One last trip … more of Spain!

We decided to do a last European adventure in Spain, spending a few days in Barcelona visiting with friends and then meeting up with Jo in Seville to do a driving trip around Andalucia.

In Barcelona we visited Gaudi’s Casa Battilo, which was just recently opened to the public. It is my favourite building in Barcelona and the inside did not disappoint. The building is inspired by nature and is filled with curves, rounded shapes and coloured tiles. The centre of the building is designed to maximise the use of light and starts with light blue tiles and large windows at the bottom, transitioning to dark blue tiles and smaller windows at the top. Ahhh! I would love this to be my home!!





That was the most touristy thing we did in Barcelona, we spent the rest of the time catching up with Sonsoles, Llorenc, Joan and Marta, eating delicious food and being entertained by their very cute kids! We also got to meet Pau for the first time – he is so good natured and sweet! The weekend we were there was carnival time and a chance for the kids to dress up at school. The whole time we were there we saw little people running around in costumes – it was quite funny.

On the weekend we all drove down to Tarragona (just outside Barcelona) to visit Poblet (a large monastery), the actual city of Tarragona and El Circ (a roman ruin) – apparently they are discovering all sorts of old ruins in Tarragona these days and most importantly to try 'calcot' at Chez Felix! Calcot is an onion dish that is served only in February/March. It looks like a young spring onion which is pulled out of the ground early and cooked over an open fire. You put on a big bib and some plastic gloves, pull of the burned bits, dip the onion in sauce and then eat it! It was GOOD! Wow, I’ve never eaten so many onions before. This was followed by artichokes, lamb, sausages, wine, champagne, coffee, crema catalayn and a very very full stomach. YUM! By the end of our trip we were well into Spanish meal times, having a big lunch around 2pm and a light dinner around 8pm-9pm. Actually I must say that we followed the timing of meals, but not really the proportions!



On Sunday, we flew out to Sevilla where we met up with Joanne. Sevilla is a lively city with brightly painted facades, colourful tiles and bright sunshine. The streets are lined with orange trees! (we tried one – very sour!). We visited the Santa Maria de la sde cathedral (3rd largest in Europe after St. Peter, Vatican and St. Paul, London), we got a bit confused visiting it as it was a Sunday and we kept getting kicked out and seeing closed signs only to return and see it opened! No I don't think it was personal! It has towering ceilings and a very large gold alter – apparently the largest in the world, according to the Guinness book of world record certificate framed and hanging to prove it. The cathedral also houses the remains of Christopher Columbus (although according to the Rick Steve’s book, the remains are currently being tested for authenticity!). We did a very thorough wander through the little lanes (some so thin they are called ‘kissing lanes’) of the old Jewish quarter, renamed the Barrio Santa Cruz. It is sad to see that the Jew’s have had a tough time throughout Europe. The area is filled with tapa bars, restaurants, hotels and little shops and is quite charming. We found a flamenco place there called Los Gallos and returned for a show that evening. It was really good, wow - some very very fast moving feet, hand clapping, soulful singing and excellent guitar playing.



We also spent a little shopping time in Sevilla (well mainly Jo : ) and took in the Alcazar. The Alcazar is a 10th century palace rebuilt in the 14th century by Pedro I (1334-1369), apparently he fled from his wife and then built the Alcazar for his mistress. It is interesting as it was built by moors (Muslims from Africa), in the Moorish style, but for a Christian rular. Images are not generally present in religious décor. So while the Alcazar looks very Moorish in style (e.g. lots of scripture pressed into plaster in intricate designs) - you will also find lions, peacocks and other images in the décor. It is very colourful and quite amazing to see.

The second floor of the Alcazar is the Gothic King Charles Wing (1530’s). It looks quite different from the first floor and is bathed in yellow painted tiles and orange painted walls. The gardens surrounding the Alcazar are filled with orange and palm trees and would be a fabulous place to spend a sunny day (unfortunately it was raining really hard when we were there).

Our driving trip took us through the white hill towns of Andalucia, including ..

Arcos de la Frontera – where we had ‘nun cookines’ purchased at a local convent through a one way mirror and spinning cupboard … pine nut cookies – lots of them … they were good.

A quick drive through Grazalema ..

Ronda, one of the largest white hill towns with the oldest bull ring, a Moorish presence in much of the architecture and El Tajo – a picturesque ravine that divides the town. We had a great lunch and view there at a restaurant called Escudero.

