Tempura and Rickshaws

Wednesday, June 21
Exploring Takayama!

Finally, a real Japanese town!  This is what we were looking for: narrow streets, a beautiful river, the morning market, shop after shop of foods, boxes, furniture, clothes, etc.  First we went to the Takayama Float Museum. They have a spring festival and an autumn festival, and for hundreds of years they have been having a parade of these ornate, huge, wood-carved floats. Some have wheels, but some do not. They weigh several tons! The ones without wheels require 20 - 30 people to lift and carry through the streets. We saw some old ones, and some of those are still in use.  Others are housed in "garages" throughout the city.

Then we walked to another beautiful Shinto shrine.

Along the way we saw groups of school children in uniforms who waved to us and said "Hello!".  Then we walked through the main part of town. At lunch time, our guide said we could eat wherever we wanted, so a group of 6 of us set out to find a particular tempura restaurant that was on our guide map. We followed the streets and actually found it, but it looked like it was closed.  We tried pulling and pushing the wooden door but it didn't open. We were standing there trying to decide what to do when I suggested we try to slide it open! Sure enough, that worked.  We walked in and the whole thing was two sit-on-the-floor (no leg holes) tables and a counter with 6 seats. How fortunate!   So we sat and ordered the "regular tempura".  We were all very thirsty, so we ordered the "Beer large" ($8).  The glasses were so big it took two hands to lift them!  They must have held 24 ounces!

The "chef" was on the other side of the counter. He began cutting up stuff and coating it and putting it into a big rusty pot that looked like it was from the Ming Dynasty period (ok, wrong country, but you get the idea).  It was better not to look.  After 10 minutes or so we got bowls with rice on the bottom and then tempura shrimp (2 large ones), eggplant, nori (seaweed), a leaf of some sort (yummy), a piece of squid, and some unidentifiable vegetable (pumpkin?).  It was all sooooo good!  Not heavy at all. And we pretty much finished the beers!  Then the two of us went back to the center of town and took a genuine rickshaw ride!  Our "driver" said he didn't speak English but we said that was ok.  So he gave us another tour of the town.  He stopped to say "river", "garage", "sake factory". He took our picture with a "Hai...cheese".  Awesome fun!

Then, back on the bus to the hotel, and before we knew it, it was time to eat again!  Wayne had just about reached capacity, so he stayed at the hotel (as did the other four from our group), but Wendy went with the others for shabu-shabu.  This is where they give you very thin slices of the best grade of beef and you dip them in boiling water.  The heat melts the fat and cooks the beef very quickly.  They also give you vegetables.  Wendy said it was very delicious.  She came back around 9:15 and we watched the end of "Singin' In the Rain" on TV, in English with Japanese subtitles.  Don Lockwood-san!

Thursday, June 22 (a 6-month anniversary day)
Back on the bus for another winding, tunnel-filled ride to Shirakawago (almost sounds like "Chicago" when Toshi says it).  This is a UNESCO World Heritage site.  It is famous because there are about 175 thatched-roof houses in the area.  Some of the roofs are almost 4' thick and contain 4,000 yards of thatch!  Then we walked through the village and over a bridge on the rushing river. A beautiful spot.

Back on the bus to go to lunch and....UH OH!  The bus won't start!  So, many in the group opted to get soft serve ice cream cones made from the local milk. Delicious!  After about 30 minutes we borrowed a bus from another tour group to go to the restaurant in Kitano-sho.  We walked in and there were long tables and each place had about 15 little dishes with different kinds of food and those little stoves cooking beef.

Do they eat like this every day??  And, of course, more beer!  When we were done our bus was still not fixed so we had to stand around, and some folks had another soft serve cone!  Finally, the bus came and took us to an overlook above Skirakawago.  What a beautiful sight.  Then a 40 minute ride, through one last tunnel, and we were out of the mountains - the gorund was flat!  And the houses in this area all had black tile roofs.  Toshi said we were getting close to the Sea of Japan.  Strong winds come off the sea, so they need the heavy roof tiles.  We stopped at a fisherman's wharf (gift shop and fish market), and then back on the bus.  Wendy has been supplying everyone with various treats on the bus, so it was time to stuff ourselves again with various cookies!

Then, into Noto and the Kagaya Hotel.  This is the most fantastic place! Beautiful views, architecture, painting, tapestries.  Everyone expected a little place (since the rooms are "authentic"), but it is a big hotel.  But the rooms are really Japanese.

We have a suite and each room can be closed with sliding paper walls.  Tatami mats on the floors (no shoes).  A low table in the center.  Each room comes with a personal assistant (ours was Yoshiko). She sat us down (on the floor) and brought us green tea and some gooey sweet dumpling candy.  Then we had to get "dressed" for dinner.  Ha Ha!  Getting dressed means just underwear plus your yakuta - white with blue flowers for ladies, blue with white flowers for men.  See, the thing is, everybody in the hotel walks around wearing these!  Kind of weird to see everyone the same, but fun in our group.  Plus, little slippers. So we all went down to take out group picture.  How fun!   Then into a large room for dinner.  You had a choice of sitting on a cushion on the floor or on a new invention - the chair!  Wayne lasted about 2 minutes on the floor.

Dinner, as you can see, was about the same as lunch - tons of delicious beautiful food in small portions - but they kept bringing more and MORE and MORE and M-O-R-E!!!   Vegetables, sushi, beef, chicken, fish, pickles, soba noodles, miso, rice, watermelon, cherries, grapes, sake, beer!  Then, back to our room where magically the table was gone and two futons (really just mattresses) were laid out on the floor. Sleepy time!  End of Day 7 (only 7?????)

