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Europe 2018

April - June 2018
Planning on 2 + months in Europe. First month with Illene - Berlin, Bilbao, walking the Camino in Spain and Lake Como Italy. After that, on my own. Milan, Budapest, Munich, Black Forest and London. Read more
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  • TravelerEurope 2018
    Day 11

    Camino Day 4

    April 21, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 61 °F

    Had the morning free in Burgos. To the impressive cathedral of Santa Maria after breakfast with B and Ibby. Bea not feeling great after yesterday's fall. Huge cathedral first build in 1221. Gothic style with all later periods in the interior. Baroque, etc added through the years. Coffee and tea on a sunny plaza and back to hotel to wait for Shabi to pick us us at 1:30.

    Miles: 9.5
    Flights Climbed: 9.5    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2018
    Day 12

    Camino Day 5

    April 22, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 63 °F

    Left our hotel by 9:30 - 1.5 hour transfer to our starting point of Villares de Orbigo. A not so good start to the day as I lost my phone (found it packed in my suitcase) and then lost the CW guide book for the day's walk!! :-( Today's walk was 9.2 miles or 14K through lowlands around rivers, lowlands with primarily grains growing. Later in the day some really pretty forests (we think beech or birch), conifers, and oak. Bea did not walk again today, she is still pretty swollen in her face and hand. About 4 miles into walk, an "oasis" - gathering of tents, people, and lots of food. All free. Shabi said later that the fellow is a friend and does this due to the fact that he quit drugs on the Camino. People gave him food and this is his payback.

    Went through 2 villages on the way, had our box lunch at San Justo de la Vega. Very busy bar but able to get a Coke Zero On to Astorga - a big City. We walked over a mile once we hit the outskirts of the City Pretty much 30 minutes ahead of time. Did the 9.2 in 4 hours. The meeting place for Bea and Shabi was at a plaza in Astorga where Gaudi built a "house" for a Bishop. There are only 4 Gaudi buildings outside of Catalonia and this was one of them. Had a beer waiting for Shabi, then decided we could visited the Gaudi house interior at 4 which we did. Interesting with beautiful stained glass, vaulted ceilings and lovely columns. Lots of pictures.

    To our hotel for the night in a small village at the Hosteria Camino. Lovely old boutique hotel. We are on the 3rd floor and have a large and small bed and lots of room. Cleaned up, did our E-mail and met Bea and Ibby for dinner.

    Miles: 10.4    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2018
    Day 13

    Camino Day 6

    April 23, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 43 °F

    We loved our hotel last night. Attic room with skylight and a step to a great view of the roof tops and still snow covered mountains. Hosteria Camino. ***

    Breakfast and out for 1.5 hr drive to our trailhead in Las Herrarias. This is our "big up" day - 2000 ft elevation gain. 5.3 miles. Weather is warm and sunny again. Wandered through the small hamlet taking pictures. Beautiful setting with lots of green, white trees in bloom and a rushing stream/river running through it. Then we started up - about 1.5 miles to the first stop, LaFaba, a steady up all the time. A stop for a coke and talked with a couple from Australia that we would see a couple times later in the day. Bea is walking today and Ibby is keeping her company.

    Then on to the next hamlet, Laguna de Castille - another 1.5 miles, more open terrain and pretty warm. Another stop for water and the last 1+ mile push to the top at O Cebreiro. Beautiful views all the way of Spanish countryside, farmland and some cattle. Illene and Kay reached the top in 3 hours. Ibby and Bea an hour or so later.

    Illene and I ate lunch at a restaurant that Shabi recommended - we entered the Province of Galacia today and Galacian Soup is a specialty here. It was good - a thick green soup with potatoes and a form of cabbage. Into the car and off to Sarria and Hotel AlfonsoIX

    Not going to be our favorite hotel!!
    Miles: 7.7
    Flights Climbed: 79!!    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2018
    Day 14

    Camino Day 7

    April 24, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 59 °F

    Up and out for our last day on the Camino. Left from our hotel door steps in Sarria. Through the Old Town and down the trail to a beautiful green grassy area with a stream running through it and a picturesque bridge. A beautiful trail today, forests, lots of green fields, flowers and many more pilgrims. Many start from Sarria as it is 100KM from Santiago, the distance required to get the Camino certificate. Foggy to begin but bright sunshine the last 2 miles. A stop to enjoy the last moments a mile from the end on a terrace overlooking the fields and flowers. Spectacular scenery. Ibby, Illene and I arrived in Ferreiros, at appointed time. Shabi and Bea waiting for us. I was so sorry to see it all end. A meaningful experience.

