The People's Choices

Typically I don't do trip questions when it is just Carol and I.  However, this trip we visited so many cities/towns/villages that I decided Carol should get a voice too.  I've answered the questions too.

Favorite cities -- Carol

1. Albarracin - beautiful, walls 

2. Avila - walls , cathedral, beautiful

3. Toledo - great churches, history

4. Salamanca - plaza mayor, university vibe

5. Segovia- aqueduct , hotel

Favorite cities -- Glen

1.  Albarracin -- everything you want in a mountain village.

2.  Avila -- the walls and cathedral, especially when bathed in late afternoon sunlight.

3.  Segovia -- I'm captivated by the Aqueduct.

4.  Toledo -- Stunning city, probably the most complete of all we visited.  Weird that it ended up 4th for me.

5.  Salamanca -- youthful vibe, and loved our apartment on Plaza Mayor.

Favorite sites -- Carol

1. Leon cathedral - stained glass

2. Walking up the Albarracin walls and around the city

3. Walking tour of Toledo

4. Valencia Sistine chapel church of St Nicolas

5. Segovia Aqueduct

Favorite sites -- Glen 

1.  Segovia Aqueduct

2.  Avila walls

3.  Winery tour

4.  Toledo walking tour

5.  Albarracin walls, narrow alleys

Favorite restaurants -- Carol

1. Restaurant in Albarracin: Alizia Casa de Comidas 

2.  Restaurant in Toledo: La Orza Restaurante

3. Restaurant in Segovia: La Codorniz

Favorite restaurants -- Glen

1.  Madrid: Celso y Manolo

2.  Albarracin: Alizia Casa de Comidas 

3.  Segovia: Jose Maria 

Favorite Museum -- Carol

Reina Sophia  - Guernica

Favorite Museum -- Glen

Joaquin Sorolla Museum 

Top Cathedrals -- Carol

1. Leon 

2 Salamanca

3. Toledo

Top Cathedrals -- Glen

1.  Leon

2.  Toledo

3.  Avila

Best city walls -- Carol

1. Avila

2. Albarracin

Best city walls -- Glen

Same

Best hotels -- Carol

1 Segovia - great room, nice bathroom, nice outdoor space

2. Leon - great shower, Dyson hairdryer, nice outdoor patio

3. Madrid - great shower, big room , central location

(Glen -- same)

Best VRBO -- Carol

1. Salamanca - on Plaza Mayor, little balcony, washer

2.  Valencia - near beach, very comfortable, fully stocked, washer

Best VRBO -- Glen

I would put Carol's two as tied.  Valencia was cozy, well stocked, and in a great neighborhood.  Being on Plaza Mayor, especially with the balcony, was a thrill in Salamanca. 

Back To Madrid

Since our flight out of Madrid back to Dulles was at noon on Monday, we trained back from Valencia to Madrid on Sunday, giving us Sunday afternoon to do some things in Madrid.  Fittingly, our train from Valencia left from the Joaquin Sorolla station.

After Metro'ing from the Chamartin train station in Madrid, we were happy to get back to the Aloft Madrid Gran Via and end up in the same large room we had spent the first two nights at the beginning of the trip.  It wasn't a suite or anything, but it was larger than most of the rooms in the hotel because of the layout of the building.

We then headed back up to Sorolla museum so that we could take pictures and video of the beautiful fountain in the garden of the house.  Since the garden is open from the front gate, we didn't have to buy tickets.  We have this crazy idea of having a similar fountain put in our backyard in place of the current never-ending stream, which doesn't work that well.  Well, it's only an idea unless the price to do it is not outrageous.  We'll see what happens.

Back at the hotel, we decided to do the Gran Via walk, which included a stop in a very cool cocktail bar.  Gran Via has wonderful architecture all along it.  This was a good way to end our sightseeing in Madrid.

Madrid city hall.

Bar Chicote

Along Gran Via. . .

