In many ways, I ran to Cuenca. Roughly two hours outside of Spain’s capital in the Castile-La Mancha region, the small town of my refuge teeters on a rocky ridge. Like a tightrope walker, I tip-topped through this UNESCO World Heritage city, almost as if I wasn’t supposed to be here. Then again, I wasn’t. Cuenca was never on my Spanish itinerary, until perhaps by happenstance, we checked into what could have been a minimum-security prison in Madrid. Just off of Puerta del Sol, I lost a little piece of my soul in that Madrid hotel. The accommodations reeked of trash, attracted salty characters Continue Reading
Zaragoza, Spain Wishes You Were Here
Every time we left a roof over our heads in Zaragoza, it rained. No matter the shelter, from awnings, hotel roofs to rentals cars, without fail, Zaragoza opened up and poured out to us. With nothing more than the imagination of how appropriate an umbrella would suit this situation, we carried on, determined to get the most out of one day, our only day, with the city often lost between the shuffle of Barcelona and Madrid. Even in the rain, Zaragoza greets in grand fashion. Located on the banks of the Ebro River, the provincial capital of Aragón boasts a history dating back to the Romans and Continue Reading
Spain By The Parador
In a quiet corner of La Mancha, we arrive to our accommodations for the night, a 16th century convent. Our rental car dips beneath an archway and instantly grumbles. The stones below the tires are old and bumpy, producing a sound only medieval stones can. We park in the courtyard, next to a bubbling fountain. Some other guests are arriving at the same time of the gray hair variety. The couple takes one look at my husband and I in wonder. “What are these young people doing staying in such grand digs?,” they seem to say. Tonight we aren't staying in a crumbling guesthouse, hostel or budget Continue Reading
Catedral de Mallorca Wishes You Were Here
The day was long and my feet throbbed with every step forward. Putting one foot in the front of the other was a struggle on my last day in Mallorca’s capital city of Palma de Mallorca. I saw its major architectural landmark only in passing and under the cover of night. It glowed in a way churches in Europe always seem to at night with an inextricable gleam of magic. Anyone gazing upon them must believe in something. By the daylight, I was less than enthused to enter yet another church in Europe, but this was Palma’s big cheese, the Catedral de Mallorca. Perched in the old town of the city, Continue Reading
Wine Tasting Back in Time in Mallorca
I have been on wine tastings before, but never one that takes place in a time machine. The bus screeches to a halt where the landscape has changed from sparkling beaches to rows and rows of vines. I’m in between the towns of Inca and Muro on the Balearic Island of Mallorca. Wine tastings often take you through the winery, vineyards and onto a tasting room, where you learn just what you should taste and why. The Son Ramon vineyard however doesn’t produce wine in the ordinary manner. Set up on an estate with vineyards from 1760, a glass comes with the uncanny ability to transport the sipper Continue Reading
Alcúdia, Mallorca Wishes You Were Here
Early in the morning, I board the bus in Palma half asleep and wake at the Port d’Alcúdia. It feels as though a great deal of time has passed judging from the window-face I now adorn, but I’m just 54 kilometers from Palma. I have crossed the island to another world that knows no time. Alcúdia sits in northeastern Mallorca. While the historic center is the main attraction, I begin by exploring its waters at the port. The area affords over 30 kilometers of coastline, littered in sun-seekers, sands and holiday homes. It is possible to cruise the Badia d’Alcúdia, but not entirely Continue Reading
Sóller, Mallorca Wishes You Were Here
I step off of the wooden train car into a state of isolation in Sóller. For centuries Sóller kept to herself, cut off from the island. The sea functioned as Sóller’s only means of communicating with the outside world. The peaks of the Tramuntana mountain range wanted to keep Sóller forever in that isolation, but the historic train route from Palma altered that agenda in 1912. The train station welcomes in a variety of languages, suggesting Sóller is not so alone these day. The building itself used to be an ancient fortified house from the 17th century. It would later take on the identity of a Continue Reading