Paris, Africa, Spain, & More

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Traveler Paris, Africa, Spain, & More
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- Day 39
- Sunday, April 7, 2024 at 6:38 PM
- ☀️ 20 °C
- Altitude: 421 m
- United States Cheney Reservoir 37.751, -97.82237°45’4” N 97°49’19” W
Last Sea Day
April 7, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C
Lost an hour last night.

Our Needlework/Craft group met, exchanged contact info, and admired each others' work.
Ann made great progress on her kiddy sweater. Annie has started a fan & feather scarf, after finishing the red shawlette with pearls. Berthe learned about sock-knitting and felt confident in her future attempt. Victoria finished a beaded fish. Larilla continued progress on her embroidery. Carol wasn't with us today, but has made a couple of squares for her baby blanket. Candy punched thousands of blue stars for DAR party ornaments. And I am almost to the shoulders of my Floozy Too pullover. It's been a great group, and we'll hopefully stay in touch.

We did some 8th deck socializing.

Dinner tonight at La Cucina. Cannoli for dessert.Read more
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- Day 40
- Monday, April 8, 2024 at 7:14 AM
- 🌙 18 °C
- Altitude: 61 m
- Spain Motril 36.746174, -3.5046136°44’46” N 3°30’17” W
Motril, Spain, Granada, and Alhambra
April 8, 2024 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 18 °C
Grapes roses cypress & oranges
Love tree, Judas tree

Our Alhambra tour guide was Daniel- clearly loved his job. He was very animated, and did a great job of explaining the history to us.

We started out at the Generalife- beautiful gardens and fountains . Then proceeded to the Alhambra palace through the town. We saw Charles Palace- occupied for 6 month honeymoon, then construction stopped for lack of funds.

The Alhambra Palace was much as I recalled- carved wood, pressed stucco, beautiful colors- some amazing ceilings. And fountains all over the place. The Moorish carvings were mesmerizing, and I could have gazed at them for hours.

We went back to Granada, and hit a grocery store to get some treats for ship's crew. They love chocolate and crispy things. Then to a garden cafe where we had some wine and tapas- a really tasty potato dish that was served with our bevs. (Those in the know don't order the tapas food- it just gets served in Granada.)

Then back to the ship- Cagney's!!!Read more
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- Day 41
- Tuesday, April 9, 2024 at 9:18 AM
- ☀️ 14 °C
- Altitude: 130 m
- Spain Sierra de Orihuela 38.114312, -1.00746538°6’52” N 1°0’27” W
Alicante and Murcia
April 9, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C
We awoke in Alicante. After breakfast we joined our tour to Murcia, the capital of the province of Murcia.

We stopped for an orange drink & coffee, then went to the Cathedral in Murcia- very beautiful with many little chapels around the outside. One of these was very large- the family actually had the side of the cathedral removed to make it larger. Outside is an amazing chain carved from stone.

We then visited the church of San Juan de Dios- very small, and with lovely statues.

With some free time , we enjoyed a sangria at the same cafe from the morning. Then back to the ship, which was parked next to P&O's newest craft, sporting a Union Jack.

Then- the worst part of any cruise- packing (and saying goodbye)Read more
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- Day 42
- Wednesday, April 10, 2024 at 12:50 PM
- ☀️ 16 °C
- Altitude: 16 m
- Spain The Raval 41.3768, 2.166941°22’36” N 2°10’1” E
Montserrat and Cava from Barcelona
April 10, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C
The sadness of departing the ship was softened significantly by extending our time with Gen and Ed- friends we've spent a lot of time with during the last month.

When we told them of our upcoming tour to Montserrat, they decided to join, and we were able to arrange being together for the trip. Our guide was Marta- who grew up on Long Island

What a remarkable place. The mountains truly look serrated from afar. And when we were near the monastery, it was walking through a medieval town. We had enough time to see the church before they closed for Mass. Unfortunately, we needed to leave before the Boy's Choir sang.

