Convoy Leader to Rubber Duck

Hello everyone. As you may know, our friends Peter and Liz have joined us on our trip this year. Yesterday we met in Calais, and Peter produced walky - talkies for us to use in our respective vans. I thought this great fun! But the men took it all rather seriously, and didn't join in with the Rubber Duck game. I was the only one who said "Copy that. 10 - 4," all day. However, it was funny when both Sat Navs gave different directions. It was the blind leading the blind. But we made it to Arnhem eventually.

Peter, Tony and I took the bus into Arnhem today, and went to see the bridge (too far). It was actually quite interesting, with a little visitor centre, which gave minimal information. This suited me, a bear of little brain. It was difficult to imagine the war-time scenes, but it felt sad all the same. I wanted Tony and Peter to do action shots near the bridge, but they were both reluctant. I think I need Kathy and Esther here to join in with my ideas!

We also went up the church tower. Now those who know me well will admire my courage here! It was a glass lift! Yes! And I kept my eyes open! Again, it was interesting, but scaffolding marred the view.

Arnhem is a pretty town, and we found a nice place to sit near the market, where we bought fresh fruit. For some reason shopping in European markets feels like fun. I'm not sure why.
The campsite is nice, too. It's in a forest, and the sun is shining. So, all in all, so far, so good.

The next post will be from Berlin in a few days' time. So watch this space!

Adios Sevilla

Tony: It is our last night in Seville and we have had a wonderful time. It is so culturally different. In the evening, and especially this evening, Sunday, whole families are out promenading. Everyone is dressed up. This is the week before Holy Week and tonight in the area where our hotel is, La Macarena, everyone on their paseo is visiting each little parish church to view the float of the passion scene which is carried in the procession next week.
Today was hot again, 33 degrees, and we spent most of the day wandering around El Parque Maria Luis near La Plaza Espanol, hugging the shade and stopping for rests.
Chris: As Tony says, we have been struck by so many cultural differences here, but more of that later. Our last three days have been relaxing and interesting. We went to the art gallery, which was in a beautiful building, with more courtyards. It was cool and peaceful, in contrast to the madness of the week-end crowds thronging the streets.
More interesting was the bullfighting museum. Although I would not want to see a bullfight, it was fascinating to see the bullring, the costumes, and the paintings. It was a guided tour, and there were bulls' heads on the wall, and the guide told us their names, and why they were famous, including one which got his own back, and killed the matador. All very bizarre.
We also discovered the district of Triana over the river. This was once the gypsy district and is famous for its matadors and Flamenco dancers. It was also the home of Christopher Columbus. (In the late 15th century, Seville was the major port with Cadiz becoming prominent later. Columbus is buried in the Cathedral). It is obviously still quite poor, and it was nice to wander around the peaceful streets. We stopped at a tiny bar, with no seats at all, just a couple of tall tables. It had the usual hams hanging over the bar, and curious little tapas snacks. It was a great place! We amused ourselves watching bewidered tourists coming round the corner to see a church which is in all the travel books, but it was closed!
Getting back to the very Spanish feel of the place, one of the things I have enjoyed is seeing the children dressed up for the week-end. If there are two boys or two girls in the family, they often wear matching outfits. The boys wear shorts, and smart shirts, with long socks and slip on shoes. The younger ones have little braces! They are so cute! And the girls still have ribbons in their hair! All very nostalgic.
I have also enjoyed seeing all the girls trying on Flamenco dresses in the shops, ready for the Spring Fiesta. I went to a charity market, and all the ladies were buying flowers for their hair, and matching them up with those big Spanish hair combs that you think nobody wears. The shawls are lovely, too. It would be great see the Fiesta some day.
Tony: Seville is a wonderful city and, God willing, we will come back in a few years time. Tomorrow, Ryanair to Liverpool. What a wonderful airline! Even "call me Dave" took his wife to Spain on Ryanair this week. He is just one of the boys; even if he is fantastically rich and related to the Queen.

The Fast Train to Cordoba.

Oooooh.... Cordoba - it was wonderful. I have always wanted to go to the mosque/cathedral there, and I was wandering around touching the pillars, and taking photos, trying to believe I was really there. The Islamic pillars with the red stripes are amazing, and the space itself is unbelievable. The centre part is the Catholic Cathedral, and while I can appreciate that they wanted to turn it back into a place of Christian worship, we both found the culture clash a bit unsettling. However, we stayed in there for a long time, as I couldn't bear to leave. I wish I could post a picture of it.
The old town in Cordoba is nice, too. The best things are the restaurants, through sudden dim arches, in beautiful courtyards. There are a lot of flowers in the streets, too. It's a very pretty place.
Paco's bar was buzzing tonight. It was full of families, and there were lots of ladies of a certain age who had dressed up to go and sit in the square and eat chips with their fingers. We had a huge plate of fried chicken and chips. Thank goodness we only ordered one portion. One more great night in Seville.
We are now sitting in the hotel coutyard with our nightcaps. It's very peaceful.
I probably won't post a blog now until Sunday, our last night, as there won't be much to say. We are just going to hang out in Seville and relax for the next three days.
Lots of love to everyone.

