London – My favorite museums pt 1 – The British Museum

Finding a museum in London is like finding a Starbucks in downtown Vancouver – if you spit, you have a pretty good chance of hitting one.  But unlike Vancouver Starbucks, the majority of these gems are free (although a donation is greatly appreciated).  Thank the British lottery for that.  With availability like that, if you tell me you didn’t visit some of these incredible museums, I’m going to smack you.  Seriously, I will smack you.  I know all that choice can seem overwhelming, but allow me to help steer you in the right direction with a spotlight on my must-sees.  I’ll start with the most iconic, and spectacular of all, The British Museum.

Not only is the British Museum a national treasure with some of the most remarkable artifacts in the world within it’s walls (I’ll get to those later), but the Great Court itself is a sight to see.  The classical, round (literally) reading room, sweeping staircases, outstanding sculptures of men and/or horses,  a cafe, and gift shop, all done in white marble and stone that positively glows with the natural light coming in through the modern geometric glass ceiling.  It reminds me of a television version of heaven, where every thing’s white and shiny and ethereal.  I dare you not to take a picture here, it’s that compelling.

Once you tear yourself from the Great Court, you’re transported to another magical world just by walking through the doors of any gallery.  My personal favorite place to start (because I love Egyptian history and like to work clockwise) is the Egyptian Sculpture hall, home of giant – and I mean Volkswagon Beetle big - sculptures, all so perfectly smooth and detailed that the fact that they were able to carve this well back then is astounding.  Also, there’s the Rosetta Stone, the one unassuming little scribble-covered rock that proved to be the key the translation of heiroglyphics.   If Egypt is your thing, there is more upstairs as well: the actual, flaky, thousand year old Mummies that the statues downstairs once guarded over, all sorts of bones, artifacts and even a mummified cat.  My cat, Cairo, was actually so named because she resembled the statues here, and I’d like to take her into the afterlife with me, assuming she drops the diva act long enough to be mummified.

The Egyptian Sculpture hall leads into the Assyrian halls (I love making a good entrance, and here 2 giant winged human-headed lions are built right into the walls on either side of you, so you can’t help but feel grand), and the Greek halls.  Here you can marvel at the incredibly detailed, life-sized  alabaster people doing everything from throwing a discus to pouring invisible water.  Or, you can play the ”find the statue who’s penis hasn’t been broken off” game.  That’s endless hours of entertainment, let me tell you.  And it’s hard!  The game, not the penis.  Well, I guess a stone one would be, too…  Amidst all the phallus-less warriors are the Elgin Marbles, one of the most famous friezes in history (can you name another?) from the Parthenon.    I guess due to political correctness, they’re now called the “Parthenon Sculptures”, since they were kinda stolen and Greece kinda wants them back, but that doesn’t make them any less cool.  The Greek sculptors are unrivalled in their ability to create perfection, to the point that these people (if they had all the appendages that have broken off over the years reattached) look as if they could stand up and walk away at any time, they’re that realistic.

There are far too many galleries and collections here to list – from Korean to North American to an awesome display of Turkish tiles and Thai Buddhas, there’s even a money display that has some Chinese bills that were used to buy yourself out of Hell – so I’ll stop here, teasing you with the details of the others.  You name it, they have a gallery for it. You can immerse yourself in the history of pretty much everywhere without having to pay for the round-the-world airfare.  And, being such a prestigious institution has it’s benefits, as the limited-engagement displays in the rotating gallery attracts only the best from around the world.  A few years ago they had the first display of Terra Cotta Warriors from Xian outside of China – man, what I would have given to see that, I was just a few months too early.

In short, if you’re in London and you don’t visit the British Museum, shame on you.  If you think you’re not interested, I challenge you to just go in (it’s free, after all) to use the nice and clean bathrooms in the Great Court.  If crossing that white expanse of fabulousness doesn’t inspire you to keep exploring, then you’re not human.

Tags: BlogSherpa, British Museum, cafe, donation, England, free, gift shop, heaven, London, museum, UK

If you won the lottery…

           So, tomorrow’s Lotto Max draw is worth CAD$50 million.  With a carrot like that dangling in front of me, I can’t help but start daydreaming.  If I had that money, what would I do with it?  I’ve been asked this question tons of times over the years, and my standard answer is “I don’t know, but I’ll send you a postcard when I get there.”  I’d be on a plane so fast my clothes wouldn’t even have had time to crease in my suitcase.  But that poses the bigger question, if you had unlimited funds, where would you go?

