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| Olive groves on the way |
We depart early at 07:45 so that we can spend a while in Toledo,just a few hours in the afternoon,before driving to Madrid.We are going North from Granada and the distance is likely to be covered in just over 4 Hrs.
This is the old Roman bridge over the river.
We stopped for a few pics and were later taken to the city centre. Minus two families we are reduced from 19 to 13 in our coach
Our Tour guide says "1 hour I give you to have your lunch,drink and do whatever you feel like,but please meet near the M (McDonald) sign, then."
Marzipan chocolates and coming back to grab some for the road and looking at Damascene.
Damascening is the art of inlaying different metals into one another,gold or silver into a dark oxidized steel background—to produce intricate patterns.Looks grand!Toledo has developed a very important industry around this craft. The art of Damascene has passed from generation to generation within the same family for centuries, and has become a hallmark of this beautiful city. Damascene pieces are sold as a souvenir too.Overshadowing the city,and almost in the centre, is the huge Gothic cathedral, built on the site of the former Grand Mosque.
It is one of the three 13th century High Gothic cathedrals in Spain and is considered to be the pinnacle of the Gothic style in Spain.
Some history:The city has been compared to Jerusalem and its landscape called biblical.Like Jerusalem,it was a city of three religions,Muslims( Moors), Jews and Christians all adding to the mosaic that was Toledo.Jews were highly trained and knew different languages. Books would come from far and wide for translation.
During the 16th century, Toledo enjoyed its most prosperous period and built up an enviable reputation. Its swords were the best anywhere,its silk and tile industries the finest,its women the most beautiful and cultivated,its men ascetic and gallant,and the Spanish spoken there the purest.The painter El Greco arrived in 1577 and his visions of tortured saints and his other-worldly views of Toledo have indelibly linked the city with mystical fervor.
In 1561 Toledan pride suffered a blow when Philip V named lowly Madrid,only 70 kilometers to the north as capital of his empire. Among the reasons:His dislike of the arrogance of the Toledan clergy to the tortuous narrow streets,steep gradients and cramped location that made it unsuitable for Philip’s imperial vision.
But it’s not for its political role that we come here.Toledo thrives on tourism. In 1986 it was named a World Heritage Site. Thanks ironically in part to its easy access from Madrid, sightseers flock by day through the twisting streets visiting its monuments,purchasing imitation swords,Damascene work and El Greco reproductions.Another view from our walk as we near the old Jewish Synagogue.
Well,we complete our wonderful trip to south of Spain and return to Madrid and will proceed to Barcelona for the last part of our Spain journey.
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Our travel from Madrid to Barcelona was completed in 2Hrs and 40 min with a stop at Zargoza...a distance of 625 Kms! Just glided its way at an average speed of 240 Kmph.
High-speed AVE trains (Alta Velocidad Espanola) link major cities at speeds up to 300Kmph, and if you book in advance online you can find great bargains at the official Spanish rail website,renfe.com.
Unlike Madrid,with arrival in the morning,a glimpse of the sprawling Metro could be had at 11 AM, as we took a 20 min taxi ride from the station to our Hotel at the city centre. Barcelona is the capital of Catalunya, a region in North-eastern spain that has its own unique culture,traditions and personality.
After some R and R we are off to explore Montjuic a suburb of Barca. We walked the Passeig de Colom,a tree lined avenue next to the Mediterranean where Mr.CC stands showing the way to the sea.Turned right on Ramblas, which I describe later,and we were at the metro station.This close up shows CC taking blessings of Queen Isabelle before embarking on his voyage.
Espanya is the station we get down and from the Plaza here we take a bus,but not before we get this shot of the Museum of National Art of Catalunya,little knowing that we will spend time there later in the day.
The bus takes us all the way up the hill to Castle Montjuic,a symbol of repression and of the City's troubles during earlier periods in history.We walked around its perimeter and could get stunning views of the Harbour on one side and the city sprawl on the other.
Saw and spoke to Pakistani vendors selling souvenirs,water, beer and met a group of Tamils on a cruise from Ireland,employed as Physios there.The afternoon Sun was bright and strong but did not deter us from walking.There was an archery tournament/training session on the grounds surrounding the castle which was an interesting break for 10 min,before we took the cable car on our way down,looking at Barca city.The best show of the day was yet to come.We exited the cable car and walked down the curved road on either side of which were the famous park of Montjuic. We took a breather in one of the park benches and later found our way to the Museum of Art where a crowd had begun to gather on the steps and many Paki vendors could be seen doing the rounds. 
We can see the four columns in front and the avenue leading to the Espanya Plaza from where I had taken the photo of the museum when we started.The four columns represent the four bars of the Catalanian Flag,symbols of Catalanism. We waited patiently for an hour before the Magic fountain,in front of the columns,erupted.By now the crowds have swelled and every nook and cranny were packed with people and their cameras. Woosh, Woosh, Woosh came the fountain in different shapes and colours while music played in the background which could be hardly heard above the din.They said water and coloured lights are combined to show 50 different formations.