At the suggestion of our neighbor and friend Jeff Farrah, we had our last dinner at Celso Y Manolo, which turned out to be one of my favorite meals of the trip.  A small tapas place off the beaten path, the food and atmosphere was delicious.  

We ended up talking to a couple from Marietta, Georgia, seated at the table next to ours.  They were in the early stages of a 53 day tour through Spain, Provence, Italy, and Switzerland.  Wow.  Not sure even the Iron Tourist could do that long of a trip.

We had the CHULETÓN DE TOMATE® CON 6 COSAS RICAS, which is the biggest tomato we've ever had before.  It's tomato with avocado, papaya, seasonal fruit, red onion, cucumber, pine nuts from San Esteban, organic olive oil from Siurana and fresh herbs.  We had a platter of JAMON DEL BUENO, the CA ZUELITA MARINER A 'CUDILLERO' which is octopus, clams and mussels, with crunchy potatoes, and finished with CHURRASQUITO, which is organic veal churrasco with chimichurri sauce.  Every dish was delicious, and I would highly recommend getting reservations!

Riffs On Spain

Look, we make no secret that Spain is our favorite country to visit.  We’ve been a lot of fantastic places in this world, but Spain calls to us as no other does.  It’s not just the architecture and art, it’s not just gastronomy and vino, it’s not just history and culture, so it’s hard to say exactly why.  

If you are thinking of going to Spain, don’t hesitate to contact us for tips and suggestions, whether it’s Andalacia, Barcelona, Basque Country, the Camino region, or Central Spain, we’ve seen a lot of a beautiful country.

Now here’s some riffs:

“Lunch is hard.”  You wouldn’t think so, but there were plenty of times we struggled to find a place to eat lunch, especially in the smaller villages and towns.  Many restaurants are not open for lunch, so, as in Madrid the first day, the few that are open are packed.  There's also very options when driving through the country.  We had at least two lunches while driving, as Carol picked up meat, cheese, and bread at gas stations that had small grocery stores.

There are few things easier than driving the near-empty roads between Spanish cities, cruising along 75-80 miles per hour.   There are few things harder than driving the narrow, confusing roads within Spanish cities, when GPS flakes out and doesn’t know where to direct you to drive.  Those moments were among the most stressful we’ve ever had on a trip.

We really could have done without the late night city drinking/yelling in both Salamanca and Segovia.  Wouldn’t you know that our first night back at our house in Alexandria, we were woken up by the non-stop crying of a fox somewhere nearby.  As John Madden once said on a random football game I was watching back in the 1980s, “Irony can be so ironic.”

Being able to walk as much as we did was fantastic. Drove slightly more than 1100 miles, took two train rides, and walked 323,457 steps for 142.2 miles in 21 days, or 15,402 steps and 6.7 miles per day.  The lowest step count was 8,222, while the high was the first day (despite jet lag) of 24,590.  In terms of mileage, the low was 3.6 miles, while the high was 10.8 miles walked.

Europe is much more pro-pedestrian than the States.  And I don’t just mean how cities are clustered together, I mean in the way that pedestrians have the right of way at most crosswalks.  I trust European drivers to stop at a crosswalk, but it is not something ingrained in American drivers.

Ice is becoming the new normal at restaurants.  Often times now the drinks are cold, and you get ice to boot.

Drinking the local wine in Spain is fantastic.  I think I only ordered one bottle of Rioja on the trip.  It helps that we spent a bunch of time near Ribera del Duero, so that’s a great wine to default to.  To my surprise, most wine lists had no bottles of Priorat, so we didn’t drink any of that region’s wine either. 

Time To Take Our Foot Off The Gas

After 19 days of touring central Spain, our last full day in Valencia, it was time to slow down.  Carol was quite relieved when I suggested a beach day.

After driving 1100 miles, two train trips, five VRBOs, six hotels, and stops in 15 cities/towns/villages, it was time for a down day.

