Spain/France Trip Report

[maryr1oz]

Hi Guys

I know this part of my trip isn't Disney related, but i really want to write a trip report about the European part of my holiday. Maybe someone else is planning a trip and can get some tips, or maybe you've been to these places and like to remember!

I did visit Disney on this trip, in Hong Kong, and that trip report is linked below. I'll start this report off where the other leaves off - ready to depart Hong Kong for Barcelona, via Dubai.

Firstly, here's me



Background:
This was an extended family trip. My mum turned 60 earlier this year, and her birthday wish for years had been to spend some time in the south of Spain with her family. The travelling party would eventually extend to 13 people, but for the first leg i was on my own. It was such a hard wish for me to grant leaving cold Melbourne for sunny Spain, but somehow i managed

My DH can't take much time off in the middle of the year, so he would meet me in Hong Kong for a week on my return from Europe. This is the reason i bought 2 seperate airfares. First was on Qantas Melbourne-Hong Kong return, the second on Emirates from Hong Kong via Dubai to Barcelona return. The places i visited on this trip (and places i will write about) in Spain are Barcelona, Valencia, Granada, the Sierra Nevada Mountains, Cordoba, Madrid, Bilbao, San Sebastian and Girona. In France we visited Bordeaux, Saint-Emillion, Lyon, Paris and Aix-En-Provence.

I left Melbourne on June 24th, landed in Hong Kong the same night, then arrived in Barcelona on June 25th. I then departed Barcelona back to Hong Kong on July 18th.

If you want to read about my arrival in Hong Kong, and my week in Hong Kong at the end of my trip, you can follow the link below.

Hong Kong-Dubai-Barcelona
Hola Barcelona
Park Guell
La Sagrada and Passeig de Gracia
Wandering Around
Bakery Breakfast
La Boqueria
Roadtrip Begins
Valencia
Our Villa in Monachil
Monachil
Bubion and Capileira
The Alhambra - Main Palace
The Alhambra - Generalife
Food of Granada
Food from the Villa
Lanjaron
Around Granada

 

[maryr1oz]

My flight was scheduled to depart Hong Kong at 12:35am. I had spent the first couple of hours in Hong Kong using an airport lounge, then once i'd checked in for my next flight, around 9:30pm, i'd made my way through security. I was disappointed to see that Hong Kong is no longer stamping passports on entry or departure.

Through passport control and security i browsed around the shops, until i decided to just get to my gate and sit there. I still had a headache and i was getting really tired. My gate was quite far away, i had to catch the train out to the outer terminal. I think i got out there about 10:15pm, and my flight was boarding about 11:50pm. Thankfully i saw an empty loungechair out of the corner of my eye!



I strapped my backpack to my chest, set my phone alarm and tucked it inside my top, and closed my eyes. I can't believe i let myself sleep now thinking back about it, but when i woke up my headache was gone and i felt so much better!

My flight to Dubai was about 7 hours, and as soon as i got onboard, i took a restavit, slapped the do not disturb sticker on my shoulder and SLEPT. I woke up for breakfast before we landed. This is the only photo i took on the whole flight....



I was super excited to land in Dubai. I'm an airport geek and i'd never been through there before. I had watched the Ultimate Airport Dubai series a couple of weeks before i travelled so i was excited to explore. Perhaps that's how my first annoying moment of the trip came about... We landed easily, but we were sent to a remote stand and packed onto busses to the terminal.

When i'd fallen asleep i'd carefully placed my glasses in the seatpocket. Of course, i left the plane, watched the doors close on the bus then watched the man next to me wiping his glasses as they'd fogged up with the humidity outside. It was literal head smack moment. I was so annoyed with myself. It took us 25 minutes to reach the terminal, and as soon as i could i presented at information to ask about how to get them back. They told me the plane wouldn't be cleaned for an hour or two, it was highly unlikely they'd be found by the time i was to leave again.

Meanwhile, my mum and step dad were arriving on Emirates from Brisbane, and i headed to the doors they would arrive through to wait. I grabbed an orange juice at a cafe nearby. They would accept Emirati Dirham, $US or $AU as payment.