Kanazawa and Kyoto

Friday, June 23

Sleeping on the futons was fine, but getting up off the floor was a little tough. And no one wanted to leave this beautiful after just one day, but we had to.  But first - breakfast!  Back to the same large room for an authentic Western meal, but still sitting on the floor!  Beautiful fruits and salads and scrambled eggs and bread. Yum! 

Then onto the bus. As we pulled out, about 40 of the "personal room assistants" were lined up on both sides of the driveway waving and smiling and bowing (they do a LOT of smiling and bowing here).  Toshi assured us that regular Japanese folks do not eat 3 meals like this a day; this is vacation eating.  He also told us that almost all children begin learning English at about age 12 (though it is not compulsory ) in school.

We drove through more mountains and tunnels until we got to Kanazawa and the Kenroku-en Garden (voted the 3rd best garden in Japan!).

From the guide map it looked like it was very big, but it was actually about half the size of our own botanic garden. But it did have many beautiful (and old; it dates from 1759!) trees and statues and ponds and fountains.  Once again we had perfect weather Toshi remarked how this has NOT been a normal "rainy season" week).  After an hour or so it was.....yes! Time to eat!  This time they laid out a beautiful tempura lunch -

shrimp, several kinds of veggies, plus R&MS (rice and miso soup!) and chicken in sauce (actually good!!), and salad.  Then an hour more on the bus to the Nomura Samurai House.  This several-hundred-year old house belonged to a mid-level Samurai.  It was beautiful but surprisingly small.  Next, a short ride to another market.  Mostly fish (this one is famous for its crabs), but had flowers and veggies, too.  Really cool.  Walking back to the bus we saw a store with a purple soft serve cone outside!  So we had to investigate.  Was it blueberry ice cream?  Boysenberry?  Mulberry? NO! It was sweet potato!  Wendy got one and said it tasted....sweet!  Not really potato-ey.  Then back on the bus to catch our next train.

Note: As mentioned in the previous post, Wendy (and others) have been buying crackers and cookies and candy at the markets and stores and then passing them out on the bus as we drive to the next stop.  But by now, everyone is so stuffed that no one did this.  But as we were getting ready to drive off, "Big Bob" walked down the aisle offering everyone pieces of onaga that he had just bought. Sadly, he got very few takers. You see, onaga is EEL!

We got to the station and boarded the Thunderbird #32; not a bullet train (there are none on this side of the country), but very fast and smooth anyway.  A beautiful ride past many mountains covered with millions of trees.  Even when we were close by it was hard to see the ground - that's how thick the trees were.  And hundreds of tunnels.  There was one that was nearly 10 miles long.  After 2 hours we got to Kyoto.  Our guide had warned us we had about 1 minute to get off the train (tight schedules or an old tour guide trick?), so we were up and ready as it stopped.  He was so happy because he said we all got out in about 30 seconds!  At first sight Kyoto reminds us somewhat of Florence - that is, the Kamo River looked like the Arno with many bridges and shops on both sides.  Kyoto has over 2,000 temples, but we doubt they will be like the churches in Florence.  We checked into the Westin Miyako and were surprised to see so many Western people (at the Tokyo Imperial there were very few).  We had a regular (i.e., Western) dinner (Caesar salad, steak, fish) and then to sleep - dreaming of tomorrow's day of shopping.

Amazing Kyoto

Saturday, June 24

Exploring Kyoto! First we went to the Sanjūsangen-dō Buddhist Temple - a huge centuries-old building. Inside are 1,000 wooden gold-colored statues (all basically identical) from the 13th and 14th centuries!

Each one has 40 arms/hands.  They are lined up in rows 10 deep; 500 on one side, 500 on the other.  In the center is a much larger Buddha.  Truly amazing!

Then we went to the home of the Suzuki's - an elderly couple (he looked like a 13th-century Yoda!). We sat on tatamis (and chairs) and they showed us a traditional tea ceremony.  All 42 of us got a sweet cake and a cup of green tea. Then they cleared that away (with helpers) and put out little tables and gave us an origami lesson!  Mrs. Suzuki told us that children in kindergarten learn origami, but that does not mean it is easy!  We made a Samurai helmet and a little box.  Really cool!  And then they gave each of us an origami kit to take home.

Next we drove to the Gion district - a shopping area and home to the Geishas.  We walked around and saw lots of neat buildings and our new guide, Shiro, told us interesting things about the area.  Wendy got a green tea soft serve.  The afternoon was free time, so we walked past Shinto arches, the Kyoto Zoo, the Kyoto Art Museum, and then to the Kyoto Crafts building. The building has 5 floors with different specialties on each (e.g., dolls, kimonos / yakutas, ceramics).  A mix of tschochkes and some good stuff.  Many from our group were also there.  Then a walk back to the hotel and a well-deserved spot of tea plus a scone with cream and pureed strawberries (where are we?).  You notice there was no mention of lunch today - it was not included - because we are walking and trying to build up an appetite for our special fancy dinner at Misogi-gawa, one of Kyoto's best restaurants. 

Note: Kyoto was the capital for about 1,100 years!!!  "Kyo" = capital, "to" = metro / city.  Now of course it is Tokyo, which has the same letters, but here it means: "To" = East, "Kyo" = Capital (The capital in the East!).

