Nice

So I was planning to write a nice long blog post today, but it turns out the keyboards at this internet cafe (in France in general, perhaps?) are strange.....some funky variation on the qwerty standard. As a result the typing is slow, and so I'll save the detailed update for a few days from now.

I arrived in Nice two nights ago, and will be leaving tomorrow morning. Neha has just joined me, and it's nice to have company again (though i do find i enjoy solitary travel quite a bit). The beaches here are very rocky, but the water is the most beautiful shade of blue....perfect for a swim, which I took earlier today.

Tomiorrow we head to Vernazza, where we will spend a couple days before moving on to Venice. I doubt Vernazza has many internet cafes, so I'll post again from Venice. Now we're going to go get some ice cream......au revoir, et bon soir.

Update

Now, the problem is that these darn internet cafe´s are quite pricey in Barcelona, so I´ll make this quick. I spent two nights in Girona, which was great. It was more than enough time to see the town, which can really be done in a single day, but I took my time and enjoyed myself. I walked the canal, saw the random small museums, and got lost several times. All in all, quite a good time. I´ll post more about the sights at a later time.

Currently I´m in Barcelona again, staying with some friends I made on the overnight train from Lisbon to Madrid, and whom I ran into randomly in the Barcelona metro earlier today. They seem quite nice (from England....a group of three, one of whom is celebrating her 30th birthday with this trip....not too far from my own situation, as it turns out).

Tomorrow I head to Nice in France, and then on to Italy. I hope all is well on the homefront.

Girona

Just a note to say that, after 4 trains and a lot of schlepping with a 50+ pound bag on my back, I made it succesfully to Girona last night from Lisbon. The hostel is nice and clean, and I´m touring the old city today (brutally hot as always, but not as bad as Lisbon or Madrid). I´ll post details perhaps tonight or tomorrow.

Random note: it´s not as though I don´t appreciate the smooth rides or the ease of construction that pavement provides, but it´s really nice having cobblestone streets and sidewalks. Not only do they conform to the ground well, but the patterns that can be made everywhere using different color stones is quite pleasing.

Location 2: Lisboa

After spending 4 days in Barcelona, I took the high-speed AVE train from Barcelona to Madrid, and then the overnight train from Madrid to Lisbon. Due to the delayed arrival of my Barcelona train, I almost missed the one from Madrid, but luckily I found another backpacker on the connecting train (we had to transfer between train stations in Madrid), and together we figured it out just in time.

I´d forgotten how enjoyable sleeper trains can be. Not only do you go to sleep in one city and wake up in another, which is just a wonderful concept by itself, but it´s conducive to meeting some very interesting people. I got on the train, and immediately was invited to have an "after dinner drink" with my compartment-mate. Turns out he´s an anthropology PhD student from Finland, studying the remains and evolution of Portugese culture in their former African colonies. We finished off a bottle of wine discussing his work, among other things, and then we returned to the compartment, crawled into bed, and woke up in Lisbon.

After figuring out how to get to my hotel via the metro (yes, I could´ve taken a cab, but this was more fun), I realized that Lisbon is a lot like San Francisco in it´s layout. It´s situated on a peninsula, flanked by a bay and the ocean. It´s an eminently walkable city, with distinct neighborhood vibes. And, most crucially for me, it has lots and lots of steep hills, with trolleys that ease the climb. Determined to put my legs to the test, I hiked up a particularly steep hill with my large backpack, as locals passing on the trolley gave me the "stupid tourist" shake of the head. The trolleys here are a bright yellow, and very symbolic of the city -- they´re on all the tourist paraphenelia, anyway.

The first day I checked in, took a short nap, and then set out to explore the city. I promptly got lost in the Alfama district, notorious for its small alleyways and labyrinthine layout. It´s the old section of town, built originally by the Moors when they ruled in Lisbon many centuries ago. Hours (and many hills) later I found my way out, after having seen some of the really beautiful views and some of the great sights, including the Se Cathedral and the Castle on the hill...it´s name escapes me for the moment, but it overlooks the entire city and is quite beautiful (also built by the Moors a very long time ago). I spent the rest of the day wandering the city, and returned so exhausted and tired that I promptly fell asleep.

A word on the heat. It´s hot here. Today it hit 40C (that´s over 100F). I´ve sweat off at least a few pounds in the few days I´ve been here, consumed more bottles of water than I care to count, and climbed that damn hill every single time. It´s a little silly, but what the heck. It keeps me in shape.

Yesterday I spent the day wandering about the city some more, and then went to Belem, which is a nearby neighborhood in Lisbon. Most notable in Belem is the monastary, originally built by the King Emanuel, from which Portugal sent and received all its famous explorers and traders. The monestary itself is quite beautiful, especially in the afternoon sunlight, and once housed over a 100 monks of the St. Jerome order. The tombs of several kings lie there, as well as the tomb of Vasco de Gama.

Today was spent on a tour of nearby Sintra, as well as some of the nearby beaches at Guiche and Caiscais. I´ll post more on those later. As for my schedule...I leave on the night train tomorrow night to Madrid, from there to Barcelona, and then a local train to Girona. I´ll spend a couple days in Girona, then back to Barcelona, and then on to Southern France, perhaps with a brief stop in Cadaques.

Location 1: Barcelona, Spain

As some of you know, I'm taking some time this summer to do some travelling across Europe. I've got no real purpose or destination -- I'm simply taking the time I have to enjoy myself these next few weeks, and to think about how my life might be changing now that I'm approaching the big 3-0 (to be honest i'm kinda looking forward to turning 30, but it's as good an excuse as any to get out and see some more of the world). Basically, it's a trip of self-reflection and relaxation, with some adventure thrown in.

Currently I'm in Barcelona, my favorite city in Europe. I chose to begin my trip here because my brother is currently here as well, on his way back to the U.S. from a study-trip to Brussels with his MBA program. To my surprise, my Spanish has not deteriorated as much as I had feared, although I do have difficulty finding the words I want more often that not. I wish I could spend 3 months here and regain my fluency, but alas, it's not this trip. Perhaps the next one.

I arrived yesterday, and spent the day getting re-oriented with Barcelona, as well as going with my brother and a friend of his to Parc Guell, a planned neighborhood by the Gaudi -- a recommendation of mine, which I would also recommend to anyone else visiting Barcelona. In the evening we caught a flamenco show, which was truly impressive. I never really realized how much tapdance was involved in flamenco....the dancers were great, and it was well worth the entry price (although the dinner part of the dinner/show combo was sub-par). I also enjoyed the flamenco guitar playing, which is a lot of stacatto rhythyms and quick finger strumming. It reminded me of the Spanish classical guitar I have at home that has gone ignored for far too long. Perhaps I'll try my hand at learning that again this next school year.

That's all for now, but I'll be posting regularly on trip updates. I didn't bring my computer, so I can't really upload photos, but they will of course be available upon request when I return.