Along the way it was all about tapas, tapas, tapas … jamon (ham), tortilla (spanish omlette), chorizo, friend fish, Russian salad (lots of mayonnaise), churros and chocolate milk, cheese sandwiches for Jo, zuma naranja (freshly squeezed OJ), café con leche (milk coffee) and a little cerveca to wash it all down! In Sevilla we went to a tapas bar called Cervecerta 100 Montaditos (Montaditos are small sandwiches) – they had 100 types of small sandwiches (like a mini baguette) each for 1 euro. I quite like the idea of rocking up to a bar and ordering lots of little dishes over the counter whether it be breakfast, lunch or dinner. We became (actually probably mostly Steve) quite proficient at getting in on the ordering action at the bar, if it’s busy you have to really work to get yourself noticed.

We also stopped off in Granada, which is a great city to visit. Unfortunately we didn’t have much time, but did manage to squeeze in a visit to the Royal Chapel which houses the bodies of Queen Isabelle, King Ferdinand, their daughter Juana and her husband King Philip the Fair. The chapel is quite pretty and there is one section where you walk right past their very modest (at Queen Isabella’s request) black coffins – felt a bit tooo close! Isabelle and Ferdinand defeated the Moorish rular King Boabdil and worked to unite large parts of Europe as a unified Christian nation. They also sponsored Christopher Columbus who would later touch down in the Americas. When King Philip came to power he brought together what was once known as the Holy Roman Empire, a substantial chunk of Europe (1519-1556). There was a room with some of Isabelle and Ferdinand’s art collection and royal finery. I really liked the design of Isabelle’s silver crown – very simple and elegant.

We also went to the Alhambra – a definite must see! The Alhambra is divided into three main parts.

Charles V Palace – which was built over a Moorish Palace – the building façade looks like it’s made of puffy blocks.

Alcazaba Forts – the original Alhambra, now mostly ruined, but provides some fabulous views of Granada.

And the main event … the Palacios Nazaries, a Moorish Palace built in the 14th century. It is filled with rooms with carved wood ceilings, plaster walls with calligraphy like writing pressed into it and intricately designed arches, colourful ceramic tiles and filigree (think lacy looking) windows. Visually the Palace is amazing.

We made a last stop in Cordoba before driving back to Sevilla. In Cordoba I had booked a 4 star hotel on expedia.com for something like 2.93 pounds!! And since they would only allow two people per room, I booked 2!! rooms at 2.93 pounds for a total under 6 pounds. Seemed to good to be true and I kept waiting for a catch or an email cancellation or something??!! The hotel was very nice and very large for Europe, we checked in and the hotel guy didn’t blink an eye??!! We checked later and I think they did a typo when they posted the price … worked for us!

In Cordoba we visited the Mezquita – the largest Islamic mosque in it’s day .. today a Christian church. It’s large size and row upon row of candy cane arches are what make it a unique and an impressive sight.

Sigh ... our last trip in Europe this year ... definitely much more to see in Spain .. but we’ll have to leave it for next time!

Amsterdam!

Amsterdam, the Netherlands (jan 30- feb2)

It’s been more than 10 years (can’t believe it) when I was last in Amsterdam and at school in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. There was some difference, but much the same and many a site brought back memories from the past. Amsterdam was and still is a very unique place on this planet!! A thriving and legal red light district with tax paying prostitutes, brownie laden coffee shops and ‘smart shops' (shroom room) - all signs of a very open minded society. Apparently, there have been a few incidents in recent years (one being the shooting of a filmmaker who made a controversial film (I vaguely remember reading about it in Vancouver) that have led to heavy debate about the balance between individual freedom/rights and the laws of the country and the collective.

We took in the usual touristy sites …the Van Gogh museum – love Vincent Van Gogh! - the museum now has a new spiffy, modern looking wing which showcases art by artists influenced by Van Gogh …the red light district, always interesting, the women looked less sad then I remembered them from last time, not sure why? And why red light you might ask? Apparently red light enhances your appearance (good to know!). We also stopped by the Anne Frank museum which too has been renovated and spiffed up (I guess it has been 10 years!), always a moving and sobering place to visit and of course a trip to Amsterdam is never complete without some strolling along the canal lined streets taking in the tall doll like houses – tall because property tax or something like that used to be paid by width, not height!