OK: dinner. WOW!!!!  Fantastique!!  The restaurant is on the Potocho, a narrow "street" (no cars, room for 4 people abreast) with bar after restaurant after club for about 6 blocks.  We managed to find the restaurant easily enough though the taxi had to drop us at the end of the street.  Inside it was all wood and traditional Japanese décor, but Wendy was speaking French to the owner. Yes, it is a Japanese-French restaurant! They took us to a private room and we did the sit-on-the-floor thing (well...on pillows).  Then they started with the food.  All French, but served in beautiful Japanese dishes (so tiny!).  Here are some pix:

The amuse bouche: Mille fuillee with smoked salmon, cherry tomato with cheese mousse, pickled peppers, and a tomato basil tart no bigger than your thumb!  Then, the first of 3 great appetizers:  thin-sliced prawn topped with black caviar on red pepper mousse on a sea of spinach puree, with a little tomato and endive garnish.  #2: beef stew with mushrooms, watercress, gravy on a bed of mashed potatoes; the whole thing would fit in the palm of your hand with room to spare.  #3: scallops topped with dainty mushrooms and a truffle slice on a lemon and wine sauce (sauce rendezvous) garnished with okra.  Wayne had been taking pictures of each course but we suddenly realized we had missed the last two! (we were so busy oohing and aaahhhing and tasting!)  Then, soup...onion for Wayne (in a little tiny crock) and vichysoisse consommé on ice for Wendy.  Next, the fish course!  A beautiful brown crisp puff pastry filled with sea bass, tiny asparagus pieces in a little edible nest on a wine sauce with little heart designs.  Then lime sorbet to cleanse the old palate.  Finallt the main courses!  A salad with tomatoes and cukes grown in the mountains of Kyoto.  Cooked seasonal vegetables (carrots, beans, sweet potatoes, tomatoes), and thin slices of beef cooked perfectly in a demi-glace sauce.  And....dessert!  A thin cookie cylinder filled with several kinds of red berries floating on white chocolate mousse. And then (of course) the plate of sweets:  lace, almond tuille, mini cream puff, a grape-jellied thing (really a fancy Chuckle!), orange candy, chocolate square.  Plus two glasses of champagne, two bottles of beer. No pain...only happiness.

Sunday, June 25
After a light breakfast we took a short trip to Nijo Castle, home of one of the Shoguns.  The floors intentionally squeak like nightingales when you walk on them to warn the residents of invaders (these people were really paranoid!).  It was a little drizzly outside, but we were prepared. By the time we got to Nara an hour later, it was raining pretty hard.  Our luck during this rainy season had finally ended.  We ate another crummy chicken lunch, then took a short ride to Kasuga Grand Shrine/  There is a large park, and in the center is this Shinto shrine filled with thousands of 4' - 7' high stone lanterns. Amazing!  The park is also filled with hundreds of deer. Yes, deer!  Somewhere back in time a deer had helped someone, so now they are protected.  And they are not afraid of people and are very polite (like the Japanese!).  if you give them food (you can buy little deercakes) and raise your hand and say "Arigato", they will bow their heads 3 times!!!  yes, really!!!!!  So we walked through the paths to the main shrine building in the rain and luckily there was another wedding!  This time we got to see the whole ceremony...very neat.  Then back to the bus for a short ride to Todaii-ji Temple.  This Buddhist temple is the largest wooden building in the world!  Inside is a Buddha which is 53' tall!  Parts of it are form the 8th century!  By now it was raining harder and we were running late (due to the wedding) so we rushed to the bus (ha-ha - 42 people - our guide said we should learn to talk AND walk like the Japanese do) for the ride back to Kyoto.  By the time we got there the rain was just about over.  Wendy and several other women had to hurry to their 5:00 appointment to be made up like Geishas!!!!! 

First, they do the white face thing, then some eye and lip highlights.  Then they dress them up in several layers of slips and robes which are each pulled very tight (each one said "I can't breathe!").  Then the top kimono and the "backpack" thingie.  Then they put on a helmet of hair!  When they came out, Wayne was not sure who was who!

OK...that is Wendy on the right!

Then they all paraded around, and a pro photographer to many photos with various props.  A lot of fun - a once-in-a-lifetime thing!  But they couldn't wit to get out of the costumes!  The dressing part took about an hour; the undressing about 10 minutes.

Then we walked over to the Pontocho and met Dr. Bob and Rhoda, Howard and Irene, and Barbara and Mike for dinner at River oriental.  It was raining a little so we couldn't eat outside.  We had another great dinner:  spring rolls, spicy shrimp, lobster salad, snapper with arugula, and mashed potatoes.  Then chocolate mousse and fruit parfait for dinner. Really fun.

Monday, June 26

Our last day.  Three more temples to visit today (that only leaves about 1,990 to go).  First, the Rokuon-ji Temple, also known as the Golden Pavilion.

This is another Buddhist temple (actually, many of these temples consist of several to many buildings surrounded by gardens and/or a forest).  This temple is covered on 20,000 3"x3" gold leaf squares!  It was another gray, rainy day, so we couldn't see it's full brilliance, but it was still very neat.  Then on to Daitoku-ji Zen Temple.  This is noted for its beautiful raked gravel gardens. By this time most of us were "templed out" again. Luckily, it was time for lunch; this time "Italian style"!!!  But another fabulous meal:  it started with a salade Nicoise, then pasta Bolognese, then chicken (duck?) atop chick peas and kidney beans, and then a tri-dessert of mint (?) ice cream, apple coffee cake, and tiramisu.  Yum!!!!

Then off to one last temple: Kiyomizu-dera.  Even in the rain it was beautiful. A huge pagoda and big buildings rising out of the mist and lush mountainside (it looked exactly like Shangri-La).  So beautiful the camera could not capture it.  Then down one of the many shopping streets that surround the temple (hmmm.....temple....tourists.....shops.  Coincidence?).  We bought some beautiful pottery. Then we opted to walk back to the hotel instead of taking the bus. What a great idea!! The street eventually led us past several more beautiful temples and a park with a bridge and a lagoon. 

A fabulous way to end a fabulous trip!

