Continued from "Part II of III - Mykonos - Party Island: Beach by Day, Town by Night"
http://www.epinions.com/trvl-review-4C10-F759EB9-3A00BC84-prod2
Santorini was my favorite part of the trip. I actually wish that my girlfriend and I had planned more time in Santorini, rather than Mykonos. I really just wish my whole vacation was longer.
Getting to Barcelona
After I came back from school, I wanted to go outside the country, to a place I’ve neven been before - it was either Amsterdam or Barcelona. After looking at the guides, I decided that Amsterdam was more for traveling with friends, and since I was the only one who could afford to go, I went with my mother. It was mid-May, and we booked the trip for 8 days, 7 nights - a total of around $2,500, which turned out to be expensive, since it was a last minute, unplanned trip. Since neither of us know any Spanish, it was something to consider, since Barcelona is not as tourist-friendly as other vacation spots, like resorts.
We traveled by Delta France, with a 2 hour stop in the beautiful Charles de Gaulle Paris airport. The entire trip was about 8-9 hours. Not too exhilirating. We heard a lot about pickpockets in Barcelona, so we decided to keep everything with us, locked up. We took a cab to the Hotel Royal, on La Rambla, the center of the city, by the Gothic Quarter. As it turned out, we could not have found a better spot to live out the week.
La Rambla
I will not describe the great hotel accomodations, except that one of our windows overlooked a side street branching off La Rambla, off which we could hear spanish music and watch dancing at all hours of the day and night. The street below us looked like a classic old spanish alleyway, with pots of flowers and clothing lines streaming off the balconies. It was beautiful. Once we decided to go get something to eat, there was a small cafe bar across the street with typical Spanish “tapas,” which Barcelona is so known for. These are small crackers or bread with pieces of seafood, vegetables, olives, etc. mixed together, all marinated and salty. To drink we had a type of punch, which is usually drunk here during the day, like a rose wine. The food in this city is uncommonly fresh and very inexpensive.
As we went out onto La Rambla, the noise rushed at us. It was beautiful, a word I will repeat often. Artists dressed and made up in all types of costumes littered the enourmous street. At every step one could see a tree naiad, or a myriad of fairies, people posing as statues, Houdinis, ninjas, musketeers, 18th century noblemen and women with umbrellas, greek philosophers and playwrights, etc. Along with them, there were tens of little outdoor shops set up. Some with fresh, unwilted, and uncommon flowers; some with birds, and all kinds of tropical parrots; some with ginuia pigs, chinchillas, rabbits, hamsters, etc.; and some with souveniers, calendars, cards, and newspapers. At about 6pm, the artists left and the shops were closed up and taken away. Instead, you could see tables set up for palmreading, with crystal balls and gypsies at every 10 steps, who sat outside the closed up flowershops. Instead of the artists in costume came artists who painted your name with flowery letters, drew your portraits, or sat on the floor and spray-painted far-away galaxies with rainbow colors. Short, dirty men brought out tables and cards, as well as encouraged tourists to play at guessing under which cup the ball was, which they moved so quickly that it was impossible to tell. In a minute’s time one could see a poor tourist losing $50 euros, or dollars, which is a lot of money in Barcelona.
On every side of La Rambla were hotels and food shops and cafes for tourists. The entire street was a tourist attraction, and at no time, not even 4am, would the street be less than as crowded as Times Square in New York City.
A typical day in Barcelona
Every morning, my mother and I would go down to a cafe on La Rambla in search for breakfast. We always had coffee, orange juice, and a croissant with marmalade. The croissants were average, but the coffee was spectacular. It was the most delicious coffee I have ever tasted. And I am not exaggerating. It felt like a cappuccino, but not exactly as frothy, and it wasn’t hot, but just warm enough. The orange juice was freshly squeezed, and the most expensive thing on any menu. As I said earlier, delicious.
After breakfast, we went to the beach. It takes about 40 minutes from our hotel, but since the weather was extremely warm (about 28 celcius) with minimum humidity, it was an enjoyable walk, even if tiring walk. To get to the beach, we passed such unique houses and attractions, as one could never dream of. Many houses are decorated with frescoes and ivy-woven balconies. Restaraunts, museums, and attractions are shaped in strange ways - such as a theater with the roof shaped like a fish, shining golden in the light of the sun. Again, beautiful. On the beach, the sands are soft and small-grained, but the water was still cold in mid-May. It is not a nude beach, to which I would never go with my mother, but the women, no matter the age, did not wear bikini tops.
On the way back from the beach, we stopped by the several market shops, which sold beautiful original jewelry, took pictures of the dancing locals (it was a holiday), and enjoyed a ride over the river to a mountain. We thought it was going to our side of the river (the beach was on the other side), but we turned up at a mountain, from which we tried to hike back to our hotel, it took us two hours. The mountain top was like an old temple. And of course, the view was amazing.
When we came back, it was early afternoon. We went to the famous market (I forget the name), and returned with tiny strawberries which can be found nowhere in America. I believe in Spanish it is fressas. Or something like it. We had the tapas, and took an afternoon nap. Sometimes, after the nap, we would go wander around the Gothic Quarter, or Barrio Gotico, look into local shops, ate Catalonian desserts, and, of course, we got lost plenty of times. These little wanderings took us about 4 hours at a time. Once, instead, we took a tour bus to Montjuic, a small mountain with a village at the heart of it, with examples of over 80 different architectural styles from around the world. Each of these buildings was a shop or restaurant. And of course, ther were examples of Gaudi works. The tour bus also took us to see the most famous Gaudi buildings, the zoo, the museums.
