Jekyll2024-03-14T13:00:29-04:00https://chrisbrooks.org/feed.xmlChris BrooksGames, Technology, and Other StuffFarewell Spain<p>Julie and I keep getting asked: are we glad we spent 3 months abroad? What was our favorite part? Would we do it again?</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/granada-and-alhambra.jpg" alt="Granada and Alhambra" width="1000px" />
<em>Granada and Alhambra</em></p>
<p>I’m definitely the one that pushed for the longer trip. Julie was always on board with the idea, but I think it would be unlikely for her to advocate for a trip like this unprompted. In the end we both appreciated the depth and breadth of exploration this timeframe allowed.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/streets-of-madrid.jpg" alt="Streets of Madrid" width="1000px" />
<em>Streets of Madrid</em></p>
<p>We both remain in love with Madrid. For me my favorite memories are the daily routine of a 3 mile early morning walk by the Prado, through Retiro, to Spanish class. This was always followed by the excitement of adventure after class. Where would we eat? Would we visit a museum or just wander a new neighborhood? Once Julie sank her teeth into the planning and found a concept she loved (Christmas lights! Sorolla!) we were guarnteed to have a full docket of options.</p>
<p>One benefit we did not expect: meeting so many locals, and being invited into their homes. From Spanish class friend (and local) Elinor we got amazing restaurant recommendations that helped turn around our opinions on Spanish cuisine.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/dinner-feast-with-our-madrid-friends.jpg" alt="Dinner feast with our Madrid friends" width="1000px" />
<em>Dinner feast with our Madrid friends</em></p>
<p>Gamer friend Ángel invited me into his wargaming club to play Advanced Squad Leader (ASL). Likewise, gamer friend Toni invited me into his home for lunch and ASL, and afterwards the three couples went out for an epic suburban Spanish feast.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/our-new-madrid-family.jpg" alt="Our new Madrid family" width="1000px" />
<em>Our new Madrid family</em></p>
<p>Best of all, we’ve made lifelong friends with Eddy and family. Julie and I had four different adventures with Eddy, including two classically long and engaging Spanish lunches in his home. Eddy and his wife Irene will be coming to the states this summer and I’ll be attempting to return the favor by playing NY tour guide.</p>
<p>Will we do this again? We don’t normally repeat trips, but we will definitely return to Madrid and look forward to exploring more of the north of Spain. Plus we have to keep working on our Spanish language.</p>
<h2 id="trip-summary">Trip Summary</h2>
<ul>
<li>Madrid
<ul>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2023/12/10/rucking-madrid">Rucking Madrid</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2023/12/16/christmas-in-madrid">Christmas in Madrid</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2023/12/17/intensive-spanish-class-in-madrid">Intensive Spanish Class in Madrid</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2023/12/24/padel-in-madrid">Padel in Madrid</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2023/12/25/advanced-squad-leader-in-madrid">Advanced Squad Leader in Madrid</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2023/12/26/the-madrid-santa-run">The Madrid Santa Run</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2023/12/29/dining-in-madrid">Dining in Madrid</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2023/12/31/my-madrid-haircut">My Madrid Haircut</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/09/dining-in-madrid-some-redemption">Dining in Madrid - Some Redemption</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/13/el-escorial">El Escorial</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Córdoba
<ul>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/15/cordoba-mosque-cathedral-and-madinat-al-zahra">Córdoba: Mosque-Cathedral and Madinat al-Zahra</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/16/out-and-about-in-cordoba">Out and About in Córdoba</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Granada
<ul>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/18/granada-and-the-alhambra">Granada and the Alhambra</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/20/hiking-around-granada">Hiking around Granada</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/22/cooking-in-spain">Cooking in Spain</a></li>
<li>In and around Málaga
<ul>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/24/hiking-the-caminito-del-rey">Hiking the Caminito del Rey</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/24/malaga">Málaga</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/26/el-torcal-and-antequera">El Torcal and Antequera</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Morocco
<ul>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/28/marrakech-quad-excursion">Marrakech Quad Excursion</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/29/morocco-atlas-mountains-adventure">Morocco Atlas Mountains Adventure</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/04/marrakech-meh">Marrakech Meh</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Gran Canaria (Canary Islands)
<ul>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/05/carnaval-in-las-palmas">Carnaval in Las Palmas</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/08/moto-scooter-on-gran-canaria">Moto scooter on Gran Canaria</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/09/las-palmas-and-gran-canaria">Las Palmas</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/10/marbella">Marbella</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/11/ronda">Ronda</a>, and the <a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/12/we-are-holding">joy of carrying the right kind of coffee from town to town</a></li>
<li>Cádiz
<ul>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/14/carnaval-in-cadiz">Carnaval</a>!</li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/17/cadiz">Tourist stuff</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/19/sevilla">Sevilla</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/22/bird-watching-in-donana-natural-park">Birdwatching in the Doñana Natural Park</a></li>
<li>Barcelona
<ul>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/27/barcelona-redux">New stuff for Julie and me</a></li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/03/03/barcelona-with-jennifer">With my sister</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/03/07/madrid-and-toledo-with-jennifer">Madrid and Toledo with my sister</a></li>
</ul>
2024-03-14T12:03:57-04:002024-03-14T12:03:57-04:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/03/14/farewell-spainChris Brooks<p>Julie and I keep getting asked: are we glad we spent 3 months abroad? What was our favorite part? Would we do it again?</p>
Madrid and Toledo with Jennifer<p>For our final week in Spain we were reunited with Madrid as we played host for my sister Jennifer.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/hanging-out-in-one-of-madrid's-many-plazas.jpg" alt="Hanging out in one of Madrid's many plazas" width="1000px" />