             For me, someone who plans her own vacations on a daily basis (I’m not sure this is healthy anymore…) it’s a tough decision.  Of course, I eventually want to go everywhere, but you have to start somewhere, so you might as well start off with the important places on your to-see list (the ones underlined and bolded with the little stars scribbled beside their names). 

              Tokyo.  Definately Tokyo.  If you’ve read my other blogs you know that I love me some Asia, and nothing looks more incredible than Tokyo.  The colours, the people, the food.  I want to get lost at the Shibua Scramble crossing.  Plus, they have a Disneyland.  With that checked off, I would only need to go to Florida and I’d have seen them all.  And since I was already in Asia, might as well hop on down to Vietnam and Cambodia, two places that not only look cool, but that I’ve heard nothing but incredible reviews about from clients.  Everyone says without fail that the people are just so unbelievably friendly.  And Angkor Wat’s there.

            And for something completely different, I’d go to Rio.  Climb Sugarloaf mountain, visit with Christ the Redeemer, learn to samba and wear feathers on my head.  Then down to Iguassu falls to see one of the most incredible waterfalls.  Another skip and I’d be in Buenos Aires, tango-ing away and eating at the restaurant where a bar code tells you exactly what cow your steak came from (that’s right, specific cow, not just farm) so you know it’s perfect.

          And Venice.  Gondola-ing along the canals and wearing amazing masks as I watch Murano glass being blown.

            And finally, topping my must-see list is Cairo.  I love Egyptian history and archaeology, hell my cat’s even named Cairo.  I want to stare in awe at the Pyramids, the Sphinx, the Karnak temple, the crazy cab drivers. 

         So basically, I still can’t decide where I would go first if I win that jackpot tomorrow night, but you can bet it’s going to be fantastic! 

 Where would you go?

Tags: amazing, Angkor Wat, Buenos Aires, Cairo, Cambodia, dance, Disneyland, dreams, Egypt, Food, glass blowing, Iguassu Falls, masks, money, pyramids, Rio de Janiero, Sphinx, Tokyo, travel, Venice, Vietnam

London – Shopper’s paradise. New wardrobe anyone?

              I buy almost all my clothes while on vacation.  Mainly this is due to the fact that when I’m home I’m saving up to pay for that vacation, but there is something really cool about going through my closet and being like, ”not that Bangkok shirt, the pink one” (and before you ask, no, all my clothes do not have the tacky ”I went to LA and bought this shirt” slogans on them, though I do love my tacky souvenirs).  I have this theory about ”vacation money” : anything you spend in the local currency while on a trip is free money, more like trade really, as you’ve already spent the Canadian money by buying the foreign currency.  I’ve allocated that much money for spending, and if I burn through every penny, it’s fine.   As long as I don’t go over budget and dip into the credit cards (unless it’s really, really, really incredible and worth it), it’s game on.  And when I go to London, I know I have to make sure I budget enough, because, while I can shop anywhere, London fashion and I just click.  We’re talking pack-an-empty-suitcase good shopping here!

               The biggest thing I love about London shopping is that their “high street” (mass market) stores have great styles at great prices.  It’s as if the English approach to shopping in general is to make sure it’s accessible to the masses.  Affordable and easy to find.  Now you’re talking my language.    You’ll also notice here I’m not going to talk about Harrod’s or Selfridge’s, London’s uber-famous and uber-expensive department stores.  This is because, honestly, regular people do not go there to buy.  They go for the spectacle of it.  I always go and look at the GBP$10 000.00 dresses, entire rooms full of nothing but purses and Egyptian-themed escalators, but the only thing’s I’ve ever bought there are magazines, because they have the prices printed right on them, so they’re the same price there as they are at the corner newsagents.  But I still got the cool Harrod’s bag to wave around.

              Naturally, the place to start is Oxford street, otherwise known as the big awesome and freaking crowded street of all things good and wonderful.  You can’t throw a stick without hitting a clothing store.  But all of these stores are pretty much everywhere around the country, so if you don’t want to battle the crowds, it’s not hard to still find great fashion.  The suburban shopping malls offer huge selection without having to face the weather running from store to store.  Smack in the middle of Oxford St. is the English institution that is Marks and Spencer’s, where you can get pretty much anything, the focus being wardrobe basics and career wear.  They’re a touch on the pricey (for this focus-on-cheap blog, not compared to DKNY) and middle-aged side, but everyone can usually find something there.   Oh, and you can’t miss their awesome food hall, where you can pick up a great selection of groceries or ready meals for good prices.   Love their wine gums.