Once Mum arrived, i was busy catching up with her, and re-checking the lost and found department, sure enough they still never have turned up...

I was seated with Mum on the flight to Barcelona, and we chatted and played scrabble the whole way. It was only about 6 hours which was nice. The Emirate A380 was quite comfortable, although Mum commented the one from Brisbane had been much newer and nicer.

We landed in Barcelona about 1pm. It took so long for the bags to come off but eventually we were clearing customs and entering the main airport area. Mum's best friend, who lives in Greece, was waiting for us on the other side. They had a big, loud reunion and i quietly wheeled the oversized luggage trolley behind. We headed for the taxi stand, which was super easy and well organised, and we departed for Barcelona city!

 

[maryr1oz]

We stayed at the Dalia Ramblas Hotel in Barcelona. It was right off La Rambla, 1 minute walk to Liceu station and just a great location overall. The rooms we had were reasonably small, but considering we didn't plan on spending much time inside it was really perfect for us.







We walked through the Barri Gotic area of the city, which was close to our hotel.









Then we wound down towards the waterfront...











Late in the afternoon we decided we would take a short rest before we had dinner. Once i settled in at the hotel i decided i was too tired to sit down for a proper meal, so i left my parents to it, and i wandered out on my own. I just didn't feel too hungry and nothing was taking my fancy, but in the end i settled on a capsicum/ham grilled sub from a deli. It was ok, but i just really wasn't that hungry.



I needed a proper bed for the first time in over 48 hours, so i went to sleep really early, and that was exactly what i needed. I woke up completely jet-lag free and ready to explore Barcelona!

 

[maryr1oz]

The first thing we wanted to do in Barcelona was visit Parc Guell. Recently they have started ticketed and timed entry into the main Gaudi part of the park. So before we left home, we had pre-booked tickets online for a 10:30am entry. We caught a taxi from our hotel, and the ride was about 15 minutes. We were dropped right at the entry point.

It was busy inside, but the lines outside of people waiting to buy tickets, and for the next entry timeslot were growing rapidly, so can only imagine how crowded it must have been inside before they restricted entry.

The park was beautiful, both the gardens and the mosaics. I'll let the photos do the talking...

 

[maryr1oz]

After exploring Park Guell, we left on foot towards La Sagrada Familia. It was a downhill walk, and we tried to keep in the shade as the sun was already stinging.

We stopped en route for a coffee (them) and an icy pole (me).







I guess it was about a 30 minute walk between the park and the church. The first thing i was surprised about La Sagrada is it's height - i had no expectation that it would be so tall. It's quite breathtaking. Unfortunately, there are still alot of restoration works going on, and therefore a lot of scaffolding around it. Still, i'm glad i saw it. The line to get inside was 3 hours long...













Once we'd walked around the whole block, we decided to jump on a metro train back towards Passeig de Gracia. It was really quick and easy - although expensive, probably cheaper for 4 of us to just get a taxi.

We walked down Passeig de Gracia, past the La Pedrera Gaudi apartment building that was completely wrapped in advertising, and being restored.

Then we went past Casa Batllo, where again there were long lines formed outside.







There were lot's of other pretty buildings and things to see along here before we arrived at Placa Catalunya.





Our first shopping stop was El Corte Ingles... Mum spent up big, i just didn't want to part with my money so early in the trip

 

[maryr1oz]

After shopping had been purchased, we headed towards the Palau de la Musica Catalana. They have a beautiful courtyard where we sat outside and ordered cold water. Mum bought tickets to see a Flamenco show there right before they came home.

On the outer wall of the music hall there are beautiful mosaics





We walked towards Cathedral Square





Where we found some great Picasso friezes





And also an interesting art installation



After this i broke off from the others and walked back towards the hotel. I wanted to check out a churro cafe i'd heard amazing things about - La Pallaresa -but it was closed



I walked past Escriba and saw this amazing cake in the window!



I then walked down to Placa Reial - there were so many nice restaurants and bars set all around the square.