On the food front we sampled FEBO – vending machines with hot food, such as burgers and Krokets - not too bad actually (just have to take the ones most recently replaced), fries with mayo (always good), Dutch pancakes,stroopwaffle cookies (yum), pea soup (which tasted like soap – I asked them to change it and it still tasted that way!), raw herring and of course! Indonesian food (great in Holland!) – we went for a progressive Indonesian meal where 18 small dishes are served each getting progressively spicier. The theory is if you just eat dish 18, it will be too hot, but the dishes get progressively hotter then you won’t notice the really spicy ones as much. That’s the theory anyway, I think I made it to like dish 14. Our last dutch meal with Darryl we went to a ‘Dutch’ restaurant where they served different things on mash potatoes – called stomp or stump or something like that – massively heavy, but actually really good.

Amsterdam is just flooded with bikes, although I might add … not a helmet in site! They also have an excellent system of bike paths. So on day two, we decided to tour the city via the excellent bike paths and rented fiets (bikes) – mine was pink! Bikers rule in Amsterdam, they are everywhere, all the time and yes they have the right of way (vs. walkers anyway) so you seriously need to watch out if you stray into a bike path. Back in my Rotterdam days, the best way for students to get bikes was to hunt out a druggie, who would soon set you up (with most likely something they had just pinched from someone else). I remember buying one for 12 guilders – it got stolen like a week later. Easy come easy go. Apparently they have done much to crack down on bike theft and buying bikes from druggies is supposed to give you bad karma (oops!). We were still given two mighty locks each from the rental shop.

We explored the eastern docklands by bike. It’s a very new, very modern, very futuristic looking part of Amsterdam. It has some funky looking red bridges and an interesting row of flats, each with a different façade.

Lille France

Lille, France (Jan 13-15)



Lille, France is a very pretty city and good for a weekend trip. It’s about a 2 hour Eurostar trip from London. They had a kind of Bollywood theme going, which was kind of a surprise … strange and interesting. One of the main streets is lined by very large elephants, which are permanent fixtures. A lot of the Christmas décor was still up and we took a festive ride on a ferris wheel in the centre of town. The 10th largest city in France, Lille is a great place to wander and shop! We also spent some time at the Wazemmes Market which covers the Place de la Nouvelle Adventure. It’s quite large and packed with people and goods like 1 Euro bijoux tables, shoes, veg, rows of roasting chickens and stacks of Vietnamese spring rolls. One night we went for Japanese food – they had CHEESE sushi! (No I didn’t order it.)

A very busy week ...

We arrived back from S.Africa on a Wednesday morning, eager to hear news from the UK Home Office about a Visa we had applied for, been rejected on and appealed. The news would determine our next 6 months or so and if we would stay a bit longer or head home. We had three working days before our current visa expired and there were a lot of things that had to been put in to play over the next three days. We rushed home in anticipation only to find there was … no reply!! (Consider we had been in this ‘process’ since the end of September and busy collecting information for it a month before) A call to the UK Home Office confirmed that the application was still not assigned to a reviewer and that my 4+ urgent treatment forms had somehow not been received!!! Apparently faxes don’t always get through and not sure what the issue is with the mail! Frustration at an all time high we had to make a decision, so we decided this is a sign – time to go home. The week then progressed with catching up on and transition of work and clients (my poor co-worker Maxine had just returned from Maternity leave!) on Wed, Thurs and Friday. By Friday we had also booked a weekend trip to Lille, France (just over the border) to get ‘visitor status’ and to avoid becoming an illegal immigrant! We also booked tickets out of the UK to China (decided to go to mandarin lessons in Beijing). This was essential to be able to get back into the UK. We spent the weekend in Lille and then rounded off the week with my parents and my A.Freda arriving in London, en route from S.Africa! It was actually great that we weren’t working as we could spend time with them in London. Phew… hectic week, I felt most productive, especially since a few weeks before I’d been lying like a still log on the beach ….

New store on the block ..cream puffs are a good stress reliever ...

The next week my brother and his friend Johnny arrived in London. It was great to also have time off when they were here to show them around. We also had incentive to start ‘touring’ London again and saying our wistful goodbye’s to places and people we would miss. We also gave notice on our flat and soon after the agent found a tenant to move in the 3rd week in February. On the visa front … while all this other stuff was going on … not much happened! Two weeks later on a Saturday morning (they deliver mail on Saturday’s here!) the visa saga ended with a letter saying the visa had been APPROVED!!! …. well we can always come back … c’est la vie!!

