Friday, August 28th - Mataro to Barcelona, Spain

After breakfast this morning we packed up, checked out, and headed for the train station.  We caught the 12 noon train, went to Placa Catalunya and switched to metro to go to Placa L'Espanya and then switched to another metro to Ildefons Cerda and then walked a couple of blocks to our new hotel.  That all sounds easy but let me tell you my suitcase isn't getting any lighter and pulling it is hard work, especially when you have to go up and down stairs!!!  However, I made it - very hot and sweaty - but I made it.

The hotel is the same one for our trip, which starts tomorrow, so this will be my room for the next three nights.  Randy has to move to another room tomorrow.  It is a nice room but no nicer than some of the ones that have been about half the price.  and this one is definitely way out of the way so not much to see around it.  At least it has a transit connection that is reasonably close.

We arrived around 2 so by the time we got checked in we were getting hungry.  The girl at the front desk tried to send us back to Placa Catalunya or Placa Espanya but we decided to check out the mall next door for a food court.  The mall was huge with many floors and about a 16-screen cinema, as well as hundreds of eating places.  We ate at a really busy place and the food was excellent.  Given all the food places in the one mall, I'm quite sure we won't starve while at the hotel.  We wandered around for a bit and even did some shopping.  We both bought deodorant, and here you could actually take the lid off the deodorants and smell them.  I got yelled at for doing that in Mataro.  

We then walked back to Ildefons Cerda station to check on times for the train I have to catch to Monserrat tomorrow.  I was planning on going to Placa Espanya and catching the Monserrat train from there but it turns out that the Monserrat train leaves from right here at Ildefons so my connection is much easier than I though it would be.

I then came back to the hotel and showered and Randy kept wandering around.  ((He actually went back to the shopping mall and bought another shirt.  He is turning into a real shopper!)   I am trying to figure out how to make another trip with Canadian Humanitarian to Ethiopia and Malawi work this fall.  It should be easy since I'm already half way there but it's not.  I have to get a visa, which requires my passport to be in Ottawa for a few days, and before I can fill in the visa application form I have to know where I am flying from when I enter Ethiopia and when that will be, but I'm not sure when I'll have my passport back so it's a bit of a catch 22.   Then I have the added problem that I can't go anywhere, or at least not very far, when my passport is back in Canada so I have to figure out where I'm going to stay put for a while  possibly from the week of September 21st to the week of October 5th, and by October 7th or 8th I have to get out of Europe anyway because my 90 days in the Schengen area is up and the Schengen Agreement says I have to leave for at least 90 days before I can come back again.  I have never seen them enforce this agreement but I'd rather not get caught in the area without a passport.  Anyway, it's all very confusing for my little mind to deal with.

Randy came back to the hotel about 8 p.m. and we went out for dinner.  He had walked around our strange area of the town and discovered that we are right near the Olympic Village from the 1996 Barcelona Summer Olympics.  And that backs on to Parc de Montjuic, which is accessible from the harbour by aerial tram so it looks like we're not that far out in the boonies at all.  we're just on the back side of some things.

Before going to bed I discovered that the boys choir at Montserrat doesn't sing on Saturdays.  My whole reason for buying a ticket on my own was so I could be there when they sing.  The optional tour on our bus tour doesn't get there until afternoon on Sunday so it wasn't going to hear them so I decided to go on Saturday instead.  Now it turns out they don't sing on Saturdays anyway and the optional tour might be there in time for mass on Sunday, which is the only time they sing that day.  Oh well, I guess I'll have to decide tomorrow morning just which day I want to go. 

Thursday, August 27th - Mataro, Spain

Today was a slightly different but not too taxing day.  After a leisurely breakfast we headed off about 10 a.m. to do laundry.  We walked about ten blocks to Placa de Cuba where there was a nice new self-serve laundry mat.  It was much more efficient than any I've seen in Canada but then I don't frequent a lot of laundry mats so what do I know.  