Barcelona, Spain - Part 1

Saturday, August 28, 2004

The trip begins with an evening flight from O'Hare to Heathrow. It was nice and smooth, with the delicious food a preview of what was to come. We had a 2-hour layover, then a British Airways flight to Barcelona.

Sunday, August 29, 2004

We were picked up at the Barcelona airport by our A&K guardian (we have arranged for private guided tours with A&KK handling the logistics).  What a beautiful airport (something you don't hear very often!). Lots of colors and stores. We learned that it, like many other parts of the city, were restored/renovated/refurbished for the Olympics in 1992. But it was very interesting - all of the people talk about the Olympics as if they were held yesterday! Also interesting because they are going on in Athens right now.

So by the time we checked into our hotel (the Ritz Arts - very Ritzy), it was about 4:00. But since the Spanish don't eat dinner until 9 or later, we had plenty of time to do stuff.  The hotel is right on the beach (of the Mediterranean) and in front of (what was) the Olympic Village. Many statues and buildings were built for the Olympics, so they were still there. Our room is on the 32 floor (muy exclusive) and looking straight down Calle (street) de la marina to the Sagrada Familia and Parc Guell way in the distance. The whole city was spread out before us. So we went down and walked a few blocks past the zoo and went into parc de la Ciutadela (City Park). As it was Sunday, there were lots of Barcelonians - families, lovers, jugglers, kids. The weather was great.  We walked for a while, and then Wendy sat down on a bench and fell sound asleep! I let her sleep for some time, woke her up, and then headed back to the Ritz to think about where to go for dinner. But then we realized the closing ceremony of the Olympics was on TV (not NBC, but BBC!) and we were tired so we decided to order room service tapas!

We had crevettes (shrimp with eyes and antennas), olives, gazpacho, jamon (ham), cheese, croquettes (which seem to be a big item here - not sure what was inside), and chocolate brownies for dessert. Our first attempt at eating late, and a really fine meal (especially for room service!).

Monday, August 4

Time to eat again already! The hotel had a nice breakfast buffet and we ate outside. Lovely! At 9 we were picked up by our guide Carlos and the driver Luis. Luis looks to be about 60 and always smiles and doesn't know so much English, so whatever you say to him he answers "Si claro, si si, muy bien, si".  A sweet man.  Right away we learned that he speaks Spanish, but in Barcelona the main language is Catalan.  So of course, Carlos speaks both (he was born nearby in Figueres), plus English, French, Italian, and Russian. He was very interesting; we found out all of the guides are very knowledgeable about the country, museums, etc., but also very personable and freely talk about themselves and their families.

So we started our driving / walking tour of Barcelona (note: they call it Bar-th-lona; at first, we thought Carlos had a lisp!). We drove past the Ramblas (La Rambla) - a kind of wide boulevard and kiosk-filled outdoor mall which stretches for several blocks.

We stopped to see Gaudi's Casa Milia....

 ...and the Palau Guell. We saw many statues and fountains (e.g., several monuments to Columbus), then on to Parc Guell. It was supposed to be an exclusive area to live in, but after the model and one house were built WWI broke out and the plans were abandoned. So it was eventually turned into a park. It is full of beautiful arches and colorful Moorish-influenced tiles and lots of nature inspired images. An amazing place!!!  Could have stayed all day.

Then we went to Gaudi's masterpiece - Sagrada Familia.  This church has been under construction since the 1870s (yes! 1870s) and they expect to finish it in another 30 years or so!



From far away it looks like melted candles. Up close, there are lots of carvings - all religious story boards. Gaudi worked on this for most of his life and other architects / sculptors have done the same since.

Then, at about 1:00, it was time for lunch. Carlos went with us (so it would be easier to order). We ate outside at a real tapas cervezeria.  Wayne practiced his Spanish ("cerveza, por favor" and "la cuenta, por favor") and Carlos did the rest.

We had anchovies, crab salad, shrimps, wonderful green (hot) peppers, asparagus, and vreme caramel for dessert. Wendy had clara to drink - a mixture of beer and Fanta lemon! We noticed that the food, especially the peppers, were very salty.

Then we went to Montjuic and along the Ramplas Catalunya.  Saw the first of many cathedrals.  Also went to an area that was like an overview of Spain in a few blocks (It had replicas of 100 houses and churches from all over the country (some smaller than the originals). It was built in the 1920s for a big exposition they had here. True story: during the 30s, one of the original homes was destroyed so after the war the people from that town came here and made a copy of the copy so they could rebuild it!  We finished touring around 5, so we sat around until 9 and then went to Tragaluz for dinner.  A contemporary place with lots of Bercelonians.  We had gazpacho, veal, monkfish, an apple tart, and chocolate mousse cake. At the bottom of the menu it says "bread, olives, and sweets....10 Euros" but they don't ask if you want it, they just bring it! But the wine is only E2.50 a glass!  Then to bed so we could wake up and eat again.

Barcelona (and beyond) - Part 2

Tuesday, August 31

Picked up at 9 (needed the wake-up call!). Today was a lot of walking, as we did the Old Town and the Jewish Quarter, some of the Olympic venues, and the Picasso Museum. Barcelona dates from Roman times, but the Old Town is "only" from the 1300s.  Many very old buildings and streets still being used today. It was very good at the Picasso Museum as Carlos explained a lot about many of the paintings.

For lunch, we had tapas on the Ramblas!  Little steaks with peppers, wonderful tuna with red peppers, anchovies, shrimp, cerveza.  We also went to the big Central market.

We saw baby pigs, lots of kinds of fish and (ewwww!) skinned calf heads with huge eyes still poking out!!  Beef heart, tripe, and tongue.

Then we walked up and down the Ramplas checking out the stores, foliage, and people.

