Off to Eastern Europa

Sunday, May 29th
(Written during the 24 hour journey to Istanbul from Belgrade)

When you don't go to sleep until 7am, you don't want to get up until 7pm. This was the case of one, Gonzalo Calderon.




However, Erin and myself had to get our crap together as we were departing for Dubrovnik, Croatia on an 8pm flight on Spanair. We were up by 12pm and began the fun game of "How did I manage to close this suitcase before?" followed by the game "Will the airline allow me to check this heavy ass bag?". So begun the packing process. We attempted to use the washer in Nicky's apartment but failed miserably. We were unable to get the clothing out of the washer as the front loading door remained locked for hours. Once I was able to get the door open, a river of water came pouring out of the machine and our clothing remained soaked. Nothing like heavy, wet clothing to add unnecessary weight to already overweight luggage. Sigh.

We were sad to leave, sad to say goodbye to our friends but ready to hit Eastern Europe. We grabbed the train line to the airport about 6pm after some confusion about which trains and lines would get us there. We arrived at Terminal 2 with just enough time to grab a quick bite to eat, buy some postcards and use the bathroom. Unfortunately, McD's was the only viable option given price and time constraints. While I was content with my fries and chicken sandwich, Erin was tricked into buying a chicken wrap due to poor marketing and description efforts. Would you think that something called the "Crispy Onion Wrap" was made from chicken? Erin ate it anyway. Perhaps the chicken at McD's in Spain is free range? Let's hope so. It makes Erin feel better about the whole thing.

We boarded the airplane at 7:45pm, sunk into our exit row seats thanks to early online checkin and prepared for our next country. After the 2 hour flight, we arrived in Dubrovnik!




After waiting in a really long line to exchange money, we ended up missing the first shuttle to the bus terminal where the hostel owner's son was picking us up. We then had to wait until the next flight arrived (which was 11:45pm) so we could take the next shuttle. We crossed our fingers that someone would be at the bus terminal to get us but when we arrived, nobody was there and it was about 12:45am by that point.


Feeling tired, lost and frustrated without phone access, we walked down the road until we came across a hotel. The desk manager was kind enough to let us make a phone call to our hostel. After a confusing few minutes with Maria, the hostel owner who doesn't speak a lot of English, we got directions and walked to the beautiful place we would call home the next few days. We were given the best room out of the three: a room with three beds and an amazing balcony overlooking the bay.


In anticipation of exploring this new city, and because it was after 2am, we went to sleep faster than you can say Dubrov.....



- Posting by Jonathan Andrew Palmer

The Day Chapter 1 Got Its Name

Saturday, May 28 -

(June 4, on a train from Sarajevo to Belgrade - So... We are way behind. We just got caught up with stuff and got behind on the blog. It is kind of a giant pain to type anything lengthy on our iPhones or the iPad. So the next couple of days are going to be short and sweet, and then we can resume sending something relatively recent out into the world [wide web].)

Saturday started out all Spanish days - late. We putzed around and finally ventured out at 2 pm toward the Museum of Contemporary Art (MACBA), stopping once again at McD's to get ourselves some wifi. And to get me a cheapo latte to quell my caffeine headache.

The museum is beautiful.




And so is Jon.




The first floor housed an exhibit from the Otolith Group in London. Each piece revolved around this history of microgravity changing the shape of the inner ear, enabling humans to eventually live in space. The pieces depicted a history starting in the 1920s with the first delegation of Indian women in college (real footage of female Indian professors in the 20s and a voiceover reading passages from Godard's The Chinese) to letters about living in space program from 2100.

Personally, I thought it was conceited. Self-indulgent work from narcissists. Someone should have told this group that their idea was crap way before they even put it into production. Yes, they have a right to produce art in any manner they please. But perhaps it was more appropriate for a museum in Siberia or Ohio. A place no one would actually see it.

Floor 2 was the general collection. Lots of architecture plans, which was awesome. Lots of posters for plays and music around Barcelona in the 70s. A video of some woman cutting her toenails and then curling her eyelashes. And a Joan Miro just for Jon ( his fave Barca artist).

Floor 3 was FANTASTIC! It was the first installation of pieces from the Eastern Bloc post-war. Room 1 was a little heavy - very Rammstein. Bloody propaganda- type stuff. But Room 2 was great. Some hilarious work from the OHO group and Tok. Good stuff.

