It’s taken a while to get to the end of our 6 week Southern Europe Adventure, but finally here is the last 3 days!
Although we love trains and we were going to take the fast train from Barcelona back to Madrid where we started our trip, Jim decided differently.
I feel he was not ready for our adventure to be over, so we rented a car and drove from Barcelona to Zaragoza.
We explored, walked, ate, drank and enjoyed.
We sauntered through and climbed up churches.
Right outside our hotel was a medieval/ Renaissance fair. I’ve been to them before but not in a city that is medieval!
Then we drove to the Madrid Airport and my job was to point out sights and stuff to do. So I pointed out piles of stone that was once a castle. There were lots of castles at one time. There were also giant skinny bulls here and there. And we stopped in a small village that was a town that is known for its witches. We saw no witches.
It was a great end to a fantastic trip! We loved every little bit of it.
We are fortunate, but travel can be affordable. I did it when I did not make much money. We fly economy, and we stay in cheaper hotels/pensions.
I never and still don’t have or lived expensively. My money went to saving for travel…and emergencies. I met someone who also loves travel.
If you have any questions, need advice on cheap travel, let me know!
Thank you so much for going on yet another journey with MY GNOME LITTLE WORLD!
Before I talk about my Madrid Art Appreciation Education, I’ve been to Madrid, including El Prado, before…it was 38 years ago. Things change, I change, but my memories stay still.
The main thing I remember is a group of us from a Youth Hostel went to El Prado together and before we entered we got high. I did not get high a lot, but this is one of my favorite highs. High in an art museum is a whole new world.
This time I searched El Prado and it’s countless old paintings for the one that had me sit still for a long time, a long time ago. Me and a hostel friend stared and talked about it for what now feels like an hour. We did not let things escape us at the time. Now, I fear some of it escaped my memory because even though I found that mesmerizing piece, I was not enamored like I was as my 22 year old high self.
Now back to what the 3 art museums taught me, this time in Madrid. I learned a lot about myself, a bit surprised. I’ve always thought I was a lover of all art from all time periods, but I’m telling you I am so loving modern art way more than the old stuff. I still admire the old art, but honestly sometimes I love the workmanship and skill that went into making the elaborate frames on those pieces even more than the art. Sooo…El Prado bored me a bit this time. The Thyssen and Reina Sofia was so much more my jam. I learned upcycled art is not a new thing. I learned Picasso, Dali and Miro did so much more than what we see all the time. They were multi-faceted geniuses. My favorite art experiences this time in Madrid, Even though I was not high this time, I sat dumbfounded and mesmerized when one of Calder’s huge outdoor mobiles slowly danced with the wind. I felt lucky.
Of course Madrid is so much more than just its museums. Who wouldn’t love countless book stores, tapas, music, sangria, cafes, murals, graffiti and the people.
Not to mention funky little bars like Tupperware and La Via Lactea (The Milkyway)! It’s always good to get out of the tourist area and into where the locals go.
I was waiting to post this until after we went back to Madrid at the end of our trip, but at the last minute Jim decided to not go back to Madrid, and to see more of Spain by driving from Barcelona, stopping in Zargoza for a couple of nights before our flight back home. That trip, and blog post, will be the last of our Southern Europe Adventure!
Once again I thank you for visiting MY GNOME LITTLE WORLD!
I saw 3 of the Gaudi buildings in 1986 and have been a fan ever since. His buildings may have instilled the love of all architecture that I have had all my adult life. I was only 22 when I saw his curves, spires, tilework, and flare to be different for the first time. I felt them all deeply within, although I only got to see them from the outside. Back then people were actually living in them.
They are the love of the city now. There are 7 Gaudi locations in Barcelona that are now in the Unesco Heritage Convention, and I dragged Jim to 6 of them.
Barcelona is a great city on its own, but I do think all the Gaudi locations up the tourism several notches. It was crowded and we were there at just the beginning of the tourist season.
Barcelona is more than just Gaudi, it’s the City by the Sea, it has a fair, it has beautiful old churches, it has a Gothic area, it has La Rambla, it has food markets, it has great dining, it has a flea market, it has palaces, it has beaches, parks, art museums, and it even has other great architecture.
Did we see ALL of that, no, because I was on a Gaudi mission. But in between Gaudi buildings we got around to see the city. It was very rainy so we opted for “hop on hop off” bus transportation, which was a first ever for us. The open topped (when it was not raining) double decker bus showed us how big the city really is. We also saw a lot more than we could have if we didn’t use it. We saw the sea and beaches, we saw the views from the top hillside parks, and we saw architecture from the top of a double decker bus, which put us at eye level with stuff you cannot really see from the street.