Then, to dinner (aarrgghh! More food!)...at Boatafumeira - supposed to be the best seafood place in the city. Some folks had these huge mixed fish platters (like we had in Costa Rica), but we maintained our sensibility and ordered normal quantities.  Gazpacho (of course), then fish, and a plate of peppers. We ordered dessert, and then they brought cookies!  It was good but not great.
Bed time.......

Wednesday, September 1
A day trip to Girona!
This town is about 100km northeast of Barcelona. It's a little town with Jewish synagogues from 1100 - 1492. It reminded us of Florence (e.g., the river and the bridges). By the way: Barcelona at times looks like Florence, Paris, Venice, etc.  In other words, that "European" look.

We told Carlos we were Jewish and wanted to see the Jewish areas, and they took us there but it seemed they were not really comfortable talking about that period of their history.

Then on to Figueres where both Carlos and Salvador Dali were born. it is the "Year of Dali", as he was born in 1904, so the Dali Museum has been a big attraction.

Luckily, we were there mid-week and after the August holiday period, so the lines were very short (and with a guide you go straight in). Carlos told us a lot of fascinating stuff about Dali. Once again we had tapas outside, but as this was not Barcelona, the quality was not as good.  We finally had paella (which you are supposed to have at lunch, not dinner, since it is so heavy), but we found out later it was the frozen kind!!! (Because the real thing takes 20 - 45 minutes). We also had tomato-anchovy toast, and asparagus and ham (the fatty kind). Sure am missing salads! Then we drove back to Barcelona. And it was good bye to Carlos (sniff, sniff).

So for dinner we were going to L'Isidre (we think it was named for Saint Isidre). Supposed to be a verrry good place, frequented by the likes of Woody Allen. So you would think that every cabbie would know where it is. Wrongo!! (Fun fact: Barcelona has the most taxis per capita of any city in Europe and the 2nd most motor scooters - Rome is first). So we get in the taxi and show the guy the address for the restaurant (which the concierge had written on the back of the hotel's address card), and he pulls out his map of Barcelona..uh oh...   he drives for a while and keeps looking at the map and then we discover he speaks NO English (or maybe he's just playing dumb). He finally pulls over and makes a sign like "it's over that way", so we get out and he zooms off and we walk "that way" and are in an area full of people and little streets just like in Venice.  Soon we realize the restaurant is NOT there, and he just dumped us! So we go into a farmacia and ask for directions. They didn't really speak English, but a cute old lady draws us a map! yes...we're here on this street and this street over there is parallel and we should walk to here and the restaurant is on that street there. Easy enough!  Muchas gracias! We walk out and turn the corner and find ourselves back on the Ramblas! We walk a little and don't see the restaurant so we go into another farmacia and ask and they say "You have to take the Metro. It's too far to walk (huh??), but it is after 9:00 so it's not safe to take the metro (!), so you should take a taxi"!!! So we find a taxi and get in and ask the guy if he knows where the restaurant is and he looks at HIS map and says "There's no such street"! So we get out and go into the next taxi and I show him the card with the address and ask if he knows where it is and he says "Si, si", and he starts driving and all of a sudden I realize he's heading back to the Ritz!  He looked at the wrong side of the card!!!!! So I tell him to stop and show him the other side of the card and he says "Si, si" and he turns around and starts driving. We come to a red light and I notice that the name of the street is "Para Lel"!  D'oh!!!!! FINALLY we get there and it was really worth the trip (even though Woody was not there).  First - guess what? - Gazpacho. Then little fried fish, steak, fish, and sweets. Yum!  Best dinner award!!!

And now, time to say adios to Barcelona.  What a fantastic city.

Madrid

Thursday, September 2

Luis picked us up and took us to the Barcelona airport. We managed to do a little shopping before our Spanair flight to Madrid. This time we are in the Palace Hotel - built in 1912 and very opulent and lovely.  Madrid is a beautiful city - with both lots of old big heavy buildings and many 20th century skyscrapers. And lots and lots of plazas (plathas), and statues and fountains.  Again, as we got in around 2:00, we had the afternoon to ourselves, so we went for a walk.  First, we stopped for tapas (surprise!) at Trucha's. Small, authentic, outdoors; cerveza, clara, peppers and mixed fish pates. Then we walked to the Parque Retiro....

...a huge park which used to be first, a private royal retreat, and then later, the site of a porcelain factory.  A beautiful park; mostly trees, but some flowers and lots of statues and a big monument to Alfonso XII.  By the way - the weather - it was delightful!  70s in Barcelona, and a little warmer here in Madrid. We see from CNN that showers are coming to north and central Spain!

Then we walked up the main shopping street of Calle de Serrano. Al the big (international) shops are here so it was easy to look and not buy. Then back to the hotel  to get ready for - you guessed it - dinner!  Restarante Lucio - a rustic sort of place with hearty fare. They start with the traditional Madrid ring of bread (in Barcelona it is a lump with 13 little lumps sticking out). Wayne had Poor man's soup: garlic, bread, eggs in broth. Hmmm.....  Then fish and fried chicken - which was wonderful. Salty of course, but weird: it was all white meat (with bones) but we could not identify any of the pieces!. We suspect it was the neck. We were stuffed, so no dessert, but by the time we cabbed back to the hotel we forced ourselves (nyuk, nyuk) to have some: 3 scoops of ice cream and 3 scoops of sorbet. Muy bien!!

Our Spanish has been improving all week, though only on our side; they know what we're saying but we still mostly don't know what they're saying. "And they speak so fast"!!!!!