Made our way back to the Arc de Triomf to watch Barca play Manchester United for the UEF Championship. Heineken had put up a screen on the Arc and was showing the game to a park full of rowdy drunk soccer fans. The game was good and the venue was great (though if Barca lost, it is possible someone may have died that night).

A jubilant crowd after a well-deserved win -

With city spirits high, there was no choice but to go out and dance. Nicole very nicely (but somewhat forcefully, as I think she was afraid to be seen with me) did my hair and makeup. She also tried to lend me a dress, but as I had Gonzalo translate to her, her Argentinian people were built to be beautiful, and my Irish people were built to dig potatoes. I was indeed correct - the one-shouldered pink dress that looked so delicate on her made me look like a stocky weightlifter.

Nicole said my hair made me look like Helen of Troy. I wasn't really sure how to take that.




I don't know why she felt the need to disguise my sunglass tan.




Jon is naturally beautiful - no primping at all!




Everyone looking hot-




Went out at 2am to Club Berlin. It was full of hot gay boys, their faghags, and me and Jon. Jon and I danced til 6am. Gotta love a club with a cage dancer in a full body stocking and what appeared to be a Mexican wrestling mask.

Definitely the most exciting day in Barca. Def. didn't want to leave.

EAK

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Barcelona

"It's an Adventure!" or "I think we're lost"

Friday, May 27

We woke up late to an overcast morning. Mornings are hard when staying in another person's home. We tried not to be obtrusive or annoying and at times I felt myself creeping around the apartment even though our host could not have been more accommodating or nicer. Oftentimes we would lie in bed and read for a while or get ready quietly and leave the house for a long period of time.

On this day, we slept in and then decided on finding Parc Guell, the private park Gaudi constructed for the Count Guell which eventually it became a municipal garden. The challenge was navigating the bus system. Not an easy task when everything seems to be written in Catalan. We hopped on the #39 thanks (or no thanks) to Google maps. After a long while, we realized we missed our stop and decided to take the bus to the end. We then took the bus back the way we came, hopped off at a sign pointing in the direction of Parc Guell and ended up in another park. We convinced ourselves that it was an adventure! The random park was actually really beautiful and contained a lot of interesting vegetation:

Cacti:









Giant ground palm?









We eventually parked ourselves at a fountain and ate our packed lunch. A woman next to us was grooming her dogs and was able to tell us how to get to Parc Guell; it was just on the otherside of this giant hill! She even knew Denver, one of the only people that had heard of Colorado.

Fountain where we had lunch:











We then continued on our journey to find Parc Guell. We walked what seemed forever. We will have awesome legs when we get back.

A cool bridge we crossed on our way:




















We eventually stumbled upon Parc Guell after what seemed like hours of hiking around the city's hills. It was AMAZING!! Words nor pictures can describe how cool it was. Winding paths through stonework, cool plants and flowers and colorful tiles created a visual masterpiece, a place that didn't seem like a "park". A blend of cultures from around the world were gathered here in the art and in the people surrounding it. Ok, enough with the words and on with the photos!

Finally, a sign pointing us in the right direction!









A cross in the park (the video is of a funny guitar player):

Gaudi's house and a church (now a bookstore):










A performer who didn't move at all!









Erin on the curving bench that surrounds a large piece of the park:









Columns surrounding the lower area. A snack bar was built between two:









The ceiling below the park plaza:



















The entrance to the park:



















Getting home was infinitely easier since we found a metro stop close by the park. While waiting for my friend Gonzalo to arrive from Madrid, we heard people banging pots outside on their balconies. We never figured out the purpose for this instrumental session but I think people were celebrating that it was Friday. Erin and I grabbed a pot and banged it along with everyone.

Erin and Eugenia:









As the night unfolded, Gonzalo finally arrived, his friend Raymond stopped by and we all drank some beers together and unwound into the late evening.



Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Barcelona, Spain

Subways, Gaudi, and Kelsey - Oh My!

Wednesday, May 25 -

We finally met our hostess Nicky. She had been on holiday in Greece. As you might expect from one who allows complete strangers move in with her for a week, she is very chill and extremely kind.

Virginia once again took us out to see the sights. We first walked to Anotoni Gaudi's La Pedrera, this crazy looking "house" (the size of an apartment building) in the Eixample district.




But it had a $20 entrance fee, so we drooled outside and then went on our merry way to the Metro station.

- Side note - I love subways. LOVE them. I really enjoy all forms of public transport, probably from spending the first 18 years of my life in cities with no public transport (please remember the light rail did not exist in Phoenix until relatively recently, and how many of you take it on days where you are not pub-crawling?). Plus you can't get arrested for being drunk on the bus. Unless you take off your pants.