Doing laundry wasn't cheap.  A couple of my new tops were red and I was afraid they might run so I did them separately in a small machine.  I also did a load of whites in a separate machine so I could use some hot water on them.  However, I think I forgot to hit the hot water button so that was a bit of a waste.  Everything else just went into another machine.  The dryers came in two sizes too so we just dumped everything into a big one.  Almost everything was done after one round but a few things needed the second round.  It took about two hours in total, which wasn't bad, and with detergent and everything included it cost about 20 euros or $30, which seemed a bit expensive when we started adding it up later.  Oh well, we have clean clothes to start our bus tour.

While the laundry was being done we took turns wandering around the area.  It was obviously market day as the narrow streets all around Placa de Cuba were filled with tents selling just about anything you might want.  Of course I had to buy something else - two new light shirts for 10 euros.  I'm not sure what I will throw out of my suitcase but something is going to have to go if I keep buying things.  Randy is always laughing at me for buying stuff but even he bought a new shirt when he was out.  

The centre of Placa De Cuba is the Mercat or permanent market.  I went in there for a visit and it was quite amazing.  This is the fish and meat market.  Yes, it smells a bit like a fish market but not bad, and it is probably the cleanest fish and meat market I've ever seen.  The fish were quite amazing and I had no idea what most of them were.  I kept trying to find a monk fish as that was the one I had to eat the one night and really didn't enjoy it all that much.  I later looked them up online and one would definitely not say they were pretty with their huge head and mouth.  I probably saw some of them at the market but just didn't recognize them.  The other meat was mainly beef and the cuts of beef look very good.  

After laundry we found a little restaurant in the area and had a light lunch.  Then we went back to our hotel.  Randy took off to the beach and I sorted through clothes and did some repacking for tomorrow's departure.  A bit later I went down to the beach too.  I read for a while in the shade and then went down to the sandy beach and sunny area.  It was lovely as always and I even went in the water.  It was much calmer today with just a green flag up - for the first time we could remember - and very refreshing.

About 6 p.m. I went back to the hotel to shower and wash my hair.  We went just down the street for a sandwich about 7:30 p.m. and then at 9 p.m. we went to Torre Llauder, the Roman ruins, to an outdoor jazz concert.

The concert was fantastic.  The advertising and ticket said "Jimmy McGriff i Victor Puertas" so we expected two performers.  However, it was one band with eight people:  drummer, guitar/percussion, guitar, four horns, and a keyboardist who I assume was Victor Puertas.  It turns out Jimmy McGriff was a black American who was an organist who played a lot of jazz and blues.  He died several years ago.  Victor Puertas plays a lot of his songs and is also an organist.  I don't know exactly what he was playing but it wasn't your typical keyboard of a rock band.  It had a larger console with several keyboards on it and it sounded very much like an organ.  He could get many different sounds out of it and many different ranges by changing the settings so I think we'll call it an organ.  Puertas also played the harmonica a few times and sang a few songs but mainly it was the whole group and they really were amazing.  Two of the guys on horns (sax and trumpet) were unbelievable.  The other two (same instruments) were good but less amazing.  The guitarist was fantastic and did a number of solo spots.  The drummer and guitarist/percussionist were just kind of in the background but still good.  Overall the sound was loud but wonderful in the outdoor setting.  Some of the songs I didn't know and others I did.  They played for almost 2 hours straight and it only cost 12 euros so it was a great deal.

It was a nice warm night with a beautiful sunset and an almost full moon.  The ruins were lit behind us and to our right and the band was playing in front of us so it was a perfect setting.  And even better, it was only about two blocks from our hotel so it didn't take long to walk back at the end of the evening.

Wednesday, August 5th - Leipzig, Germany

Today was another day of field hockey.  The weather was much cooler and it was cloudy so no chance of sunburn but maybe a few rain drops and a cool evening, which made it hard to dress for our day at the sports fields.  As it turned out, it was just a lovely cool day but by noon the sun was shining.