    A drive to Santiago de Compostella and our hotel, the Virxe de Cerca. Tired but elated as well. Bea and Ibby wanted to go to the cathedral right away so cleaned up a bit and off again. Cathedral under reconstruction (for 12 years already) the story goes that the ashes of the beheaded St.James lie under the church. The front of the cathedral is the final stop for the 500 miles which started in France

    Dinner at Restaurant Roma - a dish similar to paella. Home and to bed.
    Miles: 10.9 Flights climbed: 50    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2018
    Day 15

    Santiago de Compostella

    April 25, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 57 °F

    A lazy day. A leisurely breakfast around 9:30. Bea and Ibby off for a tour of a palace out of the City. I and I decided to just have a day of relaxation. Off to do a walkabout town. First to explore the large city market. Great market and anything anyone would want. Loved all the different fish, especially the scallops in the shells. Then off to find our hotel for the night - Hotel Praza Quintana - great location near the cathedral. Back to pick up our luggage and transfer to the new hotel. Then out to trace the route of the pilgrims into Santiago de Compostella. Found the final shell and stone in the middle of the plaza of the . Traced the gold shells in the street back to near our hotel.

    Then some geocaching.near the market and the cathedral - a very tricky one that Illene found - piece of rusted metal in a crevice of one of the stone blocks of a building. Back to check in to our hotel and out for lunch. Ok fare at Casa Manolo - I had a hake and salad, Illene cordon bleu which was not terrific.

    More geocaching and looking for a restaurant for tonight. A cup of tea and diet coke at a sunny plaza near a park. Found one geocache under a park bench with lots of people around. Another in another crevice in a stone wall in the park. Total of 4 geocaches today - Illene 3, Kay 1.

    Heard from Ibby and Bea around 7P - went to find them in a restaurant. Had a glass of wine with them and said good byes to new friends. Illene and I to La Jefatura*** - a good TA find - locals place and great croquettes (our new favorite thing to eat). Frozen yogurt and ice cream on the way home. Very good day.

    Miles: 8.6 Flights Climbed: 24    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2018
    Day 16

    Santiago do Compostela

    April 26, 2018 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F

    Another leisurely start day. Really like our hotel (Hotel Praza Quintana)** however it is near the Cathedral which has a very loud bell tower that rings each hour and q15 minutes!!! Took some getting used to last night.

    Out for the day around 11AM. Illene wanted to go to the noon Pilgrim's Mass. ??? Primarily to see the large silver incense urn swing up and down the cathedral. Sat through an entire mass and they did not swing the urn. :-( Interesting though, huge cathedral full of people, looked like ~500-700. And yes, all in Spanish. :-(

    Then a walk out to where the Camino comes in to Santiago. Appears that Illene needed "closure" on the walk so we walked out about 2 miles and then came through town on the route that the pilgrims arrive to the City. Gold shells in the pavement and plaques in front of the cathedral.

    Some down time and out for a bit more geocaching. Found 6 in Santiago !! Then an early dinner at our favorite restaurant for tapas, La Jefutura. Tonight their great mixed salad and scallops with ham. Home for an earlier bedtime as we need to get up at 4AM to make our 6:40AM flight.

    Miles: 6.3    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2018
    Day 17

    Santiago to Mennagio, Italy

    April 27, 2018 in Italy ⋅ 🌙 68 °F

    An early AM start - a 6:40AM flight from Santiago to Madrid to Milan. Picked up car in Milan and drove to Mennagio. Lunch (our first pizza in Italy) at a cafe in the center square of town right on Lake Como. Then a trip to the grocery store to get supplies for the condo. Always fun to Lots of "fun" trying to find the rental office - back and forth along the coast, up and down the hill, etc. Finally the GPS came through and we arrived around 5PM. Further up the "hill" (aka mountain), we arrived at our condo for the next 2 weeks.

    When not raining we will be living outdoors here. Spectacular view of the lake and surrounding villages/hamlets. Picture attached is from first night but it was pretty cloudy. Will post better pictures when it clears. Can see snow covered mountains in the distance, think Southern Alps), white churches high on the hills, Bellagio, the most famous city on the lake, and Lake Como in all its splendor as far as you can see in both directions. All the little villages on the Lake are available by boat. Hiking will be very "up". :-)

    Condo is an 2 story with bedroom and bath on a lower level and the rest on the entry level - another bedroom and bath and a combination kitchen and living room. Still no English TV stations - we have not had one on this trip yet. Nothing really matters except the outside area for us and it is spectacular. Just wine and snacks for "dinner" and to bed early.

    Miles: 2.9    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2018
    Day 18

    Mennagio - Lake Como

    April 28, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 70 °F

    Slept a long time making up for yesterday. Sunshine and warm this AM but weather report shows rain for later in the day. Finally time to do a wash!!! Very exciting. First one since we left more than 2 weeks ago.

