TravelStream™ news feed for member mpanzer on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/mpanzer en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sun, 25 Feb 2007 22:23:34 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172444400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172444400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172444400/tpod.html Sun, 25 Feb 2007 22:23:34 -0500 A week with the brothers in Southern Spain and Lisboa followed by some time with Jenn and Chris in Madrid and Barcelona.

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San Francisco, California, United States

here
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172330460/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172330460/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172330460/tpod.html Sun, 25 Feb 2007 22:22:54 -0500 A week with the brothers in Southern Spain and Lisboa followed by some time with Jenn and Chris in Madrid and Barcelona.

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Frankfurt, Germany

Stop in Germany
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172036040/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172036040/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172036040/tpod.html Thu, 22 Feb 2007 14:36:11 -0500 A week with the brothers in Southern Spain and Lisboa followed by some time with Jenn and Chris in Madrid and Barcelona.

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Barcelona, Spain

We arrived late from Madrid
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172197500/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172197500/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1172197500/tpod.html Thu, 22 Feb 2007 14:27:11 -0500 A week with the brothers in Southern Spain and Lisboa followed by some time with Jenn and Chris in Madrid and Barcelona.

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Barcelona, Spain

Today I saw one of the most amazing sights of my life. No, I'm talking about Gaudi's Casa Batllo, though that was also one of our stops. We saw a man with a mullet. Now I know you're thinking this sounds familiar. But have you ever seen a man with a mullet that goes 2 feet down his back? Who instead of having short hair on the sides has it all shaved off? Who has died some of his mullet orange, while leaving the rest black? Who has beaded parts of his mullet in rainbow colors? It was truly special, and one of the scariest things I have ever seen.

So in Barcelona, we have done a lot of... sleeping. Seriously, I think we're averaging about 12 hours a day. I think we all need it, though. Regardless, we've still managed to see a lot. Today we spent the day in L'Eixample, the area of the city built up more than a century ago to accommodate the growing population. Instead of narrow Medieval streets, we're talking huge boulevards criss-crossing in a massive grid. We basically walked up the Carrer Gran de Gracia, combining sightseeing with lunch and shopping. We saw Gaudi's Casa Batllo, which is definitely one of the most interesting houses I have ever seen. Definitely a departure from the royal palace in Madrid we toured just 2 days ago.

The Casa Batllo is really an ingenious design. There are almost no straight lines in the entire house, as Gaudi wanted his design to more accurately reflect mother nature. There are amazing colors used throughout the house and I particularly appreciated his brilliant ventilation system and that every room in the house got some form of natural light. The highlight for me, though, was heading up the roof. I thought of my friends Michelle and Marlene as the audio guide talked about the reference on the roof to the dragon slain by St. George. They should both understand my fondness for this story ;-). The only downside to the house was that it cost about $20 to get in. It was the most expensive attraction we've seen!

Yesterday, we followed the path for a typical first day in Barcelona. We walked down Las Ramblas, we stopped at an amazing produce market, and we looked for Starbucks for Chris. There are none on Las Ramblas, by the way, in case you are ever in Barcelona looking for one...not that I'm an advocate. We walked around the Barri Gothic and jumped in and out of some shops. We even took in the main Cathedral, another small church, and went to the Picasso Museum. We of course stopped for an afternoon glass of Cava and some tapas, had a pastry snack, and headed back for our afternoon nap. We ended up having dinner at a place called the Attic, right on Las Ramblas. It was surprisingly good and relatively inexpensive given its location. I also loved the fact that we were dining well past midnight and the restaurant was still packed with people.

Overall, I am definitely enjoying Barcelona. Although, I'm surprised to say that I actually am missing Madrid a bit. There is a lot more traffic here and people seem to be in much more of a hurry. Also, it's become increasingly difficult to practice my Spanish, as people here seem to default to Catelan, then English, and finally Castillan Spanish. I am trying my best, though.

I only have 2 days left in my little Spanish (and Portugese) adventure. I have to admit that I'm little sad that it's coming to an end. I've really enjoyed Spain, especially the laid back attitude, the long lunches, the nights moving from Tapas bar to Tapas bar, and of course not working ;-).

