Sorry about the long blog but this has been a very hectic holiday so far and hard to get time to get everything on paper.
Second day in Ibiza and off the ship around 09:00 and a
drive around the Island winding up at a mixed nude (optional) beach. I decided
to go……nah too much information to make public. There were three sections each
with lounges and umbrellas for lease at $A14 - as I found out each, rather than
together. Waiters wandered around selling water and snacks and there was a
restaurant for those seeking meals. About 70% of people were nude while the
rest (like me) were more modest.
Spent about two hours there until the sun disappeared and
clouds rolled in. Some more driving around exploring the island which isn’t
anything special and much like any other Mediterranean Island. The water was
amazingly warm and more amazingly salty but hardly surprising seeing there were
salt flats adjacent to the beach. But as always in this part of the world the
beach was ordinary in terms of sand but the water was a beautiful blue.
Back to the city for a typical Spanish lunch of Tapas – tuna
belly with tomatoes, manchego cheese ragout and beef carpaccio – very yummy
indeed.
Returned the car and walked to the tender to take me back to
the ship – the ship had been moved from a dock to the harbour. I arrive at the
tender wharf to find many many people queued up and was told that the ride back
is very rough and the boats are travelling slowly. Good move as it was
incredibly choppy with many of the guests getting a little “green”.
Ibiza’s sole reason for being is tourism and nightclubs with
electro-music. I certainly wouldn’t regard it as a “must see” destination but
certainly worth a cruise “peek” – one of the things I certainly like about
cruises – an opportunity to “sneak peek”.
I had a booking to go to the Italian Tuscany Grill but
enjoyed the French Restaurant so much that I changed booking back to that one
and am sure glad I did. The food was even better than my first experience
especially the Dover sole and venison – excellent. A few minutes at the Cirque
du Soleil style show a drink and then some much needed (after the sun) sleep.
The cruise included an all drinks package and in my usual
business analytical way I can tell you they are a LONG way in front.
Next morning I wake up in Majorca or as they spell it
Mallorca which was a pleasant surprise. Shuttle bus to the city where I ask a
taxi driver who was offering his touring services how much. He asks me how many
people to which I reply I just need one car - $A225 – no thanks. I get into the
hop-on hop-off $25 for just over an hour. I see all the highlights of this
quite beautiful seaside city including the amazing Cathederal, Summer Palace of
the King of Spain and a former palace used as a jail.
A few hours walking around the city with its wode streets,
narrow shopping laneways and mandatory piazzas. After my palate pleasing Burger
King Chilli Cheese balls I buy something moure gourmand, Balotta five year aged
prosciutto being carved as we watched – supposedly the best available –
certainly suggested by the price, some goat’s cheese and biscuits for what was
a VERY yummy lunch in the cabin.
As I get to the cabin I get a note that was very disturbing.
Not that there was some gastro going around the ship, that I didn’t mind but
they had removed my bible for sanitary reasons – REALLY? Anyway as I go to get
some baguette and lettuce for my lunch I notice that there is no self-service
and everything is being served by the staff.
After lunch I have a long spa where I meet an Irishman who
runs a bio fuel boiler company, an American school teacher and an American
Banker – all quite interesting and pleasant to talk to. Back to the cabin to
pack so that I can leave my luggage outside the room by 23:00 and off the
Shabbat Services.
Around 25 people for Shabbat Services. A mixed bag Americans
Israelis and Europeans. Pleased to see some reverse discrimination as the
Siddurim had not been contacted for sanitary purposes.
Dinner in the main dining room was quite interesting as it
comprised recipes from chefs who had won Top Chef, a reality Chef’s show in the
USA. Probably as good a mass produced meal as one could get. A few drinks in
various lounges and off to bed.
Up late for me – around 07:00 although I have been sleeping
in a little throughout the cruise, and get ready to get off the ship which was
a very painless exercise. A cab to the nearby hotel and off for what would be a
VERY long day.
I bought a two day hop-on-hop-off bus ticket and spent the
next eight hours doing the red, blue and green lines getting off firstly for a
walk along Las Rambla and then to what I have always regarded as the best food
markets I have been to – BY FAR. An amazing variety of, well just about
everything food. Meats, poultry, fish, fruit, produce and much with the ability
to buy and eat there – a must not miss of Barcelona.
Back onto the bus to the Segrada Familia (no tickets
available), unsurprisingly not yet finished and the Gaudi Gardens (no tickets
available). However I went to a 4D presentation on Gaudi which was good fun and
interesting. Completed the circuit of what is an amazing city with just so many
sights to see its almost hard to describe. Beautiful Gothic Churches, lovely
national buildings and lovely residential architecture. I plan to do some more
exploring tomorrow.
Barcelona is perhaps the most crowded city with tourists
that I have ever been to but that said there is so much to do that it doesn’t
seem physically crowded in terms of people nearby.
That night Mr Tripadvisor steered me towards what is rated
the 9th best of 7000+ restaurants in Barcelona and I was not
disappointed. The meal at Fulla d’Ostra was excellent. The owner is a retired
Brazilian Opera Singer came to Spain at the end of his career to teach singing
and always had a passion to open a restaurant. He teamed up with a Chilean
Chef, Marcello and opened a 22 seat restaurant in the suburbs of Barcelona. He
complained about his monthly rent of $A1600 (clearly he should never consider
opening up in Sydney) a month but did say that salaries of $A1400 a month for
the waitress and $A2200 a month for an assistant chef was manageable.
