My trip to Spain began in Paris and included visits to numerous cities and sites of historical and cultural significance. Some highlights included exploring the Alhambra Palace and Generalife Gardens in Granada, touring iconic landmarks in Madrid like the Prado Museum and Plaza Mayor, and seeing Gaudi's masterwork La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. The trip concluded with stops along the Mediterranean coast in the south of France before arriving in Cannes on the French Riviera.

1. SPAIN
My trip to Spain began in Paris on Aug 27. I
painstakingly dragged my heavy Samsonite along
the busy street going to Gare du Nord to look for
Timhotel, getting lost on the way, and finally
reaching the hotel past 4pm. We had pizza for
lunch in a nearby Indian(?) restaurant along Rue
Lafayette, and after the orientation meeting with
our tour director, Norton Taylor, Caryle, my
roommate in Vienna, Phyl and Val (2 Australian
ladies), and I guided them on a walking tour of
Sacre Coeur Basilica from Timhotel.
The following day, we Tours Station
started our long trip to
Aranjuez Bordeaux, driving
through the Loire
Valley at Tours, where
I took photos of the St. Gatien Cathedral and the union station despite the
rains. (Yahoo! Photos - emeritamanansala's Photos - 2004 France) After two
hours, we headed for Cognac
St. Andre where we visited the Otard
winery. We
arrived in
Bordeaux
around 5pm
and had a nice
dinner in a fine
restaurant
fronting the
cathedral of St.
Andre. The next
morning we
drove to the
vineyards of
Bordeaux, stopping
for lunch in Biarritz, the surfing capital of Europe, facing
Atlantic Ocean. I went inside the Cathedral of St. Eugenie
and lighted two candles Then, we continued via the foothills
of the Pyrenées into the Basque country of northern Spain.
From here we passed by San Sebastian, and followed in the
footsteps of El Cid to Burgos for dinner at Hotel La Corona.
Burgos has a perfectly conserved old center of town, and is
the birthplace of national hero "El Cid." The 13th century
gothic cathedral is among the most admired of its kind
worldwide. Specially remarkable are its portal, the "Puerta del
Sarmental", considered the best example of gothic sculpture
of its century and the Cloister. The 15th century chapel,
"Capilla del Condestable", is another work of unique
architectonic value. We strolled along Puente San Pablo and Arco de Sta. Maria. (Click here for more
photos:
http://asia.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/emeritamanansala/album?.dir=4806&.src=ph&store=&prodid=&.don
e=http%3a//asia.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/emeritamanansala/my_photos)

2. The next morning we headed to the old
stone town of Segovia, with its colossal
Roman aqueduct, and famous landmarks
like the Alcazar, and its beautiful gothic
cathedral. Here we had lunch.
Alcaraz castle
We arrived in Madrid
early afternoon at
Novotel and took a
sightseeing tour of the
beautiful fountains
(Cibeles and Neptune)
and arches, marveling
at such architectural landmarks like the Post Office, the bullring, the Christopher Columbus Monument,
and Miguel de Cervantes memorial.
Our tour guide took a photo of me before the memorial ( which includes Don Quixote, his beloved
Dulcinea, and his faithful Sancho Panza). It is interesting to note that Cervantes died on the same exact
date as Shakespeare (April 23, 1616). We also visited the royal palace and Plaza Mayor (see photos
below: Cervantes and Cibeles fountain, Post Office building above, and Royal Palace) .

3. Las Cibeles
Don Quixote memorial
Post Office
Royal Palace
The Plaza Mayor is the seat of local government. Not very far
is a “meson” where we had a sumptuous dinner of Gazpacho,
Seafood Paella, Lechon de Leche, and flambe for dessert.
While drinking wine, or sipping café espresso, we were
entertained by 3 troubadours with Spanish flamenco music.
The evening was capped with a photostop at the underground
fountains at Plaza de España. (for more photos, click Madrid
album: Yahoo! Photos - emeritamanansala's Photos - 2004
Madrid )