We walked over to the beach, went to one of the kiosks, rented an umbrella and two lounge chairs for 21 Euros.  The umbrella and chairs were already in place, and since we were amongst the first to arrive, we had our choice of umbrella/lounge chair.

The initial plan was to hang for a while, go to lunch in our neighborhood, and then come back for the afternoon.  After being there, I decided I didn't want to leave for lunch, so I bought a couple of bocadillos (sandwiches) for lunch, a sangria for Carol, and cerveza for me.  

We people-watch, read, and admired the sailboats.  

Old Town Valencia was celebrating a festival that day, so it was another reason to stay in our neighborhood and take a beach day.

We left earlier than our planned 6pm departure, as not far to the north there was a massive thunder and lightning storm.  It never ended up raining in Cabanyal, but it was just as well -- we did get more than four relaxed hours in at the beach.

For dinner, we had made reservations at La Pepica, famous for being a favorite of Ernest Hemingway.  Valencia is mentioned in seven of his books, and he ate at La Pepica numerous times.  Other diners there have included Spanish Kings, Orson Welles, and now Carol and Glen.  Right next to the beach, it's touristy but classic; famed for the paella.  We had reserved a table on their patio overlooking the ocean.  We ordered some tasty tapas and a paella.  It was a fine place to eat.

On the way over, we swung by the fountain dedicated to Joaquin Sorolla.  One of the first places we went was to his house/now museum in Madrid, so it was fitting the last stop was at a memorial fountain to him.

The kitchen at La Pepica.

Another view of it.

The Sorolla fountain.

An Underwhelming Sailboat Cruise

Whether it is kayaking, someone's powerboat, a pontoon boat, a catamaran, or a sailboat, I generally really enjoy being on the water (as do most people).

With fond memories of our last time on the Med, in Barcelona 2019, I booked a two-hour sailboat cruise in Valencia and looked forward to it with anticipation.

It was a bit underwhelming.  We never did sail, and I'm not sure if captain Jose Luis thought it was too windy to put the sails up, or if as a one-man crew it would be too much for him, but I was disappointed by it.  We've done a number of sail tours, and this was the first one I felt blah about.

Well, here's some nice pictures from it, and the sunset photo as we were walking back to our apartment turned out spectacularly well.  In fact, I will lead with that first.

The storm never came down to us, but

I think it helped create the sunset

conditions that makes the first photo

so amazing.

Cool cloud formation.

Dinner was both great and annoying.  There is a restaurant, Mar D'Amura, the building right next to our apartment.  The food was great, but they refused to bring us the bill so we could pay and leave for 45 MINUTES after we requested the bill.  They got busier as the evening went on, but ignoring our polite requests caused me to escalate the situation.  I stood at the bar and was still ignored by the two wait staff.  Finally I said "bye-bye" loudly and got ready to walk out with paying.

The waitress was pretty cross when she brought the portable credit card reader over.  It literally took two seconds for the machine to take the chip and for us to go.  Again the food was good, but the fact that they refused to bring us the bill till I threatened to leave left a sour taste in my mouth.

The Cathedral of Valencia

The last major sight we would end up seeing was, fittingly, a cathedral.  Consecrated in 1238, the Valencia Cathedral was, as many were, built on a former Visigoth church that was turned into a mosque.

At the end of the trip, we were kind of done with cathedrals, so Valencia's was a good one to end with.  It was fine, but not spectacular.  It also houses a chalice believed by some to be the one Jesus used at the Last Supper, which makes this about the 20th out of 12 we visited to make that claim (seemingly hyperbole on my part, but maybe not).

There are also numerous paintings from the 15th century, but surprisingly none by El Greco or by Goya.

Strolling Around Valencia

After lunch, we spent some time walking around Old Town Valencia, enjoying the various Plazas.  Here's some photos from the walkabout:

Beautifully carved door.

Plaza de la Virgen.

Huge fountain in the plaza.

The whole town was decorated up

for the festival on Saturday.

Part of city hall.