We picked up some goodies- cheese, almonds, and fig cake. I about got knocked over by a young lady as I tried to pay for some goods- she had to reach across me to grab something.

Then on to Art Cava- I've discovered a new vice. Cava is Spanish sparkling wine. We've been drinking Freixenet for decades- but Art Cava gave me an appreciation for the smaller vintners. Macabeo, Parellada, and Xarello are the three traditional varieties of grapes used to make Cava. (And I discovered techniques for handling the bubbles.)

We purchased some bottles to be shipped home. We'll be able to enjoy our memories in the future.

Then to the hotel.Read more
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- Day 43
- Thursday, April 11, 2024 at 9:13 AM
- ☀️ 8 °C
- Altitude: 788 m
- Spain Barranco de Greixa 42.252768, 1.86042842°15’10” N 1°51’38” E
Bagá, France, Andorra
April 11, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 8 °C
We found the tour office- no mean feat... and I was able to locate Gen & Ed. Our tour guide was Steven- he's Irish- married to a Spaniard. It was a great day.

Our first stop was Bagá- a Spanish medieval village- we were able to taste Coca- a Catalunyan sweet bread- and visited a small cafe for a coffee and servicio break.

Then on to France- Ax de Thermé. We had a really good lunch at a small restaurant- Wayne had onion soup and we shared a Mountaineer Plate- cheeses, meats, and a delicious onion marmalade. Gen and I shopped at a small grocery store and picked up some small goodies.

Andorra was our next stop. We visited the border town from France, then headed to the capital city. Gen & I dragged the guys to Starbucks where we both got Andorra mugs. IYKYK.

On our return to Barcelona, the four of us ate at a small Turkish restaurant- I had calamares, and W had paella. We bid farewell to our new friends, and back to our hotel.

St. George- Jordi
Pheasant IslandRead more
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- Day 44
- Friday, April 12, 2024 at 3:43 PM
- ☀️ 22 °C
- Altitude: 46 m
- Spain Diputació de Barcelona, recinte de la Maternitat 41.375651, 2.12667641°22’32” N 2°7’36” E
Sagrada Familia and Barcelona Ho-Ho
April 12, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C
Sagrada Familia-- how to describe it? It's an amazing edifice. To me, it looks like it was designed by a committee with bad communication skills. That said, it was, in fact, designed by a string of architects- the most famous and apparent of whom was Gaudi.

There were so many details- one of my favorites was on the exterior, where a figure of the Risen Christ is sitting in a ledge overlooking the cross.

After this sensory overload, we did a nice afternoon ride on the HoHo bus-- with a stop for sangrias and snacks.

Our evening found us wandering the area near the hotel. Wayne wanted some sherry. We inquired at a bar where the waiter informed us that "It isn't a Spanish drink." O...K....Read more
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- Day 45
- Saturday, April 13, 2024 at 3:00 PM
- ☀️ 23 °C
- Altitude: 5 m
- Spain Platja De Gava 41.267761, 2.02510441°16’4” N 2°1’30” E
Lazy Morning & Move Toward the Airport
April 13, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C
We had late checkout at the Holiday Inn, then caught a taxi to AC Hotel Gava Mar (Marriott) that was closer to the airport. What a lovely, quiet place. We had a sangria break, then took a walk down to the beach.

Dinner was great- fish for Wayne, shrimp paella for me.Read more
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- Day 46
- Sunday, April 14, 2024 at 9:00 AM
- ☀️ 14 °C
- Altitude: 24 m
- United States Rose Hill Farms 38.769661, -77.12854938°46’11” N 77°7’43” W
And... Home
April 14, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C
So- to the airport. We spent some time in one of the lounges- a farewell Cava... The flight was uneventful.

Global Entry is pure magic.

And the best part of the day-- we got to see Julianna who picked us up, drove us home, and shared Chinese take-out with us.

What a trip it was...Read more
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Trip end
April 14, 2024