Spain

València

Posted by Jim St. George on May 17, 2017
Posted in: Europe, Spain, UNESCO World Heritage Site. Leave a Comment
Valencia's old town in the evening

Valencia’s old town in the evening

Coming to a new place like this you never know what you’re going to find. In this case, we absolutely loved València. Loved it, as in could almost imagine living there some day. Great architecture, great food, an incredible park, perfect weather, access to the Mediterranean, and all at a fraction of the cost of, say, Paris, where we’d just come from.

Part of why it was so perfect had to be the season. The mornings would start cool and then temperatures would climb through the 70s through the early afternoon. This must be just about the perfect time to be here; I can imagine that in July it would get a little hot. But mid-May? Perfect early summer weather, especially after all the cool rain we had in Paris and even Japan.

Grand architecture in València

Grand architecture in València

València is Spain’s third-biggest city after and capital of the “autonomous community” – essentially a state – of València, the latter about the size of New Jersey. From my perspective there are two important dates in València’s history. The first was in 138 BC when it was founded by Roman soldiers who’d been pensioned off. After that a lot of stuff happened and it was even the Spanish republican capital in 1936 and 1937 during the Spanish Civil War. When Franco then defeated the republicans, València was punished under his rule.

The next big date (again, this is a very personal history) was in 1957 when the Rio Turia, which runs through ran through the city, flooded. Again. This time the city leaders decided they’d had enough and chose to move the river. Seriously. At the western end of the city, where the river once entered, they diverted it and sent it southward more directly to the Mediterranean and avoiding the city.

A grove of what I think are baobab trees in the wonderful park that is the old Turia riverbed

A grove of what I think are baobab trees in the wonderful park that is the old Turia riverbed

The cool thing about that project is that what was once the riverbed running through València is now a remarkable green space consisting of a huge variety of soccer fields, running tracks, bike trails, basketball courts, exercise stations, walking trails and on and on. Traffic moves above the parkway on bridges constructed long before the diversion project (some dating back several hundred years) making it one of the most amazing public green spaces I’ve ever seen. And on top of all that, near the end of the parkway, what used to be down river, local-boy-made-good international architectural star Santiago Calatrava designed the City of Arts and Sciences. This is a modern architectural fantasy land with museums and opera halls, walkways and water features, an IMAX theater, an oceanographic aquarium, and perhaps the most beautiful bridge I’ve ever seen. The whole thing has cost more than three times its original estimate (shades of Boston’s Big Dig), but if you weren’t paying Valèncian taxes it is stunning.

How futuristic is this?

How futuristic is this?

And so once again, after years of travel all over the world, we discover something we’ve never seen before: a massive public park built into an old riverbed. It got me wondering why other cities don’t think of this. Paris could move the Seine, or Minneapolis could divert the Mississippi, and *boom!* great opportunities for parkland. OK, maybe that’s not likely, but in València it worked pretty well.

That was València. A gorgeous and atmospheric old city surrounded by ancient towers that once formed parts of the city walls. A beautiful 15th century silk trading house that is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. Beautiful 19th century Spanish architecture along with some stunning modern buildings. A nice free art museum – my favorite entrance fee – great tapas, and in case I didn’t mention it, perfect weather.

We like Spain!

Mark in the old silk exchange, now a UNESCO World Heritage site

Mark in the old silk exchange, now a UNESCO World Heritage site

A 16th century bridge spanning what was once the Turia River. All these bridges mean that for miles of parkland runners, walkers, and bikers never have to contend with traffic. It's remarkable.

A 16th century bridge spanning what was once the Turia River. All these bridges mean that for miles of parkland runners, walkers, and bikers never have to contend with traffic. It’s remarkable.