Back up La Ramblas towards the hotel and i really loved the greenery and festive atmosphere on the street.





Also walked past this guy who seemed to be taking his cat for a walk



After a freshen up at the hotel, i met up with the others and we went to a tapas restaurant that was close to our hotel, outside in a quiet sqaure. The food was amazing - and SO cheap. Including wine, cocktails and tapas it was about $10AU a person.

 

[Aussie Wendy]

Enjoying reliving our trip last year and reading your experiences (have to double back and read your HK trip)! The Sagrada Familia is still being built-that's why there are cranes and scaffolding etc. I don't think it is due for completion until around 2028. Did you go inside during your time in Spain? It was amazingly light and airy. I am jealous of your lizard pic at Parc Guell - it was so mobbed by people when we were there I gave up trying to get a pic without hordes of people sitting hugging it. We were there just before timed entry kicked in but other than that spot it was Ok. There wasn't as many beautiful flowers out though. We were also amazed by the prices in Spain - it was great!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Fantastic!

Thanks for starting this one.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Thanks so much for sharing. it's bringing lovely memories back of my visit to Barcelona. I particularly loved the Palau de La Musica.

 

[maryr1oz]

Enjoying reliving our trip last year and reading your experiences (have to double back and read your HK trip)! The Sagrada Familia is still being built-that's why there are cranes and scaffolding etc. I don't think it is due for completion until around 2028. Did you go inside during your time in Spain? It was amazingly light and airy. I am jealous of your lizard pic at Parc Guell - it was so mobbed by people when we were there I gave up trying to get a pic without hordes of people sitting hugging it. We were there just before timed entry kicked in but other than that spot it was Ok. There wasn't as many beautiful flowers out though. We were also amazed by the prices in Spain - it was great!

We didn't go inside, my parents had been inside before and since we had so little time in Barcelona we just kept going. I would love to return there sometime soon though!

Fantastic!

Thanks for starting this one.

I love looking at all the photos again - it's so hard to choose whether i start saving for Spain or Orlando now

Thanks so much for sharing. it's bringing lovely memories back of my visit to Barcelona. I particularly loved the Palau de La Musica.

Barcelona certainly is a fantastic place

 

[maryr1oz]

We had an early start on our second, and last, morning in Barcelona.

Breakfast was at Forns del Pi, a small bakery behind our hotel. It was so amazing - full of locals, the staff were so happy and passionate to serve, and it was ridiculously cheap and good food.







We had pastries, coffee and orange juice squeezed to order for about 3 Euro pp.

 

[maryr1oz]

Right behind our hotel was the amazing La Boqueria fresh food market. It was open early, and closed just before it got dark. It was a sensory overload of colours, smells and noises. There were plenty of locals and tourists packed into the narrow aisles.

We visited the market at quite a few different times throughout our brief visit to Barcelona. Including on this last morning when we picked up some fruit, cheese, meat and nuts to take along on our roadtrip for lunch and snacks. I'm just going to post all the photos i have from there in this one post...

 

[maryr1oz]

At about 9:30am we were loaded up with market goodies and back at the hotel to check out. My time in Barcelona was brief, but without DH there too i didn't mind too much - i know we'll be back there together one day. Also, this was Mum's trip so getting to see anything was great!

We got a taxi back to the airport to collect our hire car. It took quite awhile as there was a long queue, but eventually we were issued a VW Tiguan, and then we had fun trying to load the luggage. Lucky my step-dad is an ex-tour operator so he's got this kind of thing down to fine art



We drove straight out of the airport on the main highway south, as this was a request of my step dad until he was familiar with driving the car, he didn't want to get stuck in traffic. This meant we were on the toll roads. It was about a 3.5 hour drive to Valencia, which was our stop for the night. In this time we paid nearly 50 Euros in tolls...

About half way down we stopped at a roadside rest area for picnic lunch. As we sat down a bus load of young girls with matching tshirts pulled up and off loaded for their own lunch stop. They were from a dancing school, and they were clearly burning off energy from sitting on a bus for too long. I had fun watching them play different kinds of games to what i see at home.