Friday, September 3

Today we met our Madrid guide, Anjela. A really nice lady who was also fond of saying "Si, si, claro" (not to be confused with "clara" the drink). Our driver was R-r-r-r-oberto - also very nice, and he knew English too. We did the 1/2 day tour of the city. Started at the palace (the real one, not the hotel!). Wow!!! Some great rooms. not as ornate as we remember from Versailles, but a nice place to live (3,000 rooms!). Lots of silverware, armor, porcelain, not too much artwork. learned all about the history if the 17th and 18th centuries.

Then across to the Royal Church which was actually blessed by the Pope just a few years ago. Then we went to some other really old churches; beautiful, but we're starting to suffer from the "bam-BIN-o there, ma-DON-na that" syndrome. Saw where the Inquisitions were in the Plaza Mayor (not as nice as Saint mark's in Venice). Anjela really knew a lot - it was a great experience. When the tour was over we told her we wanted real, authentic Paella so she told us to go to Barracca.  We actually
found it (the maps and concierge directions are quite good). ince it was 2:00 (siesta time!), we were the only ones there, but some folks did come in while we were eating. We had bread garlic mayonnaise (to die for) and sautéed mushrooms and wonderful seafood paella.

They bring it in a pan (at least 10" across), and serve it so beautifully. This is just for the two of us! Way too much to eat and yes, very, very heavy (now we know why they need a siesta). So, no dessert! (We couldn't even finish the whole thing.)  Since it was 3:00, the stores were closed (usually from 12 - 4 for siesta), so we decided to go to the Reina Sofia Art Museum. But when we went outside it was raining!  A medium rain, perfect for vacation and we had our umbrellas (thanks CNN). It was too far to walk, so we went for a cab, but of course, with the rain, they were all occupied! So...let's take the metro! It was easy enough to figure out from the map and the entrance to the museum was right at the Plaza del Sol stop. Two stops on the Purple line and three on the Yellow and there we were (only E1.10 each). When we came up, the rain had stopped.  It was an OK museum, but without a guide we were pretty clueless ("That's a nice picture").  Then we walked back into the shopping area.  Along the way we kept passing restarantes that said "Museo Jamon". We were sure that that meant "Ham Museum", and we know the Spanish like their ham, but how many ham museums can there be??  later we asked Anjela and she said "Si, si, claro. It does mean ham museum, but that is the name of the restaurant chain"!!!  We shopped (4 sweaters) and looked for a nice photo album but couldn't find one and finally, about 7:00, walked back to the palace (hotel!). We were really thirsty (all that salt and walking) so we decided to have a drink in La Rotunda, which for us was orange Schweppes and Schweppes tonic. We also noticed that many rooms were reserved for the Moises Cohen bar Mitzvah! And also, the Chinese ambassador was having a reception so there was a lot of activity. So after a while we went upstairs and surrendered to fatigue and gluttony and decided just to have room service (burgers and French fries!). We thought about getting dessert, but there was just no way. Exhausted and full.

Tomorrow we tour Toledo!

Toledo, Madrid (again), Cordoba, The Bobadilla, Granada, and Sevilla (Part 1)

Saturday, September 4

Anjela picked us up for our 1-hour drive to Toledo.  This was really a cool place (but, weatherwise, things are heating up!). We saw the church where El Greco's masterpiece "The Burial of Count Orgaz" is hanging.

Then we toured a huge, wonderful cathedral, which, like many in this area, was originally built on the site of a mosque. Much of the original walls still stands. The cathedral has a beautiful cloister filled with orange trees.  The town has 3 areas where Jews, Christians, and Muslims lived "together' for many, many years. 

We have been looking to buy a platter and Anjela told us of a shop that has good ones and guess what? R-r-r-r-oberto was there!  it was a very interesting and old store. Lots to choose from. We went into the basement to look for more and the shopkeeper told us the basement was from the 1300s! So we purchased a beautiful platter.  Then we wandered around and eventually came to the main square (every town has one) - Plaza de Zocodover.  Not as big as the Plaza Mayor, but nice, and with a big Moorish arch looking out over the valley.

By this time it was of course time for lunch! Tapas again (yum!) - ham, steak and peppers, and oh so heavenly tuna moosh with red peppers; we ordered a second plate!  Then the ride back to Madrid, where we got in around 5:00.  So we had time to go to the Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Museum - lots of neat 19th and 20th century stuff. Very nice. Then back to the Palace to have "drinks" and keep an eye on all the fancy goings-on.

Then dinner. Another very fancy place called Zalocain (that's Za-lo-kiy-een, not Zy-lo-cane!). We took a cab over as it was on the other side of town. (By the way...these drivers rank right up there with the wildest drivers of the world. The cars are inches apart in front and on the sides - with motorbikes still managing to zoom through! Somehow they are always able to stop in time with no slamming or screeching of the brakes. They generally stop at red lights - and certainly if there are peds in the marked cross-walk; more often, the taxis will start going before the red light has turned green!).  Anyway........we got there at 8:55 and went in and the guy said to Wayne "Oh...you need a jacket and tie".  And they did not have any to provide! So we had to go out and flag down a taxi and go back to the Palace (at the height of the Chinese reception!  Cars, people, police, news trucks...), put on the fancy duds, get back into another taxi and zoooom back to the restaurant.  So, including the 4th taxi (to get home later), it cost us E40 just to eat there!

But it was worth it. They started off with (free) breads and some tiny fishy thing. Then, gazpacho. Then, the traditional fish and meat selections (yum) then the usual ice cream and chocolate cake and THEN they brought a plate of goodies. One was like a thin peanut (almond?) brittle (tuille) that was the size and shape of a roofing tile. Plus little cakes and candies (as if we needed them). Whoa! A great meal.