The morning of course was lovely sitting around the breakfast area and relaxing for a few hours while downloading and then uploading pictures.  I'm almost caught up because the internet here is great.  Maybe someday I'll actually be able to put a picture in these blogs or on facebook.  I keep thinking that time is getting closer but even today after just having downloaded Budapest to my ipad, I tried to download pictures from the river cruise and was told I didn't have enough memory.  So I had to stop downloading and start uploading, which is not a speedy process.  Oh well, I seem to be making progress so that's what counts.

Heather had games at 12 and 5 today and Liz was playing at 10 and 3.  We didn't get the time for Liz's games until almost 10 so we missed it.  We did catch the other 3 though plus one that Heather was ref'ing and part of another.  Most of the games are on grass but I watched a bit of one game being played on the artificial turf and what a difference it makes.  I might actually fully understand and enjoy the game more when played that way.  They were actually running with the ball and passing it and it looked very much like ice hockey.  On the grass at times the grass is rather long and the ground is rather rough so no one seems to have any control of the ball and it seems like a very strange game.  But then everyone is facing the same situation so I guess it's fair no matter which field they are on.  This sports field has the one artificial turf and four grass fields - and luckily for us spectators, lots of shade on the one side.

After the last game we took the tram back to the old city and met Heather who had taken the group bus back to her hotel and then walked over.  We wandered through a bit of the old city and then ate dinner at one of the outdoor cafes.  After that we walked Heather back to her hotel and then took the tram back to our hotel and another day was over.

Before I leave this blog I have to add something about St. Nicholas' Church.  Our walking tour had taken us outside of it but I never got inside even though I kept trying.  Eventually one night I made it but I don't remember which night it was and I don't think I put it in a blog so I'll but it here.  St. Nicholas' Church has the peace column outside it in the square and a stone with footprints of various sizes and a hundred little square in the square that light up at night - first one and then another and another until there are lots of them.  This is all because this was the sight of the Monday night prayer meetings and protest marches.  And in 1989, this was where the announcement was made that East Berliners could indeed travel outside of the country.   

Every Monday night the church held these prayer meetings and always secret police were there watching.  And every Monday night after the prayers they held peaceful marches.  However, there was almost always someone being arrested or beaten for having participated.  On Saturday, October 7th, a demonstration had resulted in a lot of arrests and battered people.  On Monday, October 9th over 1,000 police were at the Church and 600 of them were inside.  The prayer meeting was held as usual with 2000 people in the church and the lesson from the Beatitudes.  At the end the priest and the bishop and several others appealed for a peaceful march and the crowd dispersed.  Outside they were met by about 10,000 people who had been listening on speakers.  Each one had a candle in their hands.  To march they need two hands - one to hold the candle and one to protect the flame from the breeze - and thus they were no threat to anyone and could do nothing but march peacefully.  The head of the police at the time had given orders originally to shoot if needed to break up the crowds but when he saw the marchers he changed his orders and told the troops and police not to take any action.  Horst Sindermann, a member of the Stasi party, said before he died, "We had planned everything.  We were prepared for everything.  But not for candles and prayers."  He resigned in November 1989.

The prayer meetings and prayers continued and by November 9th, the wall was coming down.  That was immediately after one of the officials in Leipzig said travel in and out of the country would be allowed.  When a Swiss paper asked when, the official checked his press release and saw that there was no date on it so he simply said "immediately" and the news was out around the world

I'm not sure about the prayer meetings but the protests still continue.   The one we witnessed while having dinner in an outside restaurant on Monday night was just the continuation of a tradition.  There were police everywhere and streets were barricaded but the march was peaceful - noisy but peaceful.  And the counter protesters were noisy too and just shouted back at the protesters while the protesters went by.  Only the organized protesters had signs and chants though.  The others seemed more spur of the moment.  I think this protest involved immigration issues and refugees (EU issue) and unemployment but it was hard to figure it out exactly.  