             If you’re angling for something on-trend while not being too “oh my God, is she wearing a duck on her head?” over the top, some of my favorites are:

 Dorothy Perkins - Aside from the adorable designs, their 2-for tank top deals will be my wardrobe staples forever.  Their “tall” line, aimed at those of us over 5 foot 7, keeps the fashion world open to everyone.  Their shoes and accessories are hot for a steal, and they have a new organic/free trade/eco-chic line geared for the environmentally conscious amongst us.

New Look – Bright colours and wild patterns mark this store as probably the most funky on the list, but don’t let that scare you, they have everything from sexy/sweet dresses to career wear to teeny-bopper tween styles.  I got one of my most professional looking dresses (that I just so happen to be wearing today) there for under GBP$30.00.

Next – More classic and stylish while not being old or boring, this is a great mix of business casual and weekend chic.  Not too over the top, but far from boring.  Also with an excellent denim section – lots of cuts in tons of lengths.  One of my favorite pairs of jeans is their bootcut.

Topshop – More pricey than the other three, this is where you go for trends.  On occasion, they do have the “oh my God, is that a duck on her head?” over the top styles, and they wear them with pride.  Partnerships with top designers and exclusive lines from the likes of Kate Moss makes sure they are always on the cutting edge.

             And then there’s Primark.  You want cheap, shop here.  Period.  End of story.  For what you’re paying (GBP$6 for a hoodie? Sweet.) the materials are not top of the line, but they look way more expensive than they are, and the quality is better than average. The aforementioned hoodie I’ve lived in for three years, and it still looks perfect.  Be prepared to carry a big bag, because with their prices, you’re not getting out of there with just one item.

            When traveling to London, make sure you have some room in your suitcase, are under your luggage allowance and have time to shop, because you’re gonna need it!  Last time I had to leave some things behind in order to squeeze all my new purchases in!  And it’s soooo worth it.

Tags: BlogSherpa, budget, Dorothy Perkins, exchange rate, London, Marks and Spencer's, money, New Look, Next, Primark, shopping, Topshop

Paris – They put their money in the left bank.

             Last year a friend and I were able to experience Paris when it sizzles as part of a Globus week in London and Paris package.  Our hotel was on the left bank of the Seine, steps from the spectacular Eiffel Tower and numerous metro lines.

               While our leader (who delighted in pointing out pickpockets and the exact spot where Princess Diana died) warned that the Metro was a confusing, potentially dangerous way to travel, we found it cheap, fast and easy, as well as being a great source of entertainment.  Buskers perform right on the trains, playing guitars or wheeling around Karaoke machines, complete with large amplifiers and microphones.

              Within hours of arriving in Paris we had ascended the Arc de Triomphe (shorter than expected, but halfway up the stairs you begin to think it’s huge), strolled the  Champs Elysses and people watched at a charming little sidewalk bistro. 

               A half day bus tour was included in the package the next morning and it was great, complete with a guided tour through the dirt-stained glory of Notre Dame, and a ride up to the first floor of the Eiffel Tower.

                 The tour dropped us off at a perfumerie near the Opera House (of Phantom of the Opera fame) for an optional shopping trip, but we chose to break away from the pack and take the RER rapid train to Disneyland Paris so we could compare it with the one in California.  When the tour leader found out where we were going, he actually turned up his nose at us and refused to speak with either of us for the remainder of the trip.

             Paris was in the middle of an unseasonable October heat wave and I was thankful for the pair of shorts I had packed at the last minute.  It felt, though, as if I was the only person in the country wearing them, as I got lots of stares and a street vendor followed me down the Rue de Rivoli making unsettling kissing sounds.  The Louvre heated up quickly, it’s only source of air-conditioning being large grates in the floor, and groups of tourists battled to stand on top to escape the oppressive heat.

               Our finale in Paris was enjoying a lunch of baguettes and cheese on the banks of the Seine, followed by a nighttime boat tour of the City of Lights.  The Eiffel Tower literally sparkled, a surreal sight that just makes you smile and realize “this is Paris.”

              A city of history leaning up against a modern world, I still see that glittering tower when I close my eyes – awesome enough to make dealing with the snooty tour leader worth it.

Originally published in the Vancouver Province

Tags: BlogSherpa, cruise, Disneyland, Eiffel Tower, Europe, hot, Louvre, Paris, public transportation, published, Tour

London Baby!