<em>Hanging out in one of Madrid’s many plazas</em></p>
<p>Julie and I were very excited to play tour guide for her. We love this city and had so much to share. Unfortunately I was still battling my cold, Jennifer was in the middle of hers, and Julie was starting to slide into what we think was the same ailment. We powered through.</p>
<p>We started with a city orientation, walking through Plaza Mayor and Plaza del Sol. These were both easy treks from our La Latina neighborhood home. This was as quiet as we’ve seen Madrid, just before the spring break explosion and just after the vibrant Christmas and New Year’s holidays. We enjoyed a caña de cerveza at La Torre del Oro, though touristy but still fun bar on Plaza Mayor, full of graphically brutal bullfighting photos. As we say, “the bull always loses” but at least he was exacting some revenge on the humans in these displays.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/rooftop-view-of-the-city.jpg" alt="Rooftop view of the city" width="1000px" />
<em>Rooftop view of the city</em></p>
<p>Following a guided tour of the majestic Royal Palace, we roamed to Plaza de España and for the first time took advantage of one of the rooftop cafes and bars. The top of Hotel Riu is a nice spot for this, and after taking in views from the roof we had a very nice (and quiet) lunch one floor down from there. The sky was blue, the air was crisp, and Jennifer enjoyed getting a better understanding of the city layout.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/looking-out-at-toledo.jpg" alt="Looking out at Toledo" width="1000px" />
<em>Looking out at Toledo</em></p>
<p>Our Thursday was a perfect grand Madrid day, starting with a train ride to Toledo to explore the medieval town. Julie and I know the layout well enough to guide the tour ourselves, and we started with a taxi ride to the other side of town across the river for a perfect morning view of the town with the sun behind us. Besides the oldness of the town and the giant gothic cathedral, we absolutely love going on a treasure hunt for El Greco paintings. They are all over the place in Toledo.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/gildas-and-olives.jpg" alt="Gildas and olives" width="1000px" />
<em>Gildas and olives</em></p>
<p>Later that evening we stopped at two of our favorite tapas spots: La Concha and La Gildería. La Concha for their friendly atmosphere and vermut cocktail, La Gildería for the <a href="https://nofrillskitchen.com/spanish-gildas-recipe/">classic gildas tapa</a>. I’m loving my fatty salty fish in my old age.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/flamenco-at-cafe-ziryab.jpg" alt="Flamenco at Cafe Ziryab" width="1000px" />
<em>Flamenco at Cafe Ziryab</em></p>
<p>We finished the night with flamenco at our favorite tiny stage: <a href="https://cafeziryab.com">Cafe Ziryab</a>. Julie and I have been three times, including ringing in the new year at the end of 2023. We are in love with <a href="https://youtu.be/fsdw1ESIoMo?si=y4Mrkc9k_abPxB__">Sara Nieto</a>, the fierce dancer who managed to charm Jennifer even more than she has Julie and me.</p>
<hr />
<p>There’s more that I don’t go into detail on: Prado, Reina Sofia, Sorollo museum, a walk through Retiro, reconnecting with old madrileño friends. I think it is safe to say the “A Jennifer le encanta Madrid.”</p>
2024-03-07T15:17:25-05:002024-03-07T15:17:25-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/03/07/madrid-and-toledo-with-jenniferChris Brooks<p>For our final week in Spain we were reunited with Madrid as we played host for my sister Jennifer.</p>
Barcelona with Jennifer<p>Our final stint in Spain is a tour de force of Barcelona and Madrid with my sister Jennifer. Her first trip to Spain ever, and first return to the European continent in about 45 years.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/view-from-the-la-sagrada-familia-tower.jpg" alt="View from the La Sagrada Familia tower" width="1000px" />
<em>View from the La Sagrada Familia tower</em></p>
<p>Julie was in full tour guide mode, not unlike <a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2023/03/29/barcelona-rambla-palau-de-la-musica-catalana">our visit last spring</a>. Julie is meticulous yet adaptive, trying to maximize our collective experience while taking into consideration walking speeds, rest periods, etc. I think we make a good team.</p>
<p>We did many of the usual stops in Barcelona, though each of us were able to visit some places we missed last time around. Julie missed the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museu_Picasso?wprov=sfti1">Picasso museum</a> last March so that was high on our list. This museum is a treasure, with the highlight being his <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Las_Meninas_(Picasso)?wprov=sfti1">Las Meninas collection</a>.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/modernista-hospital.jpg" alt="Modernista hospital" width="1000px" />
<em>Modernista hospital</em></p>
<p>A new-to-me stop was the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hospital_de_Sant_Pau?wprov=sfti1">Sant Pau Recinta</a> complex, a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Nouveau?wprov=sfti1">modernista (art nouveau)</a> wonder not far from La Sagrada Familia. I wish this design style was still a part of our everyday built world.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/03/at-the-park.jpg" alt="At the park" width="1000px" />
<em>At the park</em></p>
<p>Of course we also took Jennifer to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Park_G%C3%BCell">Park Güell</a>, Gaudí’s modernista city park and housing development.</p>
<p>Our location in the El Born neighborhood also allowed for an easy guided tour of the old gothic quarter, which was a great way to orient Jennifer to our part of town. We made a return visit to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palau_de_la_M%C3%BAsica_Catalana">Palau de la Música Catalana</a> for some classical and flamenco guitar and dancing.</p>
2024-03-03T03:57:46-05:002024-03-03T03:57:46-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/03/03/barcelona-with-jenniferChris Brooks<p>Our final stint in Spain is a tour de force of Barcelona and Madrid with my sister Jennifer. Her first trip to Spain ever, and first return to the European continent in about 45 years.</p>
Barcelona Redux<p>Julie and I took the train(s) from Sevilla to Barcelona, getting settled with three days of buffer before my sister Jennifer joins us.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/view-from-the-hill-down-at-la-sagrada-familia.jpg" alt="View from the hill down at La Sagrada Familia" width="1000px" />
<em>View from the hill down at La Sagrada Familia</em></p>
<p>Staying in a very different neighborhood (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Ribera?wprov=sfti1">El Born</a> this time; previously we were adjacent to La Sagrada Familia) offered up some new opportunities to immerse ourselves in different parts of the city. El Born is adjacent to the gothic quarter and part of the ancient, less-planned section of the city. While we had a number of issues with our 2 bedroom AirBnB, the location was fantastic.</p>
