The 3rd part of our journey around the world began in the Iberian Peninsula! My dad Joe joined us for a few days, eager to check off another country in his exploration of Europe – Andorra.
A strong network of trains, subways, and buses makes it very easy to navigate in Spain.
In Barcelona and Madrid, there are T10 tickets for the metros that allow for 10 rides on buses or the subway for 10 euros.
For intercity travel, we used:
- Andorra – car rental with a 3 hour drive from Barcelona. Keep in mind that one route has zero tolls and the other has about 25 euros in tolls so maybe choose the zero toll route.
- Barcelona to Madrid – Renfe train was a 3 and a half hours; the tickets are cheaper the earlier you buy them and a day trip on the train offers spectacular views of the Spanish countryside.
- Toledo - A 1 hour roundtrip bus ride from Madrid for only 10 euros.
Barcelona
The capital of Catalonia is a beautiful city on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Known as a mecca of art and culture, it quickly became one of Julia’s favorite cities. There are many Catalonian flags around the city, which represent the city’s unique and different culture.
The old town is a great area to walk and see unique architecture. While walking, we saw some of Antoni Gaudi’s famous buildings, sprinkled throughout the city. Down the Rambla de Santa Monica path was a great way to see the street life with tapas (appetizer café's), street performers, street food, sit-down restaurants, and people walking at all hours of the days. At the end of the walking plaza, there was a statue of a famous Italian who sailed for Spain – Christopher Columbus! From there, we could see much of the famous Barcelona waterfront.
To the left were countless mini beaches for football, volleyball, and swimming. As we walked along, we knew we were in Europe, because of the lack of clothing on both men and women.
To the right of the Columbus statue was Parc de Montjuic, which included a mix of parks, museums, and stadiums. The hill itself used to be the foundation for a castle, which served as protection for the city with its huge canons ready to attack any boat coming into the harbor. From there, we walked to the 1992 Olympic village, which since then has been converted to recreational parks.
But our favorite section of the park was the Museum Nacional d'Art de Catalunya – home to the national art of Catalonia. It sits atop of a grand staircase leading down to a water fountain. Every night at 9 pm the water fountain lights up with many colors and dances to music.
Our trip to Barcelona would not have been complete without a stop at the world-famous La Sagrada Familia Church – which is still under construction. The church is Gaudi’s last work. Unfortunately, he never saw it completed but Barcelona carried on his vision. We enjoyed the views only from around the famous church, as the entrance tickets were sold-out for the week.
Andorra
Andorra is the sixth smallest country in Europe. The country and the capital both named Andorra are situated right in the Pyrenees mountains, neighboring Spain and France.
The capital Andorra la Vella sits on a beautiful river surrounded by mountains. There were lots of people in downtown Andorra busy shopping. We browsed for a bit and Julia found her new favorite store – Julia which sells perfume!
But we wanted to see more of the country and proceeded further up the mountains to the small town of Ordino, where we had a picnic lunch. In the town, we checked out the Museum of Miniatures with its large collection of miniature art. Having quite impressive collection of smaller art pieces.
Our favorite activity in Andorra was driving up an even more windy road from Ordino. As our siesta was calling our names, we pulled into a small hotel. We took a relaxing nap in the garden next to the pool. If you have the chance to take an afternoon nap, with fresh mountain air, in the Pyrenees mountains, we highly recommend it.
Madrid
The train into Madrid was spectacular. Because we booked our train tickets well in advance for 50 euros and we were surprised with first class seats that included a meal and drinks. My dad on the other hand purchased his ticket last minute for 90 euros and was only able to enjoy the amenities the coach seats offered. Lesson learned - always buy tickets in advance when possible!
The Spanish capital is situated right in the middle of the country and is currently the 3rd largest city in the European Union. We opted to see the city by Hop-On Hop-Off bus. Tickets were 20 euros apiece and allowed us to circumnavigate the city for 24 hours.
- the Royal Palace of Madrid,
- the national cathedral of Santa Maria,
- the Puerto del Sol plaza
- the Mayor Plaza
- the San Miguel Market
Our trip to Madrid could not be complete without seeing some of the famous art museums. We went to the National Museum of Prado and the National Museum Center of Reina Sofia Art. Both happened to be free in the evenings!
The Reina Sofia contained a plethora of 20th century Spanish art. While the art did not quite catch my eye, the building itself, its inner plaza, and the city views were favorites. The Prado museum was more my cup of tea. It displayed a variety of European art dating back to the 12th century. Julia’s favorite artists Caravaggio, Rubens, and Rembrandt were all on exhibit.
Toledo
After saying goodbye to my dad who left for the US the day before, we bused over to my hometown’s namesake and sister city Holy Toledo, Spain. Besides the name, I think this was my favorite part of Spain. Toledo is a medium size medieval Spanish town sitting atop of a hill, surrounded by high walls and the Tagus River.
We stopped by the tourist information center outside the main gate to get a map of the town. The lady asked us where we were from and we said Toledo. She looked at us funny as our Spanish was not so good, so I clarified Toledo, Ohio. She said, “Ahh, well, then you have to go to the Calle de Toledo de Ohio!” And so we did find that street, along with many other amazing sights.
Among the highlights were the gorgeous Santa Iglesia Cathedral which quickly became a favorite church of ours; and the Alcazar de Toledo, which once served as the royal palace, but now is a library with a great view of the city from the 3rd floor!
The town is perfectly walk able so we explored it by walking into its ancient churches, historical museums, souvenir shops, and cafes.
Top 5 Things
- Grabbing tapas in Old Town Barcelona
- The fountain magic show at Montjuic in Barcelona
- The cathedral of Santa Iglesia in Toledo
- Walking Calle Comercio street in Toledo
- The train ride from Barcelona to Madrid
Lessons Learned
- Buy tickets in advance (specifically trains and the Sagrada Familia or other famous tourist attractions)
- Be wary of pick pocketers on the crammed subways (we ran into one in Barcelona who we quickly yelled at and he ran away like the wind)
- When driving consider alternative routes around tolls (it could save you 25 euros)
- Research when museums you want to see may be open for free to the public and plan around that.
- When purchasing metro or train tickets make sure to buy the correct one (as we bought a 10 ride ticket in Madrid but it was only good for the commuter train not the subway and buses).
Adios Spain, and Andorra!
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