I hope everyone is well and I look forward to speaking to you all upon my return!

Marc
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171940100/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171940100/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171940100/tpod.html Mon, 19 Feb 2007 15:00:41 -0500 A week with the brothers in Southern Spain and Lisboa followed by some time with Jenn and Chris in Madrid and Barcelona.

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Madrid, Spain

A couple of days, but a lot to cover. Since my last travel journal, we left Lisbon and headed to Trujillo, a small town to the west of Madrid. We spent a night there before journeying on to Madrid. We met up with my friend Chris on Saturday and my friend joined yesterday. Now my brothers are gone and it is Jenn, Chris and I for the next week.

We had a really fun final night in Lisbon. After being disappointed with the lack of friendliness on the part of many of the citizens of Lisbon, we were determined to find ourselves a good time. We ended up starting the night with amazing Indian food where our friendly waiter toasted with us at the end. We met some girls who joined us for a drink. We spent an hour at a bar talking to a sports journalist. And finally, we met up with some Americans who were staying at another hostel. It was a great way to wrap up our time in Lisbon and definitely left us with some positive thoughts.

I really do recommend Portugal as a place to visit. I would definitely like to return to see more of the country. I am still baffled why people there seem so somber so often, but the good food, scenery, and activities definitely make up for it.

While our time in Trujillo was short (just a night) and filled with the constant threat of rain, we really enjoyed being out of the cities and it this quaint, small town. It is the birthplace of Francisco Pizzaro, the conquistador who invaded Peru for the Spanish. The town was a charming little place with a really cute town square (Plaza Major) that the main plaza in Cuzco was apparently modeled after. I thought it was cool that I had stood in both squares at some point. The town all wound up to the top of the hill where a beautiful church and a old fortress were. We climbed the church tower for an amazing view (and to escape a spot of rain). We then descended and walked over to a fortress to find one of the most amazing rainbows appearing that I had ever seen.

One of the things that I have enjoyed the most in Spain, in terms of the food, has been Churros and Chocolate (hot chocolate). The hot chocolate here is thick and dark, almost like pudding. You can dip your churros in it, which is fantastic. During our cold, wet time in Trujillo, we walked all over the town looking for this divine treat. Unfortunately, it is apparently a town law that Churros can only be eaten in the morning there. The upshot is that upon arriving in Madrid, we found that this was not the case. I have already indulged twice since arriving here, including around 2 am last night (the second trip of the day for Jeff and Aaron). Just beware of Cola Coa, a powdered hot chocolate that they have here that is nowhere near the real thing!

In Madrid so far we've seen the Prado and the Museo del Arte de Reina Sofia. Both were amazing. We lucked out in missing the early train today to Toledo, as we had time to hit the Reina Sofia before taking the later train. This was a lucky coincidence, as it is closed on Tuesdays and we wouldn't have been able to go on our last day tomorrow. We then spent the day in Toledo, the ancient city that has long been home to the Catholic church in Spain. I definitely enjoyed it, but I am looking forward to our last day of just enjoying Madrid tomorrow before it is off to Barcelona.

I realized half way through writing this that I had forgotten to tell one of the best stories from this trip. One of our days in Seville we were waiting to cross at a stop light. There were a few Spanish men to our right and one older Spanish woman to our left. All of the sudden we heard a crash as something fell out of her purse. My brothers and I and the Spanish men turned to find it was a giant butcher's knife. She quickly picked it up, put it back in her purse, and walked away! WEIRD!

So last night we went to dinner with the whole gang. My brothers and I, Jenn, Chris, and a girl we had met in Lisbon and her friend. We had some dinner before heading a local bar for foosball and drinks. We ended up meeting a group of friends, including a Mexican girl, a Peruvian girl, and 2 Spanish guys. We were amazed that it was Sunday night at 2am, all these people had work the next day, and they were still out hanging out with us. And it was not just them...the whole bar was still packed. On our way home, we also happened upon a drunken guy, who screamed at the police until they threw him against their car and started hitting him in the ass with their sticks. Needless to say, we quickened our pace in the other direction!

Sorry this one has gone on so long. A lot has happened and I haven't had the chance to write. We have another day in Madrid tomorrow before flying out to Barcelona in the evening. More from there...