<p>We mostly rested and regrouped in the days leading up to Jennifer’s arrival, but spent a few hours each day wandering and doing a few mostly-new things for us. Top of the list was a visit to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montju%C3%AFc?wprov=sfti1#">Montjuïc</a>, the hill down the coast overlooking the city. I’d first been up this hill back in 1990 as friend David and I explored the olympic venues being constructed for the 1992 summer olympics, but my memories were very fuzzy.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/olympic-stadium-and-home-to-fc-barcelona.jpg" alt="Olympic stadium and home to FC Barcelona" width="1000px" />
<em>Olympic stadium and home to FC Barcelona</em></p>
<p>We did a lot of walking this day (and climbing), starting at the castle on the hill then wandering by the olympic stadium (home of FC Barcelona), the Catalan art museum, and the magic fountain. Most of the fountains in and around Barcelona remain temporarily shut down because of ongoing drought issues.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/el-born-cultural-center.jpg" alt="El Born cultural center" width="1000px" />
<em>El Born cultural center</em></p>
<p>A very nice surprise just a couple of blocks from our apartment was the El Born cultural center, formerly the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercat_del_Born?wprov=sfti1">Mercat del Born</a>. The market has a long and rough history (read the linked Wikipedia page), but about 10 years ago it re-opened with restored archeological remains exposed. Most of the center is free to visit, and the building alone is worth the visit.</p>
2024-02-27T03:16:36-05:002024-02-27T03:16:36-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/27/barcelona-reduxChris Brooks<p>Julie and I took the train(s) from Sevilla to Barcelona, getting settled with three days of buffer before my sister Jennifer joins us.</p>
Bird Watching in Doñana Natural Park<p>Julie and I spent a day with a private guide exploring the natural beauty of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doñana_National_Park">Doñana Natural Park</a>, nestled between Cádiz and Sevilla in southern Spain.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/julie-and-our-guide-victor-finding-birds.jpg" alt="Julie and our guide Victor finding birds" width="1000px" />
<em>Julie and our guide Victor finding birds</em></p>
<p>I booked through <a href="https://www.donanabirdguides.com">Wild Doñana</a>, though our guide Victor was from the <a href="https://www.birdingtarifa.es/en/about-us">Birding Tarifa organization (Victor)</a>. We had a hard time pulling this tour together. On our original scheduled day, the <a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/11/ronda">farmers were again protesting</a> and blocking all the roads in and out of Sevilla. Our tour operator had advance warning so we rescheduled to Sunday. What nobody realized was that the Sevilla Marathon was Sunday, creating more challenging. We finally put together a longer walk, to meet up with an Uber, who took us outside the beltway to a shopping center to meet Victor. Then we were on our way.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/a-white-stork-couple-in-their-nest.jpg" alt="A white stork couple in their nest" width="1000px" />
<em>A white stork couple in their nest</em></p>
<p>Victor was incredibly knowledgeable and put together an amazing tour. We started near the entrance to the park by focusing on the nesting white storks. They were ubiquitous, and near the parking area some of the nests were low enough that you could almost see into them. While the storks didn’t seem afraid of us, they would scurry if we got too close. Lots of mating rituals going on right now.</p>
<p>From there we wandered down to a lake where we started seeing the amazing plethora of birds in the area. On first glance it looked like maybe 3 or 4 species on the water, but quickly (and with the help of our binocs and spotting scope) the truth became clear: there were probably over 25 species in view. The usual diversity of water fowl, but so many shorebirds including some avocets swimming as a group in the middle of the lake (unusual) and spoonbills on the far shore intermingling with egrets.</p>
<p>It was here that we saw the two most common raptors we would see throughout the day, the red and black kites. Later on we would see two different types of peregrine falcon, and in the marshy canal areas the marsh harrier became prominent. We had a great sighting of the harrier being harassed by two magpies in a tree; we think the harrier was getting too close to their nest.</p>
<p>Here’s a partial list of the birds we spotted. I’m sure I missed 10-20, but what a day:</p>
<ul>
<li>White storks</li>
<li>Black stork</li>
<li>Two peregrine falcons</li>
<li>Black kite</li>
<li>Red kite</li>
<li>Marsh harrier</li>
<li>Two kestrels</li>
<li>Great crested grebe</li>
<li>Eurasian coot</li>
<li>Red-knobbed coot</li>
<li>Cormorants</li>
<li>Great white egrets</li>
<li>Grey heron</li>
<li>Eurasian spoonbill</li>
<li>Cattle egret</li>
<li>Avocet</li>
<li>Purple swamphen</li>
<li>Moorhen</li>
<li>Green sandpiper</li>
<li>Marbled duck</li>
<li>Common pochard</li>
<li>Mallard</li>
<li>Iberian magpie</li>
<li>Common magpie</li>
<li>Western jackdaw</li>
<li>Common raven</li>
<li>Crested lark</li>
<li>House sparrow</li>
<li>Spanish sparrow</li>
<li>European greenfinch</li>
<li>European goldfinch</li>
<li>Chaffinch</li>
<li>Common chiffchaff</li>
<li>Corn bunting</li>
<li>Eurasian blackcap</li>
<li>Eurasian blackbird</li>
<li>Zitting cisticola</li>
<li>Barn swallow</li>
<li>Warblers (so many!)</li>
</ul>
2024-02-22T02:27:29-05:002024-02-22T02:27:29-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/22/bird-watching-in-donana-natural-parkChris Brooks<p>Julie and I spent a day with a private guide exploring the natural beauty of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doñana_National_Park">Doñana Natural Park</a>, nestled between Cádiz and Sevilla in southern Spain.</p>
Sevilla<p>My opinion of Sevilla is probably lower than it should be as I’m growing weary of visiting highly touristed sites. Julie ranks Sevilla in her top 2 Spanish cities.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/plaza-de-espa%C3%B1a.jpg" alt="Plaza de España" width="1000px" />
<em>Plaza de España</em></p>
<p>The city was crowded with tourists even though this is likely the low season. That’s not Sevilla’s fault and for some reason despite Madrid <em>always</em> being crowded I count it as a favorite. Maybe it is because the crowds in Madrid seem to be mostly Spaniards. Sevilla is popular for a reason: it is beautiful, old, and tidy.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/flamenco-in-sevilla.jpg" alt="Flamenco in Sevilla" width="1000px" />
<em>Flamenco in Sevilla</em></p>