        London calling.  The Clash were definitely on to something when they said that, as London didn’t just call me, it left an indelible mark on my soul.  Initially I was hesitant about traveling someplace so old, concerned that a twenty year old like me would not find enough to do that didn’t involve graves.  Let me just state in writing that I was wrong.

              As this was my innaugral time across the pond, I began my trip actively searching out all the cliches: red phone boxes, med dressed like John Steed from The Avengers (bowler hat and ever-present umbrella) and fog.  The first one came before even touching down at Heathrow, with the plane breaking through the late-September clouds to reveal double-decker busses roaming the streets!  I was giddy with delight.  But it only got better from there.  Having alighted at the Charing Cross tube station (God bless the tube, it got me effortlessly around all of London for 4.10 a day and taught me the meaning of the word ‘alighted’) just after 8am on a Sunday, I found myself standing virtually alone in the middle of Trafalgar Square, Nelson’s Column at my feet, the National Gallery over my shoulder, staring at the top of the tower housing Big Ben peeking over the rooftops.  It gave me shivers and made me feel, deep down, that I was truly in London.  Absolutely charming.  I mean, where else in the world do they paint “look left” or “look right” directly on the road to prevent people from being hit while crossing?

              In my four days in London I managed to squeeze in the famous British Museum, Natural History Museum, Speaker’s Corner at Hyde Park, the Changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace, Harrod’s (heaven!), and St. Paul’s Cathedral, just to name a few.  On my last full day I met up with some local friends and we explored the left bank of the Thames, taking a flight on the London Eye, having “elevensies” tea at Royal Festival Hall, seeing Shakespeare’s Globe theatre and the Tate Modern, and eating at the Anchor Pub (built more than 200 years before the British North American Act created Canada!).  Then we took the ferry to Greenwich, past the spectacular Tower Bridge and David Blaine in his suspended terrarium, and up to the meridian where time begins.

               London is a vibrant city, with it’s old-world charm juxtaposed against a multi-coloured modernity, that I couldn’t help but feel comfortable.  I just wanted to buy a flat and stay forever.  From there I moved on to Paris, one of the most exciting cities in the world, but some of it’s attraction was lost in the  sadness that I was leaving London behind.  But not for long.  I know I’ll be back.

Originally published in the Vancouver Province newspaper.

Tags: BlogSherpa, British Museum, Buckingham Palace, Harrod's, Hyde Park, London, London Eye, Natural History Museum, pub, public transportation, published, Trafalgar Square

Disneyland smackdown – California v. Paris v. Hong Kong

           Yep, I’m a dork.  Let’s just get that out of the way right off the bat.  I unabashedly love Disneyland, have been more times than I care to admit - and counting.  It’s pure fun.  Hell, just hearing the Disney music playing as I wait to enter brings a huge grin to my face.  Through my travels I have been lucky enough to visit parks on 3 continents (Disney World in Florida and Tokyo Disneyland are still on my hit list, but I’m sure it won’t be too long before I have them chalked off, too.  I’ll keep you posted) and am qualified to compare them head to head in this, my first Disneyland Smackdown.  

           For the purposes of this smackdown, I’m going to stick with just the “Disneyland” and not include the California Adventure or MGM Studios Paris, as they are  each so unique, and would put Hong Kong, a place with only one park, at a disadvantage right off the bat.  Also, I’m going to focus more on the differences between them than the similarities.  This is because, to have the “Disneyland” title, there has to be a huge amount of similarities to keep the Mousketeers happy.  If the formula ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?  Every park has a Main Street, Tomorrowland,  Fantasyland, etc. and honestly, if you need a bathroom on Main Street, they’re in the same place in all three countries.  And so it begins…

          The first major difference any guest would notice is the Castle.  It’s smack in front of you and will undoubtedly require a photo stop at least once in every visit.  In California, the castle was intentionally built smallish and done in pastels as to be friendly and unintimidating to visitors.  In Paris, where the guests are going to be accustomed to insanely large and ornate realcastles in their home countries, the castle is much larger, more gothic in it’s architecture, and bright pink.  Oh, and it has a giant animatronic dragon beneath it.  Hong Kong tried to recreate the cuter California castle, and they did a good job, but it’s small-scale is highlighted by the mountains surrounding the park, making it seem, well, dinky.