We start walking down and take this.
We are now at the same level as the fountain and get this final shot in the opposite direction as we depart the area, with people still streaming in.It was worth the wait and luckily we were present on one of the two days in the week that they conduct this performance.We are back at Espanya and taking the metro back to Drassnas and walk back to our hotel.On the way a cafe beckons offering food and drink.Thus ends our first memorable day.
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Day 2...Another glorious day for tourists and we are off to see the masterpiece of Antoni Gaudi's,yet unfinished cathedral, La Sagrada Familia(The Holy Family).We take the metro and reach within 20 minutes of walking to this famous shrine where Tower cranes are still at work.It's a giant Basilica that has been under construction since 1882 (that's not a typing error) and it's not expected to be completed for some time yet.
Even the exterior of this magnificent structure is such that we were gazing at it for 10 minutes to observe all the intricate details. And then we entered; lucky we purchased an early slot on-line and could stroll in peace through the portals of this Cathedral.It is as unique as Martian is to Man.It is breathtaking!The creative use of color,space,design and stone work is jaw dropping.In fact,your neck will feel sore.Words can not describe it! I can only fill this space with pictures. Everyone should travel to Barcelona to see and feel this spectacular piece of architecture.We spent a total of 45 min inside.Here we go:
And finally Gaudi himself who passed away in 1926 leaving his unfinished cathedral to be completed by others.We came out dazed and wanted to see some more of the houses that he had designed during his life time.We bought some eats from bakery and soon caught the metro and were on our way to a different part of the city..After a bit of "losing our way" we came to Casa Batllo. One of the residential buildings remodeled by Gaudi;at his hallucinatory best.The facade,sprinkled with bits of blue,mauve and green tiles and studded with wave-shaped window frames and balconies,rises to an uneven blue-tiled roof.The result;the facade represents a Carnival,no less.Then we saw Casa Mila, popularly known as ‘La Pedrera’ (the stone quarry),an allusion to the resemblance of its facade to an open quarry.It is considered the most representative work of modernism with its wavy facade of stone and Iron balconies.
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It was almost mid-day and after 4 Hrs of Metro, walk, walk, Metro, walk,walk,we were not in a mood to walk to the Metro😅.So we caught a taxi for reaching us to the Hotel.Well,Something's lost, but something's gained...and we could view Barcelona's own..
..Arc de Triomf from the taxi.It was built as the gateway to the 1888 fair hosted by Barca. It has become one of the city's iconic landmarks.
After the Tapas lunch we were ready for a walking tour of Gothic quarter.It is so called because it used to be the Roman village and thus has some remnants of its glorious past.The narrow, winding streets create quite a labyrinth. It has many peaceful squares where you can relax and enjoy your surroundings. However one of the main attractions, right in the heart of the district is the huge Barcelona Cathedral which has a stunning courtyard full of plants and oddly, geese.
WOW! You could spend days wandering around the Gothic Quarter and would still stumble across new details.Everywhere you turn is a picture ready to be taken.The shops range from 'tourist tack' to those selling beautiful local crafts.Great places to eat,beautiful winding roads / alley ways and a fantastic history make this one of the best neighborhoods in Barcelona.Well worth the trip.Would also recommend that you take a guided walking tour,generally free,which provides the context and background history to be able appreciate this all the more.
Facade of the former main Royal Palace and its watchtower - a true skyscraper for the 16th Century.
Just like Madrid,Barca's side walks are wide,very wide especially around public areas making it pleasurable to walk long distances.Plazas,monuments and statues abound,styled anywhere from Gothic to Modern.
Barcelonata beach is inextricably linked to the fishing quarter of the same name, Barceloneta, a classic neighborhood by the sea,where the people of the city come and eat fish other seafood and tapas.Located in the traditional fishing district,this is one of Barcelona's oldest and best-loved beaches.It is thought to have inspired Cervantes as the setting for the fight between Don Quixote and the Knight of the White Moon.It was here that the knight errant was finally defeated and abandoned his quest.We took the metro crossed the busy avenue and walked a Km to the beach.The main avenue to the beach was lined with eateries...Cafes,Restaurants,ice cream parlours et al ...cheek by jowl.
It was 7:30 in the evening and we enjoyed the beach for the next 30 minutes.Hunger pangs kicked and we knew where to go.Having settled at a table we ordered Cava(Sparkling Catalan wine)Pan Con Tomato and delicious Chicken Paella.By now the weather had cooled some more and it was all very nice with food entering the system after a long day.We trundled back to the metro licking cone ice creams and reached our abode.
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Day 3... Yes the Sun was shining in all its glory as we made it to the nearby Metro station.Not too many metro lines make a living going uphill and that’s why you can’t use the metro to get close to Park Guell.
Bracing ourselves for a longish walk we set out. The way to the park was shown by an Indian shop owner and we had to travel a series of escalators to reach the side entrance to the park.