Sunday, September 5
Even though it is our last 1/2 day in Madrid, we still have one more thing to see: the Prado Museum.  The two biggies in this museum are Goya and Velathketh (oh....I mean Velazquez). It was really neat to see how the kings and queens aged as they had their paintings done over a number of years.

The other main artist (even though he is Dutch) is Bosch. Wow!  This guy was into some serious mushrooms! His most famous work is The Garden of Earthly Delights.

His colors and shapes are so totally out of place and centuries before their time, even though the subjects still had Biblical overtones. Really cool.

Finally we had to say adios to Anjela. She drove us to the Atocha train station (5 minutes away) where we went on the high-speed train to Cordoba. We were in First Class in Coach 1; in fact, we were the only ones in the car! We had a very nice lunch served to us (fish and chicken brochette with shrimp pasta and a chocolate brownie for dessert). The ride was very smooth; it didn't feel fast, but it was.

Then we were in Cordoba where we were met by Lola. She was another great guide who peppered her shtick with lots of jokes. For example, going into the big mosque: "Remember, you're only allowed to take good pictures in here"; or, seeing how many Japanese tourists there were: "Japan
is an island and there are so many people that 20% of them are required to be on holiday at any time; otherwise it would sink into the ocean".  HAHA!

But she did know all of the facts and dates and people as we walked through this most fantastic mosque.

 Part of it was built with columns scavenged by the Muslims from earlier Roman temples. There are several thousand (yes!) columns and arches. So beautiful and magnificent. And, of course, when the Christians came in they built their church right in the middle of it!!!

So the bell tower was built around the former minaret! At least they didn't destroy it like they did to so many others. But, speaking of destruction, were learned (as we had been told in the synagogue in Toledo) that lots of stuff was destroyed or "borrowed" by Napolean and his troops. As Lola said: "His name is Bonaparte which in Spanish means bona/bueno - good - and parte/parto - part, so he took a good part of everything from Spain" (nyuk nyuk).

Then we walked around the old Jewish quarter (no old or young Jews there now), with its narrow streets.  There is a statue of Maimonides who was a 12th century rabbi, physician, and philosopher. He was born here.

Lola pointed out how the walls had a concave section in them about 18" high and 3' off the ground. She told us that they were built this way to allow clearance for the axles of the original carts that were used there (she promised that that was NOT a joke).  Then it was time to leave.

Our driver took us on a 2 hour ride through beautiful countryside to the La Bobadilla (named for Boabdil, the last Muslim leader who surrendered Granada - more on that later).  Whoa!! What a fabulous place! Out in the mountains, surrounded by olive groves. A wonderful room with a view of windmills on the ridge in the distance (no, not the 16th century kind, the 20th century electricity generating kind). The resort has a chapel which seems to feature a Japanese couple's wedding every day!  By this time it was too late to do anything (tennis? archery? skeet? French bowls?) so we watched CNN and started thinking about dinner!  The resort has to restaurants so we decided to go to La Finca (literally "The Fancy One") first. Eating outside, watching the sun set (at 9:00), seeing today's bride and groom (but we found out later that most of them are actually married first in Japan and this is just a "special" ceremony). They gave us a little taste of asparagus gazpacho, then fish and pork (very few vegetables offered; like one carrot slice). The fish came with purple potatoes which were quite good. Then 4 kinds of sorbet and chocolate molten cake. Aaahhh! Delish!

Monday, September 6
Picked up at 9 by a great driver, Arnold. He's from Holland but lives in Spain and speaks many languages. He did lots of talking on the 90 minute ride to Granada. We learned about olives: harvesting, pressing, and that there are 40 kinds!
 We got to Granada and were met by Marie-Carmen - another perky, knowledgeable guide. Even though it was just the two of us, she kept saying "Family, let's go this way" or "Over here, family". We figured that was easier than remembering our (and her other charges) names.

So, straight to the Alhambra. WOW!!!!

  
In many churches and castles the guides said "This was originally very colorful..." (but now not), but here there were lots of great colors thanks to all the Moorish mosaic tiles.

1492 was a big year for Spain: on January 2nd they defeated the Moors after 10 years of struggle. So Boabdil gave the keys to the Alhambra (and that was the end of Muslim rule in Al Andalus) to Ferdi and Ysabel.  And of course the Columbus thing; we stood in the actual room where he discussed his trip with F and Y! And then there was that business with the Jews.......

We walked through the various rooms and learned what each one was used for when Boabdil lived there, and then of course, the part that the Christians added on (and where Washington stayed when he visited.  No, Washington Irving!).

Then we walked up the hill a little way to the Generalife where Boabdil went to relax- great views over the whole area. Then the new palace that Charles I (?) built - an exact replica of the Pitti Palace in Florence, but it was never finished and he never lived there.

Then it was time for lunch. Carmen wanted to go home to be with her husband and baby daughter so we "convinced" Arnold to join us. We went to a fabulous place called Rita de Veleta. No stars, but an honorable mention from Michelin. We ordered starters of tuna and ham gazpacho and goat cheese; Arnold had their famous almond soup (apparently he's eaten here quite often). Then garlic bread, and red peppers wrapped in smoked cod. So good! Wayne was full by that time (big surprise). Oy! Then fish and pork (or was it beef?), then desserts: chocolate followed by a plate of bon bons. Arnold had no trouble eating everything. What a great place...rustic and authentic with several hundred ceramic pitchers hanging from the ceiling. Arnold told us he had brought Rick Bayless (Frontera Grill) there! The lunch took over 2 hours!!!!!! Carmen then appeared.   We were supposed to see the local cathedral, but we didn't have enough time. Oh well.......but we did see the "Chapel Real", a beautiful church which contains the actual remains of Ferd and Ysa! You can see their caskets. Then it was
back to La Bobadilla.