Not sure what was going on but on Sunday we saw a number of local women dressed up like this

Not sure what was going on but on Sunday we saw a number of local women dressed up like this

The food of València was darned good. This was a lunch Mark had at a tapas bar while I was at the beach on the Mediterranean. Unfortunately for me every single restaurant along the beach that day was fully booked. Every one. So my lunch consisted of a bottle of water. I was, however, on a Mediterranean beach so I really wasn't complaining that much.

The food of València was darned good. This was a lunch Mark had at a tapas bar while I was at the beach on the Mediterranean. Unfortunately for me every single restaurant along the beach that day was fully booked. Every one. So my lunch consisted of a bottle of water. I was, however, on a Mediterranean beach so I really wasn’t complaining that much.

Salads here are wonderful

Salads here are wonderful

As is the octopus

As is the octopus

A flag blowing from atop the Torres de Quart, one of several ancient towers still standing in València

A flag blowing from atop the Torres de Quart, one of several ancient towers still standing in València

You don't want to miss this one. In València's cathedral is a special chapel that holds - you won't believe this - the Holy Grail. Yup, the very chalice from which Christ drank at the Last Supper. It has been scientifically dated to the 1st century, so who knows, maybe it's true.

You don’t want to miss this one. In València’s cathedral is a special chapel that holds – you won’t believe this – the Holy Grail. Yup, the very chalice from which Christ drank at the Last Supper. It has been scientifically dated to the 1st century, so who knows, maybe it’s true.

More great local architecture

More great local architecture

Beautifully restored ecclesiastical art in the Cathedral's museum

Beautifully restored ecclesiastical art in the Cathedral’s museum

Lest you think the city is perfect, though, here's a random street I passed on my walk to the beach. Felt more like I was in Mexico or Peru than Europe.

Lest you think the city is perfect, though, here’s a random street I passed on my walk to the beach. Felt more like I was in Mexico or Peru than Europe.

València has a lot of great street art, too

València has a lot of great street art, too

Terrific Tarifa

Posted by Jim St. George on November 16, 2015
Posted in: Spain. Leave a Comment
We loved a little coastal hike along the Mediterranean where we could mingle with the local wildlife. You can see Morocco in the distance and one of the ferries that make the trip across the Strait of Gibraltar every hour.

We loved a little coastal hike along the Mediterranean where we could mingle with the local wildlife. You can see Morocco in the distance and one of the ferries that make the trip across the Strait of Gibraltar every hour.

Our ninth and last stop in Spain (for now, that is) was Tarifa, right on the southern tip of the peninsula where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic. How far south, you ask? Tarifa, it turns out, is further south than when we were in Tunis a year-and-a-half ago. Seems strange, but yes, part of Spain is further south than some African cities.

The big, broad beach of Tarifa. There were a few dozen intrepid surfers out there but in the summer the place is apparently packed.

The big, broad beach of Tarifa. There were a few dozen intrepid surfers out there but in the summer the place is apparently packed.

Most people come here for the world-class wind sports like surfing, windsurfing, and kitesurfing, and even in mid-November there were plenty of people out enjoying the strong winds in the region. For us, though, ultimately there were four standouts: food, a coastal hike, Gibraltar, and the ferry to Morocco.

For a relatively small city we were impressed with the quality of food. There was one tiny tapas bar that was usually way too crowded to get into but we did manage to have lunch there once and we understood why it was so popular and crowded. For dinner we would head to La Burla, a slightly larger tapas bar run by the cutest Italian couple who made some great food and finish the meal off with a little bottle of Grappa (our first clue that they were, in fact, Italian).

Next up for having fun was a great coastal hike that runs maybe seven miles up the coast along the Mediterranean coast. We didn’t hike the whole way but the part we did was beautiful.

