Day 15,16,17: Home stretch - Marseille

As I walked along to Sants station (Barcelona) to catch my bus to Marseille on Thursday morning, it suddenly hit me that my vacation was going to last only another coupla days. Marseille was on the cards so that I could meet up with Amelie, who I'd promised that I'd see when I came to France. As it happened, she was away all the while, holidaying in Israel on the exact same days that I had my trip (which is how I got an empty house for myself as well when I was in Paris! - Thanks Amel!). So.. somehow, we managed to squeeze in a day so we could see each other in Marseille on Friday, the 14th (Aug).

The bus from Barca was at 9am and it was a splendid 9 hour ride along the coast. Traffic was a touch high on the highways, with the weekend approaching and all that.

We stopped at some sort of a resort for lunch. I had had a heavyish breakfast, and the lunch looked rather bland, expensive & uninviting, so I decided to eat just some Snickers from the vending machine.

I mostly slept all the way. The vast blue sea to my right remained blue and the vast green fields to my left remained green. The bus would, every now and then, stop at a town to drop off some passengers and pick up a bunch. Between my naps, I kept myself amused by playing hide-n-seek with a cute little girl in the seat in front of me. Her mother kept asking me the time, and each time it provided an opportunity for me to revise my french!

The clock struck 6pm and a road sign said Marseille was still 74km away! The bus was late. By the time it drove into the bus station, it was 7pm. A 15 minute baggage check followed. They didn't trust Indians apparently. But the officer was a really cool guy and was joking around. Once he finished the baggage check, he said with a smile "I just ask this because I have to, but.. are you carrying cash more than 10,000 euros".. I just burst out laughing, and replied.. "I wish, I wish! Wouldn't I have come by my private jet then, yeah!?". Then he went about laughingly explaining how he feels like a fool to ask the question every time, but still as per protocol he just has to do it.

So I had finally arrived in Marseille! On the way, I'd caught a glimpse of the port and wished I could go out to sea sometime.

Amelie's house help, Aga, and her boyfriend, had come down to pick me up in his car! Amelie was due to arrive the next morning. It was a short ride to her (Aga's) place, where I would sleep for the night. It was a pretty house, with a direct view of the magnificent Church of Notre Dame on one side and the seaport on the other! She prepared a nice dinner for me with some fried fish, veg balls (sorta like manchurian, without the red), and some wine. It was nearly 10pm and we decided to call it a day. After she left, I was sitting around blogging, admiring Notre Dame by night and... watching 'Jaane bhi do yaaro' & 'How I met your mother' on my laptop till 3am ;)

I woke up leisurely and prepared a cereal breakfast and some eggs for myself. By the time I got refreshed and ready, Amel had arrived, and I waited for her to come and pick me up to go to her new apartement, that her family had just moved into.

Even she was coming there for the first time. And it was great discovering the place. The apartment was spread over 3 floors, with a hall, 4 bedrooms, study and store. It was the top 3 floors of a 9 storey building, and on the top floor was a personal swimming pool!!! I immediately asked Amel what her father did :D - He was a World Rally Championship (WRc) driver and had won the Monte Carlo Porsche 911 rally in 1978-79!! He now had his own insurance firm!! I was in total awe!

I was in presence of greatness here. An actual racing car driver!!! He showed me miniature replicas of his cars, the Porsches, the Alfa Romeo... I was totally dumbfounded! I realized much later there were so many questions I could have asked.. How did it feel to drive those cars?
How was the competition? Saftey issues, etc. etc. etc. But I was just speechless and in rapt attention!

After a while, I sat around talking with Amel & Stephane, and Amel's sister, Marine, waiting for lunch to be served. Amel's grandmother was trying to converse with me in French, and speaking very slowly and it was fun! I was telling her about Hinduism and why I was wearing that thread on me, and that the ring on my finger was NOT an engagement ring :D We had a sublime lunch with two fish curries, rice and wine. There was also this drink which was supposed to be a speciality of Marseille and NO-ONE is supposed to like it the first time. Its not that I didn't like it, but my drinking it slowly prompted Amel's Dad to ask me to stop drinking it and just have some wine!

