Not a Fan of Barcelona, but it is not Barcelona's Fault

After leaving Oviedo we headed to Barcelona via train, along with Jana's parents. We spent a few days in Barcelona, kicking off a little true vacation time split between Barcelona, Alsace (France), and Paris. Of all the places we visited, I liked Barcelona least. But it truly was not Barcelona's fault. The city itself is lovely in many ways. But the popularity of the place as a tourist destination was unattractive to me.

Reflections on Oviedo

It's been about a month now since we said goodbye to Oviedo. From Oviedo we spent a few days in Barcelona, several in Alsace, and also in Paris. I'll do some quick posts about that soon. But I wanted to jot down a few more detailed reflections about our time in Oviedo before too much time passed. It's been a bit hectic since getting back to the US, so I've already been delayed more than I had hoped.

Misadventures in Airline Customer Service (or, The In-laws Travel to Spain)

Jana's folks departed this week for a trip to Oviedo, where they are joining us for a bit of travel around Spain and France before we head back to the states. Their experience getting here was interesting, frustrating, and holds some lessons for troubleshooting travel. Here's the situation and a few things we can learn from it.

History and Public Art in Oviedo

I finally have a few minutes to summarize a morning walk to some really old churches we took a couple weeks ago and a mini-tour of the most famous public art of Oviedo. Details after the jump.

Oh $#!T and Oh Wow Moments in Galicia

We just got back from a long weekend at the beach in Galicia. The trip was great, and it can best be summarized by a series of OH S#!T and OH WOW moments. Details after the jump.

DRAMA of the Picos de Europa

Dramatic. That's the best way to describe our weekend getaway to the Picos de Europa, a mountain range a little over an hour away from Oviedo. We had views of dramatic landscapes. We witnessed the drama of man versus nature in a race over the mountains. We had a dramatic eruption of vomit one day in the back seat of the car. We had great food. We had horrible food. The high and lowlights after the jump.

The LL is Sick: Our First Formal Interaction with a non-US Health System

A couple days ago the LL started showing signs of an eye infection. After some emailing back and forth with my physician sister-in-law and a phone call with our home pediatrician, we decided we needed to get her seen here in Spain. Here are some of my takeaways from that experience.

Settling into Oviedo

We've now been in Oviedo for a few days. Already, I'm feeling really good about being here. I think it's going to be a great place to live and work for a few months. My post today is mostly about the mechanics of moving into a new place abroad for a medium-term stay. More after the jump.

The Blessing and Curse of Happening Upon a Cultural Event

We had basically a day and a half in Cordoba as we started northward toward Oviedo. Details after the break.

Ronda and a Road Trip to the White Villages

On Wednesday we traveled from Granada to Ronda. Ronda is in the south of Spain and is one of the bases for visiting what are known as the white villages, small towns that typically are set up on hills with whitewashed buildings that stand in stark contrast with the rocky background in which they are set. We spent two lovely nights in Ronda. More details after the jump.

The Cultural Riches and Hot Shade of Granada

Yesterday we finished up a two-plus day stint in Granada, Spain. Lots of highlights, with a quick overview after the jump.

Crunch Time

A week from today, we'll be in Europe. So, in addition to typical end of the semester activities and dealing with a sick kid last week, we're also in final preparation mode for our summer trip to Europe. I'm definitely feeling a little stressed, but also very excited for what's in store. Here's what I'm working on related to last-minute trip preparation.

Some Lisbon and Granada Planning

Our departure date for Spain is fast approaching. I've finally made a bit of time for planning some of the details of our time in Portugal and the south of Spain before we head north to our more permanent destination of Oviedo. Details after the jump.

Portugal to the South of Spain

When we head to Europe in May, our first destination is Lisbon, Portugal. We'll be there for several days and will then spend some time in the south of Spain - Granada, Ronda (white villages), and Cordoba - before heading to Oviedo where we'll be living for most of the summer. We have places to stay in all these locations, but travel between the places is still in process. Today I'll discuss the transfer from Lisbon to Granada.

What's in the works

Before jumping into any trip details, I want to give a brief update on what travel plans I'm working on at the moment. I'll pick up from this point forward in discussing details, but it's useful to know where I'm at in the planning process right now.