Boston

Im still alive...but in Boston for the night. They made us get back off the plane in Madrid and take another, 3 hours later. I missed my connection and hope to be back in KC tomorrow afternoon:)

Granada Cathedral

This evening I visited the Cathedral in Granada, very large and very pretty...you know the Catholics...go big or go home???

Granada

The most famous site in Granada is the Alhambra. It is a beautiful place, I spent almost the whole day today touring the palace, courtyards and gardens...without a coat! Nice weather in the South of Spain:)

Morocco Lunch

The highlight of the tour was the lunch...her I am with a coke in Arabic and some awful wine I shared with the Spanish couple next to me.

Morocco

Yesterday I caught a boat to Morocco...yikes. One day (actually about 5 hours) in Morocco, is about 4 hours too much. The tour guide was fine, but when we were left to ¨shop¨on our own for 1 1/2 hours...lets just say Ive never felt so uncomfortable in my life...being run through the gauntlett of relentless street vendors and muslim men staring at me like I was a pork-chop was a little too much. So I latched on to a German couple to hang out with. It was an experience I wont forget...for sure.

Tarifa

I arrived in Tarifa the day before yesterday. I got here just in time to see the sunset. The mountains you see in the distance are in Africa.

Seville 2

This day I went on a hike with my friends Jim and his wife Jarmilla (an many new friends) in the mountains. I met people from Germany, Spain, Poland...and many more. It was a beautiful day...but we were tired...it was 15Kilometers. Afterwards we went to a TexMex bar where they were playing the Chargers/Patriots game (for Jim, who is from the states). The place was full of American students, and I kept thinking to myself---am I in Spain???

Seville

Seville is a really beautiful place, many of the buildings and fountains on the plaza in KC were inspired by things in Seville. Here is the Cathedral...does this Giralda tower look familliar?

We also went to see a flaminco show...fantastic.

Ronda today

Ronda is a lovely little town in the Southern part of Spain, this bridge over the gorge is probably the most famous site...I had quite a long hike down for this one. There is a bull ring too, I´ll see that tomorrow. This is where modern bull fighting was born...yikes.

Mezquita 2

This is the cathedral part of the Mezquita. It was built in the middle, replacing some of the columns you see in the other photo...in its heyday, Cordoba was the center of culture in Europe, and the Muslims, Jews and Christians got along famously...

I have a nice video but it takes too long to upload from here...more later.

Mezquita

The Mezquita is the most famous site in Cordoba, it used to be a Mosque and was turned into a cathedral in the 16th century. This photo shows the islamic archetecture. It really was fascinating...google it when you get a chance.

Cordoba

In Cordoba, I stayed with 2 really kind girls...Lora from Belgium and Dina from Greece. Lora is a couchsurfer too. She took me on a walking tour of the old town and made a fabulous dinner (the one in the middle). Dina is a student and Lora teaches French and English...she of course speaks Dutch and Spanish too...wow.

Palacio Real

This is the third most beautiful Palace in the world, after Versailles and the Palace in Austria. It was a wonderful tour, but they dont allow photos inside...too

bad.

Plaza Mayor

Madrid is very easy to get around, everthing is close together. This day I walked from Puerto de la Sol to the Prado museum. This was on the way, Plaza Mayor.

Madrid

Madrid is great! If its one thing I like, its to eat (everyone knows this). I dont know exactly what is on this little piece of bread, but it was tasty!

I'm still alive, and in Madrid

Sorry no photo, its late, dark, and I'm tired. I just arrived in Madrid, Spain tonight. Took quite some effort getting here (RER, airport, shuttle, metro...) You will love this, I went down to the nearest bar for a drink and a late dinner--did you know when you order a beer, they bring you a little plate of Tapas (appetizers)??? And with each additional beer, something new and tasty shows up? I thought it was a great deal. I'm in a nice hotel, only 49euro/night and my 3 beers and a dinner (3 rounds of appetizers) was less than 5euro. Spain is fabulous! I am near Calle Grand Villa, next to the city center, I have a balcony and a view of Plaza del Carmen.
Looking forward to morning so I can see!

Ferris Wheel

I couldnt resist-yesterday afternoon was very pretty and I took a ride on that giant ferris wheel shown in previous photos. I seemed to be eye-level with the Butte de Sacre Coeur.

The Orangerie

Yesterday I finally made it to the Orangerie Museum, it houses the large panels of waterlillies-the room was built for them. The museum is called l'Orangerie because it used to be sort of a green house to keep the orange trees from the Tuillerie Gardens in the winter.

Versailles

Yesterday I went to Versailles, the palace of the Louis (XIV+) Very beautiful, but I will need to come again in the summer to have a better time photographing the gardens. I could spend an entire day just wandering the gardens.

Montmartres

I went to Montmartres yesterday, home of the Sacre Coeur. I went on a walking tour with my guide book and found the former homes and studios of VanGogh, Renoir, Picasso and Toulous-LaTrec. It is a really cool area. My tour ended at the bottom of the "butte" at the Moulin Rouge...

The American Church

I went to church sunday, the American Church in Paris. It was the first American church on foreign soil. It has been in operation for 150 years. A couple of days before, I stopped in to check the hours for Sunday service and ran into a nice lady...turns out she is the interim Pastor's wife--they are from Ohio and she said they will live in Paris for one year and have an apartment upstairs with a wonderful view. I went to the coffee after the service and she introduced me to her son and daughters that are visiting for the week, Im going to meet up with them in about an hour...nice to talk to some Americans for a change.

Rue Cler

Rue Cler

Rue Cler

Speaking of internet, I usually go to Rue Cler to get good things to eat and use the internet cafe. It is a pedestrian street lined with flower shops, cafes, cheese shops, meat stores, bread stores...a wonderful place.

Musee D'Orsay

The D'Orsay is my favorite museum. It is just the right size and holds all of my favorite painters work. Monet, Manet, Millet,(keep those straight:) Vangogh, Gaugain, Seraut, Renoir...not sure if i spelled those right, but im in a hurry...internet is expensive:)

Jardin du Carousel

I spent a good part of this day sitting by a fountain writing in my journal, I was equal distance from the Louvre, the D'Orsay and the ferris wheel. The pidgeons are making me crazy...but I will not be defeated;)

Tour Eiffel

This is the view just outside the flat I'm renting. The guy Im renting the flat from has gone to Bali for the month, but before he left he took me to the Eiffel Tour on his way to work (he works there). Its a short walk from the flat. Instead of waiting in line for hours (like the rest of the tourists) we went right up. After a short personal tour, I was in and out in less than 30 minutes...its good to know people.

Louvre

Went to the Louvre yesterday...it really is too much--I only floated past a few favorite rooms, visiting Mona, Winged Victory, Venus di Milo, Raft of the Medeusa, Liberty Guiding the people...and lots of sculptures.

Champs Elysees

There are twinkling lights all down the Champs Elysees for the holiday. They twinkle like snowflakes falling, very pretty. Not a great photo, but you get the idea??