<p>Our first night in town I had another Flamenco show booked, a risk as I was going on about two hours of sleep after staying up most of the night for the Super Bowl. The venue was <a href="https://lacasadelflamencosevilla.com/">La Casa de Flamenco</a>, a no-frills no-dinner no-drinks spot focused on the music and dancing. It was all excellent, especially the guitar and lead singer. The style was different than shows we’ve seen – this is a feel more than an educated opinion. We’ve seen seven different shows so far.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/the-sevilla-bullfighting-ring.jpg" alt="The Sevilla bullfighting ring" width="1000px" />
<em>The Sevilla bullfighting ring</em></p>
<p>Sevilla still loves and embraces bullfighting and the local ring is worth a visit, though not as gratifying as the ring and museum in Ronda.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/julie-on-her-lime-bike.jpg" alt="Julie on her Lime bike" width="1000px" />
<em>Julie on her Lime bike</em></p>
<p>What I certainly did enjoy greatly in Sevilla was wandering the neighborhoods, parks, and hitting some spots that appeared to be populated primarily by locals. We did two different five mile runs: one down to Plaza de España (first photo above) and the wonderful Parque de Maria Luisa, and another up the river to Parque de Alamillo. The latter was a long ways away, so we hit five miles while in the park. Lime had bike rentals near the park which we rode back near our home.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/the-sevilla-gothic-cathedral.jpg" alt="The Sevilla gothic cathedral" width="1000px" />
<em>The Sevilla gothic cathedral</em></p>
<p>The two big sites to visit are the huge Gothic cathedral (largest Gothic cathedral in the world) and yet another Real Alcázar Muslim-turned-Catholic palace. The cathedral is prettier from the outside, while the Alcázar was incredible. It doesn’t quite reach the heights of the Alhambra in Granada (literally and figuratively) but has beautiful gardens and a few spectacular interior rooms.</p>
<hr />
<p>Also, got another haircut (barber of Sevilla 😂) and new soles put on my leather boots. I’m ready for the final stages of our Spanish adventure.</p>
2024-02-19T08:29:17-05:002024-02-19T08:29:17-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/19/sevillaChris Brooks<p>My opinion of Sevilla is probably lower than it should be as I’m growing weary of visiting highly touristed sites. Julie ranks Sevilla in her top 2 Spanish cities.</p>
Cádiz<p>A bit on Cádiz, mostly independent of the <a href="/blog/2024/02/14/carnaval-in-cadiz">Carnaval action I already talked about</a>.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/wandering-the-tide-pools-near-the-fort.jpg" alt="Wandering the tide-pools near the fort" width="1000px" />
<em>Wandering the tide-pools near the fort</em></p>
<p>The city sits on some very interesting geography: a peninsula on the end of a long spit, with the old town clustered on the peninsula. You are never far from water, yet because of the narrow alleys and streets it can still be disorienting trying to navigate around the town. You can feel the seafaring roots of the town – the boats in the harbors, the plethora of seafood restaurants and availability of innovative tapas, and the forts on the water. We enjoyed exploring the star fort at the end of the peninsula.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/the-city-was-crowded.jpg" alt="The city was crowded" width="1000px" />
<em>The city was crowded</em></p>
<p>I said “mostly independent of the Carnaval” because I can’t really believe that what we saw was normal Cádiz. A number of the normal tourist sites you might visit had odd hours; for example we never visited the Cádiz museum because we never found it open. So, our time in Cádiz was spent wandering around, hitting interesting Carnaval events when we could, and climbing around on old forts and up towers when we could.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/the-city-was-rainy.jpg" alt="The city was rainy" width="1000px" />
<em>The city was rainy</em></p>
<p>The rain also played a major factor. We don’t mind steady or even hard-steady rain as we have gear to stay mostly dry. But when the wind blows with hard-steady rain, all bets are off. Our pants would become soaked through in about 5 minutes of walking. There were a couple of days where we stayed pretty hunkered down in our hotel room, me doing school work and Julie putting in some long hours for her consulting.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/the-eels-were-tasty.jpg" alt="The eels were tasty" width="1000px" />
<em>The eels were tasty</em></p>
<p>What were some highlights?</p>
<ul>
<li>The aforementioned star fort</li>
<li>Parque Genovés at the end of the peninsula (not far from the star fort) is a great city park, with the highlight being a “cascade mountain” (rock structure) you can climb up on, that has a very cool waterfall feature. We saw some old photos from the end of the 19th century showing this very same feature, so it has been around for a while.</li>
<li>We climbed to the top of Torre Tavira, which also houses a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camera_obscura">camera obscura</a> that we did not pay to visit. Only after climbing this did we notice how many towers are scattered around the city, ostensibly to help the local merchants keep an eye on ship traffic coming and going.</li>
<li>I think I found my favorite restaurant so far in Spain (and it wasn’t Spanish food): the <a href="https://indianrestaurantbollywoodcadiz.com">Indian restaurant Bollywood</a>. We went there twice. I’m now inspired to learn how to make a good <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dal_makhani">dal makhani</a>.</li>
<li>I indulged in some local fish and seafood and it was all good: shrimp tortilla (thin and crispy omelette with tiny shrimps), cubed lightly fried mahi-mahi at El Faro de Cádiz, and tiny eels with a soft fried egg and potatoes for tapas brunch.</li>
</ul>
2024-02-17T03:29:44-05:002024-02-17T03:29:44-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/17/cadizChris Brooks<p>A bit on Cádiz, mostly independent of the <a href="/blog/2024/02/14/carnaval-in-cadiz">Carnaval action I already talked about</a>.</p>
Carnaval in Cádiz<p>We timed our stay in Cádiz to coincide with Carnaval, having no idea what to expect.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/costumes-near-the-mercado.jpg" alt="Costumes near the Mercado" width="1000px" />
<em>Costumes near the Mercado</em></p>
<p>AirBnBs were scarce and expensive when we were prepared to book (back in late November), so I used a free night on Hotels.com to offset a fairly high (for Spain) nightly cost at a very nice one-star hotel right in the heart of old Cádiz. We were just a block from the mercado and, as we would learn, in a heavily trafficed Carnaval route. Things were pretty quiet when we arrived via bus on Thursday. We wondered if the heavy rain, high wind forecast would keep folks away.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/it-was-windy-and-rainy.jpg" alt="It was windy and rainy" width="1000px" />
<em>It was windy and rainy</em></p>
