Madrid- what a delight!

September 14/15

Lovely day in madrid today- spent all morning at the embassy filling reports, getting photos, applications for emergency passport, etc etc. Result, pickpockets 1, Jamo 1. I should have a new (temporary) passport tomorrow morning. Spent the rest of the day at the palace (impressive but I'm over ostentatious displays of wealth and power, don't tell Rhonda) and then some more exploring before we hit the prado. It has free entry after 6, a little-known fact that we and about 1500 other people shared!

Would probably rate this town above barcelona, very impressive buildings, surprisingly hilly, and a visible and effective police presence. Ask me about the security to get in the front door of the embassy!
Off to Granada in the morning, in our rental car. Look out for the crazy Aussie causing mayhem on madrid's road system tomorrow.

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Valencia, sweet as an Orange!

September 12  / 13

2 days in Valencia, a great city, 3rd biggest in Spain but a very different vibe compared to Barcelona. I bought a few euros' worth of groceries and was asked for passport id! They don't have much of a crime problem here, according to our b&b host. Not like those scoundrels up north... Tell me about it, I thought to myself. Spent most of today at the beach - it was full of old sheilahs with their tops off! I didn't know which way to look. Fortunately, Rhonda resisted the urge to sunbathe.

The water was a pleasant 21 or so, very easy to take! Went to a beachside restaurant to have an authentic Valencian paella (apparently they invented it) only to be told to come back in an hour and a half! So we had a burger and chips instead, just to upset them. The city has an amazing group of buildings under the title of Museum of the Sciences, a world class feature that stretches for nearly 2 kilometres. If you bring kids here, set aside a day to see it all! We are off to Madrid tomorrow, so won't get to visit it. We will always remember this town for its wonderful architecture, mostly from the 16th and 17th centuries.

Barcelona the Next Bit

First day in barcelona, refreshed after 17 hours sleep! (that is not a misprint). Spent today wandering around the old town, gothic quarter, roman walls, medieval meanderings. This is an amazing city, with very proud inhabitants, who just might vote to secede from the rest of Spain! Go the Catalans. Tomorrow is a huge day for them, the memorial for a battle lost 300 years ago, apparently the city will come to a standstill. We will be seeing some of mr gaudi's works, notably the sagrada familia.


Second day in barcelona, got robbed! Passport and some cash taken by a boy (or was it the kind fellow who tapped me on the shoulder to alert me..?) on the metro. NOT HAPPY! Thrown a real loop into proceedings- have had to cancel old passport and apply for new one. Ended up spending most of the afternoon with the police or back in the apartment on the iPad. Worse still, missed out on going to see the sagrada familia. Off to valencia tomorrow, hopefully!