4. Castillian
Plaza Mayor
Excursions
My tour group stayed in Madrid for
3 days at Novotel. (Yahoo! Photos -
emeritamanansala's Photos - 2004
Madrid) While in this bustling city,
I went on my own to check out the
Prado Museum and took stolen
shots (photos & videos were
prohibited) of Greco’s famous
paintings, and those of Diego
Velasquez, Goya, Murillo, Titian,
and the only Rembrandt in the
collection I also took photos of
the Plaza de Toros, the Alcala
Gate, and the Independence Arch.
Plaza de Toros
Before a
Spanish paella
dinner at a
rustic “meson,”
we had a late
afternoon tour
of the Plaza
Mayor. The
evening was
capped with a spectacular display of magical fountains
long Plaza de España.
View of Toledo and
The next day, we went on a day tour of Tajo river
Toledo, the capital of Spain from gothic
epoch until 1560. (Yahoo! Photos -
emeritamanansala's Photos - Toledo
entrance gate) The city is like one big
museum, from the entrance of fortified
walls to the cathedral, the town hall
(Yahoo! Photos - emeritamanansala's
Photos - Town Hall near cathedral), the
streets leading to El Greco’s house, the
well-visited chapel of Santo Tome, where
the famous El Greco mural (the “Funeral
of Count Orgaz”) is displayed.

5. The Sinagoga de Santa Maria
Toledo entrance gate la Blanca is as interesting as
the cathedral (built between
1226 and 1492). The St.
Martin’s bridge over Tajo
River is gothic as well.
(Yahoo! Photos -
emeritamanansala's Photos -
St ) We also took time to visit
a steel factory, and I bought a
souvenir (Swords of Toledo).
St. Martin’s bridge
Aranjuez Palace
Our next excursion
was via Rodrigo's
Aranjuez (Yahoo! Photos - emeritamanansala's Photos
- Aranjuez on d way to Cordoba - Royal Palace) and
views of its Royal Palace (Yahoo! Photos -
emeritamanansala's Photos - Aranjuez - Royal palace
monument), we headed down to the La Mancha Plain
and stopped at Puerto Lapice where, according to
tradition, Don Quixote was dubbed knight by one of
the local innkeepers (Yahoo! Photos -
emeritamanansala's Photos - Lapice - Iglesia del
Buenconsejo).
Mezquita walls Lapice church
in Cordoba
From here we made our way to
Cordoba, where we toured the
impressive Arabian mosque 'La
Mezquita', which houses the
magnificent cathedral built in 13th
century until Charles V.,
surrounded by a garden of orange
trees. (Yahoo! Photos -
emeritamanansala's Photos -
Mezquita tower in Cordoba) At the
entrance to the Mezquita is the
monument to patron saint San
Rafael and walking distance is the Jewish quarter with its synagogues and
memorials to philosophers like Seneca and Maimonides. We arrived in the

6. Reliquary at
Mezquita cathedral
evening at Seville, the capital of Andalusia and home of
bullfighting and flamenco music, for our two-night stay
After dinner, we took a stroll around and
found the Archivos General de Indias but it
was under renovation.
After breakfast, our morning sightseeing tour
showed us the gardens of the Maria Luisa
Park and Murillo's House, the Santa Cruz
District, and the tower of La Giralda (Yahoo!
Photos - View from the bell tower of
Sevilla Bullring
Cathedral in Sevilla), its famous landmarks.
It is a fact that two Roman emperors were
born in Sevilla (Trajan and Hadrian). We
entered the beautiful cathedral which
houses the tomb of Cristobal Colon. Then
there was time at leisure to visit the
famous bullring (Yahoo! Photos - Bullring in
Sevilla. On the second day, we went to
Plaza de España (Yahoo! Photos - Plaza de
España in Sevilla.) I made my own walking
tour to the Universidad Central and took
photo of the old building which used to be a
tobacco factory , the Archivos General de
Indias, and another landmark, the Torre de Oro.
View from the bell tower of
Cathedral in Sevilla

