Day 12- Hello Barcelona

We embarked on another early morning train ride from San Sebastian to Barcelona. We arrived at the city right at the metro station, just a hint of advice Spain if you have escalators going up you should have them going down, just saying.... We arose from the street to see one of the more famous architectural aspects of the city Casa Batllo', it looks as if Tim Burton modeled his claymations from Nightmare Before Christmas from this building. We will visit it another time but it was cool to know we were right in the heart of things. Our place was only about 2 blocks away. We arrived at the building and met Philippe, who I think is French but Eric thinks he is Belgian, he previously worked in the film industry (not sure doing what) and went to NYU in the early eighties. He said things like "bada bi bada bo" and used other sound effects while describing things, he told us where the "how you say kinky" part of the city was, "where the whores are". The place was great, nicely decorated and located on the top of the building, the penthouse complete with our own balcony over looking the city. A couple observations I have noticed in this country, people never have elevators that go all the way up and all the doors lock from the inside. We really need to make sure our keys are by the door in case of a fire since this will be home for the next month.

Day 11- Pilgrimage to Christ

If you have ever had the dying urge to walk up the side of a mountain to see a massive statue of Jesus then Mont Urgull is the answer to that long awaited yearning. But christ is not all you will find, along the way you will see the best panoramic views of San Sebastian and the Bay of Biscay, I felt like any minute Russell Crow was going to sail around the bend and a partial castle surrounding our lord and savior. Inside the castle after the breath-taking hike you will find a museum with no bathroom inside. I still am not totally sure what the purpose of the museum is but they have what I like to call the headless Masters and Commanders.

And of course Jesus.....

Day 10- Marine Life & More

The aquarium in San Sebastian is not like any aquarium experience I have ever had. Having said that, this was awesome! You walk in and the first thing you see is a film playing on a loop showing how a certain fish is prepared, yes you read that correct it shows you how best the marine life you are about to visit will taste later that day. The first level is the maritime section, there are various models of the ships that sailed through the Bay of Biscay a mini-history lesson if you will, although I couldn't help but giggle to myself every time I read something about the "prominent seaman". Next you embark on the history of crew in the area followed by a section dedicated to whales and whale hunting. The next level is the art of fishing and just art that is dedicated solely to the sea. We wrap this section up with my personal favorites a display of fish in formaldehyde. We finally make it to actual marine life in the aquarium of the Bay of Biscay. You walk through a tunnel that is full of fish including sharks, rays and turtles swimming together as if they were in the sea. What is amazing to me is how they keep a tank that big clean and all the fish well fed so they don't eat each other..... It is pretty cool, you really do feel like you are part of the sea. The final level is made up of tropical fish and reefs. With a special room dedicated to mollusks. The best part of this adventure was the calamari we had at the restaurant next to the aquarium. The definition of Irony......

Day 9- Move Over Breakfast Burrito

San Sebastian is considered Spain's culinary capital. It is said to have the best food around and is especially known for it's pintxos. A pintxo is basically the Basque word for tapas or for the even more American version, appetizers. When you go into cafe's or bars and restaurants most places have a variety of pintxos set up all over the bar. You go in, take what you want then tell them at the end what you had. It is the honor system here, in most places that is. It is one of those things that you have to go into a place and observe what other people do first. We were slightly confused at first, they do have menus you can order off of as well but the times they serve from the menu are limited. Breakfast is served earlier here than in Madrid and ends earlier, lunch starts around 11am unless it's a restaurant not a cafe' then they don't serve until 1pm, kitchens close around 4pm unless they have pintxos left on the bar and dinner starts around 8pm. Got it? Whatever time of day, wherever you go the food is amazing. My first dinner was a spanish omelette, I know daring right? It was like a quiche with eggs and potatoes served as a sandwich on a fresh baked baguette. Even the simplest of things had that extra special touch to it that made you feel like they just went out of their way to make it for you.

Day 8- The Ride

Today we embarked on a 5 1/2 hour train ride early in the a.m. from Madrid to the Northern part of Spain, a town called San Sebastian. But before I talk about our destination, I want to talk about the ride. Because isn't that what life is all about, the ride!?! I know this seems a bit philosophical for a travel blog but that is what happens sometimes when you travel. Traveling is much different than going on vacation. Most of the time it's a longer period of time and you finally get to a point where your life slows down a bit. Technology is not as accessible, people usually don't speak as much English if any and you no longer have a to do list. That is when you open up your mind and notice the small things in life, because at the end of the day no one remembers how they fell asleep, they remember everything they did to get to bed. I don't know when riding trains became a thing of the past..... Was it because our society sped up and everyone had to get places faster? I mean how often do you get to look at the scenery on a plane besides maybe when you fly over the Grand Canyon. Trains are nostalgic, they give you a sense of what life was like when people dressed up to go places. They have dining cars, ticket takers and a ton of leg room. We saw, rain, snow and mountains on our way. It was just the thing that reminds you to stop and look around once in a while because not just life but the world around you will quickly pass you by.

Day 7- Last full day in Madrid

Caixa Forum, contemporary art museum. The museum is only 4 years old but that is what makes it interesting. It's a mix of rotating multimedia and photography, the added bonus is it's free! Lunch at the classic Cafe' Commercial which is so old that the stairs are worn out in the middle. This as a nice change from the Starbucks for the internet but like most places it's limited. If a cafe' happens to have it for free it is only 45 minutes to an hour. We also discovered what I think will be the new rage in power lunching. It is a cafe' called Diurno, it serves everything from Irish Coffees to desserts. Did I mention you can also rent dvd's there?!? The kicker is it is set up like a cafeteria, you walk up to the food that is all laid out in the cooler and pick what you want. You can take it to go or have them heat it up for you and enjoy it there. They have sandwiches and pastas.

Tonight we say good-bye to Madrid...... Tomorrow we head to the train station for San Sebastian.

Day 6- More Food..... Madrid

Bazaar, Gazpacho and Duck Confit in hummus (it sounds much better in Spanish).