Monday, August 3rd - Leipzig

Today was a totally different day for this trip.  We came to Leipzig specifically to watch some friends play field hockey so this was to be our first day doing so.  First we had to find the field.  Once we figured out what tram to take it was pretty simple to get off at the right place and walk to the playing fields.

Once there we knew where Heather was going to be because she had e-mailed us to let us know so we went to field 4.  There are five playing fields in total.  We arrived part way through her game so just found a nice place in the shade and watched the game.  I don't know much about field hockey so it was a bit hard to follow.  I later found out from Heather that it was a pretty lousy game anyway and they were playing on a rough grass field that wasn't level or trimmed so neither team really had any control of the ball.

When her game was finished we headed over to the main tent area where they stored their equipment and where there was some food available.  We had something to eat and visited for a while and then she had to go ref or umpire a game so we went back to the shade to watch that.  Then we had to go watch Liz' game on another field.  The games start on the hour and last about 50 minutes, just long enough for a five minute break in the middle and then time for the one group to get off and the next teams to get ready to go.  There are almost 50 teams registered so it keeps them going all day to get 2 games in for everyone.  There are men's, women's and mixed teams playing and I have to confess that the men's teams are definitely much more entertaining to watch.  17 countries are represented and I think Canada has about 6 teams here.  This is a masters tournament but in field hockey I guess that means anyone over 35 because there is definitely a large age variation on the teams.  However, they are all just out there for the exercise and the fun so it's all good.  It's also very hot and humid so they are definitely working up a sweat.  I'm doing that at times just sitting in the shade.

I think we left about 5 but I'm not sure.  I know we watched Heather's two games, one of Liz's games, and one of the games that Heather ref'd, and I think we had a one hour break as well over lunch so I think that takes us to about 5 p.m.  We then walked back and caught the tram and went to the old town to find a place to have dinner outdoors near a free concert.  Heather and two of her team mates were going to join us around 7 p.m., which was when the concert started, but we were to hold the table in the meantime.

The concert area was already packed well before 6 with no seats available onsite and the restaurants were also all busy or reserved.  We found a place just down the side of the church where we could hear but not see the musicians and decided that would have to do.  We waited for quite a while.  Randy kept getting up and looking for Heather because we weren't sure she would see us and I kept holding the table.  People kept asking if they could join me and I had to keep saying no.  Randy and I ordered appetizers and drinks to hold the place and eventually we decided to order our meals.  We had just done so when Heather appeared at about 7:15.  She ordered right away too.  Her friends didn't arrive for about another half hour but everyone got to hear a bit of the concert and everyone got to eat.

As we came in on the tram we noticed a lot of police cars around and down in the old town in one area we noticed a very strong police presence.  During our meal it suddenly started getting very noisy and we realized there was a protest march happening on the street behind us.  As it got louder people started running from the square as if to join them but in fact they were the counter protesters yelling loudly to drown out the protesters.  It was a noisy few minutes but probably it was all settled own within ten minutes and the police started moving the barricades and going away.  This is a Monday night tradition in Leipzig.  It generally gets quieter in the summer but I guess they had a lot to protest about because there were certainly lots of them out there tonight.

After dinner we slowly wandered back through the old town with Heather and her team mates heading to their hotel and us to our tram to get back to our hotel.

I should note that one of the teams gave us Canada hats to wear as we were cheering for the games.  They were like cowboy hats with a maple leave on the front and made out of light foam so you could just put it on your head or over your hat.  We wore them all day and when we stopped at the tourist booth to book our city tour, the gentleman at the tourist booth wanted to buy a hat so Randy gave him his.  The guy was thrilled and said he would wear it all week so we figured the team would be happy with that.

Tuesday, August 4th - Leipzig, Germany

After our late night we had a lazy start in the morning with breakfast at the hotel and then making plans for next week.  Prague is the destination chosen so it will be fun to go back there.  Eventually we took the tram to downtown and had a quick snack for lunch before starting our tour - the real objective of the day.

