the blog is no more.

sorry i just don't have the time.

you need not return here again.

Los edificios famosos

So I thought that I would take you on an architectural journey this week of some of the most famous edificios in all of España.

First up, the Guggenheim Museo en Bilbao. Bilbao está en el noreste de España. This museo was constructed in 1997 by arquitecto Frank O. Gehry. It houses some of the world's best known contemporary and modern art. It has 3 pisos, 90 exhibits and over 10 million visitors a year.

Maman by Louis Burgeois. Weird and famous sculture just outside of the museo.

Próximo, the windmills of Campo de Criptana en la provincia de la Mancha. Built in the 16th century and used to grind wheat into flour for bread. 10 out of the original 32 still remain. Believed to be the inspiration of Miguel Cervantes' story about Don Quixote.

Entonces, el Catedral de Santiago de Compostela en el noroeste de España. Finished construction in 1128. Believed to be the burial site of Saint James the Greater, one of Jesus's apostles. 100s of people make a pilgrimage here every year.

El Palacio Real en Madrid en el centro de España. Built from 1738-1755 and is now the official residence of the rey de España, Juan Carlos.

Mezquita de Córdoba está en el sur de España. It was built by the Moors, an Islamic people from Africa who ruled España for over 700 years until 1492 when Reina Isabela y Rey Ferdinand finally kicked them out. It was built arriba de an ancient Roman temple.

It's room of arches contains over 1,000 arches and is quite a site to see.

Giralda de Sevilla está en el sur de España, también. Built in the 14th century as a palacio. The tower is all that remains of the original structure.

Escorial está cerca del centro de España. It was the historical residence of then rey Phillip II. It was completed in 1584.

Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciencias está en Valencia. It is a center for the arts and science. It was completed in 1998 and has super modern architectural designs.

La Alhambra de Granada. Built in the 9th century as a fort and then later became a castle. Now it is one of the greatest tourists sites in all of Spain. It was built by the Moors had showcases some great Arabic design elements.

The most famous part of the Alhambra, the Court of Lions.

The Alcázar is another Moorish structure.

So which was your favorite and why?
***edited: please make sure when leaving comments that you answer the questions posted. all the questions. the questions were hidden in the middle of the last post and no one answered all of them. some of you didn't answer any. it does affect your grade.

Onward Barcelona

Ok. So snowboarding wasn't soo much fun. My bum is bruised. I am definitely not a natural. But I got some really cool photos. Check them out...

After that I took a day off...ok, more like a week. I decided to head to another ciudad here in España. I took the AVE (Alta Velocidad Española), high velocity train, to Barcelona. The RENFE (Spanish railway system) will take you all over España very quickly. The AVE to Barcelone took 3hrs to travel 313 miles. It travels at up to 220 mph! It was great, but really hard to take photos.

I took a tour of some of Antoni Guadí's awesome and strange buildings. Gaudí is the most famous architect en España, but he only designed buildings in his beloved Barcelona He lived from 1852 to 1926.
Who do you think would be America's best or most well know architect?

First, I visited La Sagrada Familia. It is a catedral in progress. He died before completing it and so donations and tour fees are paying for the slow construction of this awesome building. Go here and check out some of its finer features.

Second stop was the Casa Batllo. This has to be the best. I mean check it...
Stained glass. Odd forms for windows. The building looks like it is oozing. This is an apartment building. Man, I want to live there.
Some more pics.

Third stop was Casa Vicens. This one is very different from his other buildings. What looks different to you??

Final stop on my tour...Park Guell. This was originally supposed to be a private garden. That didn't work out and the city took it over in 1923 for the public to view. There are cool architectural buildings and mosiac sculptures all over the park.

This is a series of archways. It was my favorite. Again looks all chunky and oozy.
Hope that you enjoyed the pictures. My next stop....will be a surprise.

Flamenco y tapas

I went to the Cardamomo as suggested by most of you. It was really amazing! The flamenco is a Southern Spain art form consisting of 3 parts: el Cante(the song), the Baile (the dance) and the Guitarra (the guitar playing).

It is pretty amazing to watch. To see some of it yourself go here.Flamenco is the national dance of Spain. It was developed by the Gypsies that lived in Spain. Some still do. They run the Rastro.Ok. So I am in Spain.