The weather was like a warm Bombay day without as much humidity in the air. After lunch, we stepped out for a coffee by the port.

After we were done, Amel tells me "My dad is just going to take us for a drive now"

The next 1.5 hours was the most unexpected and amazing experience of my entire trip. Amel's Dad took us for a spin in his BOAT!!! HE HAD HIS OWN BOAT!! Yes, I'll say it again, HE HAD HIS OWN FRIGGIN' BOAT!! It was a powerboat and flew along at maybe a 100km/h. And with a racing driver at the helm, it was exhilarating!! He moved the steering around like a toothpick, and the boat twisted and turned and splashed water at exactly the people he intended to drench! It was super cool!!!

Amel showed me the best-known of Marseille's sights visible from the sea, where Dumas based the Count of Monte Cristo, where Zizou's face was painted, (and now an Olympic Marseille painted was put up), the Champs Elysees of Marseille, the Notre Dame, of course, and much more..!! A most memorable afternoon!

Amel then had to leave with her family to go to Cavalaire for a family get-together. So I decided to make a quick trip down to Aix-en-Provence, which is like a 1/2 hour bus ride from Marseille. Before I got to the bus, Aga & I made a trip to the Palais Longchamps, which is a stunning palace in the heart of the city. Then I was off to Aix.

Its a pretty little town. There're absolutely tons of eat out places, a beautiful fountain, church, merry-go-round and the usual entertainers et al. I walked around from 8pm to 11pm, had a pizza and a beer and the caught the last bus, at 11.30pm, back to Marseille.

Aga took me out for a spin on her bike again, this time to show the Palais Longchamps by night, and it was absolutely magnificent. The next day was going to be spent packing, traveling back to Paris, and then eventually flying back to Bombay.

My train was at 1pm from Marseille, and was to take me directly to Paris Charles de Gaulle via Lyon. I met a charming lady on the train - Frederique. She had a cute Jack Russel named Enjoy, and I was trying to tell her in Freninglish a little bit about India, which was like a dream destination for her.

Before I knew it, we'd blitzed past Lyon, all the way across to the North of France, to Paris. At the airport, it was quiet. I had arrived at 5pm for a 10pm flight! With nothing to do and 100 euros in my pocket, I shopped for chocolates, wine and desperately searched for Made in Europe souvenirs (all of them were Made in China! X( ) It was time to board the flight then, and I realized I had forgotten to take my tax money back. When traveling in Europe, you pay VAT on everything, which is reimbursable at the end of the trip. But by then it was too late - a loss of about 50 euros (GRUNT!).

I was looking forward to getting back.

--

It has been the trip of a lifetime! So many fond memories...! I'm glad I penned at least some of em down on this blog. My laptop has been a faithful companion on the trip. Not once misbehaving, and light enough never to trouble my back. I've returned with at least a few shades darker skin, thanks mostly to my time in Spain. It would be next to impossible to pick a favourite place on the trip... All I can say is I loved EVERY moment of it!

Au revoir. Goodbye. Adios.

Day 14: Barcelona - THE CAMP NOU!!!

Today was going to see a dream come true for me. I was quietly excited as I poured myself some milk in a bowl of cereal at breakfast. Accessing the Barcelona website on my phone, I checked what I could do at The Camp Nou. A bit of a scare was that to go on the tour inside the stadium, the website suggested that I'd have to book one day in advance to be safe. But given that it wasn't really peak season, I was pretty sure that I'd get in without much trouble.

I was in a bit of a trance in the morning, still unable to believe that I was actually going to be at this place that I saw so often on TV, with the likes of Messi, Iniesta and Xavi running riot on opposition defences. If there was one thing I had come to do in Barcelona, it was to visit The Camp Nou. I took a short 1-station ride to the station 'Badal'. From there it was about a 15-20 minute walk.