In the afternoon we went for a City Tour.  This involved a one hour guided walk through the old city and 1.5 hour bus ride to the points further away in the city.   The walk was great as we saw a lot of things that we never would have seen on our own.  We went to St. Nicolas' Church where the revolution started in 1989.  We didn't go into this church but the columns inside are incredibly ornate at the top.  We know this because there is a replica of one outside in the square as a memorial to the start of the peaceful revolution to end the separation of East and West Germany.  Apparently the news about free movement being allowed in and out of the country was first announced in Leipzig and that's when people first went over the wall (freely) in Berlin. There are small square lights among the cobblestone of the square and streets surrounding the church and at night these lights come on first one then another and then a lot of them to show the first step that was followed by so many on the road to freedom.  And the lights are all different colours to show that all people (young, old, black, white, catholic, muslim, etc.) were all part of the movement.  We went back later that night to see the display but waited until 9:30 when it started raining and then we decided to head home.  There is also a stone at the foot of the memorial column and it has feet imprints of all different sizes indicating that all ages were involved in the walk to freedom.

The tour also went to Specks Hof Passage.  Specks Hof is a huge one full block building of many stories and it used to be the trading floor for good.  Leipzig was at the intersection of railroads leading east/west and north/south so a real industrial centre and people came from all over to trade.  Originally they brought in all their goods but the businesses were limited in size, then the trading business grew and more room was needed and then, with mass production, they only bought in a sample so less room was needed.  The buildings have changed many times over the years and this was the latest version. There are high archways that crisscross the building.  The bottom floors were rented out so they could have money coming in year round.  The business fairs or trades were only held a couple times a year so they needed to keep the building occupied at other times.  There were market squares for fruits and vegetables as well but that was separate, and the sweets were also separated so there was a separate ornate building called the sweets market.  I would have liked that one.

We saw the Old Stock Exchange and the Old Town Hall on the market square, and then St. Thomas' Church and the Bach Museum, which I will talk about later.   The Old Town Hall is a huge building and very ornate.  It only took 9 months to build, which is hard to imagine, but it was built on the foundation of old buildings so I guess that helped to speed up the building process.  It has a open courtyards in front and at the back where many restaurants have seating and they were setting up for a concert to start in a few days on the one location.  

  

On the bus tour we saw many sports stadiums and lots of green spaces.  There were statues, ponds and fountains, and huge old homes.  The Battle of the Nations War Memorial was huge and impressive and we were sorry we couldn't spend time there.  Apparently 120,000 died on this battle field and are all buried on site.   This is where Napoleon was finally defeated.  We did manage to get back to this on Thursday for a more in-depth visit so more information there.

We drove past the opera house (where the tour ended), symphony hall and theatre.  Along the way we crossed several rivers and in one part of the city they are trying to be like Venice with gondolas on the channels.  The zoo sounded terrific to me and now I don't exactly remember why although it was something to do with each continent or area having its own bubble and controlled climate, which sounded unique.

After the tour we did some more walking around.  We first went up to the observation deck on the 30th floor of one of the university buildings where we had a great view of the old and new city and the surrounding area.  It was good that we did this after our tour because we were able to pick out places and sights that we wouldn't otherwise have been able to identify.

From there we headed toward the Bach Museum and St. Thomas Church.  The two are just across the street from each other and definitely go together because Bach was the cantor and lead musician at the Church for almost 25 years and his grave is in the Church.  The Church itself was founded in the 13th century as part of an Augustinian Monastery.  In the 15th century the newly founded Leipzig University took up residence in the Monastery.   In the 16th century Martin Luther preached in the church and held many debates (disputes they call them) over reformation of the church.  Mozart also played in the Church and Napoleon used it as a munitions store for his troops and then it was a military hospital during the "Battle of the Nations."  Mendelssohn also played a role in the church and helped to highlight Bach's music and make it famous.  Most of the windows in the church are plain but there is a memorial window to Bach and also one to Mendelssohn.  Over the years it has been renovated and rebuilt and expanded many times from Gothic to Romanesque to Baroque styles and combinations in between.  The tower is about 200 feet high.  The church ceiling, high and vaulted is about 50 feet high.  The supporting columns are white and the ribbing along the arches is a red wood which makes for a very impressive look.  Their motto is a place of faith, spirit and music and it certainly seems to fit.

