As I pulled out of the airport I saw steam in the distance - making a mental note to come back here I later realized this must be the "sign" of the infamous Blue Lagoon. I returned in the afternoon driving through what at a quick glance looks like a barren wasteland with volcanic rock strewn all about. As you glance across this stark landscape you see no trees - but if you look closer in certain sheltered rock plateaus, there are in fact small … [Read more...]
Crawling Around Dublin from Pub to Pub
The only thing I figured out how to do during my short stay in Dublin was crawl from pub to pub. In fact I am writing this now from the standing room only interior of Grogans Castle Pub. Everyone is drinking beer out of Guinness glasses but I am drinking a Swedish Cider. And apparently a cheap one at that. Speaking of cider I've finally discovered a country that can give Sweden a run for the money on the matters of quality cider; that would be … [Read more...]
The Grandeur of Montserrat Spain
When I find a place such as Montserrat in Spain that combines an inspirational human element with certainly a natural one, I pause for reflection. I try to absorb as much of this beauty as I can through all my senses. When visiting places like this it helps to be alone (not always possible at places of such grandeur). But fortunately I arrived late in the day mid week and the buses and most of the tourists had already left. The drive on the … [Read more...]
Collbató, Spain – a Town to Explore at your Own Pace
I find myself walking along the sun drenched walkways in the town of Collbató. A solitary horn echoes down the narrow alleyways. The pitch is not perfect and it is disjointed in sound. Perhaps it comes from a young student. Or maybe an older person wanting to explore a musical passion for the first time in their life. Irregardless of who is playing, I follow the sound and spend a few minutes listening under the second story window while … [Read more...]
Notes of a Curious Traveler, Exploring Northeast Spain
After leaving my brothers friend's Catamaran dry docked in the port of Canet France - I drove several hours to Barcelona. I arrived in the center of town - which was very crowded with narrow streets and no parking spots. One must have nerves of steel to drive here - I finally found an underground parking garage, one of the smallest I've ever been in - I had to make a 10-point turn or something numerically similar to that - just to get into and … [Read more...]
In Love With Pint-Sized Andorra
We stood on the rocky outcrop above the tiny parking lot next to the consul generals office in old Andorra la Vella and heard the distinctive sound of a rooster crowing in the distance. The shrill came from across the narrow valley high up on the steep hillsides. It echoed in clear contrast to the continuous low thrum of the city. We followed the bird's call until we were soon climbing narrow stone walkways leaving us high above the valley … [Read more...]
A Few Interesting Notes About the Country of Andorra
The population of Andorra is only approximately 85,000 people. We can see why; much of this small country is mountainous with steep hillsides and equally steep gorges. The engineering on their road system is rather impressive; we drove through several large round abouts raised entirely above steep gorges with several tunnels joining from various rock cliffs in a number of directions - all meeting in one particular roundabout. We drove several … [Read more...]
Winding our Way to Andorra La Vella
We arrived at the summit pass between France and Andorra and were greeted by thick fog. Opting to pay the €6 tunnel fee (rather than driving up over the ridge on the old very windy road) we were very surprised when we burst through the tunnel into brilliant blue skies and sunshine radiating all around us. A long valley lay below us with jagged still snow covered peaks surrounding. It was like going from a June Gloom Malibu California day where … [Read more...]
Exploring the Memorable Lombrives Cave in Ariege France
We woke up early, and after a quick breakfast departed the Viking Cruise Ship (the past 8 days we were on a Bordeaux River Cruise) and promptly picked up a car at the Bordeaux airport. We tried to extend it a single day but were utterly shocked when we were quoted an extra €2,500 for just this one extra day! We experienced further agitation when we found the car completely dirty as well as a window covered with dead bugs. We headed out of … [Read more...]
The Beauty of Bordeaux Revealed
Today was arguably the highlight of our visit to Bordeaux as part of our Viking River Cruise, Château, Rivers & Win). We spent the day touring the Left Bank (Gironde River) of Bordeaux including Medoc and Pauillac, Saint-Julien, and Margaux. I don't think I've ever seen as much white river cobble as I have in the vineyards of the Medoc region. It seems the higher the volume of these rocks in the soil, the higher the quality of wines and the … [Read more...]
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