I got my first glimpse of the stadium from the south side. And it was colossal. With a capacity of 110,000 people, it had to be! I had to head to the west side for the entrance. It was here that I first saw the actual stadium complex - with stores, restaurants, parking, arrangements for ticketing, etc. The excitement was building, and I had unknowingly quickened my pace. I headed first for the ticket counter... only to find that that was not the one for the tour. It was actually for season tickets. There were a few old people hanging around there, smoking cigars - the kinds you'd expect to see at every match, watching it from box seats and the like.

So I had to head past the parking lot, to the place where the Barcelona Club Store was. The ticket counters for the tour were right next to it, and I had my 17 euros - PEANUTS - ready with me! Upon entering the stadium, I'm offered to rent a pair of 'walkthrough guide headphones' for 5 euros. I didn't see anyone taking it, and also the write-ups on the internet didn't really think it was worth it. So I head right inside. The path for fans is well laid out, and leads first directly to a mini-theatre. There's a wait of about 10 mins of wait, where I manage to get a few strained glimpses of the pitch.

Upon heading into the theatre, everyone is provided with a pair of 3D glasses! There are about 130-150 seats I'd guess. I plonk myself right in the middle to get a good view of the screen. The video is, if you haven't guessed it till now, of course, about the club, with a lot of stunning 3D videos of some goals being scored by the current team. And it is just MAGNIFICENT. The emotion the video managed to serve up with all the music and the fantastic camera angles combined with the collective ooohs and aaahs of the audience ensured that I had my eyes full in the end. It was MAGIC. I was COMPLETELY in a trance now.

The next 2 hours or so is etched in my memory and I can just press 'play' in my head whenever I want.

The line of fans move on to the locker rooms from there. Messi stood here a few months ago, and will again in a month's time. Guardiola was at the board, drawing out plans on who plays where, and will be again. Xavi was there, pitching in with his experience. And will be again. My hands were living a life of their own, clicking random pictures, which are like a blur in my memory...

Then we headed towards the pitch, walking through the players' tunnel... My mind was making me hear sounds of crowds roaring around me. I felt like I was there, right there, when a game was being played, walking out with the players... I sat on one of the seats for a bit and let myself come back to the real world. What a sight it would be to watch a game here!

Then I moved on back inside through the Champions gallery (with all them trophies that Barca has won)... Past the room where the post-match interviews are held... and onto the next (higher) tier of seats. And then onto the top tier with those cushion seats, glass box and air conditioning! If there was a place to be when a game was on, this was it! It would probably set me back by a coupla hundred euros at least, but I'd be more than willing. Some day, I will come back and watch a game here! Dream on... as they say :)

After absolutely drowning myself in the atmosphere, I headed through to the museum which has videos of Barca's greats playing. There are even memorabilia from other sports - handball, basketball.. and you realize there's much more to the club than football.

The museum exit heads right back to the Barca Store by a bridge. There's absolutely everything that you can imagine with a Barca engraved on it - from underwear to cups to caps to tees.

Its 3pm by the time I finish. I head back to the hostel, siesta, and in the evening head out to see La Sagrada Familia and a few other astounding Gaudi works. Since I have a bus early next morning, to Marseille, I return early (11ish) after another tapas filled dinner at Tapa Tapa, which's good, but a little bit more expensive than last night.

The day, though, clearly belonged, to The Camp Nou. Gaudi or no Gaudi, THIS is what calls me back to Barcelona more than anything else!

Day 13: Barcelona!!!

After a fantastic time at Sevilla, I took the 12.50pm Vueling Airlines flight to Barcelona the following day. Its another budget airline, but far better than Ryanair, which we flew from London to Jerez. Surprisingly, the flight was packed. Midweek (Tuesday), going from Sevilla to Barcelona, made me think what all these people were upto :) . Mostly tourists I presumed.

