Andorra and Spain

Hola amigos!

Here we are in Espana! After our last Portugese stop in Porto we flew to Toulouse to pick up our car, stayed in Andorra (a tiny country in between France and Spain) and for the last week we´ve been travelling through Spain.

The constant rambling lifestyle of travelling is really starting to sink in. Showers and comfortable beds are becoming few and far between, and normal things from home like cream cheese, driving a car and understanding the native language are now nonexistent  However, the overwhelming benefits of getting to experience new people and places everyday greatly outweigh not having those simple comforts.

Without sounding too negative, Spain has not really been me and Daniel´s thing. Like anything else, there are ups and downs in life, and it is disappointing to have a country you´ve been excited for to not live up to your expectations. However, in the wise words of Daniel´s mother, "you are free spirits! go where you want!"

Obviously there have been uniquely Spanish experiences that have been unforgettable. One was definitely our hostel in Barcelona. I have never been in a place where everyone is so friendly and fun and so willing to put themselves out there to make friends. We were so lucky to get to know an amazing group of people in such a short time, and we picked up a super cool Aussie (Kiri) to travel Spain with in the process. We also met some awesome French dudes who suffered through my French, and who invited us to visit them on their farm in Chably. Can´t wait to meet up with everyone again!

Our group of friends from Barcelona








Some other amazing Spanish experiences included: swimming in turquoise natural hot springs surrounded by rock walls completely by ourselves, seeing the amazing Sagrada Famillia by pure luck (normally tickets get sold out and the lines are 2 hours but we managed to find online tickets!) and the gorgeous Alhambra in Granada. Also, lots of (topless) beach days with our friend Kiri.

when in Valencia...








Before Spain we went to Andorra for two nights. Andorra is AWESOME but I´ve never met a single person who´s been there. To be fair, the country is only 20km by 30km big, and on top of a mountain BUT it´s incredible. Please go if you have the opportunity! We were the ONLY people staying in our hotel, but luckily it´s super safe and we became besties with our hotelkeeper. Andorra feels like one of those last refuges of old world charm and rustic nature truly appreciated by its natives.

Beautiful mountains and snow (in May) at 2000m







A highlight was having a super yummy 3 course meal (including a full bottle of wine) for 8€. We were served by an 80 year old woman who spoke NO English and very little French, but who somehow communicated that our dessert, the crema of Catalan, would put roses in our cheeks.





Daniel with our favourite lady








Anyways, off to France tomorrow to follow our hearts. It was the two year anniversary of my dad´s passing the other day, so I´m going to spread some of his ashes there. In my favourite picture of him, he´s holding two baguettes surrounded by the fields of the French countryside. He looks so incredibly happy and at ease, so I think he would be okay with that. Hope everyone is well, and please comment! 323 blog views already! Pretty awesome :)

Portugal Part 2: Evora, Sintra and Porto

Hey errrryone! I know we just posted a blog BUT we have free computer access at our hostel in Porto so we figured we should take advantage of it! Porto is the second biggest city in Portugal and also where Port wine comes from (from our samplings, it is very very yummy). We are staying at "The Wine Hostel", where a glass of port of any variety is 1€. We also sampled the glorious francesinha or "grilled cheese from Hell" as our American room mate called it. Basically it's a heart attack on a plate; sandwich with roast beef, sausage, smoked sausage and some sort of corned beef thing inside bread that has been smothered with copious amounts of cheese then drenched with a spicy cheesy gravy and mounds of tiny french fries. 5 € fed us for breakfast and I think I speak for both of us when I say I don't think I'll ever need to eat again!

The famous francesinha













Before Porto we explored Sintra and Evora (Ehh-vrah). Sintra is a beautiful city inside what feels like a jungle, with multiple gorgeous castles perched on top of mountains in the town. It's so hard to describe what it's like until you're roaring up through switchbacks in a moss covered forest, seeing ruins of castles whizzing by from as early as 400 AD. The last castle seems determined to outdo them all and is covered in pink and yellow and looks like it's from a Disney movie.

The jungles and castle ruins of Sintra

After Sintra, we went to Evora, which I was very excited about because of the song "Tango to Evora" by Loreena McKennitt, who apparently went to Evora and was captivated by the beauty and timelessness of the city. We met a cool dude from Spain and sat out on the rooftop patio of our hostel with him, drinking rum and watching the sun set over the red tile roofs.

 The beautiful city of Evora at dusk

Anyways, it's amazing here so far, every city we've seen is so unique but beautiful in its own way! We're off to Toulouse tomorrow to pick up our car then going to drive through the 31 roundabouts (literally. I counted.) to Andorra on a whim :) we'll see how it turns out! 

Hope everyone is well, please comment and miss you all! 

~Caroline

OK, the fun one is going to write now. Ms.NoFun has said pretty much everything for the both of us. Portugal has been beyond amazing. When we first planned our trip, we both viewed it is a means to an end rather than an end in it of its self. However, upon arrival we have both been amazed by the people, the fish, and the imagery. Every city is distinctly different from the last yet remains united as Portuguese. 

     The pictures speak more to the country than anything i could say (thankfully "NoFunMolly" is a pretty deece photographer :P) 

Captain Fantastical  

Portugal Part 1: Lisbon and Cascais

Hey everyone! So here we are in Portugal. I have to say, when I was thinking ahead to the trip I was most excited about Portugal. It seems to be a place less frequently visited but everyone who goes seems to be captivated by it, and it has definitely lived up to my expectations! Lisbon is a big but beautiful city with red tile roofs, bright colorful houses, large sunlit squares and cool narrow alleys. It's right on the River Tejo (which is actually the ocean) and our first few days were spent just walking around, drinking beer in the Praço do Commerçio and trying to explore all the cobblestone alleyways in the historical Alfama district. At night we listened to traditional fado music- historically they are melancholy songs descended from African slave ballads. People come and sing off the street and they are given a cup of wine for their efforts. We sat next to a Portugese couple and ate amazing cheese and pão (bread). We also visited the amazing Castillo do São Jorge; a hilltop castle with amazing views of Lisbon and the ocean with beautiful trees and we got to climb up the castle tower! Still don't know who/what São Jorge is... Portuguese is very difficult and dissimilar to most other languages where I might have some hope of communication. It's almost Germanic or even Slavic sounding, with some Spanish and French and Italian words thrown in. Needless to say, we're happy to say most people speak a little English and/or French! Our hostel is also beautiful, right by the ocean and super clean. We met a cool dude from Ecuador who's studying at la Sorbonne and luckily speaks French, English and Spanish very well. We became best friends over a couple (several) glasses of duty-free rum (only $16!!!) and coke.

Travelled to Cascais (cash-kay) yesterday by train along the coast. It's a super adorable town on the ocean with a beautiful white sand beach and a Harbourfront full of fishing boats. Our hostel is right in the main part of town and is full of restaurants and bars. We ate a plate full of sardines for dinner and drank cerveja (beer). We have the entire hostel to ourselves since it just opened, including a huge patio! So awesome! Breakfast was also made for us this morning when we got up. So far Portigal is so beautiful and amazing! Tomorrow were traveling to Evora, the Porto.

Miss everyone! Thinking of you while we're relaxing on the beach :P