With the school year contentedly behind us, it was time for our first summer adventure. We packed up the Peugot, kicked up some tunes, and put the pedal to the metal (which for a Peugot 206, isn't really saying much). Warning: This post is ridiculously long.
First stop: Toledo, Espana. We survived driving through the hardest rain we had ever experienced and enjoyed an amble through the picturesque medieval town of Toledo. I had a local beer which was not too shabby, and we found an american food store... we were tempted to buy salsa, but resisted.
Uh oh...
Just in case we forgot where we are...
Vending machine burgers? Really?
Toledo at Sunset... ah...
Second stop: Barcelona, Espana. Another long drive took us from the middle of the Iberian Peninsula to the East Coast. After we spent our typical hour getting lost while driving in a big Spanish city, we arrived at our first AirBNB rental of the trip; an expansive and ultra modern apartment not so far from the action. We spent that evening and the next day wandering the city, aimlessly coming across the beautiful constructions of the famous architect Gaudi (who I knew nothing about beforehand). This guy knew his stuff! The structures he designed felt both alien and organic... flowing and honeycombing in fascinating ways.
The city struck me to be a similar to Paris in some of its charm and elegance, although it presented a decidedly more spicy flair. We spent most of our visit meandering and watching from the streets, although eventually we decided to pay to enter the Cathedral of Barcelona (not the Gaudi one... that would come later) and were rewarded with the enchanting sounds of a choir, rehearsing for a later concert.
On our second day we were happy to retrieve our friends Jenna & Curtis from the port, where they entered Spain after a 20 hour ferry from Rome (their flights had been cancelled because of a French airport strike of some sort... it's hard to keep track of all of the labor protests in Europe these days...) Together we enjoyed some World Cup action, some more wandering, and finally a tour of the most famous site in the city: Gaudi's epic cathedral, Sagrada Familia. WOW. I've seen many of the most famous cathedrals in the world; the Duomo in Florence, The Cologne Cathedral in Germany, the Notre Dame in Paris, and even St. Peters in Rome... but none of them impressed me as much as this. It felt like being in a majestic forest... so full of light and positive energy, even with construction hammering away on the roof (it's still got another 25-40 years before it's finished). A great finish to a great portion of our trip.
Arc de Triumph, spanish-style.
Gaudi
On top of the Cathedral of Barcelona
Sagrada Familia
Third stop: Andorra de Vella, Andorra. Up and away into the tiny country of Andorra! We did expect the beautiful mountains, and were not disappointed... we did NOT expect the over abundance of shops and stores. Apparently because it is a tax haven, there are 4 times as many stores as people in the country. Kind of weird, but worth a look-see. People were nice, and it was very clean... it sort of felt like Colorado. After a night here, we headed on through southern France towards the Northern Coast of Spain.
Fourth stop: San Sebastian, Espana, in Basque country. This town is fantastic. The food culture was reputed to be great, and delivered, big time. Essentially it has lots of warm and inviting bars covered with little plates of excellent food (called "Pintxos") in which you can help yourself, buffet-style, to some of the tastiest and most interesting bites you could imagine. The Basque culture and language was intriguing and interesting... did you know that the Basque most likely had been going to North America for centuries before Mr. Colombus Fussy-Britches started the avalance of imigration to the "New World?" (Check out the book "Cod" or "The Basque History of the World" for more fun facts). On top of all that goodness, it's gorgeous; a beautiful blend of hills and beaches, with attractive boulevards and lovely buildings, to boot. I'd move here in a heartbeat.
Fifth stop: Santillana del Mar, Espana, in the Cantabria Province. Up to this point, we had planned our locations and lodging ahead of time. We rolled out of Basque country into the province of Cantabria with a bit of an open slate. We ended up in the very quaint town of Santillana del Mar, complete with 800 year old church and surrounded by rolling pastoral farm fields of grain and livestock. I managed to get a delicious micro-brew, and a rib-sticking stew, so I pretty much fell in love with it. Although the very cute, very cheap hacienda that we stayed in ended up having paper thin walls, we were glad to have stopped despite the sleep deprivation.
The following morning we took an incredible trip through time in the cave of El Castillo. The extensive caves contained myriad ancient (up to 30,000 years old) cave paintings of bison, aurochs, and the reliefs hands. Incredible.
Yum.
Double yum.
Sixth stop: Puebla de Sanabria, Espana, in the Castille y Leon Province. Another day without a plan, we had hoped to wander the large coastal mountains of the Picos de Europa... but persistent rain made that seem like a not so fun idea. We decided to head a little south and west, towards Portugal. Castille y Leon opened up like the great plains of the US, with expansive skies and big clouds. Puebla de Sanabria is a ox-bowed river border town with a guarded by a castle with a very nicely developed tour. Many of the roofs were made from slate. We had excellent food. Not much more to say... it was a good stop, but we didn't stay too long.
Seventh stop: Campia, Portugal. We drove into Portugal through wolf country, in the Northeast corner. We rolled through the lovely Upper Douro river region, where much of the port in the country is grown, which we would benefit from later. We stopped in a very rural part of the country, west of Viseu, and spent a couple of days revelling in an amazing small AirBNB known as the "Wood house on the village", complete with goats, chickens, friendly dog, and (of course) guinea pigs. I highly recommend staying here!
Eighth (And FINAL) stop: Porto, Portugal. After several very restful days, we were ready to venture into the second biggest city in Portugal (and one of our favorites). We hit the highlights: port tasting, Francesinha gut-buster sandwich, stroll over the bridge, and incredible dinner at Pedro Limao.
Awesome bar with a car on the wall, hundreds of knicknacks, and trumpets for a chandelier
Great Trip!
A great end to a great journey! After 4 countries, over 2,000 miles, and lots of great fun, it was nice to head home.
On our second day we were happy to retrieve our friends Jenna & Curtis from the port, where they entered Spain after a 20 hour ferry from Rome (their flights had been cancelled because of a French airport strike of some sort... it's hard to keep track of all of the labor protests in Europe these days...) Together we enjoyed some World Cup action, some more wandering, and finally a tour of the most famous site in the city: Gaudi's epic cathedral, Sagrada Familia. WOW. I've seen many of the most famous cathedrals in the world; the Duomo in Florence, The Cologne Cathedral in Germany, the Notre Dame in Paris, and even St. Peters in Rome... but none of them impressed me as much as this. It felt like being in a majestic forest... so full of light and positive energy, even with construction hammering away on the roof (it's still got another 25-40 years before it's finished). A great finish to a great portion of our trip. 
Seventh stop: Campia, Portugal. We drove into Portugal through wolf country, in the Northeast corner. We rolled through the lovely Upper Douro river region, where much of the port in the country is grown, which we would benefit from later. We stopped in a very rural part of the country, west of Viseu, and spent a couple of days revelling in an amazing small AirBNB known as the "Wood house on the village", complete with goats, chickens, friendly dog, and (of course) guinea pigs. I highly recommend staying here! 