I want to try tapas. So here is the low down on what they are.Although many people have heard of Tapas, and they're available in most Spanish bars, it's not always apparent where to find them, how to order them, and what to ask for. The reasons for this are many, including the fact that the word Tapas rarely makes an appearance on any menu or billboard, and the fact that many bars and restaurants don't stick to the real tradition of Tapas.In order to work out what Tapas are, it might help to understand where the word Tapas comes from (at least this is the most commonly accepted version). It's actually a Spanish verb (tapar), which means, "to cover". So, a Tapa was a snack (usually free) which was placed on top of a drink "to cover" it from flies, insects, and dust.There are many bars in Madrid that still provide Tapas with a glass of wine or beer, but it's not the normal practice anymore.

Nowadays, when you go out for some Tapas, you are really (more often than not) ordering a plate of food known as a ración. It is usually something that is shared among a few people, or perhaps a canapé, which is something on a small piece of bread. In many bars, you can get sandwiches made with a bread roll or baguette, which are called bocadillos (or bocatas).The good thing about these modern Tapas is that they provide the customer with a wide variety of foods, meaning you can sample many different Spanish delicacies all at the same time. And don't worry too much if you can't understand the menu - it's becoming increasingly common for bars to place out a selection of their wares for the customer to see. That way, you can see exactly what's what, without having to ask for an explanation.

Someone I met at the Ballet suggested one of the best Tapas bars in Madrid, El Txoko (pronounced "choco"). This is an excellent bar-come-restaurant, which serves Basque food (cuisine that is thought to be the equal to haute cuisine). Tapas here include anchovies, baked onions stuffed with goat's cheese and jamon, cod soufflé, and baked apple. Each of these is expertly cooked and delightful on the taste buds. The atmosphere in El Txoko is very friendly, but a little bit on the cramped side. The setting of the bar is lovely, as you can find the entrance to the bar in the basement of a Basque cultural building.This is what I got.Looks kind of gross but was really good and not spicy like Mexican food.

They set the tapas out on the bar like this. So that you could choose from whatever looked good.
Later for supper I went and had some paella. Paella is the national dish of Spain. So far, I have seen the national dance and eaten the national dish. I will admit that I won't eat the national dish again. It was totally gross. Maybe I should stick with finger foods??!! To check out exactly what is in paella go here.Paella is made differently depending on the part of Spain that you are in. So maybe I will have better luck when I travel some more. If I can work up the courage to try again.

Ok. Decision time again... do I want to go snowboarding in the Sierra de Guadarrama or shopping in El Rastro?

¡Viva Madrid!

Wow. I am in Madrid, the capital of Spain and it is just amazing!!!First though you have to see some pictures of my piso (that means apartment here in Madrid). This is my sala with a fabulous flat screen TV. This is my comedor although I don't think that I will be eating there very much with such fabulous cafés and restaurantes so close by.

This is the best part of the apartment. The view. That is the famous Plaza Mayor out my window! The Plaza Mayor is the main plaza in Madrid and the king's palace is just around the corner from here!!

Again the view!! Awesome.

On my first night here a couple of days ago I went to the Teatro Real. But first tapas.
Tapas are "snacks" here in Spain. You see they don't eat supper until 9pm or 10pm so they have a snack about 5pm at a bar or café. I went to a beautiful café near here and across from the Teatro.

I ate a selection of sausages and hams with mussels and shrimp while sipping some vino tinto (red wine) and watching the people walk by. What do you think of my snacks? Not your typical snacks, heh?
Well there snacks are fairly hefty by our standards. All different types of sausages and hams, tons of seafood dishes, patatas bravas (spicy potato chunks) and tortilla de patatas (kind of a potato pie). It was hard to decide what to eat.

Next, I headed to the Teatro Real to watch a Russian ballet, called Espartaco.
Here's what it looked like before the crowds arrived.

I didn't understand the ballet but it was pretty. Very long. First Acto 1 which was 45 minutes then they took a 25 minute break for drinks and food for the crowd while they changed the stage. Then Acto 2 for 40 minutes and then another 25 minute break followed by Acto 3 for another 45 minutes. How would you like to sit through that? It wasn't bad.Definitely, interesting and very beautiful to watch.

Ok. Decision time folks. I need help. Can you help me out?
What should I do next Cardamomo or Bernabeu Stadium?
I am soooo not a decision maker. So I really do need your help. Which sounds better and why??