We also ate the yummy food, walked a lot, window shopped, ducked into The Gothic area, rambled down La Rambla…and we looked and we saw and we definitely experienced!
We did a last minute change and instead of taking the fast train back to Madrid we, by we I mean Jim, decided we were going to drive to Madrid and go on the last adventure before the end of our trip. That will be coming up next. I’ve slowed way down on posting our trip, but I will finish!
It’s a city with no inhabitants, other than ghosts of the past. It’s also a museum and we got lost. We were given a map, yet still, we got lost. Us, well traveled, map loving, engineer and sidekick, got lost in the lost city of Pompeii.
Before I go on, I need to confess. I was a bit exhausted from exploring many dead people’s places, seeing dead people’s things, looking at dead people’s homes, and sometimes even examining dead people’s bodies.
It never bothered me before, I mean I love bones and skeletons, I have a small collection of animal bones even. But something just wasn’t right with me, while going through the mass amount of ancient places we had been to on this trip. I finally understood. Why is it ok that so many graves/tombs have been pillaged? I thought it was sacrilege to disturb a grave? I know there have been grave robbers as long as there have been dead people, but just because it’s in the name of science, a quest of archeology or the need of historic knowledge, it is still grave robbing.
I know, and I believe it too, that our soul, our essence, our spirit leaves our bodies upon death. I don’t want to be buried, not because I fear a future grave robbing, but because just like in life I don’t want to be in one place forever. Nor do I want to be in a place where no one visits and then they feel guilty for never visiting. Nope! I want my people to spread me everywhere anywhere happiness is for them. Whether it’s on a trip or at a beach…blow me into the wind, drop me on the ground…let me be free.
Did that turn dark? Well that is how I started to feel going to some of those places. Although fascinating, Pompeii is in itself a dark spot in history.
A whole town wiped off the face of the earth. All the lives gone, bap, just like that. And here we were walking on their streets, examining their homes, joking about the brothels, touching the penis, and looking at cement casts of their dead bodies. Dark, I say. History is dark.
First off, this post is not about the Saint, but look her up. Second, this post was supposed to be about the town and my relations to it. But, the town itself needed its own post. And third, my story about how and why I went, and the relationship I now have with it, deserves its own post as well.
So while I think about how to do this rehabbed post, I give you these flowers I took photos of on the way there.
This part of our adventure started off on the Via Appia, The Appian Way. We left the city as they did 2000 years ago. Ok, not quite the same, but the road was so bumpy at times I don’t think it changed much.
By way of Via Appia we drove through catacombs (think dead people). Then into the open country side where we visited dead buildings (my new phrase for ruins) of what was once a huge Palazzo and property.
We found a smooth highway to scoot over to for our drive through the mountains & then a yummy lunch in the small village of Ceprano.
First I have to explain the dish above … One of my fav the whole trip. It’s pasta with pistachio sauce with shrimp tartar and basil on top. Yum.
Upon arrival, the adorable Gothic town of Sant’ Agata di Goti that’s situated high on a rock surrounded by a river and a deep ravine, we sighed. It felt like home, like my past Italian life’s new body was back where it belonged.
After we figured out how to get in our 1600s Rainone/Mustilli Family Palazzo Inn. By the way, I am related to the Rainone Family by my great grandmother. See, I told you there was more to the story.
Just think… We are in a 17th century family home/Inn in a room decorated like it’s the 18th century, writing on a 21st century device in a 4th century town. Mind blown.
The town and tiny narrow streets, some barely big enough for cars others are not, are charming enough, but then you throw in views that don’t stop, and you get yourself a destination. Yes, Sant’ Agata di Goti is a destination, but thankfully enough it’s not an international hot spot…yet.
We walked around, had dinner, went wine tasting, and we even made our way down inti deep cold basements/excellent wine cellars.
Truly a beautiful place, but the real magic happened the next day.
The reason for going there in the first place was family. My paternal grandfather is from Sant’ Agata di Goti, specifically the area of Bagnoli. Did I have family left? If so, will I get to meet them? Will they think of me as family?
Thank you for visiting MY GNOME LITTLE WORLD and come back soon to hear about th magic I call “family.”
I have 3 favorite flowers. The first being a gerbera daisy. My Mother liked daisies, when I learned about gerberas they just made me smile. Another favorite flower is for its smell is gardenias. We had a plant in our yard growing up and my mother taught me to love its smell. The last one is hydrangeas because my maternal grandmother had a huge bush of them in her front yard and they always reminded me of her. All of my favorite flowers are family related. Sant’ Agata di Goti had hydrangeas and it is family related. So this is why I posted the photo. On a side note, on our first date, my husband brought me hydrangeas he picked from his own yard. He did not know my love for them. They mean a lot to me.