Hiking here made me think I'd finally made it to Ireland - green, windy, isolated, and beautiful

Hiking here made me think I’d finally made it to Ireland – green, windy, isolated, and beautiful

And then there was Gibraltar. Except for having seen the Rock when I sailed through the Strait of Gibraltar in 1974 (and in numerous old Prudential commercials) I really didn’t know much about it. To my surprise it’s more than just a rock: there’s a community of over 30,000 people packed into the relatively flat area at the base of the rock. The really strange thing about the city, of course, is that it’s a British possession. So we took a bus from Tarifa to the last stop in Spain and then walked across a border, with passport control and all that, before then walking into a city populated with fish & chip restaurants and red telephone booths and people with British accents. Very strange. We got there too late to go to the parks up on the Rock – we keep having to relearn that we don’t really like day trips – but it was still a fun little excursion to go to the UK for lunch. Next time we’re in Spain we’ll stay a couple days in Gibraltar itself, though trading Spanish tapas for British “food” is a real loss.

The Rock of Gibraltar. After you pass through British passport control you actually walk across the airport runway - that's the big flat paved area - to get into the city.

The Rock of Gibraltar. After you pass through British passport control you actually walk across the airport runway – that’s the big flat paved area – to get into the city.

Finally, then, we were in Tarifa to catch the ferry to Tangier. So farewell to Europe for a few months and Hello Africa!

Michele & Giuseppe, the Italian couple who ran the great tapas bar we ate at three nights in a row

Michele & Giuseppe, the Italian couple who ran the great tapas bar we ate at three nights in a row

An incredible cheese and eggplant dish at Bar el Frances, the tiny, crowded tapas bar we could only get into for lunch

An incredible cheese and eggplant dish at Bar el Frances, the tiny, crowded tapas bar we could only get into for lunch

The narrow, white streets of old town Tarifa

The narrow, white streets of old town Tarifa

A pedestrian shopping street in Gibraltar

A pedestrian shopping street in Gibraltar

Granada

Posted by Jim St. George on November 14, 2015
Posted in: Spain, UNESCO World Heritage Site. Leave a Comment
Up at the Alhambra with fall colors and the snow-capped Sierra Nevadas in the background

Up at the Alhambra with fall colors and the snow-capped Sierra Nevadas in the background

The main draw in Granada, a city tucked into the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, is the Alhambra, a palace and fortress complex built in the 13th and 14th century by the Moors. But we discovered another great reason to go there: free tapas! It’s not entirely unusual in Spain to go to a tapas bar and get a little something free with your first glass of wine. In Granada, though, you can pretty much count on getting something with every glass of wine you order. I mean, you can’t afford not to drink a lot.

Mark was in heaven - anchovies over artichoke, though this one wasn't free

Mark was in heaven – anchovies over artichoke, though this one wasn’t free

These sausages were freebies, though, with very healthy glasses of red wine to go with them

These sausages were freebies, though, with very healthy glasses of red wine to go with them

And the free tapas aren’t just something cheap; they’re typically an item on the menu that you would otherwise order. Nor is the wine expensive; often glasses were in the $2.50 range and with pretty decent pours. So you go in, order wine, eat. Repeat. To be sure, we did buy some food, too, since I just can’t drink enough wine to satisfy my evening hunger. Even then, though, it’s practically free, often no more than $2.50 for a little plate of food. We’d end up spending maybe $35 or $40 for a really good meal. You wonder how they can make a living charging low prices for what they don’t give you for free. We weren’t complaining, though.

Oh yeah, back to the Alhambra. Fortunately – very fortunately – we’d learned from Mark’s parents that you pretty much have to get your tickets weeks in advance as it is a very popular tourist destination. So two weeks before our arrival in Granada we went online and even that far in advance, in mid-November, there was practically nothing available. We did get late afternoon tickets, though, and it was pretty spectacular.

Unlike most historic buildings we’ve been touring over these weeks in Spain, the Alhambra is unusual in that there are almost no signs telling you what anything is and there is no audio guide, either. So instead you wander around, just pretty much stunned at the Moorish design, the tiles, the ceilings, the elegant plasterwork with Islamic writing and all that. It really is the most stunning piece of architecture we’ve seen in a long time.