When I got to Barcelona and made my way out of the airport, I was shocked to meet a couple of Indian helper guys speaking in Hindi. They asked me where I wanted to go. For a moment, I hesitated with my hindi, "Was this really happening!?". Both the guys were from Punjab, and I later realized that there were several several people from Punjab in Barcelona. Most of them worked as helpers or had a store of their own. But it wasn't entirely unexpected, because during one of the night outs in Arcos, I'd met a guy who said that he had many Indian friends in Barcelona, and that they were mostly carpenters! Paris had had very few Indians, except for the Tamil area that we'd gone to for dinner on one of the nights. Arcos had zilch, and same with Seville (with the exception of one store selling only Indian stuff, which was closed, but I presumed would've been manned by an Indian or a Spanish person who knew a lot about India - not common in the South of Spain, I can assure you). So, Barcelona had served up a surprise on arrival.


Getting around to finding my hostel was quite easy. I had the name and the address, and the person at the information desk gave me precise directions, written down on a piece of paper! So all I had to do was to catch a train out to the city, get off at Barca Sants station and walk to my hostel - Alberguinn. It was conveniently located at just 5 mins walk from 3 metro stations. As with London & Paris, one could get to any part of Barcelona VERY conveniently with the metro.

The hostel itself was very well maintained, and I was greeted with a loud yet sweet 'Olaaa!' by the cheerful receptionist, Joanna (Its funny how I can remember the names of good-looking women easily, whereas otherwise its quite a tough ask :)). My room had 14 beds! Since I arrived at 4 in the evening, there was nobody there but for two girls who were sleeping. I decided to take a nice nap before I left in the evening to explore this dream city.

I woke up to the girls rolling some joints :O At this time of the day? 5pm.. puhh..! Anyways, I introduced myself, said hello and then headed for a nice bath. I would meet more French girls after my bath, they all belonged to the same group it seemed, on holiday from Paris. I was ready to leave, but I had no idea where to. Joanna, the girl at the reception was a huge help here. She obviously had mastered the map and all the 'must-see' places. I told her the kind of places I wanted to visit and she outlined a nice plan for the evening.

First stop, the Barca Sants station for booking my bus tickets to Marseille in 2 days time. I'm glad I got that out of the way because if I'd have waited any longer, they'd have run out of places on the bus. There are three buses a day, and I could get a ticket only on the one in the morning (9am).

So with that set, I set out on my foot route. Walking all the way from Barca Sants to the Placa Espanya. Its got an Arc d'Triomphe feel to it, but somehow I liked the view better with the Palace (Palau Nacional) in the background. Walking along the Avenue de la Reina Maria Cristina is quite an experience. You're surrounded by architecture that look MUCH bigger than in pictures or on the graphic map of Barcelona (that I was carrying). The Palace is at a good 5 storeys height from ground level, and open air escalators take you up to it! Its quite a pleasant surprise, and I think they've been put in place keeping in mind the warm weather, which would take a lot out of one if s/he were to climb all the way up.

Getting to the top, the view is fantastic. There's someone playing a soft guitar on what looks like the courtyard of the palace and it makes for a very peaceful experience. Taking a walk around the palace, i decide to walk through the gardens behind it further up to the Museu Olimpic i de l'Esport, the Olympic stadium. I get a glimpse of the ground from the outside and it looks like a regular one with a pitch in between and the race track around it. My goal was to get to the Muntanya de Monjuic and the Castell de Montjuic. It is one of the highest points in the city and its a good 5 minute cable car ride from the Funicular Montjuic station. By the time I took my leisurely walk and made my way up to the Castle of Montjuic, it was close to 9pm, just around time for sunset!! The view was, needless to say, breathtaking! The castle is absolutely majestic and it would have been quite a sight to live here... the sea port on one side, mountains on the other side and the city, replete with Gaudi's mindblowing architecture, sandwiched right in between.