    Lazy AM catching up on "life". Out around 11 with plans to drive to Argegno - down the coast about 10 miles. Check out the town - lakeside piazza, shops, and restaurants. Then a walk "up the hill" - which Kay thought went to a church - :-( did not. And it was quite the +up". 37 flights of stairs according to our Iphone App. Then to check out the medieval bridge in town and a plan to take the funicular/cable car to the top of the mountain. However for some reason, closed for yesterday and today. :-(

    So Plan B was to take a short traghetto (think small boat ferry) to an island in Lake Como called Isole Comacina. A very short ride, less than 10 minutes - and we arrived at the uninhabited island. It is small but just lovely with lots of green spaces, wildflowers in bloom - yellow, purple and white Some ancient Roman ruins and a church. Just a great place to get lost for awhile.

    Back to the mainland around 5PM, then another grocery stop (more wine) and back to our condo by 6ish. Kay made pasta for dinner, Illene made the salad. Cocktail hour and dinner outside - still warm - in the high 60s. Watched the clouds come in, the lights of all the places across the lake come on as well as some lightening in the distance. Storms in the forecast for tomorrow.

    Miles: 5.6
    Flights of stairs: 56!!    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2018
    1
    Day 19

    Menaggio

    April 29, 2018 in Italy ⋅ 🌧 57 °F

    Our 2nd day in Menaggio dawns cloudy with some sun. Views of Lake Como and the surrounding towns nestled in the mountains from our condo still spectacular. Leisurely breakfast while we do another load of wash - washing machine cycle is about an hour and a half - maybe longer. Since it is Sunday we decided to hike to a church. You can see a small church way up on top of one of the nearby mountains. (When the weather clears will add a picture from here - done). Trail head was about 25 minutes up the mountain from our condo in a village named Breglia.

    Easy to find the parking lot and off we went. This was only going to be about an hour walk through the woods to the church and another small chapel. It was a lovely walk, some up but not too bad. Wonderful green forest and glimpses of the Lake very far below. A few others on the trail as well but not many. The very small church had a paved walkway from the town and long cobblestone steps leading to the sanctuary. The site dates from the 1100s but a "new" church built there in the 1700s. An great Sunday AM walk in the woods.

    Back to the condo for lunch and then off to Lenno, a village about 6-7 miles from us. We are headed for Villa Balbianello, a magnificent villa perched over Lake Como. We walked about a mile from where we parked the car to the villa. This afternoon they have a Lake Como Music Festival event - a harpist and a sax/clarinet that did an hour and a half of wonderful music in a spectacular setting. Very special. Lots of villas with gardens in the area to visit. The wisteria is in bloom and I have never seen such lush and full wisteria. Looking for some clear weather for good pictures.

    After the music, off to Porlezza which is only about 15 miles away but is on the North end of Lake Lugano and just 5-7 miles from Switzerland. We want to do a hike from our place to Porlezzo. Our hiking book says it is 14.5K or about 9 miles. So we did a scouting trip. Got hungry there so stopped for pizza and gelato (frozen yougurt for Kay) for dinner. Home for some planning and catching up on e-mail.
    Miles: 5
    Flights: 32!    Read more

  • TravelerEurope 2018
    Day 20

    Menaggio

    April 30, 2018 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F

    Every trip has to have a minimum of one day like today. The positive: we learned a lot! The negative: seems like everything went wrong. We decided to take the "hop on hop off" ferry, the system that goes all over the lake. Just to check out some of towns on the other side of the lake that we have not driven through yet. Arrived too late for the full lake ticket so had to take one that only included the "mid-lake" area. Turns out that was a good thing. First to Varenna - directly across the Lake from Menaggio. 15 minute ferry ride. Did a bit of exploring. Lots of shops, lakeside restaurants and very touristy busy. But lovely with the vegetation of spring and greenery in abundance. Then our plan was to go North to Bellano but got on the wrong ferry and went back to Menaggio. So tried for the next ferry to Bellano which had to go to Varenna first! Finally got to Bellano around 3:30 PM only to find out that the last ferry of the day leaves at 4:05PM. (and we had not yet had lunch)! So ate a quick panini and salad and got back on the ferry!!!
    wa
    So back in Menaggio we wanted to check out the starting point of a hike we want to take. Drove around the narrow streets and mountains surrounding Menaggio and finally found it only to find out we really cannot start there as there is no parking !!

    At this time Kay announces that we are not doing one more thing unless we have wine first. Then tried to find a place that we saw that we said would be a great place to have glass of wine. That took another 2 gallons of gas and 30 minutes. However the good news there was that the half bottle of wine was only 4 euros and it was good!!

    Back home for left over pasta dinner and a quiet rest of the day. Tomorrow will be better.

    Miles: 5.4    Read more

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