           The coolest things to compare are the coasters.  Big Thunder Mountain in California is big and classic with the focus more on the animatronic goat chewing dynamite and bat-filled mines than the speed or the drops.  You just enjoy this ride, it’s not particularly thrilling.  Paris once again took this idea and cranked it up to the extreme.  Their Big Thunder is hands-down my favorite Disneyland ride in any park, as it takes up the entirety of the island in the middle of the Rivers of the Far West, and the start and end involves a dark, fast tunnel right underneath the water before you pop up on the other side. The “danger” factor is upped, too, as if you speed off the rails, you end up in the water.  They have the goat, too.    Hong Kong, unfortunately,  doesn’t have a Big Thunder yet, but I’m sure one’s in the plans somewhere.

                All three parks do have Space Mountains, though.  And all three are thrilling, fast and whip you around crazy turns in the dark.  For years the California one made me dizzy, as so many of the twists were in the same direction, but about five years ago they overhauled it, introducing new ride cars, a better soundtrack and new track configuration.  It made a huge difference in my books, as the dizziness is gone and it’s just a crapload of fun.  This is a great ride people who like the coaster experience without giant drops to contend with.  Hong Kong’s Space Mountain is a close counterpart here too, and the screamometer level is about equal to California, although this one, most likely due to the fact that it’s technology is only a few years old, feels faster and darker.  And then there’s Paris.  I went on this ride expecting it to be as simplistic (for lack of a better word) as the other two.  In hindsight, the over-the-head locking seatbelt should have tipped me off, but it didn’t.  This ride really goes up the screamometer right from the start, where they actually shoot you out of a cannon on the roof, going from zero to feaking fast in seconds.  Inside there’s also a full 360 loop and a corkscrew.  The intensity caught me so off guard that I bruised both knees bracing them on the back of the seat in front of me!  Once I knew what this ride was like, it’s great (still no big drops.  I don’t do big drops), but if you’re unprepared, look out :) 

           It’s a Small World (come on, you knew it was coming) is so synonamous with Disneyland that all three parks feature one.  You either love it or hate it, but everyone rides it.  Hong Kong was the first to deviate from the Small World mold, mixing animatronic characters from Disney movies (Aladdin riding his carpet in the middle east, Lilo and Stitch surfing in Hawaii, etc) with the ubiquitous singing dolls.  As someone raised on IASM(my mobile played the music when I was an  infant, no joke) I was worried this would detract from the simple joy of this ride, but it surprised me by being very seamlessly integrated into the classic format.  Now it’s kind of a “spot the movie characters” game as you go.  Especially great for the little ones.  As recently as June 09, California took a page from Hong Kong’s book and debuted their own new IASM, complete with the ”hidden” characters.  Paris, as of writing this, was still using the classic format.

           Naturally, the language is going to be different from country to country, but the Disney people do a great job of putting signage in multiple languages, and what isn’t translated is accompanied by pictograms to remove any confusion.  There is something that makes me giggle uncontrollably at hearing the PeeWee Herman voice of the robot in Star Tours entirely in French, though.  The Jungle Cruise in Hong Kong found a simple solution to the language issue by just running boats in Mandarin, Cantonese and English simultaneously.  All you have to do is make sure you get into the right line and you’re golden.

           Food is an essential part of any theme park experience, and, coming at it with a very westernized palette, I found this aspect a ton of fun overseas.  Sure, all three parks have the standards: hot dogs, burgers, fries, Mickey-shaped ice cream bars, etc. but the regional specialties make this interesting.  Hong Kong, for example, sells fish balls and Korean squid on a stick at the street carts right along with the hot dogs.  The Plaza Inn here sells wonderful Dim Sum meant to be shared in a lantern-lit restaurant.  Paris has frog’s legs and sells alcohol pretty much everywhere, so you can wander around with your wine and frog’s legs to your heart’s content. 

              In conclusion, the castle is bigger and the rides are more intense in Paris;  Hong Kong is smaller and newer with more of a focus on regional food and the smaller family-friendly rides;  And California is the original, so nothing can compete with that.  Plus, due to their age, they have the most rides per square foot.  But despite all their differences, Disneyland is still Disneyland, regardless of what country you’re in.  If you have kids or just like feeling like one, it will always be worth the price of admission.