<p>On to Friday, where the weather turned terrible. It reminded me of February on the Oregon coast: enough wind to create some sideways rain. We knew that seeing the finals of the Chirigotas (similar to the Murgas we saw in Las Palmas) wouldn’t be possible (“no se puede” our hotel clerk said - you cannot! Tickets have been sold out forever!) so we wandered over to the Gran Teatro where they would be held to see what was going on there.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/outside-the-gran-teatro.jpg" alt="Outside the Gran Teatro" width="1000px" />
<em>Outside the Gran Teatro</em></p>
<p>Not much! Just folks hanging around, waiting to see groups show up and enter the theater. The weather wasn’t too bad yet. We started to see groups wearing their matching costume sets. Groups of Mario Bros seemed to be the most common.</p>
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lg1uhz5q8O0?si=uKO0wQQXJmOCvZWX" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<p>This is what was going on inside. You can turn on captioning, and translation to English, but I don’t think it will help much. I think the grinches might have been taunting Sevilla a wee bit.</p>
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ccw5YF8FHHE?si=R2x7wgZraOtMlCjk" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<p>On Saturday the action picked up in big way, and the weather improved a bit. This was our first encounter with <a href="https://www.publico.es/viajes/carnaval-de-cadiz-sabes-que-son-las-ilegales-los-mejores-rincones-de-la-tacita-de-plata-para-disfrutarlas/">las Ilegales</a>, the “illegal” choirs that roam around the town, periodically stopping at an intersection, or in front of a church, or on the steps of the post office. We also found our way to some of the more official stage presentations. We loved the Romanceros, two-person poetry teams that follow a strict poetic structure, with severe slapping on their poster visual aid as they finished a stanza to hand off to their partner. You can see all of this in the compilation above.</p>
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/s6xRf6ofMCQ?si=UgGHWrt1DwHnCyyy" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<p>Sadly the wind returned in force on Sunday for the climax parade, the Gran Cabalgata. The wind certainly made things challenging for many of the performers, but they made the best of it. The quality wasn’t at the New Orleans Mardi Gras level, or even the Three Kings Christmas parade in Madrid, but it was fun and we loved seeing all the families out with their kids.</p>
<p>There was the usual all-day-drinking you’d expect to see on a weekend like this. There’s a reason Monday is a local bank holiday: “hangover Monday”.</p>
2024-02-14T11:50:31-05:002024-02-14T11:50:31-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/14/carnaval-in-cadizChris Brooks<p>We timed our stay in Cádiz to coincide with Carnaval, having no idea what to expect.</p>
We're Holding<p>Coffee, that is.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/our-coffee-and-token-tea-spread.jpg" alt="Our coffee and token tea spread" width="1000px" />
<em>Our coffee and token tea spread</em></p>
<p>The big question as we transition from town to town: in what format will we deliver caffeine and coffee into our bodies each morning? We’ve seen zero K cups, but all three varieties of Nespresso pods.</p>
<p>Sometimes it is a French press. Sometimes Italian strong coffee percolator. Here in Cádiz we had just a kettle so we resorted to Nescafé instant.</p>
<p>We have three AirBnBs left. Hopefully we run the gauntlet and can use up our remaining supplies.</p>
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/N4AsUOH0eRQ?si=UmBTO7XouxDZ6qxQ" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
2024-02-12T04:29:18-05:002024-02-12T04:29:18-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/12/we-are-holdingChris Brooks<p>Coffee, that is.</p>
Ronda<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronda">Ronda</a> seems to be on everyone’s small-town-must-see list in Andalucía, and we can see why.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/ussie-in-setenil.jpg" alt="Ussie in Setenil" width="1000px" />
<em>Ussie in Setenil</em></p>
<p>We took the Avanza bus from Marbella to Ronda, again we pre-booked (necessary as the bus fills up – and we are in the lowest season right now). It was confusing in Marbella finding our bus because Ronda doesn’t show up on the destination list for the bus (it is a middle stop). Helps to keep asking bus drivers of the likely suspects.</p>
<p>Knowing we had an hour or two to kill after arriving, I left Julie in a cafe to sip some coffee and walked a mile to the outskirts of town to see about renting a car. We wanted to explore the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Towns_of_Andalusia?wprov=sfti1">white villages (los pueblos blancos)</a> and our own vehicle would be the best option. There’s one game in town for this (as far as I could tell), but one friendly all-in-Spanish-transaction later we had a car booked for the next day.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/the-farmer-protest.jpg" alt="The farmer protest" width="1000px" />
<em>The farmer protest</em></p>
<p>We were greeted with a surprise as we drove away from the rental agency the next day: what seemed like routine morning traffic at first was actually the <a href="https://www.surinenglish.com/malaga/farmers-protest-causes-traffic-chaos-hundreds-tractors-20240206100139-nt.html">Feb 6 farmer protest</a>. The local police wouldn’t let us exit the roundabout on our desired route to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Setenil_de_las_Bodegas">Setenil de las Bodegas</a>, which was likely only going to cause us more delays. Our first attempt to reroute was too backroad, too one-way, but our second attempt got us into town.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/buildings-nestled-in-the-caves-in-setenil.jpg" alt="Buildings nestled in the caves in Setenil" width="1000px" />
<em>Buildings nestled in the caves in Setenil</em></p>
<p>Setenil was cool – many white homes and cafes built directly into the recess cave walls. The town is small and nestled in a deep valley, with a rocky precipice jutting out in the middle. It only took us about an hour to walk around the entire town, including our mandatory stop for café con leche.</p>
<p>Our next stop was <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zahara_de_la_Sierra?wprov=sfti1">Zahara de la Sierra</a>, and despite the lack of photo evidence it was our favorite of the three towns. I did take photos but they are not up to my stringent standards. The highlight was climbing to the top of the peak and visiting the Moorish castle. Our friends the griffon vultures were peacefully soaring around the castle during our visit.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/the-village-square-in-grazalema.jpg" alt="The village square in Grazalema" width="1000px" />
<em>The village square in Grazalema</em></p>