7. After Sevilla, we enjoyed a half day drive to the
majestic hilltop city of Moorish jewel, Granada, in the
shadow of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, staying at the
impressive resort hotel near the Alhambra Palace. A
morning excursion to explore the awe-inspiring
Alhambra Palace and Generalife Gardens (Yahoo!
Photos - Generalife gardens, Alhambra Palace,
Granada) capped the day.
The Alhambra (meaning “the red one” ) complex
was started about 9th cent. and modified by
Mohammad III in the 13th cent., and much later
by Charles V. (Yahoo! Photos - Reflecting pool at
the Alhambra) It was abandoned by the last
Moorish ruler, Boabdil, who was castigated by his mother for weeping in shame for losing beautiful
Alhambra, “Now weep like a woman for what you cannot defend like a man.”
(Yahoo! Photos - Reflecting pool at the Alhambra) Washington Irving stayed in one of the rooms where he
wrote his “Tales of the Alhambra.” Four great halls enclose the Courtyard of the Lions (Yahoo! Photos -
Courtyard of the Lions with me).
Our next day’s journey took us through the jagged Mora Pass,
as we drove towards Guadix. Here we view Troglodyte
dwellings hewn out of the soft rock, characteristic of this
Spanish countryside. Then we continued to the coastline of
Alicante, where gaily colored parasols lined the beaches
(Yahoo! Photos - emeritamanansala's Photos - Alicante - Beach
view of Mediterranean sea). We walked through tree-lined
boulevards, had lunch at a pub beside the beach facing the
Mediterranean Sea, and dined at our hotel Campanille.

8. Day ten was spent
driving along the coast
of southern Spain,
arriving in the sunny
garden city of Valencia.
Here an orientation tour
featured the Town Hall,
the Bullring (Yahoo!
Photos - emeritamanansala's Photos - Valencia bullring),
La Lonja, and the Towers of Serrano and Cuarte. I
lighted two candles at the cathedral (Yahoo! Photos -
emeritamanansala's Photos - Valencia - Plaza de la
Virgen de Desamparados fountain) and basilica (Yahoo!
Photos - emeritamanansala's Photos - Valencia -
Fountain in front of Cathedral), two separate buildings
but close together.
Later, we continued our journey to Barcelona for two
Montserrat
basilica
exciting nights. A sumptuous dinner at a seafood
restaurant in Barcelona was highlighted by a trip to
Plaza de España and the beautiful fountains at the hills
of Montjuic (Yahoo! Photos - emeritamanansala's Photos
- Plaza de España, Monthjuic, Barcelona). On top of the
mountain, surrounded by beautiful parks, is a fortress of
17th century. The following day, we visited the gothic
magnificence of the 14th century Cathedral and the art
nouveau fantasies of Antoni Gaudi's “Sagrada
Familia.” (Yahoo! Photos - emeritamanansala's Photos -
La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona) The afternoon was
spent at an unforgettable excursion to Monserrat
(Yahoo! Photos - emeritamanansala's Photos - In front of Monastery in Montserrat). Away from the sea,
we climbed the mountain ranges of Montseny, Montnegre to get to remarkable Montserrat, the mythic
"Holy Mountain", with its Romanesque Monastery De la Verge de Montserrat, a famous place of
pilgrimage (photo shows the façade of the basilica). Here I bought souvenirs of the Virgin.

9. Photos below show Gaudi’s La Sagrada Familia and
Plaza de Espana at Montjuic.
On the 12th day of this tour, we
took a morning drive along the
Mediterranean coast across the
French border past Perpignan,
and into the wine-producing
plains of Languedoc. From here
we followed the Côte
d'Améthyste to the scenic Camargue. Then on through Impressionist Provençal landscapes on our way to
Cannes on the glittering Riviera for our two-night stay. Arles is gateway to Camargue, land of the Gypsies
and meeting place of the
Camargue cowboys, Today the
ferias or bull runs and bull fights
are held in this very same arena
(12,000 seats) that was the
scene of the Roman games in the
first century! City of festivals,
art, and culture, Arles has never
stopped attracting artists. Van
Gogh stayed here with his friend
Gaugain. Picasso, a lover of bull
fights, was inspired by them to
do two paintings and 57
drawings. Many consider Van
Gogh's Arles period (1888-9) to
be the most creative of his
career. Photo shows his best
known work, Harvest at La Crau,
produced during his time in this
provençal town.