With night descending upon the city, I took the cable car ride back down, and to further head towards the station 'Catalunya'. This is the heart of the city, and the name evokes strong a sense of pride in me because of its frequent mention when watching a Barca football match. Right outside the station is the most famous street in Barcelona - Las Ramblas. At past 9.30pm, its choc-a-bloc with people, mostly tourists. Magicians, entertainers, painters, photographers are dime a dozen and people queue up to watch, have fun, be drawn, clicked and the like. There is a fantastic party atmosphere about the whole place. The sound of music playing from all corners and smell of fresh food from the various restaurants lining along the street make the experience complete. I walk the streets adjoining the Las Ramblas as well. These are full of life as well. One 'square' quickly leads to another and people are just lounging around, having a drink and enjoying the warm weather.

That's one thing about Spain. The country just feels MUCH more alive than France or England. The people have a buzz about them. Its not uncommon to give and receive smiles from complete strangers. When I've stood on the street looking at my map for directions, people have come up to me and offered help, can count at least 6-7 instances of that - never did it happen anywhere else. In that sense, Spain feels very much like India, almost as if the people identify with you, rather than consider you a visitor. Its something that really endeared me to Spain. It was an observation consistent across the cities I visited.

I rumbled through Las Ramblas, walked over to the port, through the palm trees - the whole thing felt surreal. I have a weakness for the sea, and I just HAD to sit by it at least for a half hour and soak in the atmosphere. Joanna had suggested that I try this place called Civdad Condal for some good Tapas, but slightly on the expensive side. I was game, and headed there after my long walk. I'd have preferred to sit outside, but there was no place. Inside it was a bit claustrophobic but I got a seat with a (small) view of the outside, so it wasn't all that bad. I ordered two fish tapas, and of course, Tinto! I had a good fill in the end. The waiters were all Chinese, who spoke English in bits. But it was easy to understand the menu coz it was in like 5 languages. Barca, being the touristy city that it is, restaurants have menus printed in several languagues, so that makes things very easy for anyone traveling.

It was nearly 12 by the time I finished and I debated with myself if I should take the last train (at midnight) back to the hostel, or hang around for a bit more and then take a bus (which runs through the night). I decided the easier option, of going for the train. My legs were beginning to complain just a tad bit, and I wasn't sure I'd do much more even if I waited. So off I went by the last train and got back to the hostel around 12.30am. There was a crowd of people standing outside the place having a smoke, and I was greeted by a crowd of "Olaa"s and a few "Bonjour"s as well. Wonder who in the crowd thought I was french :P

I had a quick wash and headed right for bed, only to find a delightful looking girl, Nina, sitting there. Her bed was the one on top of mine and she was "just about to go up" to it and sleep. We had a nice chat, exchanging our stories briefly. What was quite a shocker was that she was from the same village where my cousin lived just outside of London! Its amazing how small the world is! Then I went off to reading my book and she headed off to bed.

And THAT was my first evening in Barcelona. I had fallen in love with the city even before I had come here - thanks to the football and severl shows on TV saying how awesome a place it is. And it had more than lived up to all that hype & build-up.

Tomorrow, the Camp Nou. :)

Day 12: SEVILLA!!!!!

(Written in the morning of Day n+3, @ Tirupati, completed & posted in the evening)

After a fantastically chilled out Sunday, we were ready to hit the road again, to Seville. The only thing I knew about this city at that point was that there was a strong football club by that name and it had players like Freddy Kanoute. Esther had lived in Seville for 2 months, and promised that we would really like the place.

After a breakfast of tostadas con aceite y ajo (bread, garlic rubbed on it, and olive oil and salt) (fantastic in its simplicity!), off we set, at 11ish in the morning. I think we took a bus to Jerez and from there moved on to Seville by train. I remember the train going up to 160 km/h and we didn't really feel it was going that fast. As the vast empty countryside blazed by I had a feeling of being back in India, in MP perhaps. The landscape was the same colour, a bronzed dryness that we see after summer, albeit the farms seemed a lot more organized.