South Africa - Kimberly & Joburg

Kimberly, my Dad's hometown, with a population of 166,000 was much bigger than I had imagined! Great to be back where the King family grew up. I still remember certain rooms in the King family home from my visit in the mid-80’s? and they looked much the same. We visited Kimberly’s top tourist attraction – the big hole – a very very large hole, much of it dug by hand! We learned about the diamond rush in the mid-late 1800’s. We were surprisingly impressed by the newly renovated museum, it was informative, interesting and includes a viewing deck of the big hole, which I might add is filled with this lovely blue shade of water.

On to the main event and the main driver for our trip to S.Afrcia – Jacqui and Donovan’s wedding! Relatives came out from various parts of S.Africa, London, Vancouver and Melbourne for the big day and it was a great family reunion, made more special because we all stayed where my dad and his family grew up. The wedding was lovely, the bride was beautiful, the speeches were heartfelt (and funny!) and the food was delicious! A wonderful day!

The day after the wedding was spent “braaing” (probably not the proper use of that word?? - A braais is a S.African BBQ) at the Wayland Farm (Donovan’s family farm). They had a whole lamb on a spit and lots of lovingly marinated meat. Donovan’s mom also made a very delicious trifle!! One of the Wayland cousins took us on a short hike through the property, which was massive and up to the ‘ringing rock’. Donovan also took the whole King family on a bucky (open truck) tour of the farm … pretty funny sight to see the “King” family young and ‘older’ all piled into and standing up in the back of the ‘bucky’.

The next day we went white water rafting on the Orange River a few hours outside of Kimberly. I was quite interested to see where a river would appear in this area as Kimberly is pretty dry! After a morning of rafting, we got cleaned up and drove to Johannesburg (about 4-5 hour drive) with my cousin Laura and Warren, partaking in a good ole ‘Steers’ burger along the way! Our trip to Kimberly was definitely all about family. I met my cousin Christine (who lives there) for the first time! And got to catch up and spend time with other rellies that I have not seen in a long time. Hanging with the cousin’s is always a good time and I thoroughly enjoyed what felt like a bit of a homecoming.


We had a short stay in Johannesburg, but did manage to squeeze in some sights with help from Laura and Warren. We were treated to some excellent Sushi (not something you eat a lot in London!), a cool craft fair, where I got my bead fix and most notably spent some time at the Apartheid museum. The museum is well put together and requires a lot of time to get through. It begins segregating visitors on two paths based on colour (which is on the card they give you at the entrance), which right away sets the scene and feeling of segregation to help visitors just begin to consider how it might be to live life in this way. The museum is a bit of an emotional journey – anger, sadness, despair but also passion, dedication and triumph. This museum was an interesting end to our journey in S.Africa and left me deep in thought. Away from the restaurants, night life, beaches and the safari’s, speaking to locals and at historic tourist sites such as district 6, the Bokaap, the township and especially at the apartheid museum S. Africa’s past came alive for us. I’ve always heard about apartheid and it’s effects from my parents and relatives who grew up there. I even remember seeing a whites only toilet sign when I visited in the early 80’s, but I was quite young then and for some reason I don’t think I really ‘got’ the full impact of appartheid until this visit. Imagine just 15 years ago in S.Africa, 80% of the population, all blacks, could not vote, could not live in certain areas, could not have a relationship with someone not black, could not hope to progress in life, nor have a vote to make changes. Coming from Canada this seems unthinkable?! How could this happen? I also learned a lot about the leaders of the time, men like Nelson Mandela who I’ve always heard was great … this trip taught me just how great. South African is in a state of transition; the country has a difficult history to work through and the issues the country faces are definitely complex. There are overall issues that affect all of the population and it seems still very separate challenges and issues depending on what colour you are. It’s three main issues right now are unemployment, crime and aids. Thoughts on the future amongst locals were mixed, but I do think for the majority of the population (mainly the black population) there was a general feeling of hope that things would improve, that history would be unwound by generations to come and for them, having survived the past apartheid system, thing are improving. It is definitely a country to be passionate about, it has so many wonderful things about it, starting with the sun!, the land, the wildlife and especially the people. Tot Ziens!