While in Leipzig, Bach serviced three churches (at least that's all that we heard of but there may have been more).  He had to write a new anthem for each of them each week.  He led the St. Thomas Boys Choir which was and is apparently very well known and impressive, and they focus on Bach's works.  Bach also had to write a full cantata each month for each of the churches and he was also responsible for all special events and occasions for the royalty and elite who expected new songs for everything.  We didn't hear of any failures so I guess he managed it all easily.  Everyone thought he was very poor because church work didn't pay much but in fact he was quite rich because the royalty and noble men all commissioned him to right scores for their special events and he got paid quite well for these ventures.

The Bach Museum was small but very interesting and I did't actually get through all of it before the museum closed at 6.  The Bach family never lived in the building but rather lived just across the street behind the church.  The museum is in the Bose hose and the two families were friends.  The exhibits include everything from original scores to musical instruments to historical information on the period.  Parts of it require a lot of reading but parts of it are just listening.  And we had an audio guide to guide us through the various rooms.  My favourite room was one with musical instruments or pictures of them all around the outside of the room.  You listened to a Bach symphony and the lights went on for those instruments that were currently playing.  You could then push the button for one of those instruments and its sound would come through louder than the others.  It was amazing and a great way to find out what the individual instruments sound like and what they contribute to the overall music.  I was really impressed with this room.  

There was another room where they had an organ Bach played on and they explained all the pedals and stops and keyboards and that was interesting too.  This room also had large organ pipes hanging in the corner and if you touched a pipe it would start playing a different song from Bach.  That was pretty cool too until some kid decided that swinging on the pipes was more fun than listening to them - and of course no parental figures were around at that moment so I had to tell him to stop, which I don't think he really appreciated.  Strangely enough we saw the same family and kid several times that evening and he was always out of control no matter where they were or what they were doing. 

Okay, back to the museum.  There was a nice comfy room with sofas and headsets where you could sit and listen to Bach music being played and you would get a bit of a commentary with each.  In one of the final rooms they showed you how they dated some of the music and figured out when it was written.  That too was interesting.  Another room talked about his work at the school with the boys' choir and what his duties were.  Among other things he had to make sure the boys stayed clean, went to bed at the right time, etc.  Bach did not excel at these duties because he really didn't care about them so he often paid someone else to do his duties.  All in all, I thought it was a very interesting and informative museum.

Randy went through the museum faster than I did so he had a bit of a wait and went to have a coffee and appetizer at the restaurant we ate at last night, which was right outside the door.  Once finished, from there we walked to another restaurant to sit outside and enjoy our dinner.  On the walking tour we heard about a statue of Faust and learned that if you rubbed his shoe you would have good luck so we decided to check that out since we were n the area.  We found the statue quite easily and yes, I rubbed his toe.  It was apparent that many people had rubbed his toe since it was much shinier than the rest off him.

After dinner we walked back to Nicholas Church to wait for the light show but the lights never came on and it started to rain at 9:30 so we decided to head home before getting too wet.  We took the tram and got just a bit wet on the short walk from the tram to our hotel and then it really began to pour.  Our timing was perfect.

Saturday, August 22nd - Mataro, Spain

This morning I got to sleep in a bit and have a very long breakfast and did some blogging because it was raining.  By noon the rain had stopped but it was still very hot and humid.