I was carrying all my luggage with me, since I was proceeding to Barcelona from there. There was no space in the luggage corner in the compartment, so we had kept one of my suitcases right next to our seats. The ticket checker on the train, a biggish lady with scary eyes, came up to Esther and asked her to keep the luggage up. What followed was my first witnessing of a Spanish argument. As is with most arguments, Esther was left fuming at the end, and in a bad mood, especially coz one smart-ass passenger decided to join in and support the cause of the Spanish railways! Esther needed a hug to calm her senses and I'm glad I gave her one, or she might have just gone about ruining her day because of two random people. It was a good fun way to start off in the morning and I had a big smile on my face in the end.

We arrived in Seville's grand railway station, Sevilla Santa Justa, and caught two buses (C2 & C4 I think!) to go to our hostel. On the ride, It was immediately clear to me what a beautiful city Seville is. Colorful buildings make up the skyline, a most stunning river ploughs through the city, far more breathtaking than the 'that joke of a river' (as my other cousin Anu puts it) that Thames is in London. Hostel Redes was wedged in a pretty street that didn't have a soul when we made it there. The hostel itself was small and sweet. Our AC room for 3 was 55 euros a night, a very good deal I thought. By the time we reached the hostel, it was 2 I think. A short siesta later, we were off and running for lunch! Similar to Cadiz, Sevilla has many 'squares'. They were fairly empty at that time of the day though. We went to a nearby restaurant for lunch. It was quite simple, but I stuck to my tradition of trying a new dish every meal. Paella was there, of course, and so was Tinto. The new dish was caballa, a type of Tuna, which was lip-smackingly good. And again, I dipped into my sister's leftovers, tortilla brava. After the heavy lunch we were walking around generally in the direction towards the big church (I think it was Santa maria or something, can't remember the name :( ).. The church structure was fairly imposing, but it was quite plain inside, albeit with some stunning stained glass art-work. They were asking for a fee to go and visit, so we gave that a miss. On the way, we also stopped by at the 'Cafe de Indias' for an icecream! I had a sinful vanilla brownie and I just lovved it melting into my mouth on that hot day!

Then we headed to the Placa d'Espania (Again, I think that's the name, I'm too lazy to check it up online now!). This compound is just magnificent, breathtaking, grandeuse, and all those similar sounding adjectives. With a painting and short write-ups about each province of Spain, it made for interesting viewing. The (very well read) Esther was giving a running commentary on every province as we passed by the stones on each one of em. We clicked several touristy pictures, like excitable, diligent tourists :D We meandered, next, to the gardens adjoining the P.d'Espania.. they're vast and beautiful. The horse-chariot rides through the garden's roads looked extremely inviting, and perhaps with the right kind of (read romantic) company, it would have been more than worth a try!! One day, I will return :)

As we continued walking, the evening descended upon us and we found ourselves walking along the river. It has got to be one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen. It was LOVE at first sight. The sun simmering in the distance, the street lights reflecting on the river, the breeze whispering in the ears, it was pure magic. We sat around, walked, and admired.
Its one of those places, where you just go quiet, coz its just sooo stunning.


We walked on one of the many bridges across the river, and headed for a restaurant, for dinner. It was past 10pm, and light music filled the air from the various musicians playing on streets near and far.

Restaurants by the river are understandably expensive, so we headed inland for a cheaper, fuller meal. Esther and I literally had tons of seafood - prawns, squid, fish, you name it! Mridula gave up soon, as usual, but we kept goin on, and on, and on. It was my biggest seafood meal EVER! And it was also one of the best!

(Of course, I had Tinto to go with it, 2 glasses this time, proportionate to the amount of food I ate!!)

After the eating binge, we clearly needed a long walk... so we walked all the way back to the hostel, stopping on the way for a Mojito :)... and once we got there, we pretty much just fell asleep before hitting the sack!

It had been an absolutely amazing day. Sevilla was more than just a pleasant surprise, it just blew me away. Period.