Ok we did drink in Athens, but that is not what I’m talking about when I say “Twist”.
The ruins are scattered about as much as the graffiti.
Every move you make, every step you take, no one is watching you, but you may run into a ruin.
Well, that is a lie, I may be watching you from one of the many sidewalk cafes!
And splattered in between and around there are sprays of paint. Graffiti, mostly tags, some political statements, and fortunately some art as well. It makes an already chaotic scene even more busy for the eyes. I will gladly say, I did not see any graffiti on any of the ruins.
Getting back to what is important…the ruins. Some still in somewhat of a building form, some partially there and some are just in piles.
The history and the stories of the people that lived back then are way more interesting, than the ruins themselves. If you ask me.
There was so much more to Athens then just ruins, history and graffiti.
Like the meat and fish market, a Soccer event and the cats!
And finding cool little spots, that have big personalities!
To Athen’s flora & fauna!
A big city of history and we just learned a tiny bit of it.
You have to spend time to go through it all because modern life lives over layers and layers of history. It may take a lifetime to peel them off.
We are in Rome now and leave tomorrow, so not sure what my next post will cover. I may do one just for Rome. Although we were here only a short time, we crammed a lot of big buildings in.
After Rhodes I was a bit at odds with Greek Islands. Don’t get me wrong, the history is unmatched, old medieval Rhodes Town unbelievable, the clarity and color of the sea to die and dive for. Yet, the very arid plant life and rocky geography, and the super cold water were not what I was expecting. The beaches I saw were wonderful but not…ok…Caribbean Island Beaches. I said it. With that said, we did enjoy our time on the Santorini Beaches.
I wasn’t expecting the same, but I also wasn’t expecting cold water and desert landscapes.
So I was, ok, just here for the history. But… Somehow the people of Santorini turned a dry rocky deserty volcano erupted place with crazy high cliffs and rocky beaches down stupid curvey roads and with cold water to boot into a beautiful worldwide sought after vacation location.
And to top it off, they grow grapes here in such an interesting way that the plants basically water themselves. It doesn’t stop there, they have been making wine for 100s, 1000s of years.
The building decision was amazing too. So although Santorini has plenty of solid ground land to build on, they decided to build down the very high cliffs. And get this…instead of “streets” they decided to have pedestrian only walk ways and alleys that have stairs and curves and turns down the cliffs too.
And to make that attractive the architects designed the buildings with curves and domes, and painted them all white, with a splash of blue on churches!
Well it worked! And I am sold and in love.
Waiting for a ferry to Athens now, but will miss Santorini.
I learned things about myself. I can, although extremely scared, jump off the top of a 5k mountain, but walking down extremely steep, uneven gravely steps with no railing sends running away these days. Go figure, aging is weird.
ADVICE:
We were in Santorini in the late of May, but still it was chilly at nights and mornings. Maybe it is this way all summer long. Depending on the winc and cloud, it may be cool all day long.
The beaches are very hard to get to, but you must. I mean, you’re on an island…see the beaches. They are very rocky, the water is cold, and depending on the popularity there will be a place to eat, drink or lay on lounges. One in particular is really cool, not because it is most likely a beach beach, but the back drop cliff/sand walls are beautifully drastic. Nature has made art all on its own, so go see Vlichada Beach.
We tried to visit Oia, but it was too crowded. I recommend to stay in another town. We stayed in Imerovigli and looooved it. Will tell you more about our hotel there, and all the hotels we stayed in on this trip, in a future post. Do definitely go to the tiny cover fisherman village below Oia, Ammoundi Bay. It is Adorable with the best seafood! Warning, it is not easy to get to. We rented a car, and that helped. I recommend getting a car, only if you are ok driving crazy winding mountain roads. We saw all of the island though!
PS…Santorini is an amateur photographer’s dream. There are no bad photos here.
Like the roads in Old Town Rhodes, it started off bumpy!
Our ferry was cancelled, so we had to drive 2 hour to get to another ferry spot, and then was told we had to wait 5 hours for the next ferry. Was a bit stressed, but things turned around qwhen I saw a colony of bunnies! They were just hanging out! And then better yet, Jim got us on an earlier ferry we were told was full. We were the last to get on, but all was right in our traveling hearts.
