn't black when she was found. The blackness shows the effect of centuries of smog from pious votives lit at her base.) Thus Montserrat has been a pilgrimage site since early Spain where people come to touch the orb La Moreneta holds in her hand.

So Danny and I go (the present tense is employed here to give emphasis to the past events) stand in line to see the statue; after all, it is THE thing to see. We haven't been standing in line very long when an Italian family of about 10 people comes and stands behind us. This is where things get interesting. There's an iconographic grandmother embodying all stereotypical typecasts, who we think is her younger sisters, her daughter and son-in-law, and grandchildren; all lacking both hygiene and personal space. One of the older ladies is obviously extremely anxious to see the statue. She (one of the old Italian ladies, maybe both, they're basically one in the same, but take up twice the space) can't stand still. She even cut in line which works for a bit until her family gives her dirty looks. Finally the line starts moving and we get inside the Bascilla. Mass has just started. The old Italian lady is besides herself. The line has stopped moving. Apparently she can't wait her turn. She starts tapping my butt. Yes. Tappy-tap-tappy. Tap. Tap-tap-tap-tappy-pinch-tap-gentle pat-tap. I can't move anywhere because the line isn't moving and there is no where to go. This is not acceptable to her so she decides to put the whole front of her body up against the back of mine. I think to myself, "This is extremely uncomfortable. My personal space (and my fantastic hinee) has been completely violated." Finally the line moves and so do I. Again....she taps my butt and the cycle continues.

The world's oldest Boy's Choir (referring to the program age, not the boys) begins singing (picture below). Twenty minutes of butt tapping and body rubbing have past.

I think to myself, "I swear if this lady touches me one more time...". And then she does. I become enraged. I have lost control. I turn around fists clenched in front of me for defense (just in case). I scowl (more of a scream, really)"You have to stop touching me!!". She doesn't understand any English and neither does her family. Danny grabs my shoulders and turns me around to face him. Our conversation goes like this...

Danny: "Shh. What are you doing? Calm down!"
Liz: "That lady has been tapping my butt for 20 minutes!"

Danny puts me in front of him and stands between me and the lady.

Liz: "Has she been tapping your butt too? You know I consider that molesting and its not going to get her any blessing from the Black Virgin any quicker."
Danny: "No. She hasn't touched me. Just calm down."

Another 25 minutes later (no butt tapping) and we get to take this great picture.

Liz touching the Black Virgin's orb

Danny takes me outside to get me an ice cream for my troubles. It was the best ice cream. We go to the video and museum about the monastery. Then we decide to ride the funicular down to the cave were the Black Virgin was found. What it really ended up being was a funicular down to the trail where you could HIKE to the cave. I was not happy about this. Especially since I decided to wear the darn Tevas and they were causing serious blisters (I still have them!).

Funicular

Beginning of hike
(You can see Montserrat in the background)

Danny in front of the chapel which was built around the cave

The "Cave"

After the hike Danny wanted to take the other funicular to the top of the mountain and hike. But because I'm a big poo-poo face, I refused. We took the train back to barcelona, picked up a quick dinner at a bakery, saw the magic fountains in from of Montjuic, and picked up our packs just in time for our Hotel Train to Granada.

Magic Fountains and Montjuic

Hotel Train
(11 hour overnight trip!)

We were worried we wouldn't be able to sleep on the train since we didn't get beds but we actually slept fine! Alhambra here we come!