A closeup of a tiny bit of the tile and plasterwork in the Alhambra

A closeup of a tiny bit of the tile and plasterwork in the Alhambra

The other great part of the complex is the Generalife. At first I thought some big insurance company had bought naming rights to the gardens, but in fact its name comes from the Arabic jinan al-‘arif, or the overseer’s garden. Really beautiful gardens over an enormous area with fountains and pools and patios and pathways, just the sort of space I love. All that on a gorgeous fall day is about as good as it gets.

One day we had lunch on the patio outside a Lebanese restaurant. A guy came out of his building with his scooter and a very excited dog. As he went back to lock things up the dog climbed up on the scooter, confident - correctly, it turns out - that he was going on a ride with his master. Too cute.

One day we had lunch on the patio outside a Lebanese restaurant. A guy came out of his building with his scooter and a very excited dog. As he went back to lock things up the dog climbed up on the scooter, confident – correctly, it turns out – that he was going on a ride with his master. Too cute.

Of course, there’s more to Granada than just free tapas and the Alhambra. The city was the capital of the last caliphate in Spain after the Spanish had pushed the Moors down to the southeast corner of the peninsula. Even that ended, though, when in January 1492 (a big year) Ferdinand and Isabella finally dislodged them and marched into the city, ending any major Islamic presence in Europe. The Catholic Monarchs, as they are known, are buried in Granada’s royal chapel. As cameras weren’t allowed into the chapel, though, we have no pictures but trust me, their tombs are there.

Finally, the other big thing we focused on while in Granada was finalizing some travel planning. From Spain we’re crossing the Strait of Gibraltar to spend a couple weeks in Morocco. Then we’re going to hop down to Western Africa to go to Senegal and the Gambia and – if we can get a visa while in Morocco – Ghana. Just after Christmas, then, we’re going to make a very quick trip to Boston for a friend’s wedding before flying down to Mexico and then working our way through Guatemala and into South America. You might be surprised how much work is involved putting something like that together, but we have that much pretty much settled. In other words, there’s no slowing down for us yet!

Granada's cathedral is wedged in between all sorts of buildings so you really can't see the building except in small pieces

Granada’s cathedral is wedged in between all sorts of buildings so you really can’t see the building except in small pieces

While touring Granada's Cathedral we encountered this Jesus on His Cell Phone statue

While touring Granada’s Cathedral we encountered this Jesus on His Cell Phone statue

Generalife color

Generalife color

More fall beauty from the Generalife

More fall beauty from the Generalife

A trail in the Generalife

A trail in the Generalife

Mark loves cats, so here he is taking a selfie in front of the lion's fountain in the Alhambra

Mark loves cats, so here he is taking a selfie in front of the lion’s fountain in the Alhambra

In 1832 Washington Irving published "Tales of the Alhambra" after spending some months in Granada. Today this statue and a number of plaques around the buildings came as a bit of a surprise to us.

In 1832 Washington Irving published “Tales of the Alhambra” after spending some months in Granada. Today this statue and a number of plaques around the buildings came as a bit of a surprise to us.

This tapas bar was more elegant than our usual haunt. I took this picture, though, because I loved the ladies behind Mark. There they were, in their elegant suits, having a lunch of free tapas and beer. Beautiful!

This tapas bar was more elegant than our usual haunt. I took this picture, though, because I loved the ladies behind Mark. There they were, in their elegant suits, having a lunch of free tapas and beer. Beautiful!

Enjoying Granada's tapas. That glass of orange stuff beside him isn't a drink, it's some of the best gazpacho we've ever had. It's served in a glass with ice and is out of this world.

Enjoying Granada’s tapas. That glass of orange stuff beside him isn’t a drink, it’s some of the best gazpacho we’ve ever had. It’s served in a glass with ice and is out of this world.

Here we are up in the Alhambra with the foothills of the Sierra Nevada as background

Here we are up in the Alhambra with the foothills of the Sierra Nevada as background