We stayed in the medieval area of Rhodes Town. It’s beautiful, with tiny streets going off in all directions made either of river rock or marble. Ancient rock walls line these streets. It’s just beautifully confusing. You can meander the tiny streets and alleys for hours, picking a street cafe to then people watch, when your feet and legs get weary.
We did our own tour of Old Town our first afternoon/evening, including a meander inside the palace.
Our second day we took a bus to Lindos, another cute but way way smaller town of meandering foot traffic only streets and alleys. We went straight up around 30 flights of hills/stair to the amazing Acropolis. Then we meandered down around 50 flights to the beach for lunch and a cold dip in the Aegean Sea. It was smart because we had a 20 flight up climb still to do and it kept us cool.
Our 3rd day we took sail on what I thought was going to be a nice big catamaran, but nope, Jim booked a pirate ship! It was not a pirate themed tour though, they did keep us well fed and had plenty to drink. There was no walking of planks either. We went to 3 wonderful spots to swim, we jumped off the front of the boat and snorkeled, although the water was beautifully clear and blue, there were no fish. I brought bread on the 2nd stop, we got a bunch of fish and snorkeled a bit more, but the water was sooooo cold it affected my body and I opted out of the last swim spot, but Jim jumped off the top deck and swam to shore. It was mostly overcast for the day, but we got some sun for the trip back to town
Our last day, we slowly made our way up to the Acropolis in town, which is nothing compared to the one in Lindos. And then after a 2pm lunch, we lounged, and then hit a museum for our last day!
ADVICE:
I recommend staying in the medieval part of Rhodes town. Our place, St. Artemois Boutique hotel was more than awesome. Attached to the old, maybe ancient, church St. Artemois. It has only 4-6 rooms only with a pretty courtyard. Made to order Breakfast was in the courtyard and came with our $125. a night fee. Maria is a gracious host too.
I’llSTILL ADVICE:
If you don’t like cold water to swim in, do not go to Rhodes in May, even late May. Even hot out some days the water was still freezing.
We found Rhodes town and Lindos kind of crowded at times, (of course especially with cruises) but the locals said it is nothing compared to high season, which starts in June. I don’t know if the water gets warmer later into the summer, but the air does.
Also, I recommend Lindos, it’s definitely a workout but as far as history / ruins go its cool and with a beautiful view. Maybe go with a guide to learn more about it than the few informational signs we read.
Not that kind of a trip! We are on a road trip. First stop, Cappadocia, where the Fairy Chimneys live and magic happens.
Ok, it may not be called “Fairy Town” but the rock formations all over town have been nicknamed “Fairy Chimneys”. You don’t have to ask me twice, you had me at “Fairy”.
We left Istanbul and flew to a town an hour away from Goreme (where the “Fairies” live), so we rented a car and are now on a road trip.
As soon as I saw the Fairy Chimneys as we were on the outskirts of town, I got excited and emotional. They are amazing, not just as a weird freak of nature but they were carved out for people to live in, for churches and crazy enough to be tombs too. What is left is a town that now uses these places as businesses and hotels and restaurants. It is a magical place.
The area is called Cappadocia and it’s not only a world wide tourist spot, but people from Turkey come by the droves to see this cool natural thing and to maybe to stay inside a fairy chimney for the night as well. The Turkish people have been keeping a secret though, they come for the wine too. There is some good wine being produced in this area. So ending the day looking at Fairy Chimneys with a local red and white is the best thing we could do!
My photos do not do them justice. But it may get even better, because if weather permits there will be some colorful hot air balloons floating around the sky as well for even better picture taking!
The weather permitted one fine, but way early morning!
After we finally got up, we got back down, way down. We bent over and squatted our way down 8 floors below the surface into an Underground City! It’s amazing and a bit claustrophobic, but so worth it.
Like People lived in the Fairy Chimneys, People lived underground too. These particular Christian people were hiding from Arab Muslims a thousand years ago or so
Their cities were intricate and had everything, even wineries!
The Cappadocia magic didn’t end there, they have magic valleys as well. We danced through the Imagination Valley, with kissed through Love Valley, we were amazed through the Ihlara Valley and we passed through Pasabag Valley.
The Ihlara Valley
The Love Valley…
Can you tell why it’s named that?
Imagination Valley
The Pasabag Valley
The photos and my words do not relay just how magical this place was to me. Constant beauty everywhere you looked.
We left this morning along the Silk Road west. My next blog will be Silk Road Stops, Konya, Pamukkale and maybe Oludeniz…depending on my experiences, photos and the stories I want to tell.
Thank you for visiting
MY GNOME LITTLE WORLD
And come back soon for travel adventures, art exploring and all around mayhem.