Marc
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171911180/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171911180/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171911180/tpod.html Mon, 19 Feb 2007 14:54:43 -0500 A week with the brothers in Southern Spain and Lisboa followed by some time with Jenn and Chris in Madrid and Barcelona.

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Trujillo, Spain

Trujillo
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171756260/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171756260/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171756260/tpod.html Sat, 17 Feb 2007 11:52:55 -0500 A week with the brothers in Southern Spain and Lisboa followed by some time with Jenn and Chris in Madrid and Barcelona.

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Madrid, Spain

Madrid
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171662000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171662000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171662000/tpod.html Sat, 17 Feb 2007 11:42:09 -0500 A week with the brothers in Southern Spain and Lisboa followed by some time with Jenn and Chris in Madrid and Barcelona.

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Trujillo, Spain

Arrive Trujillo
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171584660/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171584660/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171584660/tpod.html Thu, 15 Feb 2007 14:41:14 -0500 A week with the brothers in Southern Spain and Lisboa followed by some time with Jenn and Chris in Madrid and Barcelona.

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Lisbon, Portugal

After much stress in trying to find a place to stay in Madrid, I just found something. Thank goodness. Now I have time to write a quick entry before I start the quest for a place in Barcelona!

The rest of our time in Seville was a lot of fun. It's a fantastic city, with a ton of winding Medieval streets, a beautiful Cathedral, and an old palace that has the most amazing gardens. I keep making my brothers do the audio tours everywhere we go and they're getting sick of it, but I definitely the educational aspect of everything.

We ended up meeting a lot of people in Seville through the place we were staying and nearby hostel. It was a good time, but I definitely tired of hanging out with 22 year olds. We did meet a cool couple from Chile, though. The girl, Steffi, spoke little English, so she and I practiced our English and Spanish together. There was also a girl from San Fran and a girl from Hawaii. Other than that, most of the people we met just looked liked a bunch of Lindsay Lohan wannabees to me.

One of the highlights of our time in Seville was seeing a bunch of Flamenco shows. The first night we went to a small bar that opened after midnight. There was a fat, old couple that owned the place and a few of there friends who took turns performing. It was nothing professional, but a great time. The owner kept yelling at everyone and seemed to know half the people in the bar. The guitar player managed to smoke the entire time he was playing the guitar. It was a pretty cool scene. ...I might as well tell you now that I got dragged on stage, was completely lost and embarrassed myself completely. We also convinced one of our new friends to dance, as she had been taking lessons for 8 years. Needless to say, my performance was much better than hers! We saw two more Flamenco performances the next night, one at a professional show and one at a nasty tourist bar. Needless to say, the first night took the cake!

Yesterday we finally left Spain and the Lindsay Lohan contingent behind and headed east to Portugal. My brothers slept as I took in the drive through Southern Spain, through the Algrave of Southern Portugal, and up to Lisboa. To our surprise, the bridge into the city is basically a Golden Gate look-a-like. We got a bunch of pictures today that could be mistaken for photos taken in San Francisco.

Lisbon is a beautiful city that has more in common with San Francisco than just the bridge. There are cable cars rolling up and down the many hills. The city has a ton of peaks and valleys. Our hostel is a great little place. One of the owners does sculpture and works here 1 out of every 4 days. The place is pretty empty this week, but apparently things are going to pick up here this weekend. We walked all around the city and saw the view from the castle at the top of the hill. We then went to a great cafe for sunset at the top of a 100 year old elevator. The city views are truly incredible. Today, we went to a town called Sitra about 20 minutes away and then to a beach town called Cascais. Sitra is a beautiful town with thousand year old castles. Both places were great, but the constant rain made it a little difficult to get around or see the towns. I guess we can't complain, though, given that yesterday was picturesque.