Tags: BlogSherpa, California, China, Disney Specialist, disneyland and anaheim, France, Hong Kong, memories, Paris, roller coasters, theme park, USA

Spain reloaded 5:the finale – Hasta Manana

            A full day of doing nothing but being a tourist!  Happy dance, happy dance.  Yawn, stretch, this is the life.  Of course, on this trip the full day of boing a tourist involved a 6-hour guided tour of the nearby cities of Reus and Terragona, but without a hotel inspection, it was fantastic.  I am such a city person.  Give me a town with a really cool attraction (monument/temple/hundred foot gold ball of yarn/whatever) that also has a supermarket, at least one McDonald’s, mass transit, a Topshop, public washrooms and a stock of wine gums, and I’m in my element.  Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot to be said for getting away from it all, but with my attention span (see Spain Reloaded 3), it doesn’t take me long before I want to get back to it all again.  Both stops today fit my criteria nicely.

           Reus was up first, only ten minutes’ drive from Salou.  This is the birthplace of Gaudi, and, more importantly, it’s just an adorable city.  Our guide took us along part of the Ruta del Modernisme, a walking tour marked out on most tourist maps that outlines all the funky architecture and history in one convenient package.   We saw the Placa de Prim (home to the “statue of the guy on the horse” and the “statue of the guy just standing there because he wasn’t special enough to get a horse”), Gaudi’s birth house (home to the statue of a young Gaudi playing with his balls.  No, seriously, the boy is sculpted playing some sort of game with six balls on a wooden bench), the main cathedral and the central Placa Mercadal.  Here we broke for a two-hour shopping break.  I ended up in the town hall (free public washrooms), and when a couple of us paused to get our pictures taken in front of this pretty marble staircase, the guard gestured that we could go upstairs, regardless of the velvet rope pointedly marking it off.  Next thing I knew we were alone amongst all the paintings of the past great Reus leaders, and even in the city council chambers.  Stepping out onto the balcony off the council chambers, I found myself staring down at the square, where my peons were all hustling about doing their daily errands.  It took everything I had not to break into ”Don’t cry for me Argentina”!

            Then onto lunch (there’s that food fixation again, but this time it’s totally deserved).  We had asked our guide if she could recommend a good local place to eat, and she suggested “Grandma’s Place”.  All I knew was that it was in a church, but you cannot imagine my surprise when we drive out to the middle of nowhere, surrounded by nothing but hazlenut groves, and pull up to the most picturesque stone church, complete with a brightly-coloured wildflower garden and geese wandering around.  That postcard in your head?  Think even cuter and you’d get this place.  A giant table was set up for all of us in some sort of cellar, and we were then served the most incredible three-course lunch (OMG… so much food… but so insanely good… try the stuffed peppers), all for only EUR$11!  All I kept thinking is that this would be the perfect place to send someone for a destination wedding (assuming I could ever find it again), as you could get married in the adjacent chapel, then have a reception here in the cellar with the best food ever.  And after lunch we toured the chapel (from it’s quaint exterior you’d never expect the modernist, crayola coloured 60’s murals inside), where our guide showed us the perfect accoustics by singing Ave Maria.  Goosebumps.

              Stuffed beyond all function, it was onward to Terragona, home of “the most Roman ruins within it’s municipality outside of Rome”.  And that’s not just a tag line.  At first it seems like a very modern city, until you turn the corner and find yourself staring at the giant stone anfiteatro balanced on a cliff over the Med.  All we needed were gladiators on chariots, and it would have been perfect.   There were a lot of ancient stone walls scattered haphazardly throughout the city center, and every time you turned a corner you had to be careful not to trip over another archaeological treasure.  City hall doesn’t have public washrooms, though, according to the guard who escorted me out.  There’s also a spectacular cathedral, this one reminding me a lot of Notre Dame in Paris, with it’s tiered entryway, each tier supported by a sculpted saint.   Very cool.

          That night I used what was left of my energy to repack, as the next morning we flew home.  The trip had gone so fast, but, as I wasn’t with my loved ones and had visions of minibars and in-room safes floating through my head from all the hotel inspections, I was kind of ready to go home.  I loved Spain, though, and emailed home on that last day in Barcelona that “we totally have to come back here!  It’s awesome, you’ll love it!”  

                  So my souvenirs, tan and I are now back in Vancouver.  Well, not all of the souvenirs, as the smoked meat I bought for the Boyfriend was confiscated by security.  He’ll deal, but it will take time and therapy    This Spanish Flygirl is already making plans, now that I’ve caught the Spain bug, there is so much more that I want to see.   

         Oh, and I did learn a ton of handy stuff for work, too.

