If Park Güell is the gingerbread fairy-tale world of Hansel and Gretel, then Casa Batlló is falling down the rabbit hole in Alice in Wonderland. Walls and ceilings seem to swirl in their stillness; enchanted-looking doorways tease the imagination with what lies beyond; ocean-blue tiles morph from pale tones to the boldest shades as they … Read More
“Every building you see is the image of a man you do not see.” ~Louis H. Sullivan, Kindergarten Chats and Other Writings It’s hard to imagine a city and a man more intertwined than Barcelona and Antoni Gaudí. And it’s even more difficult to envision what Spain’s Catalonian capital would look like had this visionary … Read More
We have some unfinished business, Barcelona and I. We met seven years ago, not under the best of circumstances. Herb and I had been traveling on a one-week Mediterranean cruise that disembarked in the Catalonian capital. On the last day of the voyage, while walking through the lovely cobblestone streets of Aix en Provence, France, … Read More
San Sebastián, Spain The air was still crisp with the cool lingering temperatures of late May, but in a way it felt like summer. Our tour bus had crossed into San Sebastián, Spain, and was making its way up a winding road to Monte Igueldo, a viewing spot overlooking Concha Bay. Thick cloud cover was … Read More
I wasn’t expecting it to be so beautiful. We were in Bilbao to see the Guggenheim – which was as wonderful as we had imagined – but it was the rest of the city that took us by surprise: Interesting sights on both banks of the Nervión River, oh-so-walkable and simply stunning architecture. We were … Read More
We packed our umbrellas and put on our rain jackets before heading out on our journey to Santiago de Compostela. The early morning skies had been calm and clear when our ship arrived at the port of A Coruña, but stormy weather was in the forecast, and we had been advised that it rains a … Read More
“I was looking up. It was the nearest thing to heaven.” ~Deborah Kerr, An Affair to Remember Like the character from that classic film, I wasn’t looking where I was going. I was too engrossed in the way the sun was splashing across the beautiful old limestone buildings, with their green shutters and wrought iron balconies … Read More