<p>Our final village was <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grazalema?wprov=sfti1">Grazalema</a>. The village was cute, yet another white Andalucían town, but the drive in from Zahara was stunning. The route goes through the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_de_Grazalema_Natural_Park?wprov=sfti1">Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park</a>, and on it we saw several cyclists doing some serious hill climbing over the crest.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/the-gorge-bridge-in-ronda.jpg" alt="The gorge bridge in Ronda" width="1000px" />
<em>The gorge bridge in Ronda</em></p>
<p>Back to Ronda! Julie noticed in one of our guides that <a href="https://www.andalucia.com/ronda/fascinating-facts-4.htm"><em>this is the town where they threw the fascists into the gorge</em></a> in Hemingway’s <em>For Whom the Bell Tolls</em>. The gorge is impressive!</p>
<p>On our first day in Ronda we put our bags in a locker and strolled to the bull fighting ring, which has an impressive museum and plenty of info on the famous bull fighter from Ronda, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedro_Romero?wprov=sfti1">Pedro Romero</a>. Hemingway named the brilliant young matador in <em>The Sun Also Rises</em> after Romero. There’s also an equestrian training center at the bull ring.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/strolling-down-the-city-walls-in-ronda.jpg" alt="Strolling down the city walls in Ronda" width="1000px" />
<em>Strolling down the city walls in Ronda</em></p>
<p>Our favorite part of Ronda was the old town on the south side of the gorge bridge. We visited the Arab baths, and did our favorite stroll in town along the ancient walls to the bridge below the gardens that run along the north face of the gorge.</p>
<p>Many folks do Ronda as a day trip, but I’m so glad we had it as a base of operations for a few days. Also, the tapas and wine scene is very good in town. There are a lot of wineries in the country surrounding Ronda, but all require (very) advanced booking so we were shut out of visiting and doing tastings.</p>
2024-02-11T04:15:34-05:002024-02-11T04:15:34-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/11/rondaChris Brooks<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronda">Ronda</a> seems to be on everyone’s small-town-must-see list in Andalucía, and we can see why.</p>
Marbella<p>Our return to the European continent was on a flight from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria back to Málaga, and from there we caught an Avanza bus (pre-booked, a requirement!) down the coast to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marbella?wprov=sfti1">Marbella</a>.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/old-town-marbella.jpg" alt="Old town Marbella" width="1000px" />
<em>Old town Marbella</em></p>
<p>Marbella isn’t on the list for most tourists like us. It was definitely a stopover, something to do before we ventured back into the Andalucían hills. This is a coastal destination known for its beach and high-end shopping, most notably along the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marbella#Marbella%27s_Golden_Mile">Golden Mile</a>.</p>
<p>We enjoyed catching up on some work and exploring the small old town quarter in historic Marbella. On our first night we watched the Wales - Scotland rugby game in an English pub with some Welsh men.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/roman-mosaic-tile-floors.jpg" alt="Roman mosaic tile floors" width="1000px" />
<em>Roman mosaic tile floors</em></p>
<p>Eager to see this Golden Mile, Julie and I set off on about a 5 mile run along the beautiful coast towards Puerto Banús. Along the way Julie noted that we could visit some Roman ruins, and we were delighted to see an extensive series of mosaic tiled floors. We crossed a few inlet streams as well, with a nice finish as we entered Puerto Banús and were treated with egrets, ducks, coots, and more.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/personal-watercraft-in-the-port.jpg" alt="Personal watercraft in the port" width="1000px" />
<em>Personal watercraft in the port</em></p>
<p>In the port I was able to fill out my exotic car bingo card: Porsche, Ferrari, Maserati, Bentley, and so on. There were some large yachts, though nothing like the monster we saw in Málaga. I doubt this marina is equipped for the giants. Lots of beautiful people, many signs in Arabic, all the high-end shopping you could wish for. We wish for none of that, so we hopped on a bus back to Marbella.</p>
2024-02-10T03:20:32-05:002024-02-10T03:20:32-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/10/marbellaChris Brooks<p>Our return to the European continent was on a flight from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria back to Málaga, and from there we caught an Avanza bus (pre-booked, a requirement!) down the coast to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marbella?wprov=sfti1">Marbella</a>.</p>
Las Palmas and Gran Canaria<p>We enjoyed a respite from museums (mostly) and our normal tourist routine in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Las_Palmas">Las Palmas de Gran Canaria</a>.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/julie-and-i-learned-how-to-chill-on-a-beach.jpg" alt="Julie and I learned how to chill on a beach" width="1000px" />
<em>Julie and I learned how to chill on a beach</em></p>
<p>We did a lot of the above in Las Palmas, just hanging out on the beach. This is not normal for us. In Marrakech we saw way more cats than dogs, so I asked Julie what she expected to see in Gran Canaria: more dogs or cats? Dogs are a big deal in Spain, but we didn’t know what to expect in the Canary Islands. Julie chose cats, I chose dogs. Turns out naked boobs were probably the winner.</p>
<p>Our beach time was mostly spent on Playa de Las Canteras, an excellent beach that is protected by a barrier reef around low tide. Every day we were there it was packed: distance swimmers, paddle boarders, snorkelers, and sunbathers. Julie discovered a pleasant tide pool at the south end of the beach where we found some cool critters (sea slugs!). We enjoyed swimming out in the calm waters to the reef. Fish were always present and we wished we had masks and snorkels.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/from-the-beautiful-beach-promenade-in-las-palmas.jpg" alt="From the beautiful beach promenade in Las Palmas" width="1000px" />
<em>From the beautiful beach promenade in Las Palmas</em></p>
<p>There’s a promenade along the length of the beach with nice restaurants, bars and shops. Every night there would be athletic activity going on (until about 10pm): beach volleyball, ultimate, and strength training. The beach and promenade were very well lit, and the busker quality (classical and flamenco guitar!) was top notch.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/the-dunes-of-maspalomas.jpg" alt="The dunes of Maspalomas" width="1000px" />
<em>The dunes of Maspalomas</em></p>