Tags: BlogSherpa, church, gaudi, Reus, ruins, shopping, statue, Terragona, tourist

Spain reloaded 4: A-Costa-ed

             Five hours on a bus each way, combined with another jam-packed day of hotel inspections.  It’s no wonder most of my recollection of this day is fuzzy, I was running on fumes.  We all were.  When the people leading the trip start handing out Coke, cookies and chips to keep us functioning like normal humans, you know something’s up.  Not that I’m ever going to argue with free Coke and chips (Spanish Lays come in this great Tomato and Onion flavor, I highly recommend it.  Skip the ham and cheese ones, the flavor is creepily accurate, but there was something about that taste coming from a potato chip that weirded me out.  According to the seafoodies amongst us, the Prawn Cocktail is also really good, but I’ll have to take their word on it).

            From our hotel in Salou in the Costa Dourada, we drove back past Barcelona (I know, the logic of moving to a farther south hotel only to tour hotels in the north is lost on me, too) and up to the Costa Brava.  The scenery is pastoral and fairly uneventful, though we did get a great kodak moment of the jagged Monserrat mountain from the freeway.  This drive went really fast for me, but then again, I was plugged into my MP3 player (practically everyone else was asleep, it was early) and grooving out to some Rihanna and Robbie Williams.

            The first two hotels, the Hotel Blaumar and it’s sister Hotel Blaucel are connected by an underground tunnel.  This tunnel also has skylights that look up into the adult’s pool, and clearly most swimmers forgot that they could be seen from below.  With perfect timing, we look up to see a female body bob past, wrapped tightly around a happy male body.  The look on the sales rep’s face as he tried to just keep talking as if nothing was going on was great.  Naturally, we all squealed like a bunch of teenagers.

            Then the underwhelming Hotel Tropic Park, the very overwhelming Hotel Florida Park (the pool is gorgeous and even has the ever so rare patch of private grass to lounge on), another buffet lunch, the Hotel Neptuno, Apartmentes Neptuno, the Best Western Las Palmeres (guess what?  It looks like a Best Western) and finally the Hotel Kaktus Playa (my favorite hotel name, just seeing Kaktus spelled like that makes me snicker).

         More Coke and chips, two and a half more mp3-filled hours on the bus and we and our numb bums were back at our hotel in time to hit the buffet.  Hmm, it seems I was hungry on this day, as the main things I remember involve food.  Ooh, I miss gelato…   Focus, Holly.  Anyhow, after dinner a couple of us wandered down to the beach to burn off some buffet calories and officially dip our toes in the Med and hit up all the tacky souvenir stalls.  And these are a new standard of tacky.  I got a great keychain of a guy wearing a barrel for my best friend, and when you lift the barrel his spring-loaded bright pink penis pops out.  It’s awesome! We gotta get us some of this crap at home.

Tags: BlogSherpa, chips, costa brava, hotels

Spain reloaded 3:PortAventura soaking

          I wanted to cry this morning as we left Barcelona.  I didn’t want to leave, there was so much more I wanted to see.  Damnit, make me come back again on my personal vacation, why don’t you?

          An hour and a half drive got us to the Costa Dourada, where we toured the Hotel Cala Font (great ocean views from the pool), Hotel Las Vegas, H10 Salou Princess (conveniently located beside a doctor’s office, in case of emergencies) and H10 Europa park.   We had now officially entered beach-and-buffet land, and it felt like another planet compared to the old world charm of Barcelona.  Here it was pool noodles and sunscreen during the day and karaeoke bars and British/Dutch/German pub food at night.   That is, if you weren’t filling up on your hotel’s free buffet breaky and dinner (all the hotels here offer that).

             We stayed at the H10 Salauris Princess.  The hotel was fine, our room was directly over the nightly entertainment stage, which wasn’t a problem as long as I was awake until 1130pm, and the pool was funky with a big flashy waterfall. 

             This part of the trip is not my usual cup of tea, as I am way too pale to sit at the pool/beach and lounge, plus I have the attention span of a gerbil, so after ten minutes of that I’d be all like “okay, so what are we doing now?”  Luckily, a short ten minute walk from the hotel is the PortAventura theme park.  Now this I like.  As the resident Disney specialist in my office, I feel it’s my duty as a responsible agent to visit every theme park I see (plus, I really like rides and more cheezy souvenirs.  What can I say, it’s fun to occasionally act my age).  I recruited two other agents and, with our swimsuit-clad coworkers thinking we were crazy, headed up.

             This place is total fun.  It’s actually a Universal park, with Woody Woodpecker and Betty Boop everywhere, and it’s only 10 years old, so everything’s still in perfect condition.  The themed lands (Mediterranea, Polynesia, China, Mexico and the Far West – the US southwest) are really well done, and I particularly loved China, with it’s great wall, forbidden city pavillions and dragons.  Started off on the Furious Baco speed coaster, and it rocked.  This is my type of coaster, freaking fast, but with no major drops. 