We feasted on cheese, ham, fruit and bread from the market, and of course it was great!





There was a service station by the rest area, and i wandered in for a look. I bought what i thought was an iced coffee, but it turned out to be more like frozen cream drink - sweet but anyway something fun and different



We finished off the drive to Valencia, arriving there about 2pm.

 

[maryr1oz]

We had booked a hotel on the outer side of the city, so we didn't have to drive right into the middle. It was the Silken Puerta Valencia, and it was really good. The staff were super helpful, and there was an underground parking garage that was easy to access and use. The rooms cost us 50 Euro each per night (we had 3) and they assigned them all side by side. They were large, and well appointed. There was lot's of english TV channels and the bathroom was really large.







We caught a taxi into the city (about 5 minutes and 5 Euro). We were dropped off at the old Silk Exchange building.



We paid about 2 Euro each to go inside, it was really great to imagine when it was being used as a marketplace...







The courtyard outside was full of heavy laden orange trees, so the aroma was beautiful out there...







We left there and made our way through little alleys and cobbled streets into the old town. There was lot's of fun things to stop and look at along the way...







We walked along Placa de la Reina, and stopped for ice cream. I was particularly impressed with some of their flavours like Candy Crush, Tortilla, Salmon and Gazpacho. I wasn't so adventurous...



We went inside the Cathedral, it was quite beautiful



It was still early for dinner by Spanish standards, but at about 8pm we cam across a cute little tapas restaurant in an alley that was just opening. We sat and had so much fun with the family who operated it.











Afterwards, at about 10pm, it still wasn't dark as we walked back to find a taxi...

 

[maryr1oz]

Saturday morning we left early as we still had another 5 hours drive to get down to Granada. This was the day we would check into the Villa mum had rented for 2 weeks. It was actually in the little hillside village of Monachil, just outside of Granada. The house itself was built into the side of the hill, and was about a 10 minute walk downhill (about 20 mins for us walking uphill ) into the village.

It had 7 bedrooms, 3 levels, 3 kitchens, 4 bathrooms, 3 lounge rooms but most importantly, 1 amazing pool with a view

This day was a bit chaotic as we had to arrive there at a particular time to get the keys handed over, we had to get to a supermarket and get groceries as everything is closed there on a Sunday and we had other travelling party members arriving that we had to collect/direct. The day was a blur.

Once everything was said and done though, we settled into the Villa and we loved calling this place home for 2 weeks...

 

[WanderlustNZ]

The Villa is simply gorgeous. What a lovely 2 weeks it must have been.

I'm also salivating at the look of your market lunch. All that lovely fresh fruit, breads, cheeses, and cured meat, is basically my idea of the perfect meal. Yum!

 

[Aussie Wendy]

The Villa looks like a great place to spend a couple of weeks while exploring the area and I second Wanderlust, simple picnic food from the market - delic! If we are on the road that's our favourite way to eat finding somewhere nice to stop, rather than looking for a cafe along the way.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Oh what a gorgeous villa! Love it!

What amazing food. I love the picnic idea too. Looking forward to the next installment.

 

[maryr1oz]

We spent 2 weeks at the Villa in Monachil. It was such a beautiful little town. Monachil is about a 10 minute drive outside of Granada, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains.

Here are some photos of Monachil. We spent quite a few evenings at a little outside bar there drinking very cheap beer and cocktails, and waiting for the restaurants to open at 10pm for dinner.

















We ate at Terrazzo El Molino a couple of times, the service was great, the food was fresh and it was all so cheap. They had a lovely outdoor courtyard that had dozens of tables and it was always lively and beautiful out there as the sun went down.

 

[maryr1oz]

I went for a day trip up into the hilltop villages in the Sierra Nevadas with my parents one day. The road was so windy, and although not a great distance took us about 2 hours to reach Bubion. We walked around the villages, had some lunch and took in the great views.

View of Lanjaron before we kept driving up





Bubion and Capileira