<p>On our first full day on Gran Canaria we took the bus across the island to the beach resort town of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maspalomas?wprov=sfti1#">Maspalomas</a> (BTW that might be the worst page I’ve ever seen on Wikipedia), with our primary goal being a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maspalomas_Dunes?wprov=sfti1">hike through the dunes</a>. The town itself: gross. I think it is the Spanish version of West Palm Beach, with gated resorts and bungalow housing and same-same beach architecture. We walked through the Hotel Riu Palace gateway to the dunes, crossing west to the landmark lighthouse.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/the-cave-painting-museum.jpg" alt="The cave painting museum" width="1000px" />
<em>The cave painting museum</em></p>
<p>Continuing our adventures on the wonderful Guagua bus service, on our final day we visited <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%A1ldar?wprov=sfti1">Gáldar</a>. This is yet another beautiful mountain town, situated on the west coast of Gran Canaria and home to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Painted_Cave,_Galdar?wprov=sfti1">painted cave</a>. This museum was impressive! It reminded me of the work I saw starting at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akrotiri_(prehistoric_city)?wprov=sfti1">Akrotiri on Santorini</a> back in 1990: and open air shelter with walkways through the ruins. The paintings are likely contemporary with <a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/rock-art-from-moab-to-green-river/">rock art Julie and I have seen in southern Utah</a>.</p>
<hr />
<p>My overall take on Gran Canaria: I’d go back for urban beach relaxation in Las Palmas, and possibly for some extensive hiking or backpacking in the interior. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenerife?wprov=sfti1">Tenerife</a> is interesting for the same reasons, plus it has the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teide?wprov=sfti1#">highest peak in Spain</a> (!! on an island!!) that is 24,600 ft tall when measured from the ocean floor. I have zero interest in going to any of the beach resort destinations.</p>
2024-02-09T04:42:20-05:002024-02-09T04:42:20-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/09/las-palmas-and-gran-canariaChris Brooks<p>We enjoyed a respite from museums (mostly) and our normal tourist routine in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Las_Palmas">Las Palmas de Gran Canaria</a>.</p>
Moto Scooter on Gran Canaria<p>I rented a three-wheel scooter for a grand island adventure on Gran Canaria, with spectacular stops and mild regrets.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/our-three-wheeled-moto.jpg" alt="Our three wheeled moto" width="1000px" />
<em>Our three wheeled moto</em></p>
<p>While Gran Canaria has a great bus system which we used extensively, we knew there were several spots that would be difficult to get to without our own transportation. Additionally, I’d read that parking can be scarce at some of the hiking spots. I decided to rent a scooter in Las Palmas. The rental service I used allowed me to filter by actual scooters I could rent with just a normal driver license, and I found one that was powerful and bit more expensive. I was mildly confused because I thought only lower powered scooters would be available to a non-motorcycle-licensed driver like me. I should note that I drove scooters extensively throughout Vietnam and felt up to the task.</p>
<p>When the scooter was presented to us it all became clear: I was renting a <a href="https://www.piaggio.com/gb_EN/models/piaggio-mp3/">Piaggio MP3</a>, a special heavy scooter with two front wheels. I suspect this three wheel configuration allows them to bypass the normal rental rules. I can see how this would be a great scooter with experience, but man was it hard to get used to. And I had to do that fast: small mountain roads, plenty of traffic, major tight switchback climbing and descending. The hardest part was getting it stable for parking and restarting, a concern that appears to be shared by many after reading some scooter forums. It has this lock-stability mode for parking and getting off, but it doesn’t like to disengage it unless the bike is stable – I guess that’s OK. But stabilizing before restarting was a struggle, and there were a few times where we almost dropped the bike over sideways. It was a beast to manhandle.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/alley-in-firgas.jpg" alt="Alley in Firgas" width="1000px" />
<em>Alley in Firgas</em></p>
<p>OK, back to the tour. It was amazing! Our first stop was in the quaint town of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firgas?wprov=sfti1">Firgas</a>, one of the mountain towns with a fresh water source. This shows up in some amazing fountain works in town, plus all the trucks you see driving around carrying bottles of Firgas water. Most of the municipal fresh water supply comes from desalination plants with a fairly icky taste. We loved the steep alley display with relief maps and crests of each of the major Canary Islands.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/tejeda.jpg" alt="Tejeda" width="1000px" />
<em>Tejeda</em></p>
<p>I was so focused on the road in front of me that it was hard to see the many wonderful views as we passed through the mountains, but I could take a bit of it in through my peripheral vision. One of the prettiest towns was <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tejeda?wprov=sfti1">Tejeda</a>, a popular tourist day visit spot. This was also our first experience cruising the scooter through what appeared to be a pedestrian-only main drag (it wasn’t).</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/near-the-roque-nublo-peak.jpg" alt="Near the Roque Nublo peak" width="1000px" />
<em>Near the Roque Nublo peak</em></p>
<p>We did one hike and climb up to the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roque_Nublo?wprov=sfti1">Roque Nublo</a> peak (rather, just shy of it), the third highest peak (by a tiny margin) on Gran Canaria. The trailhead indeed would have presented parking challenges for us in a car, but I suspect that a short wait would have allowed us to park. While there were great views from the peak, the air quality on Gran Canaria was poor during most of our visit, presumably because of the sand and dust blowing off the Sahara a short distance to the east.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/julie-perched-in-one-of-the-caves.jpg" alt="Julie perched in one of the caves" width="1000px" />
<em>Julie perched in one of the caves</em></p>
<p>I think the highlight of the day was the hike to and visit of the <a href="https://www.senderismograncanaria.com/cuevas-de-la-audiencia/">Cuevas de la Audiencia</a>. The hike went through arid desert terrain reminiscent of Utah and Nevada, with lots of cactus and yuccas. What a payoff with the caves! You walk through a tunnel that reminded us of a passage tomb, only to find yourself in a honeycomb of caves perched at the top of the cliffs overlooking the road we had just ridden on. Incredible views, with some holes in the ground dropping 200 feet or so to the desert below.</p>
2024-02-08T08:45:31-05:002024-02-08T08:45:31-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/08/moto-scooter-on-gran-canariaChris Brooks<p>I rented a three-wheel scooter for a grand island adventure on Gran Canaria, with spectacular stops and mild regrets.</p>