Interestingly and a sign of the power of Tripadvisor and the internet was that
90% of his customers were tourists and not surprisingly for an Opera singer he
was able to speak with each customer in their native tongue. Anyway the meal
was a surprise degustation and was superb.
An hour walking around and off to bed for a very well earned
(14km of walking) night sleep.
Now I have been to Spain a few but not too many times and
everywhere there are museums of erotica or sex and museums to Jamon (ham). A
taxi to the Rambla where it is too early in the morning for the former so I opt
for the latter and it proved to be MOST interesting. The finest ham in the
world is Iberico which comes from pigs raised in the Iberian part of Spain and
they are turned out to pastures to fatten up on a diet of acorns. At the end of
the tour there was a tasting and it was certainly easy to identify the superior
Bellotta hams from the ‘simple’ Iberico ones.
A walk to the top of the Rambla to hop on the Blue Line Bus
to the Gaudi Gardens where I have wised up and bought a ticket for a walk
around in warm but pleasant weather. A taxi to the Joan Miro Museum which
is…..closed – who closes a museum on Sunday in peak tourist season???
A quick walk down the road to cable car to take me on a
scenic trip around Montjuic – mountain of the Jews, followed by a funicular
back down to the port near my hotel which I now discover, having initially
thought was not well situated, is right on the beach near all the action.
I stumble across a lovely beach club style restaurant with
great food but more importantly attractive young ladies who come to the table
to give you a ten minute shiatsu massage which was well earned and much needed.
Back to the hotel for a relatively early night as I had to
get to the airport 06:00 for my flight to San Sebastian.
Next morning up on time and hit the airport around 05:45 and
it is jumping, people everywhere and long queues to check in. Just to see what
happens I decide to try the priority queue for my Vueling (Iberian Airlines
budget operator) flight and all good where for some reason I get priority
through security and priority boarding – go figure.
Quick one hour flight running one hour late and I arrive at
San Sebastian airport where I try to figure out how to get to town and then get
to Biarritz the next day to collect my car. If you are wondering why I need to
get to Biarritz to pick up the car, that’s easy - $A1500 for 11 days if I pick
up in Spain and $550 if I pick up in France. Anyway I have a brainstorm to rent
a car at the airport and return to Biarritz Airport in France which works
perfectly as they had a French car they wanted to get back to France. So I
rented a most beautiful Mercedes for a day at a price that I would never have
normally considered but it seemed just so convenient.
Into San Sebastian to my hotel. Well that would be a lie.
When I looked at the hotels in San Sebastian the cheapest 3 star hotel was
around $A250 so I opted for what turned out to be student accommodation at the
University for $A130. Basic dormitory accommodation with a single bed. No check
in till 15:00 so I head off to do some touring.
San Sebastian is a great town with a lot of charm and
character – on the water, surrounded by hills with the mandatory churches atop
and hillside. However this trip I discover Pintxos – think tapas set out on
bar, they give you a plate and you take what you want and pay. All small bite
size portions between ($A3 and $A5) such as grilled foie gras on toast, crepe
filled with mushroom, beef cheeks, shrimp brochette, lamb sweetbreads, tomato
mozzarella and anchovy – you got the idea. It was a quite amazing lunch for
around $20 including drinks.
With a car things changed for me so I took the train tour around
San Sebastian and then went all around the old part of the city, headed up to
the beach resort of Jean de Luz (France) and Biarritz (both places I had been
to before when playing bridge here) – something I had planned to do the next
day. All of this was really tiring as evidenced by the fact that my iPhone had
told me I had walked 18.5 kilometres, not to mention the fact that I had woken
up at 04:30. A home style fish dinner with restaurant style prices on the water
and bed in my dormitory at 10:00.
So I then cancelled my Biarritz for the next night having
already been there and booked for Toulouse a day ahead of plan. This proved to
be a great idea when I woke up the next morning to hear it raining. In the car
and off to Bayonne Airport where I return this beautiful A Class Mercedes to
get a not so beautiful Romanian Dacia (subsidiary of Renault) POS which I have
named Anton. I had booked a Peugeot 308 Station Wagon and they exercised their
right to the “or similar”. When I arrived to pick up the car I was met with
passive resistance on every front – “monsieur you booked for 11:30 there are no
cars now and we cannot guarantee the type of car” etc etc”. The manager stepped
in and lo and behold he says “I have two solutions for you” they being an
immediate Anton or Jeep Cherokee. I took Anton because it had an amazingly
large boot which took all of my luggage. I head for Pau, Lourdes and Toulouse
and seem for some reason to be trapped in one lane roads until I pull over and
check to find that the Anton’s GPS is set to avoid motorways. Anyway, that
fixed I get to Pau and don’t see to much there except a salad Nicoise for lunch
so head off to Lourdes.
Lourdes is an amazing place. Population 15,000 – visitors
per annum 6 million. It is second only to Paris in terms of tourism and square
metres of hotel space. I had been before but didn’t head down to the church and
grotto with the holy healing water. It was interesting to see people’s level of
faith as, for example, I saw +/-30 people in wheelchairs being taken to the
Grotto for their Holy Water. The level of commercialisation was unpleasant with
shop after shop after shop selling religious artefacts, rosary beads and
bottles to be filled with Holy Water.
Off to Toulouse where I am catching up on my blog.
More soon
XD
No comments:
Post a Comment