The early evenings, however, were different. Anywhere we went, we would see groups of kids in their early 20s, dirty, dressed in rags, mismatched. This was a typical Barcelonian young person. They laughed and looked like they were constantly having a great time. I hadn’t time to go to any clubs, and it was a bit dangerous, as every street was dark, and many drunk and stoned men strolled around the empty alleyways which were so charming during the daytime. It was also a bit chilly, and a jacket was necessary. We went out to eat, usually seafood, and of course, drank plenty of wine, in the style of the Catalonians. Everything was delicious. We spent the entire week just walking around Barcelona, trying to get to know the culture of this wonderful, lively city.
The End
I believe that you need 2 weeks to really enjoy Barcelona. I regret going with my mother, and not my friends, although I promised to go with them next spring break. When you are in college is probably the best time to visit this city, which seems made for the young. I would definitely recommend going there and at least visiting the clubs, which I hadn’t a chance to do.
Around May is the best time to go to Spain because the weather is warm enough, and at the end of the month, the sea is nice enough to swim in. Later becomes very hot, and earlier is too cold.
Despite its reputation as the most expensive city in the world (apart from Tokyo), London is definitely worth the visit. It takes several days to see everything, though. I suggest starting with one of the bus tours of the city. These allow you to see the outdoor sites (Big Ben, parliament, Buckingham Palace, etc.) without walking forever.
We were part of a larger group - 28 folks to be exact! The ski area we went to is in the Italian Alps in the midst of the Dolomites, a kind of rock/mountain formations that are really striking and beautiful. The rock is soft sedimentary and coral rock that was an ancient seabed 200 millions years ago and was thrust upward with the rest of the Alps range, sculpted by glaciers and eroded by wind, water and freezing cracking. Because it is relatively soft (compared to marble or granite and other igneous and metamorphic rock) and its layering characteristics, it breaks off in a vertical manner and provides sheer walls and very steep peaks. They are spectacular, to say the least. They also have a unique coloration that, when combined with the spectacular sunset rays of the sun, give off the brightest and most beautifully brilliant red/orange glow, almost like flame much like the rocks in Sedona, AZ. The tops of all the Alps peaks are about 11,000 - 12,000 ft. elevation.
Ah Lipari…I travelled there for a few days when I lived in Italia (Firenze) and my parents came to visit. All of the Aeolians are beautiful and each has its own character, but Lipari (pronounced LEE-par-ee, not LIPP-UH-ree) is the most charming and most accessible.
The most bustling (if you can call it that) island of the archipelago, Lipari is like the capital city of the Aeolians. But while it has the perks of a city (great musuems, haute cuisine, luxury hotels), it also has all the advatages of a small town or secluded island (friendly locals, narrow carless streets, uncluttered beaches and waterfronts).
As many people at the beginning of December plan where to celebrate New Year, ancient city of Dubrovnik could be very attractive destination. If one could tell it according to last year’s experience, than this turistic pearl of Croatia can definitely not be a bad solution.
Chosen by CNN as one of seven most attractive places to be there in New Year’s Eve, Dubrovnik has deserve that range by organizing very rich program to celebrate year 2000. At historical squares and streets Dubrovnik celebrated in openly, wishing at most that war period never returns in this area. Hardly motor-shelled during aggression in a last decade of 20th century, Dubrovnik will celebrate New Year’s Eve in the same mood this time, expecting optimisticaly year 2001. with hopes for another successful return of turism.
This charming small town in the Italian Riviera is definitely worth a visit. Unfortunately, my husband and I traveled to Santa Margherita Ligure in early April, the fine line between the end of the low season and the beginning of the high season. We had a fair amount of rainy days and I would advise travelers to go later in the Spring or even in the Summer, though you may have to battle other tourists at that time. That said, we had several beautiful sunny days which gave us the flavor of this summer resort area.
Are you tired of staying in well-appointed– but BORING– hotel rooms? Can’t tell which city you’re in because your hotel room always looks the same?
If you’re visiting Paris, consider renting a furnished apartment. An apartment rental affords you more privacy and space and an opportunity to live like a Parisian, often at a lower cost than a hotel room that has fewer amenities. There are many, many short-term rental apartments available in Paris (more so than any other city I’ve browsed) to suit all tastes and price ranges.
Hi Everybody who is interested on a great time by the Rhine River!!
Last year me and my husband decided to see the Rhine River Region in Germany. I got to the net and went on Loreley on line, got a list of hotels and choose one that seemed nice by the pictures..and it was the BEST!!! It is a little Hotel restaurant in a small town named Biebernheim, very close to the town of St Goar by the river!!! The owner did not speak any english but we managed to understand each other!!!!! Great!! And the FOODDD!!!!! My God, excelent! We even tried other restaurants in the area but none of them were like the one in our small hotel!!! They are nice, the rooms very clean and confortable and very very affordable!! One of the best summers of our lifes!!
The Netherlands is a beautiful country. Amsterdam is an amazingly vibrant city and a great place to party. Unfortunately, many visitors to the country focus far too much on the latter with the result that they miss out on the lovely countryside and the great people that are outside the Amsterdam area.
One way to get out and explore the country is by bike. The bicycle (fiets in Dutch, rhymes with “sheets”) is so ubiquitous in the Netherlands that it is almost a symbol for the country, along with wooden shoes (which, in my 3 months in Holland, I have never seen being worn) and the windmill. As such, the country is criss-crossed with a network of bicycle paths, routes and trails that make it one of the most cyclist-friendly places I have visited.