Note: Do you know what the difference is between a church and a cathedral? No...it's not the size. A cathedral (from the Latin "catedra" meaning "seat") has been consecrated by a bishop or higher.

We were starting to get the message that two large meals a day was one too many. So tonight we went to the "casual" restaurant in the resort and ordered a light meal: one gazpacho, those great peppers, garlic shrimp, olives, and bread. Simple. Tasty.

Tuesday, September 7
A planned day off!  What a concept!! We slept late (8:00! Those 10:00 dinners are killers!). A light breakfast (even though they had the best breakfast buffet ever. Plus they make any kind of omelet - for example, someone at our table had shrimp, peppers, and capers!). Then we took a lovely hike around the property. They have several kilometers of well marked, easy trails. The weather started out cool (mod 70s) but by the time we got back 90 minutes later it had warmed up pretty well. We saw beautiful vistas and were able to get right next to olive trees. With real olives! 

Then we headed for an afternoon by the pool. Surprisingly, it was probably the biggest hotel pool we've ever seen....and no one was in it! One toe-dip told us why: it was freeeezing!  After an hour or so it was time for lunch (already?), so we went to the pool grill.  Let's see:  gazpacho, followed by (Wendy) salmon and (Wayne) fried sardines. Then more sitting by the pool. Eventually it was...time for dinner. (Madre de dios!!!) back to the fancy restaurant.  More brides and grooms.  We had gazpacho (again!), duck in crepes and steak. Then the most awesome dessert: the menu said "semi-cold grapefruit with raspberry sauce", but it was semi-frozen grapefruit puree (about 1" thick) with a layer of raspberry sauce on a bed of soft cake.  OOOOHH!!! melt-in-your-mouth good.  And refreshing. Once again we were outside with the beautiful sky and the flowers and perfect temperature. La Bobadilla: Fantastico!!

Bye-bye Bobadilla!

Wednesday, September 8

We arranged specifically for Arnold to be our driver on the next leg of the trip. This was another travel day. We are already losing track of where we are and what we've seen and what we've eaten!  A 9:00 pick-up and we were off to Ronda. An hour and a half ride through more olive groves, but also corn, wheat, and tobacco. Beautiful mountains and lots of whitewashed towns with a large church or castle at the highest point. We learned that a hacienda is a large farmhouse, usually with 2 towers (as opposed to a "carmen", which is a large city house usually with an interior garden, as opposed to a "casa", which is your basic everyday house - or more likely a flat as most folks here live in apartments. Whew!).   So we got to Ronda and it was fantastic! Another old city with lots of curvy, narrow cobblestoned streets and a 2,000 year old Roman / Arabian bath and great views over the mountains and valleys and the original bridge (Roman), the "old" bridge (Muslims - 12th century) and the "Puente Nuevo" (1880s)!!!

Then we drove down a narrow path to see the town from below, looking up. Breathtaking! Then we went to the bull ring and got to walk through and listen to Arnold tell us all about the history, etc. of bullfighting.  They still have bullfights here, but we did not want to see one.

Then, it was time for lunch! Tragabuches (named for a 19th century bandito, of which there were many as they even have a "Bandit Museum". Seriously!), was a chic, contemporary restaurant - meaning austere and nothing on the menu Wayne would like! First they brought little plates of octopus pieces and tiny potato pieces (luckily, the two were easily distinguishable and there were more spuds than suckers). Then avocado gazpacho! What'll they think of next?  Then pork shoulder and fish. Then another chocolate molten cake (must be the in thing!). And...when they bring the bread, they also bring bottles of different olive oils and describe the characteristics of each so you can choose the one you want.

Then another drowsy ride through the countryside and into Seville.  A very big city built on a river. The Romans called it Betis and the region Betica. The Moors changed the name of the region to "Al Andalus" (Andalusia now) and the name of the river to "Guadalquivir" (it runs all the way through Cordoba. Guadalquivir is Arabic for "Big River"..in other words "Rio Grande"! For many years Seville was the main port for goods to and from the mainland even though it is an inland port (because the mouth of the river was easier to defend than an ocean port like Cadiz). So, driving in, we were on the main street which was built for the 1929 Exposition - it looks  lot like Collins Avenue in Miami Beach, with the palm trees and buildings.  Arnold pointed out all the buildings from that time (the Guatemala and Peru and US and Argentina ones for example). Finally we reached our hotel - the Alfonso XIII.  Luckily, Alph was away so we got his room! 

Wowzers!!!  Cloth on the walls and a 15th century frieze across the top , tile floor, fancy chandelier and canopied bed.  And very central to all the main sights and shopping areas.  It was too early to eat (only 5:00) so we headed out to see the sights. There were throngs of people - looked like both tourists and local folks. Saw a wall with a painted ad for Studebakers!!!

We had planned to attend an outdoor performance of Bizet's "Carmen", staged in and around the actual tobacco factory, but we found out that it had been cancelled (for some unknown reason).

The whole trip we have been looking to buy a photo album (we did get one in Cordoba, but with so many pix, we figure we need another!), so we were looking in store after store (a way to shop and get some local flavor at the same time). Finally we found a small shop that had the perfect one. We went it around 8:15 and buy the time we finished selecting and buying it was 8:30...and the streets were deserted!  Where'd everybody go? It was weird.  So we walked a few blocks to Casa Robles (celebrating their 50th anniversito) and sat outside for tapas.  We had a great view of the fish and slabs o' meat hanging inside behind the counter. We wanted something light so we ordered (in addition to sangria and cerveza) the fried fish platter (hmmm...doesn't sound light). And then, the dessert platter!  Yummmo!  Then, a short walk back to the Alphonso XIII and our heavenly bed.

End of day XI.