Portugal has been interesting. We've had some good food and pastries. The places we've seen have been beautiful. Unfortunately, the people we've encountered have left a little to be desired. Most people have been short with us bordering on rude and rarely have we seen anyone smile. We met an interesting (read: crazy) man last night at a bar. He was half Portuguese and half German, but raised most of his life in London. He had a British accent, looked like Johnny Depp from Pirates of the Caribbean, and told us he was raised a communist. He came over to our table and squatted beside us. He didn't get the social cues that we wanted him to leave, such as "when were we supposed to leave to meet our friends?" He spent 15 minutes lecturing us on how Portugal was the worst place on Earth, that the people were terrible, that I shouldn't tell anyone I was gay, that "despite what they say it's not a free country", and that we should leave as quickly as possible. When we finally escaped him and said "nice to meet you" as we walked out, he said "no, it definitely wasn't." The one helpful thing he did, though, was to explain why the people we met seemed less than happy to encounter us. Apparently, they are holding us personally responsible for our president. Upon leaving the bar we quickly learned to say "Não gosto George Bush". You can guess the translation, I'm sure.

We're headed back to Spain tomorrow. I'm excited to get back and see Madrid and Barcelona, although I definitely have no regrets about our little side adventure!

Look forward to hearing from everyone!

Marc
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171328400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171328400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/mpanzer/spain-portugal/1171328400/tpod.html Mon, 12 Feb 2007 13:11:59 -0500 A week with the brothers in Southern Spain and Lisboa followed by some time with Jenn and Chris in Madrid and Barcelona.

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Seville, Spain

We have a few days down in Spain and are already on to our second city. After a few days in Granada, we moved on to Seville today. Initial impressions are definitely positive. While I definitely liked Granada and thought seeing the Alhombra was amazing, I think Seville just seems like a great city to walk around and take in.

Nothing too eventful to report for the trip over. My flight to Frankfurt got held up a little while San Francisco and I was worried I was going to miss my connection, but everything turned out okay. My main concern was that my tired and cranky brothers would be waiting in the Madrid airport waiting for me if I missed my flight. The upshot was that I made it. The downside was that when I arrived in Madrid, it took over an hour for our bags to come out. Apparently, it was the last day for this particular group of baggage holders, so they weren´t too concerned about time! The funny thing was about 30 minutes after we landed when the baggage belt started moving and about 6 bags came out before it stopped. The happy crew took their bags and walked away, while the rest of us had another 45 minutes to wait. Needless to say it almost turned into an international incident when the fat American in the Hawaiin shirt started yelling at the baggage handlers.

After being yelled at by the brothers for my tardiness for a bit, we got on the road and headed south. We arrived in Granada around 9pm, but got a little lost driving into town. Somehow we ended up on a narrow medieval street that even a motorbike would have a hard time navigating. We were relieved when we finally found our way back to a boulevard and eventually to a parking garage. After about asking at about 5 pensiones, we finally found a place to stay and were good to go.

Granada was a pretty interesting town, although inhabited by way too many American exchange students. The highlight was definitely seeing the Alhombra, which I admit I knew little about before this trip. For those of you who are as ignorant as I am, it is a huge castle built by the Moors on the hill overlooking the town. It contains both a Moorish palace and a more modern Spanish royal dwelling. We spent hours exploring and definitely enjoyed it. After that, I dragged my tired brothers for a stroll along the river and some of the same narrow streets we had driven on the day before...definitely better on foot!

We managed to find some great Tapas bars last night where you pay about €1.50 for a drink and they throw in the tapas for free. Unfortunately, Jeff was really hungry so he kept downing drinks to get another tapas that much faster. It was a great night, though, which ended at our third tapas bar where we spoke to a group of English couples on holiday for the weekend. Get this...they took their mom to Granada for her 60th and left her at the hotel with their kids while they went out!!

So we are in Seville now and are staying right off the main pedestrian shopping street...Calle Sierpes. We´re staying at a nice little place and have definitely enjoyed the town so far. We had a leisurely paella lunch and went to the Cathedral (one of the largest in the world, Marlene and Michelle), where we climbed the tower and saw the tomb of Christopher Columbus (although whether his remains are really here is still in question).

One other important observation. The MULLET is making a comeback here. I don´t know why, but needless to say, I am scared by this phenomenon. I´ve probably seen more mullets in the past few days than AAlvarez is going to see in Daytona next weekend!

Hope everyone is well. Drop me a line if you can!

Marc
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