Next trip: Italy!

I think most of y'all know this, but my next travel adventure will be to Italy May 3-17. Well, technically, my next trip is to Disneyworld in two weeks. But that's a minor trip to visit with my sister Emily and her family. Really looking forward to that.

But the big news is Italy. Flying into Rome and leaving from Venice. Am planning on going to Florence in between. Am trying to figure out how to fit a quick trip to Pompeii too.

So send any suggestions my way. And in order to relax from Italy, I'm going to take a 3-day Disney cruise with the other half of the fam. It'll be a busy, busy May.

Monday, May 17

At home! And I get to sleep in my own bed for seven nights in a row for the first time in a year. It's amazing.

Had a fabulous visit to Spain. Checked out of the fabulous Hilton hotel at the Madrid airport this morning. Easy flight home today. Took 1,897 photos of which I will hopefully find a few that are decent enough to share with you.

I plan on going back and adding more posts about the trip since I didn't get a chance to do much while in Spain. Thanks for following!

Sunday, May 16

At the Hilton Madrid Airport Hotel. Did the Reina Soffia and the Palacio Real today. Walked around and bought souveniers. End of a fabulous 5-star vacation. Flying home tomorrow.

Saturday, May 15

Today started out with a stroll through the ciy center towards the Palacio Real. Only to discover that it was closed today because of the May 15 activities. It´s the celebration of the city´s patron Saint, but I forget the exact name. Several things were actually closed today, but we did wind up at Museo Sorella, a special exhibit at the Calix Real, and the museum across the street from the hotel whose name I can´t remember (not the Prado). All three exhibits were fabulous and we saw tons of Monets, Pissaros, you name it, it was there. After a short respite drinking a fabulous bottle of wine that we got on our winery visit for 5 euro, we walked up towards the Gran Via and stopped at a little Irish restuarant to people watch as they made their way to Gran Via. After that, we tried to go to the museum across the street to see their special Monet exhibit as it was free, but the line was ridiculous. So we walked back up to and along Gran Via. The street was packed with wall to wall people. I did hear a brass band play the Saints so that was pretty fabulous. Later we walked back towards the hotel on a street that parallels the Gran Via and it was also full of people. It was just great fun and reminded me of Mardi Gras, Lombardi Gras, etc. all rolled into one (but without the go cups). I finally made it to the Monet exhibit at midnight and quickly walked through because it was packed and hot. I then walked back up to the base of the Gran Via and saw a fireworks display.

Tomorrow is our last full day in Madrid. On tap, the Palico Real and the Renne Sofia. We leave our digs at the Westin and go to the Hilton Hotel near the Madrid Airport. Back to the States on Monday.

Friday, May 14 part dos

Okay so after our fabulous 3-hour train ride from Barcelona to Madrid, Bonnie and I checked into the Westin Palace which is across from the Prado. Our room looks over a fountain where the championship Barcelona football team (still haven´t figured out which one) paraded around the prior day. Always a day late and a dollar short, oh well. After that, we headed to the Prado and got in for free because it was late in the day. No line, but only about 45 minutes to zip through the first floor collections. After that, we walked up the Prado something or other and found an adorable little Italian restuarant that had the best gazpacho over (go ahead, judge). Did a bit more walking around and actually called it an early night, around 23:00 (11pm).

Friday, May 14

Rang in the birthday with fancy drinks at the W hotel on the Mediterranean and then dancing at a club in Port Olimpic. Bonnie put up with the awesome dance mix which was really a mix of pop with a teeny tiny hip hop thrown in. Then we wandered by the casino where I put 5 euro in to a slot machine. Came away with 28 euro.

It's raining pretty good today so it doesn't look like we'll be able to sit by the pool and/or beach before our fancy train ride to Madrid. Checking into the very fancy Westin Palace tonight which is right near the Prado. Not sure if/when I'll be able to update again.

Thursday, May 13

Today Bonnie and I took a wine and cava tour outside of Barcelona. It was nice to get outside of the city and we were able to taste some fabulous wines and cavas. Also bought many, many trinkets and gifts. After our tour, we went to see one last Gaudi house off of Las Ramblas and now we're relaxing in the executive lounge before we head out for dinner, drinks, and a spot of dancing. Tomorrow afternoon we head to Madrid via the AVE train. All for now...

New Blog Title Courtesy of Charley Nelson

So Bonnie's brother-in-law always says (when they're at a fabulous place on the beach or something) this doesen't suck. So Bonnie and I have been saying that all week. And I decided to adopt it for my blog. So thanks Charley!

Wednesday, May 12

Today is Gaudi day.

Saw several Gaudi buildings, but just as we got to Parc Guell it started to rain so we skipped that one. Perhaps we'll try again tomorrow after our wine tour. The weather is cool today and it has rained off and on all afternoon. Of course, Bonnie and I were completely unprepared as we left our umbrellas in the hotel room. But we were fairly lucky as we were on the hop on/hop off bus when it was raining. I think we're headed back to El Born in a little bit to try some crepes at this cute little place. I've taken over 1,000 photos during this trip. Not all will be keepers but hopefully I've taken a few good ones in there.

Tuesday, May 11

Another quick update because I'm paying .35 euros/minute to use the internet. As Bonnie says, the hotel is shou shou fa fa and we get free breakfast, snacks and drinks in the executive lounge, but no free internet. Oh well.

Today Bonnie and I walked around Barrio Gotic (the Gothic Quarter) and up La Rambla stopping here and there for a bit of shopping and drinking. We're headed back out to hit the other half of La Rambla shortly.

Did I mention yesterday that my hotel room on the 23rd floor overlooks the Mediterranean Sea? That's why I live in hotels, my friends.

