Europe: Western Cafés, castles, architecture, art, wine, the Euro, gastronomy, let´s meet up, and pub crawls.! Oh oui, backpackers paradise... |
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03-25-2007, 11:35 AM
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#1
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Backcountry Betty
Join Date: Jun 2004
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What was your favorite expereince in Spain?
i'm planning a solo trip to spain in september and thought i throw the shout out to all of you that have been there to share your favorite experience/place/adventure in spain.
i know there have got to be some awesome ones out there with this crowd.
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people travel to wonder at the height of the mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long course of rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars; and they pass by themselves without wondering. -St. Augustine
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03-25-2007, 11:38 AM
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#2
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Yoda
Join Date: Jan 2004
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Barcelona.
Hey, did I ever show you the pictures from that trip? I can't remember.
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03-25-2007, 11:59 AM
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#3
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No one regrets traveling
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I love Spain so this is pretty difficult but I was most struck by places that surprised me. Avila, looked kind of cool from a distance but I didn't think much of it. When I was going to Toledo, I realized that would be an ambitious day trip from Salamanca so I stopped over in Avila. It is a beautiful town and one that tends to get overlooked. I took one of my favorite pictures from my trip there. I am attaching it so hopefullly it comes out right...
There were no cities I didn't really like with the exception of Barcelona (and before the Barcaphiles jump on me, I never gave it much of a chance, I was there for 8 hours upon arrival, carrying a 50 pound pack and being paranoid about pickpockets...I'm sure I would love it if I went back :D )
Andalucia is a must visit (at the very least Granada and Sevilla)
--Joey
Last edited by joe7f; 06-17-2007 at 07:48 PM.
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03-25-2007, 12:26 PM
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#4
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Ohio State's #1 Fan
Join Date: Nov 2005
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San Sebastian was one of my favorite places in Spain...great food, great beaches, great people.
Barcelona of course...I mean i wound up there 3 times in 2 months so I must have liked it a little bit!
I agree that Granada and Sevilla are must do's. I am very partial to the Oasis hostels in Granada and Sevilla...they are AMAZING places. They also have great locations...in Granada, the Oasis Hostel is in a Moroccan neighborhood, with a market just out the front door...sooooo cool!
I know earlier you said you liked beaches and relaxing so I recommend San Sebastian and Valencia for you. I was in Valencia for about 3 days and while there were things to do, I chose to just lay on the beach and swim all day...it was a relaxing point in my trip
How long are you going to be in Spain for, Beth?
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"If we couldn't laugh, we would all go insane"-my idol Jimmy Buffett
"I wanna be there, I wanna go back down and get high by the sea there, with a tin cup for a chalice, fill it up with good red wine, and ill be chewin' on a honeysuckle vine...." - Jimmy
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03-26-2007, 02:21 PM
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#5
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Minister of Offense
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Let's see... There was Carmen.. and Maria. Oh, wait, Sonia! No, no, Sonia and Maria together. That was my favorite.
All kidding aside, I can't really choose. I'm totally enamored by Barcelona but I think Sevilla definitely warrants further investigation. I wasn't there long enough to totally fall in love with it, but simply *hanging out* there was one of the most awesome times ever. Just such a great town to walk around and lose yourself amongst the locals.
The other super-duper-awesome thing in Spain is hiring a car (SUPER cheap) and just driving everywhere. The highways are awesome, everything is in reasonable road trip distance, and there's so much gorgeous landscape to be explored. Drive out, find a trailhead or two, and see it all. Just randomly going around and stopping in the middle of nowhere was brilliant, whether it was in the mountains of Andalucia or along the Mediterranean. My parents did the same thing on their honeymoon, so two generations can't be wrong
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03-26-2007, 02:38 PM
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#6
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lover of Germany
Join Date: Apr 2005
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North of Spain like the Basque country is great, so pretty and diverse you can learn and see so much. My best experience was taking the coach from Billboa to Vitoria and going over the hills- soooo pretty.
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I have been to: Canada, USA, Iceland, Britain, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Poland, Germany, Sardinia, Switzerland, China, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay and Morocco.
Do to list: [color=blue][color=black] Australia, New Zealand, Austria India and Bolivia.
[color=blue][i][font=Verdana][color=black]"I'm just another stranger lookin' for the promised land"
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03-26-2007, 02:41 PM
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#7
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TPunk Recognized
Join Date: Jul 2006
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wow you guys have me excited about seeing spain this summer
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ok screw the blog go to my website instead
the new and improved stupidhurts.org
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03-26-2007, 08:34 PM
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#8
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Join Date: Jan 2006
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Tops for me was the club scene in Madrid (and back home I'm really not into clubbing), the dudes playing flamenco in the bars along Betis St in Seville, and the general vibe of Granada - free tapas with every beer - how can you go wrong?