Before your mind goes negative, read below. This is meant to give advice to future travels as well as sharing our experiences and photos. We loved Istanbul, the history, the textiles, the colors, the domed mosques and the people. Now we are off to see some Fairy Chimneys in Cappadocia!
BEAUTIFUL, YET CONFUSING
Beautiful to the eyes in every direction! And there are many streets, alleys, and walkways in all directions, up hills, down hills, to the far right or just vere right, to the left and up the stairs! It is confusing to find places, the right entrances, the right lines, and/or the right information. Once you get your bearings down and good phone mapping system some of that can be solved, as for the right entrances and lines to go on…ask ask ask. Don’t be afraid to ask, sometimes it helps, sometimes you need to keep on asking.
Which ever way you look there is endless beauty inside and out. Here is some of the beauty my eyes saw.
HISTORIC BUT UNATTAINABLE
Let me start off, I love history. Historic doesn’t describe it, this city is ancient. Everything is beautiful, down to non ancient cats. Just on historic buildings alone, this city wins! You walk around in awe, reading these little info obliques, which are in several languages and free.
The unattainable issue is it costs a lot to explore inside said buildings. It is around $55US to get into the Topkapi Palace. It’s way less for Turkish people, but young International travelers on the cheap it’s a no go. The Haga Sophia, ancient church first then and now a still working mosque is $27US to get in and see it. Non-Muslim people can’t go to the first floor, so you see half of it for that much. They are both beautiful and important places in history if you can afford to see them. If not walk around them and just enjoy them from the outside with enough money to enjoy a pint at a cafe to people watch later.
Advice coming…please do not do what we did. We bought the Istanbul museum pass for 10 museums. The museums we wanted to go to were recently dropped from that pass, but nobody told us that when we bought it. Another museum was closed. We did not get our money’s worth at all, we spent more on that card than it would have cost to get in the 3 museums we did go to. And we had to pay extra for the other museum that was dropped. Lesson learned. Learn from us!
We learned lessons shopping too. Here are some photos from the wonderful busy colorful Bazaars!
ENDEARING AND ANGERED
“Hi guys”, “Yes, please”, “Where are you from?” You will hear this from the streets, in the bazaars and it’s so kind of cute. They are trying to sell you something and there are hundreds of people selling the same thing, so they must work hard.
But stuff is so overpriced for tourists it hurts a bit. I don’t want to be rude, but some prices had me laughing to myself. I have bought less here than I normally would because of the pricing. Believe me I love a good negotiation, but if they start so freaking high I just walk on. But don’t give up, I did not and found the right things that were not in every booth with someone who did not start crazy high and negotiated with me! He even threw in a free magnet. He did ok, I did ok and we both walked off happy. Very endearing.
Another lesson. The taxi’s may quote you a price and try to tell you higher after you drive away. This could anger a person. You have to be strong and stick to your guns. Uber doesn’t really work here, it’s more of the taxi’s just trying to get cash from you. Don’t use it. Do get your hotel to order them for you with an agreed price beforehand.
The people, whether locals or from all over the world were beautiful to be around in Istanbul. Yes, some try to take advantage of you, but that happens everywhere. Be safe and enjoy all the sights.
SKILLED ALSO COPIED
There are lots of skilled artisans making leather goods, rugs, tiles and art…but they are all thrown into together in bazaars also selling lots and lots of similar faked items including fake designer stuff.
My hotel desk clerk kept on asking if we wanted to go to the rug and leather factories. We did not, but I feel if you wanted those items, the real ones, you should try it out.
But other than buying things and going into historic buildings, we enjoyed just being out and about in very busy old Istanbul.
WELCOMING CATS AND LAZY DOGS
See you thought I was going in a different direction…but the cats are really welcoming and the dogs napped.
Some were clean as a whistle, some not so clean, some healthy looking, some seen better days, but all of them were well fed. Some were even leaning to the heavy side. Some were fixed with their ears clipped, and some were pregnant. Some dogs had tags on their ears showing they were fixed too. Some were just babies and some were old. Some had collars, most did not. Lots of food dishes were left around. And some stores claimed cats as theirs. Some cats claimed humans as theirs. It’s a very copasetic situation.
I got a little frustrated at times here in Instanbul, but I more so loved being in a new place, seeing new things, being around all kinds of different people and seeing so much culture and art.
If you love travel, you know it’s not all easy peasy roses and daisies. People and places may do things differently than us, but if we want to see their country we better get in line and deal with whatever that comes. Off to new and maybe changes, wish us luck with that ferry we hoped we booked online!
My Gnome Little World 