The Sistine Chapel Of Spain

There's a lot of Valencia we did not get around to seeing.  But one place we made a point of going is known as "the Sistine Chapel of Spain."  It's okay, I had never heard of it before either.

It's the Parroquia de San Nicolas de Bari y San Pedro Martir, a simply beautiful church.  It features more than 20,000 square feet of frescoes, which is really going for Baroque when it comes to frescoes.  

It has roots as a Roman temple, Visigoth church, Moorish mosque, and finally Christian church.  The church really came to be in the 15th century, the frescoes got going in the 1690s.

There are works of art by famous artists I've never heard of, and sculptures sculpted by famous sculptors I've never heard of.

(Editor's Note: I think that says more about your lack of art awareness than anything about these people you've never heard of.  Writer:  I think you are right.)

All in all, it is quite amazing and should be a required stop by anyone going to Valencia, whether for the beach or for Old Town (or both).

Be aware that tourist visits (that's us) aren't allowed on Mondays or during worship services.

This picture gives a sense

of how spectacular the

church is, but doesn't

do it complete justice.

One of the ceiling frescoes. I'm

not sure of the story, but I think

it ends poorly for the fellow

who is sitting down.

A view of the ceiling.

The rose window.

The old mother, goose, and kid story.

Cherubs help hold up the ceiling.

Old Town Valencia

Old Town Alexandria, a scant 4 miles from our house and where my office is located, was founded in 1749.  Old Town Valencia was founded in 130 BC, approximately 1880 years earlier than Old Town Alexandria.  

So maybe Old Town Alexandria should be renamed "Relatively Still New Town Alexandria."  Oh well, I suppose it is all a matter of perspective.  Now that I'm back in the States, I'm still going to shorthand "Old Town" for Alexandria.

Before we went to Old Town Valencia, we walked the five blocks or so to the Cabanyal market, which very impressive for a neighborhood market.  Emilio had also stressed that's the market to buy food at, as the prices are lower than at the famed Central Market of Valencia.  We picked up some strawberries and grapes for the two-hour sailboat ride I had booked for the evening.

Since Old Town Valencia is three miles plus from our apartment, after dropping the food off at the apartment, we walked a bit before we can flag down a taxi.  Emilio had given us specific instructions the day before on where to catch the bus to Old Town, but we promptly forgot the information (except we remembered it was bus #19.  

This may or may not surprise you, but Carol and I aren't exactly bus people.  Subways are great, but buses are confusing, especially when you've never been in a city.  Back in our American University days, we used to take the bus regularly to Dupont Circle, either to hang out there or catch the Metro to other parts of Washington, D.C., and then before we were married, Carol would take the bus downtown to work, but that was seven presidential administrations ago (that's one way of counting when you are in politics).

We first went into the famed Central Market. It's huge, probably the size of LaBoqueria in Barcelona (our favorite market), if not larger.  Later, before lunch, I had a couple of oysters shucked and sucked them down.

The dome on the Central Market

The Central market is even larger

than this photo would indicate.

The dome from below.

Tons of fresh vegetables. . .

Jamon and other meats. . .

Sweets. . .

And seafood.

Fish in the markets always look surprised. . .

or profoundly disappointed.

My oysters being shucked.

We also got a treat. . .

this one an almond cake.

Pig heads can't be bought at Whole Foods.

Lamb heads can't be purchased at Wegmans.

When in a market, do like

the Romans did. . .buy some

oysters and down them.

From the market, we went to the Silk Exchange, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site.  The first floor of the exchange is open, but the rest is, disappointingly, closed.  Finished in 1533 after 51 years of construction, Lonja de la Seda was a key trading hall in the Mediterranean.

There are certainly some amazing elements to Lonja de la Seda, such as the famed hall of columns, the whimsical gargoyles, the beautiful orange and lemon trees in the courtyard, and more.  

Beautiful wall of the Silk Exchange.

Part of the Hall of Columns.

A whimsical carving.

Another one.

Oranges growing in the courtyard.