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03-26-2007, 09:06 PM
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#9
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Members
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Yeah im really excited about Spain & Portugal, i'll be seeing both from about the 10th July to the beginning September
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03-26-2007, 09:08 PM
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#10
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TPunk Emeritus
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My favorite was Toledo, about an hour or hour and a half bus ride from Madrid. It's surrounded by a large wall, and they don't allow cars in the majority of the city. So it's lots of tiny alleys and tricky directions (kinda like Venice) and it's easy to get lost. But the people were so nice and interesting. My favorite was that on certain streets you could look up through the hanging shirts and sheets that were drying and see the catherdral at the top of the hill.
The city's situated on top of a hill by the wall. It completely won my heart when I was there!
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Amber
"If I had a kid I'd f**k it. Then kill it. Then f**k it again." Seattle 2006
blog of travels and such
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Currently located in HAWAII
Been to: Alaska, Bahamas, Canada, Costa Rica, France, Germany, Hawaii, Spain, Switzerland - - also meetups in Chicago, LA, and Seattle
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03-26-2007, 09:09 PM
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#11
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TPunk Recognized
Join Date: Oct 2006
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lol il be there from mid august so im keeping tabs on this too ta, for al the inspiration:D
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03-29-2007, 07:58 PM
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#12
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TPunk Emeritus
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Segovia...cool, historical town with all kinds of buildings from the Medieval and Renaissance eras, and even earlier. It's star attraction is its Roman Aqueduct -- massive, massive construction. So weird to run your fingers along the stones and know they were constructed by Roman legionaries around 2,000 years ago. Castles, cathedrals...great place!
I did it as a daytrip from Madrid on the train.
worldwidemike
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"Life is not measured in the number of breaths we take, but by the places that take our breath away..."
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03-29-2007, 09:14 PM
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#13
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No one regrets traveling
Join Date: Dec 2006
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Now I really wish I had gone to Segovia. Althought, I suppose, that is a new place to see and a new reason to return to Spain!
--Joey
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04-02-2007, 01:07 PM
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#14
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Artist of Life
Join Date: Jul 2004
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Ah, Spain....
You know when the train passed from Spain to France, I really had the urge to cry... I love that country.
Best experience was those massive block parties in Madrid... I have never seen that many people outside, so close together, and having so much fun at the same time. But yeah... the Spanish girls make everything awesome, they're really easy to talk to, fun to chill with, friendly and did I mention they are the pinnicle of hot?
Yup...going back to Spain for sure...
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Vincent: "So what you gonna do?"
Jules: "Well, basically, I'm just gonna walk the earth."
Vincent: "What you mean 'walk the earth'?"
Jules: "You know, like Kane in 'Kung Fu'...go places...meet people...get in adventures."
Trips (only counting recreational travel):
FIRST TRIP (2005): FIRST EUROTRIP EVER! UK, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Holland
SECOND TRIP (2007): First Solo Trip! Greece, Turkey, Syria, Spain
2008: China (Beijing, Shanghai, Yangshuo) ...right before the Olympics!
2009: Japan & HK, Southern Spain
[size=1]2010: All over Lebanon, Ibiza (Spain), Oktoberfest (Germany), Thailand.
2011: India (Goa), Jordan, Jerusalem, San Sebastian (Spain), Amsterdam (again), London, Driving from Vancouver to L.A. (stopping in Portland, Seattle, San Fran and all the little stops), Montpellier (France), Geneva and Lausanne (Switzerland)
"Bite off more than you can chew, then chew it."
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04-02-2007, 09:45 PM
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#15
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Backcountry Betty
Join Date: Jun 2004
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so i did a little research and came up with a couple more places i want to look into visiting. tell me if any of them ring a bell.
- Potes, Asturias & Picos De Europa
- Coast of Lastres, Asturias
- Estany De Certascan, Catalonis
- Circa De Soaso, Aragon
Quote:
Originally Posted by blinkchick2134
My favorite was Toledo, about an hour or hour and a half bus ride from Madrid. It's surrounded by a large wall, and they don't allow cars in the majority of the city. So it's lots of tiny alleys and tricky directions (kinda like Venice) and it's easy to get lost. But the people were so nice and interesting. My favorite was that on certain streets you could look up through the hanging shirts and sheets that were drying and see the catherdral at the top of the hill.
The city's situated on top of a hill by the wall. It completely won my heart when I was there!
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cool. sounds right up my alley. (no pun intended )
__________________
people travel to wonder at the height of the mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long course of rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars; and they pass by themselves without wondering. -St. Augustine
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04-05-2007, 02:58 PM
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#16
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**Wacktose Intolerant**
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Currently back in Canada... Saving and plotting my next adventure!
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I haven't been yet, but I am going to be in spain this Autumn, and one of the places I am MOST excited to see after my initial research is Arcos de la Frontera it looks SOOOOOO beautiful, and just my type of place, narrow alleys, a beautiful white town on a hill. What more could you ask for?!?!?
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