This year we went to the North East of Spain, the regions of Catalonia (“avenguda” is the word for “street” in the Catalonian language), and Valencia (“avenida” is the word for “street” in Castilian Spanish).
We started with a few days in Barcelona, staying at the very centrally located, aptly named Hotel Gaudí, right across from the ornate Palau Güell, the mansion designed by famous architect Antoni Gaudí for his sponsor Eusebi Güell. We visited the famously unfinished Sagrada Familia cathedral, the colorful food market Mercat de la Boqueria, and the Montjuïc area, including a cable car ride down to the beach. We enjoyed the broad selection of restaurants, including Caribbean (Eat Caribbean) and Lebanese (Cafe Arabia).
Next was a trip to the 1000 year old Montserrat abbey, perched high up on a mountainside. There was some event with lots of people, old and young, dressed in traditional garments, dancing in the main square in front of the church. Sadly, we couldn’t find out what was being celebrated there. I do need to learn some basic Spanish!
From there we visited Girona, a lovely small town with a nice old town center, and a city wall that you can walk on … well, sort of, lots of steps involved. We stayed at the quaint Hotel Museu Llegendes de Girona with its Dalì inspired breakfast room. We enjoyed dinner of Normandy-style galettes at La Vedette and Argentinian grilled meats at El Balcó.
Next we spent a few days in the fishing port of Cadaqués (the original, not the copy being built in China), close to the French border. This is the town where Salvador Dalí lived and worked. We visited his house (now a museum), and did a bit of hiking on the nearby Cap de Creus peninsula. We also went to the Dalí museum in Figueres, which has more of his art.
After so much exhausting sightseeing and stair climbing, we needed a rest, so we had a week in a vacation home near Tarragona. Nice walks along the beach, day trips to Tarragona and Sitges, trips to the local grocery store (I always enjoy going to grocery stores in foreign countries, you will see items you never expect). Cynthia was keen on visiting the radio museum in Roda de Barà.
The last stop on this trip was Valencia, with more city sightseeing and food markets, and a visit to the aquarium called the Oceanographic, which is part of the Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias area, which also comprises a science museum and an IMAX theater.
Photos are here.