Took the subway to Sagrada Familia, the Catholic church Gaudi hijacked in development in 1883 and arguably his piece de resistance.




When he died in 1926, only a quarter of the project was complete. Due to inconveniences likelack of funding and a pesky civil war, it reached mid-point in 2010. It is slated to be finished by 2026 (the centennial of his death).




Each of the 4 sides of the building depicts a stage in Jesus' life. The nativity scene over the back entrance-




The front entrance and Jesus baring the cross-




And to illustrate the enormity of the entire project, an arial photo I stole off the Internet-




It's not that all the buildings around it are short - those are 6-story buildings. The church is just that massive.

Virginia left us outside the church, as she had to go to work (5-8 pm as a dental assistant. Everything closes for siesta, so they stay open later).

Jon and I wandered into a Starbucks so I could quell my caffeine headache and we could use their wifi (for paying customers only, and wifi is hard to come by in Barcelona).

Had dinner in the park at the Arc de Triomf. See the random post with the wrong date stamp. By the way, this Blogpress app we are using offline is not the greatest at keeping track of dates. So, apologies.

Finally met up with Kelsey at the protest in Plaza de Catalunya. I hadn't seen her in a year! Everything was in Catalan, so we had no idea what was going on. But because the same kind of protest was going on in Madrid, Jon filled us in on the general discontent.




Kelsey was not supposed to drink on her trip, according to her study abroad program. Naturally, we did, at a side street cafe where we assumed we wouldn't be found. We were wrong - we were discovered by a couple of Kelsey's Brazilian friends. Luckily they were drunk the night before, so everyone stayed mum.




Kelsey had to be back at her hostel by midnight, so we walked her home. Jon and I stopped at McD's on our way home for some late night fries and free wifi (hence the random McD's post - I was messing around with the uploading). Twas a salty, potato-y end to a lovely day.


-ErinK


- Posted using BlogPress from Jon's iPad

Location:Barcelona

A small "late afternoon" picnic

It's 7:20 on 5/25, so it may technically be evening. Jon and I are hanging out in the park until we hear from Kelsey at 8pm. We are enjoying a little bread and cheese with the wine we brought in a water bottle (just in case drinking in public is frowned upon).





Evening Meal







Jon and his iPad







It's been a long day already...

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:Arc de Trionf, Barcelona

Barcelona: What didn't we do?

Well, it was kind of hard not having WiFi (pronounced we-fee in Spanish) at our disposal to continually update our Euro adventure. Thankfully it is abundant here in Dubrovnik, Croatia. We'll recap the last few days the best we can to help paint a picture of our time in Barcelona (better yet, to help us remember what we did).

Tuesday, May 24th:

Like we mentioned before, we walked a lot! But we wanted to post a few more great photos from the day:

This was the market near the apartment. So much fresh produce, seafood, meats, cheeses and baked goods! We would grab items to go throughout the week.




This incredible fountain was in a park near the apartment.




This is supposed to resemble a fish made from copper.




The arc de triomf. We picnicked here one evening and took the dog to go the bathroom. Yes, you read that correctly. We took Nicky's Chihuahua/Doberman pinscher named Eugenia to the bathroom during our stay.



Day One Complete!

Mickey D's - 12:20am

Late Night snack after dropping Kelsey off. Girlfriend had a 12am curfew. Lame.


The ordering process.



Jon's delicious fries.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone and McDonald's free wifi

Location:Barcelona

We made it!!

We are staying in the most incredible apartment near the arc de triumph, thanks to Gonzalo's wife, Nicole. The picture shows the front door to the apartment building, built in the 1940s. The central location is perfectly situated near everything we need/want. Our "tour guide", Virginia, took us on a long walk around the city. We had lunch at the Plaza Real, saw a beautiful market with the freshest seafood, flowers, fruits and veggies. Erin and I grabbed a chocolate croissant, Bretzel and coffee there this morning for breakfast. Virginia also brought us to the beach where we napped in the sun next to the ocean waves. Feeling tired, we took a long stroll back to the apartment through a grand park.

Virginia and Jon by the water:



9 euros for 3 courses and wine in the plaza Real:








Outside the apartment:



Here is the house of Gaudi:





Erin posing with the "butt" statue:



Street performer:



Ye olde water fountain:


- Posted using BlogPress from

my iPhone

Location:Barcelona