Carnaval in Las Palmas<p>It is carnaval season in Spain, and we had our first encounter in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.</p>
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<p>About a mile from our AirBnB in Las Palmas we found the main stage, with the preliminary events all free to the public. We attended on two nights: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murga?wprov=sfti1">Murgas</a> (first night, first round) and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparsa?wprov=sfti1">Comparsas</a>.</p>
<p>In my video above, the first two clips are murgas. The difference in vocal quality was astonishing – compare the first clip to the second, listening to the harmonies and tight coordination. The rest of the clips are from the comparsas. We loved it all, but decided that the comparsas are more of a costume contest than a dancing contest. But those costumes!!</p>
<p>The murgas each have a signature song for their group, and it was so cool seeing folks around us sing along. These carnival celebrations re-emerged after the end of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francoist_Spain?wprov=sfti1#">Franco era</a> and are a vehicle for social commentary. Some of the murgas themes were, for example, focused on LGBTQ rights.</p>
2024-02-05T02:27:16-05:002024-02-05T02:27:16-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/05/carnaval-in-las-palmasChris Brooks<p>It is carnaval season in Spain, and we had our first encounter in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.</p>
Marrakech Meh<p>Oh Marrakech. I’m glad we visited, but I doubt we’ll return.</p>
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<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/another-narrow-marketplace-alley.jpg" alt="Another narrow marketplace alley" width="1000px" />
<em>Another narrow marketplace alley</em></p>
<p>This was our first trip to Africa, and our first encounter with a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medina_quarter?wprov=sfti1#Historical_background">medina</a>. I had proximate experience, having visited old Jerusalem plus some West Bank towns that have a similar feel.</p>
<p>There’s an attraction for us to this alien-to-western experience. Minarets, the call to prayer, strange garb, very foreign language. Julie was a wee bit nervous, though I had done my homework and ruled out Tangier and Casablanca that have developed a reputation of being not-so-friendly to tourists. Hustles in the markets, concerns about personal safety, and so on.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/lunch-on-a-rooftop-terrace.jpg" alt="Lunch on a rooftop terrace" width="1000px" />
<em>Lunch on a rooftop terrace</em></p>
<p>In many ways we had a great visit to Marrakech. I’ve written about our <a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/29/morocco-atlas-mountains-adventure">two</a> <a href="https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/01/28/marrakech-quad-excursion">excursions</a>. The food on average was better than Spain, and slightly less expensive. Alcohol was harder to come by, which we viewed as a net positive. Many of our dining experiences were on rooftop terraces with views across the medina, minarets always filling the horizon.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/some-live-music-for-dinner.jpg" alt="Some live music for dinner" width="1000px" />
<em>Some live music for dinner</em></p>
<p>We stayed in a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riad_%28architecture%29?wprov=sfti1">riad</a>, and dined in at least two other riads. The staff in our riad were incredibly friendly, and our breakfast varied each morning and was always tasty. One dinner riad had live music with an <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oud?wprov=sfti1">Oud</a>.</p>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/twelve-chambered-room-in-the-tombs.jpg" alt="Twelve Chambered Room in the tombs" width="1000px" />
<em>Twelve Chambered Room in the tombs</em></p>
<p>The historical and touristy sites were below average. A few museums are closed (earthquake damage, death of proprietor) and the mosques are generally not a visiting option for non-muslims. The <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bahia_Palace?wprov=sfti1">Bahia Palace</a> was decent, though very similar architecture to the Andalucían palaces we’d been seeing in Spain but not as well preserved.</p>
<p>Three exceptions were:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Photography_of_Marrakesh?wprov=sfti1#">The House of Photography</a> – I wanted to see old photos of Marrakech and the surrounding country, and this museum had it all. Well curated and in a pleasant riad.</li>
<li>The <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saadian_Tombs?wprov=sfti1">Saadian Tombs</a> are are nice short stop to see an extremely well preserved necropolis, particularly the Chamber of the Twelve Columns.</li>
<li>In the new part of town there’s a complex focused on <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yves_Saint_Laurent_%28designer%29?wprov=sfti1">Yves Saint Laurent</a>, with a botanical garden, fashion museum, and Berber cultural museum (which I adored).</li>
</ul>
<p><img src="https://chrisbrooks.org/assets/2024/02/the-tanning-operation.jpg" alt="The tanning operation" width="1000px" />
<em>The tanning operation</em></p>
<p>Our visit ended on a frustrating note as we ventured into the east and less touristed part of the medina to visit the tanneries. There we encountered a systematic tourist exploitation racket, whereby you are funneled by young friendly men as you approach the area to eventually be handed off to a “guide” that explains the tanning process, then walks you into a leather goods store where you will hopefully buy some goods. We did not, and folks were not happy with us. High pressure, high guilt scenario. We did tip the guide (after returning his mint sprigs). Even as we tried to leave the area back towards the central square, we were again corralled by an aggressive young man who insisted that we could not take the road back because it is closed because of a mosque. We redirected just to avoid an encounter with him, only to be followed and harassed for another few blocks.</p>
<p>I get it: everybody is looking to make a dirham, and they have good reasons for animosity towards Europeans and Americans. Still, I can’t imagine the store owners operating along the road were happy about this activity going on. Or the honest hoteliers and restauranteurs running legit businesses. It was scary, uncomfortable, and not a good finish to our visit. Fortunately we can reflect on all the good people we did encounter on this adventure. More self policing would be good business. Perhaps the hotels and riads should have signs in their lobby: thinking about going to the tanneries? Talk to us first!</p>
2024-02-04T10:45:28-05:002024-02-04T10:45:28-05:00https://chrisbrooks.org/blog/2024/02/04/marrakech-mehChris Brooks<p>Oh Marrakech. I’m glad we visited, but I doubt we’ll return.</p>