All for now...

In Barcelona

Just a quick little update. I arrived in Barcelona this morning at 9:30 after a lovely little night train ride. Bonnie had a much tougher time thanks to the ash cloud but FINALLY arrived around 5:30 this afternoon after an 8-hour delay or so. I spent the day getting acclamated in Barcelona and stuck my feet in the Mediterranean. We're enjoying a few drinks and snacks in the executive lougne. All for now.

Sunday, May 9

Enjoying a very leisurely morning before I check out at noon. Not sure what I will do today. I was able to check off most of the few things I had planned on doing today on Friday. I tried to book an olive oil tour but they didn't have enough to have it. So I guess I will just wander around the Moorish quarter today and perhaps go back to the Alhambra gardens. We'll see what the day brings. I catch an overnight train at 21:00 and head to Barcelona where I meet up with Bonnie B.

Saturday, May 8

Today was all about the Alhambra, a 14th century Mororish fortress that rises above Granada. It was amazing. I took tons of pictures but my battery eventually died and of course the spare was at the hotel. So I plunked down 10 euros for a disposable one. So the last part of the visit only includes a few select photos. I think I could've easily taken another hundred photos at the gardens and throughout the grounds. Oh well. After just about six hours at the Alhambra, I went back to the hotel, made a phone call, picked up the spare battery and then hiked over to San Nicholas which has an amazing view of the Alhambra. I was hoping to time the trip in time for sunset but I was really about two hours too early. Took a minibus back to Plaza Nueva which is in the city center and then walked back past my hotel to another plaza near my hotel for dinner. It was actually around 9:30 when I sat down for dinner and the latest I've been able to hold out so far. Had marinated pork loin and provolone on toast, a potato tapa, and red wine. A perfectly lovely dinner and it was nice to be in an area that was much more residential than touristy. After dinner walked back to Plaza Nueva and had limon ice cream.

Friday, May 7

Drug my butt out of bed this morning before dawn. Took the AVE train which travels from Toledo to Madrid in 30 minutes. Arrived in Madrid at 8 am then had an hour to kill before the next train. The train to Granada was about twenty minutes late. But we were soon underway and the ride was very lovely. I dozed in and out all during the trip despite my best attempts to stay sake and enjoy the scenery. My hotel in Granada is at Plaza Fortuny which appears to be a bustling, busy residential area. I have a teeny tiny single room with a small balcony. Will likely venture out for a bit of exploring soon although a siesta sounds lovely as well.

Thursday, May 6.

Got a late start this morning but then spent the next 7 hours walking all around and up and down Toledo. Went to seven or so musuems or cathedrals/synogogues. Lots of great architecture. The streets are very narrow and windy and shared by both auto and pedestrian. The fit would fit in great here. Also, had gazpacho today that was smooth and blended just like Commander's Palace. Back at the same tapas place because they have free wifi and a great wine selection. Tommorrow I board and train that takes me to Madrid and then one to Granada. Have to get up early to do this. In hindsight, I probably should've taken the afternoon train but oh well. Might try to upload a few pictures tonight but no guarantees.

In a very cool tapas bar. Yummy tapas. About to order a second glass of wine. Kind of hard to type with the touch and its new case but we'll see how I manage. Am ready to find a job here. It's just gorgeous. Hope the pics do it justice.

In Spain!

Arrived safely this morning. Toledo and the countryside is beautiful. Hotel is fancy. May walk around a bit today, but I think the first thing to check off my list is a massage. It is vacation after all.

It's time...

Pretty much packed. Need to do some last minute reorganization. Still don't know much Spanish. Good times, good times.

Will hopefully check in with you on the other side of the Atlantic.

An explanation.

So I was planning on going to Europe for my 30th birthday but then I bought a house. And then I finally scrimped and saved enough to go last spring but then the Stratus died (I miss you girl). Thus, my trip to Greece looked like this:

(Picture a 2008 purplish Honda Fit Sport here. I evidently don't have a picture of my neglected baby on my laptop).

So late last year, I finally started to look into turning my long accumulating frequent flier miles into a trip to Greece for my 35th birthday. As it was just over six months away, it was going to run about 100,000 miles for my preferred dates and I only had about 80,000 miles. Plus, the one Hilton that I wanted to stay at in Rhodes was no longer a Hilton. (In addition to using frequent flier miles, I'm also using the hotel points that I acquired during my first contracting gig).

Although I originally had planned on just staying in one location, I discovered that there were several Hilton's (or Marriott's) scattered throughout Spain and/or Portugal. I knew I could fly direct into Madrid from Philly, so I spent the next two or three days stalking the US Airways website. Lo and behold, one morning I checked the website and found an available flight in early to mid-May for 50,000 miles. I booked it and decided I had six months to learn Spanish.

Well, it's now just over a month to go and my Spanish skills aren't much better than when I started. Although I can now navigate my way through the Renfe website. We'll see how much I can learn in the next 36 days.

In the meantime, the hotels are booked, my train reservations are complete, and my very good friend Bonnie has agreed to meet me in Barcelona. Now I just need to figure out what I want to do. In short, here's the plan:


May 4: Depart PHL
May 5: Arrive in Madrid in AM, transport to Toledo
May 6: Toledo
May 7: Return to Madrid in AM and take train to Granada
May 8: Granada
May 9: Granada during the day, then overnight train to Barcelona
May 10: Arrive in Barcelona in the morning, meet BB at hotel
May 11-13: Barcelona
May 14: Depart Barcelona and take AVE train to Madrid
May 15-16: Madrid
May 17: Depart Madrid with BB