The plan for the next day - get up in the morning and fly to BARCELONA!!! Comin up.. in the next posts!!!

Day 11: Arcos

(Some vivid and some rather hazy memories, writing this in Tirupati on day n+2)

Saturday night ended disappointingly early because of my shoulder trouble. I usually wake up after 6 hours of sleep, but when I woke up I realised almost 9 hours had passed since I fell asleep. It was just what my body needed at that time, I'm sure. I had been on a perpetual high since my trip started, had had a lot of walking, less sleep and generally a very high level of awareness. The shoulder pain could also have been linked to the fatigue, that was suggested by the unusually long sleep that night.

So Sunday had to be REST DAY. Luckily Esther had also exactly the same plan. The trip to SEville had to be postponed to the next day (Monday), coz Esther's cousin wasn't in town - so we'd have to go and stay in Seville for just one day, and in a hotel.

It was a leisurely morning. Among other things, we got on the internet to figure out where we'd be staying in Seville, my flight to Barcelona and staying options there. For breakfast, we had something like chocolate and bread - or maybe that was the next day, but yeah, twas neither fantastically memorable or forgettable and hence rememberable)

The plan, as I said, was to relax. The venue, couldnt have been better. Esther's home, her relaxed family, the relaxed swimming pool, the relaxed sunshine..... aaahhhh...

Once we got there, I got into a very animated conversation with Esther's dad about football. He went about in Spanish, waving around his arms and widening his eyes from time to time. And of course I went about in English. I'd have done Hindi and it wouldn't have made a difference :) But it was so cool, coz we were actually understanding each other, talking about Barcelona, Real Madrid, and watching the highlights of a friendly Real played. Then Esther's grandma joined in the fun. The channel on the TV had changed by this time to a series about Bullfighting and the legendary Torros of Spain. Esther's grandma was the one doing all the talking now, and she really seemed to like my occasional head nods, even if I didn't understand much. It elicited the most beautiful, sweetest toothless smile from her, which I had so fallen in love with! As my sister put it, she was just a very huggable person.. you look at her, and you want a hug!

After the Spanish conversations, it was time for lunch and this time, being a Sunday, the menu was more elaborate! Churros con chocolate, beans stew, pisto (veg mash), berenjenas y pimiento frito (aubergines and pepper) and OF COURSE, TINTO!!! Its amazing how quickly people disappear for Siestas once lunch is done! We headed to the pool instead and today, I was going to go in for a dip. By now, I'd worked up a VERY dark tan, and it was just going to get darker... (My dad was shocked to see me when I returned, he said - "You went to Europe, its cold there, and people become white.. what have you been upto!?!" :D Then I had to go on to explaining how South of Spain could go all the way upto 40 degrees in Summer, and how I was out in the Sun swimming!)

Anyways, it was a most relaxed afternoon and evening, swimming, frolicking in the water and playing silly games with the kids (Esther's cousins). We headed out around 10pm after a short trip to Esther's grandma's house where we were staying, for dinner and some drinks. It seemed like a Spanish McDonald's we went to and I ordered a patata rellena which is basically stuffed potatoes. It was with some Mexican sauce and had a nice slurpy spicy twinge to it. We got the food packed and sat at Sonia's bar and had our dinner along with some light drinks. I had white wine, served complimentary from the ever-sweet Sonia, and we chatted into the night.

I remember not thinking too much about the next day. We were going to Sevilla and I'd not heard anything about the place. I was going to go, as usual, with an open mind :)

Day 10: Cadiz

(Written partly in Marseille & partly after returning to India)

After yet another long night, the impending trip to the magnificent port city of Cadiz served to wake us up early (9am) for the bus-ride. We had thought of catching a direct bus which leaves at 11 (I think). But that bus was scheduled only for weekdays and it was a Saturday! So we had to take a bus to Jerez and then a train from there to Cadiz. We were standing at the bus station waiting for the bus. An empty bus was standing with a clueless looking bus driver in it. He told us, and other waiting passengers, that he "wasn't sure if the bus would go to Jerez"! Everyone was wondering which bus would go then, coz there was none other around. People started to get desperate trying to figure out if there would be a bus at all. Then, when it was just about the scheduled departure time, he came out (of the empty bus standing on the station) and announced proudly - "THIS bus will go to Jerez!" Some passengers laughed and got in sportingly, cheering the bus driver's attempt to make his own life a little bit more interesting. But there were others who were like "you could've told us before, why were we rotting here outside in the heat!"