Once at the top we could get a panoramic view of the distant Tibidabo church and amusement centre.This photo taken by the Sony telephoto lens is quite sharp as you can see.We didn't realize the beauty of the park and Gaudi's handiwork until we walked a bit.Park Guell was commissioned by Eusebi Guell(a spanish entrepreneur who worked closely with Gaudi in many projects) who wanted to create a stylish park for Barcelona aristocracy.
The park contains amazing stone structures, stunning tiling and fascinating buildings.you can see walkways supported by twisting rock pillars that seem to be growing out of the ground like tree trunks.
There is a lower court (terrace) supported on Doric columns with serpentine seating arrangement in colourful mosaic created by tiles.
Located within the park is the residence of Gaudi who lived here from 1906-25 before he moved to the location of Familia Sagrada. It is a home museum today showcasing furniture and other objects designed by him 👉👉 
I had mentioned earlier that I will talk about Ramblas later.La Ramblas is a 1.2 Km walkway through the heart of the city centre. You will see all sorts of stalls, Restaurants,street performers,souvenir shops along with many thousands of tourists that promenade up and down until the early hours of the morning.Many important squares and streets lead off from here.It is in the proximity of the earlier described Gothic Qr. Ramblas is a pedestrian haven with only two narrow one way roads on either side of the boulevard.You see tourists sitting in numerous cafes,in front of pencil/ Crayon/brush artists,souvenir stands or looking for the famous"la Boqueria"food market as we were.
History says this market has been in existence since 1217.It spills over with all the rich and varied bounty of fruit and vegetable stands and seemingly limitless variety of sea critters, sausages, cheeses and Ham.We found it crowded to the brim.It’s no easy task getting past the gawping tourists to locate an eatery of your choice,but we found one where a couple had just finished and waiting for the check. Patience is a virtue,and not very long after we found a Waiter to pick up our order for food and drinks. Next to us was a young Tambram from Calif with his Asian girl friend and we exchanged some pleasant conversation in Tamil. The food stall was doing great business.There were Chefs and waiters moving around in about 120 sq.ft of space squeezing themselves between the bar, gas stoves,grills,woks,juicers,and other kitchen paraphernalia...one supervisor was calling out the orders and somehow the order was delivered in very quick time to the customer
After a satisfying hour we walked the Ramblas back to the hotel.
In the evening we walked the entire length of Ramblas cutting in from Barri Gotic and going up to Plaza Catalunya,regarded as the centre point of Barcelona city centre.
Back on the Ramblas we sat in a eatery smack in the middle of the promenade to drink our last glass of Sangriya munching on Pan con tomato.Wow! did we enjoy our trip here....sad to say we are on our way..but not before picking up lots of Spanish wine for consumption back home.
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Next day was all travel...first to the metro Barca Sants Rly station,to Madrid by Renfe,just the way we came,to airport T4 by airport metro,
shuttle bus to T1,flight to Delhi,connection to Mumbai...home sweet home.
An observation...
Just as life does,a tour evolves.
You may plan and schedule but the ultimate joy is when you step into the new country,breathe its air,listen to the muted sounds and just as you are wondering how it will all go,events happen quite smoothly and there is always this smile and courtesy shown to you.You sink in to the new environment,absorb a bit of the culture,behavior and everything fits in well.You wonder if someone would cheat you,pick your pocket etc,but so long as you are careful there is nothing to worry.You discover that all around you other tourists are also seeing/doing things not very differently.Some take the coach,most take the metro,many are on foot with their guide books,then there are the big groups clinging to their guides...wearing ear phones and looking at brochures.Bars and side walk cafes are full..people sitting with a drink,tapas,smoking,joking.
Plenty of tourist shops selling tacky stuff,a memento to take home. Someone is bargaining,others are window shopping.
Everything is a delight to watch and absorb...after all what is a foreign tour without new expressions,dresses,behaviour,language,food and some confusion when you get lost because you were wondering who to ask,followed by delight.....
Adios Spain....you have been very good to us
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shuttle bus to T1,flight to Delhi,connection to Mumbai...home sweet home.
An observation...
Just as life does,a tour evolves.
You may plan and schedule but the ultimate joy is when you step into the new country,breathe its air,listen to the muted sounds and just as you are wondering how it will all go,events happen quite smoothly and there is always this smile and courtesy shown to you.You sink in to the new environment,absorb a bit of the culture,behavior and everything fits in well.You wonder if someone would cheat you,pick your pocket etc,but so long as you are careful there is nothing to worry.You discover that all around you other tourists are also seeing/doing things not very differently.Some take the coach,most take the metro,many are on foot with their guide books,then there are the big groups clinging to their guides...wearing ear phones and looking at brochures.Bars and side walk cafes are full..people sitting with a drink,tapas,smoking,joking.
Plenty of tourist shops selling tacky stuff,a memento to take home. Someone is bargaining,others are window shopping.
Everything is a delight to watch and absorb...after all what is a foreign tour without new expressions,dresses,behaviour,language,food and some confusion when you get lost because you were wondering who to ask,followed by delight.....
Adios Spain....you have been very good to us
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