           Most of the other guests were in their bathing suits, which I thought was just because this is the Spanish Costa and that’s what they do.  Nope.  It’s because if you ride any of the three water rides, the Tutuki Splash,  Silver River Flume and Grand Canyon Rapids, you get “wring your underpants out” wet.  And in 35 degree heat, it felt awesome! 

          China is home to Dragon Khan, the largest roller coaster in Western Europe.  No freaking way.  Uh uh.  No thank you.  I stood at the bottom and held everyone’s stuff.  My coworkers even talked some french guy, who was scared stiff, and his girlfriend to go on with them.  They all had a great time.  I got some great pictures, and am just as proud of myself!   There’s also a very innocuous-looking teacups ride undoubtedly geared for children, but that doesn’t limit how fast you can spin your cup.  With three adults pulling, we had that cup flying, and when the ride ended I couldn’t walk straight.  I was so dizzy I accidentally locked my coworker into the cup as we exited, because I missed the door in my nauseous stagger.  Get this, I can handle the launching of the Furious Baco, but the kiddie teacups will cause me to loose my lunch

        We closed down the park at 9, cheering, and in the end probobly got as much sun and just as wet as the people at the hotel pool, but we had so much more fun doing it!

Tags: BlogSherpa, Costa Dourada, PortAventura, Salou, theme park

Spain reloaded 2: GoCars!

            Started this day off with a tour of the Petite Palace Opera Gardens hotel right on Las Ramblas.  Highly recommended, the rooms are good, the hotel modern and the location could only be beat by the hotel I was staying in.  Then came the part I had been really looking forwards to, the half-day city tour.  I love these things, and try to do one in every new city I visit, as it gives you a great overview of the attractions, and your guide fills in all the cool local tidbits of information you’d never get from a guidebook.

              Headed right up to Park Guell, Gaudi’s acid-trip wonderland, as did every other tourist known to man, apparently.  A highschooler tourist propositioned on of my coworkers by waving a hundred euro note at her and promising he was good. Damn, they learn young in Europe!  She didn’t take him up on his offer, murmurring something about finding out what legal age was in his country as she ran away.  It was hysterical.  The park, aside from having some of the best photo ops in the city, also had great souvenir shopping.

        Let’s just get this out there: I love tacky souvenirs.  I am taking steps to quell this addicion, but in the meantime, please enjoy your Paella fridge magnet.

            Onwards to La Segrada Famillia, where we didn’t get close to it, but our guide did take us to the perfect position for us all to get the stereotypcal ”me and my cathedral” photo.  Then we went into the Barri Gothic, which, because out hotel wasn’t that far away, we’d all walked through every night, and got a picure with another cathedral.

            The last stop was Montjuic mountain and the Spanish Village, which had been the Spanish pavillion during the ‘92 olympics and is a recreation of a traditional (say it with me now) village.  Plus, they have free bathrooms.  Did some more good souvenir shopping, and my roomate spent over EUR$200 on Sangria and olive oil to give as gifts for people back home.  She then had to carry the bags around for the rest of the tour.   I need to warn everyone, olive oil is not a good idea to bring back home, as it can be classified as a “dangerous good” and banned.  Please check with your airline so you can avoid pouring good money and oil down the drain as she had to!

            Woo hoo!  Now we got to finish up our trip to Barcelona with free time.  If you’re ever in the city and want to explore, but don’t want to take a tour (and are ready to giggle like an idiot for a few hours), you have to take a GoCar (www.gocartours.com).  This was wet-your pants fun, and it still makes me laugh just thinking about it.  You get into this tiny three-wheeled car-meets-moped, do your crash helmet, plug in your GPS and go.  As long as you follow one of four pre-determined routes, the car talks to you as you go, telling you about the sights as you pass them, and even telling you when you need to change lanes.  As the car said, “trust me, I’m a local”!  Taxi drivers were laughing at us as they blew past, and behind La Segrada Famillia a group of Japanese tourists ran out into the crosswalk to take our pictures.  Hey, I’m going to be big in Japan! 

            But seriously, if you can GoCar, do it.  It’s worth every penny.  And if you’re lucky enough, you too can wear the helmet with the bunny ears on it.

Tags: Barcelona, BlogSherpa, city tour, gaudi, GoCars, Parc Guell, Segrada Famillia