The Alcazar

Here I am sitting outside in the beautiful courtyard at the hotel, under the orange trees, at 10.30 p.m. The sky is inky black, but I could do with a few stars. It's lovely, though.
It was very hot today, too hot for me really. But fortunately we headed out quite early and went to the Alcazar Palace. What a gorgeous place! I love Islamic architecture, and the gardens were shady and green. There was a peacock showing off for the camera, and I got told off for going on the grass to take photos of him. My other photos were disappointing, as there were so many people in the way.
After a long morning there, we lounged in the shade at a nice bar for a while, and then Tony headed off in the heat of the day to the bullring. He also went back to the new market, where he took some great pictures. In the meantime, I was cooling off in the room and thinking about where to go to eat this evening. What a life! We had a lovely meal tonight, and strolled back to our usual square to finish off the evening. On the way back we looked in the shops at the colourful flamenco dresses, and the old fashioned baby clothes. The little girls here look especially nice in their little frilly dresses.
We are going to Cordoba tomorrow on the train, and we're looking forward to it a lot. I'll be reporting on the day here on the blog as usual.

Paco's Bar

Well, Tony soon got sick of the blog he suggested, didn't he? Anyway, it was cloudy today, but warm. We slept in by mistake, and had a late breakfast, and then went to look at the new market. It's a big modern, unusual structure, with the market underneath. I didn't like it, as it was too big for the old market square. But Tony liked it, and it was intersting, to say the least.
Then it was off to the Cathedral. It's very imposing, with lots of the usual Spanish gold on the main altar. The most interesting thing was Christopher Columbus' tomb, which was four gigantic figures carrying a coffin. All very different. We both liked the orange grove left over from when the church was a mosque.
We had a picnic lunch in the park, which is very tropical and lush, and which smelled heavenly (the park, that is, not the lunch). All the parks seem to be laid out in the Moorish style, with long straight paths leading to fountains. I really love it.
Next stop was Plaza Espana, which was built in 1929. Although relatively modern, it is again reflective of the area's Moorish origins, with bridges, water, tilework, and Moorish arches. It's huge and impressive, and would be great for photos on a sunny day.
This evening we thought we would try the local tapas bar where all the locals seem to eat. It's in the square near to our hotel, overlooked by a small church, and lined with orange trees. I've made that sound very exotic, but it's actually very ordinary. The bar is owned by a man called Paco, and it's very plain and down to earth. The tapas are simple snacks obviously made by Mrs. Paco, nothing like those I've had before. We had a great time watching the locals, trying to understand what was being said to us, and trying the food. We ate inside, though, as it was coolish outdoors. That's what we both love best about travelling, doing things that are culturally very different for us.
So it's been another good day, and so far it's thumbs up for Seville.

Scary Marys.

We arrived in Seville to find it sunny and hot. All the orange trees are in fruit - they smell so lovely. Our hotel is set around a Moorish-looking courtyard, with bright plants, and coloured tiles. It feels like being in Morocco.
We wandered past the Cathedral and into the Old Town today. Getting lost there is lots of fun, because you get surprised by nice little squares, or children coming out of school in old fashioned school uniforms. We have also been taken by surprise by several rather scary Marys in shop windows. The are larger than life size and rather gruesome. They are in Spanish clothes, black, and they clutch real silver daggers to their hearts. They do give you a shock! Seville is really getting into gear for Holy Week.
You could die of thirst in this place, though. Everywhere you go they expect you to eat. We haven't yet caved in and gone to Starbucks, but who knows about tomorrow.
Tonight we had paella in a nice little square, and then sat in another square near the hotel, which was full of Spanish families eating tapas. We were still in shirt sleeves at 10 p.m.
Well, I hope we have made you sufficiently envious. Sorry, I can't post any photos at present, as I forgot to bring the USB wire for putting the pics onto the computer.
So that's all for tonight. Check in again tomorrow for more adventures.

Plans for 2011

It is time to start the travel blog again for another year. The plans for this year are in place, well in my head for the most part, and if we fulfil them, we can count ourselves very lucky.

We are starting with a weeks trip to Seville in Spain on Monday 4th April. We are not taking the camping car, of course, but flying with RyanAir from Liverpool. You hear so many bad stories about Ryan Air so it is fingers crossed that they get us there and back. The hotel in Seville says it has wifi so we will take the netbook and keep you posted.
We have wanted to go to Seville for quite sometime now, but it has proved to be difficult to get to easily from Manchester. It is Manchester - change at Heathrow and then change again in Madrid. The other alternative was to fly direct from Manchester to Malaga and then take the train to Seville, and that seemed an attractive alternative. However, we heard that RyanAir flies from Liverpool direct to Seville beginning in April each year. I think we are on their first flight out of the year at 6.50am on that Monday morning.
We are hoping for some sunshine and a quiet week in Seville. Chris will take lots of photos and I will read and watch the world go by. We may fit some time in for a little tapas and an odd glass of vino tinto. One day, at least, we hope to take the train to Cordoba to see the great mosque.

At the beginning of May we are setting off on a six week trip to Germany and France. Our friends, Peter and Liz are coming with us for the first few weeks. We are heading for Arnhem in Holland first and then to Berlin. Berlin is a city we haven't visited before and we are looking forward to it. We then plan to come back to the Rhine and the Mosselle before spending the last couple of weeks in Alsace.

On August 31st. we will be on the train through the tunnel again, this time heading for Provence in France. We hope to spend sometime in Uzes which really impressed us last time we were there. Then we might make it to Arles for the festival du Riz sometime in September and then we are heading to the Med and Sanary-sur-Mer. We hope to explore the coast around Toulon. On the way back, we might have time to stop off in my favourite french village, Beaumes de Venise. It will be grape picking time if we get there and that should be interesting to watch.