A half-hour-or-so bus ride later we were at Jerez. The train to Cadiz was going to be another half hour ride. (The train station is right next to the bus station, neat!). So off we went to Cadiz. Of course, at every possible moment of free time, we promptly fell asleep, trying in vain to catch up for all the sleep lost the previous night.

But we were awoken by the stunning sight of crystal clear blue water and sun-kissed sands as the train rolled into Cadiz. Forgetting all our sleepiness, we stepped into this beautiful little city. With several 'squares' or 'meeting points', Cadiz was buzzing with activity. The sun and the beaches had combined to attract scores of picknickers and tourists from near and far. It was a party atmosphere with music playing on the streets, with the swish of the waves in the background!

We were joined by Ignacio, Esther's friend, who lived in Cadiz. He walked us through some pretty roads and led us to a rather non-descript and quiet one, to a restaurant for lunch. It was to be another typical Spanish lunch, but this time, seafood, seafood, and more seafood was on the menu for me - Merluza (Grilled hake with Cadiz Sauce!), chick peas with prawns, patatas bravas, paella, and of course, Tinto!

After a scrumptuous lunch, it was time to hit the beach. There are several beaches in Cadiz, and I'm not quite sure which one we went to (but it wasn't the nude beach that Esther spoke about :P) The beach was full of sunbathing people, all eager to get a tan! There were only a few people in the water, most of them were in the sand baking under the sun! The water was cool, and inviting, in the hot sun. After the initial hiccups of the relatively lower temperature, I adjusted quite well to the water temperature and had a fantastic time playing in the waves. Its the first time in my life that I can remember I enjoyed so much in the sea. I've never been more than knee deep! I've always had a feeling of disgust at the water in Bombay's beaches, and have always been inhibited in going for a bath in them. This was different though, the water was clean and cool, and felt just amazing exactly at the moment of the first dip and then on it was just pure fun!

We must have thrashed around in the water for 2 hours I think. I even came ashore for a beer and some chips... ahh it was just heavenly I say!!

Then it was time to head home... for a shower, and a party!! Esther's friend, Sonia, was celebrating her birthday, and we were invited :) So we headed back to Arcos by around 7, siesta till 9, getting ready, and then we were off!

It was a barbeque party and the Spanish have only red meat in Barbeques apparently. Esther only realized once we got there and was in a hurry to prepare something vegetarian for my sister and me. She got all the stuff ready - rice, broccoli, onions and a few other veggies. Then she handed over the baton to our cook for the evening - her beautiful friend, Laura. She made us a most fantastic quick-dinner and we enjoyed it with tortillas and beer!! The drinks were flowing and the boys at the party started playing football. I desperately wanted to join, but a shooting pain in my shoulder absolutely out of nowhere ensured that I wouldn't be able to participate. Some of Sonia's friends were professional musicians, Flamenco, rock & the like, so we were treated to some superb music. Sonia herself sang in her melancholic deep voice bringing tears to my sister's eyes! It was just about 2am and the night was young. We were just about settled in with the party when, sadly, my shoulder pain became unbearable and I had to drag Esther & Mridula back home. I had apparently twisted a muscle or something along those lines. I went for a hot shower, and the pain immediately subsided and I could thankfully get a comfortable night's sleep.

And THAT was Cadiz's & Sonia's (b)day! Another wow-inciting day in Spain, and I couldn't wait for the sun to rise again the next morning!