Because it was Saturday, we went to the Saturday market, which just happened to be only about six blocks away from us.  There were lots of vendors with their tables set up and under awnings in case it rained again.  The market is on three streets, which are just closed down on Saturdays for the market.  The goods were mainly clothes and household items and there were a lot of people there buying a lot of stuff.  I bought some new insoles for my running shoes for 1 euro, a short-sleeved top for 4 euros, and three sports bras for 6 euros.  I figured I couldn't go too wrong at those prices.  And just to keep my suitcase somewhat balanced weight wise I did throw out some things as well.

From there we went back to the hotel to change and went down to the beach.  I took my time getting there and had lunch along the way in a small outdoor cafe.  Once at the beach I read for a couple o hours and did manage to get in the water once.  It felt cold at first but was actually very nice once you got in.  I checked the water temperature on line when I got back and one website said it was 25 degrees and another said 26 degrees Celsius so that's pretty nice.  The on-land temperature each day is between 25 and 28 degrees during the day and between 20 and 22 degrees at night so it's a pretty level temperature.  

The beach never seems very busy.  There are young and old people, singles and pairs, and even lots of families out enjoying the sand and sun.  I guess over the course of the day there are a lot of people around but the beach is so large (long and deep) that it just doesn't look crowded.  Topless seems to be quite acceptable but more women are covered than topless.  It seems okay to just change on the beach too so occasionally you see a bare bum - male and female.  Towels generally hide the frontal view.

I left the beach around 5 and went back to the hotel to shower and change.  At 6:45 we left for a 7 p.m. free guided tour of Torre Llauder, which is just down the street from our hotel.  Of course the tour was in Catalan so we just listened and picked out the occasional word and looked at the pictures and what she was pointing to on the ground.  Torre Llauder has ruins that go back to 1st century BC during Roman occupation.  Archeologist have been working on them for many years and there is still speculation on exactly what some of the ruins are.  They know it was once a villa of a very important person because of the mosaic tiles on the floors and the marble, stucco and paint.  There are private baths in the villa itself and public baths in the outer room.  When the guide started talking about frigidarium, tempidarium and calderium, even I understood we were talking about the three stages in a Roman bath.  

Somehow, through one of the inscriptions on something, the villa is tied to Gaius Marius (157-86 BC) a Roman statesman and general.  The villa existed right up to the middle ages.  We are not too sure what the Llauder connection is.  There was a General Llauder in the Spanish civil war n the 19th century and he was from Catalonia so we are guessing that perhaps he came back to build a tower or castle or home and did so on this property.  The ruins were not actually discovered until the 1960's so we also couldn't figure out what happened to his house - if he ever built one.

The tour was only an hour so at 8 p.m. we started looking for a place to have dinner.  We went to another outdoor restaurant and it was very busy.  We ended up both having pizzas.  They were a nice size but I really didn't need a whole one.  I ate it though so no dessert for me!  From there we walked back to the hotel and were in bed shortly thereafter.

Saturday, August 1st - Hannover, Germany

We had breakfast at the hotel today - a very generous breakfast buffet with lots of variety.  Just before 10:00 a.m. we started our day of touring on the The Red Thread, which is a red line painted on the sidewalk and you follow it around town while you read the brochure that explains what you are looking at.  There were a few construction sites that through us off track but basically it was a very easy process and a great way to see the city.  Some of it was a bit of a repeat from the night, like the Opera House, before but nothing major.    I didn't get home until around 4 p.m. so it was a long but very enjoyable tour.  Of course it was made better by skipping the main shopping streets or at least just hurrying through them.

The best part of the tour and the longest of our visits was at the New Town Hall.  Built from 1901 to 1913, the exterior is Baroque in style.  Over 6,000 pilings had to be driven into the marshy soil in order to build this magnificent structure, and it as all paid for by the time it was built.  It has a tower near each end and a high dome in the middle.  Behind it there is a lake and when illuminated, the building reflects nicely in the water.  The many statues and friezes on the building depict the city's many important dignitaries and important events as well as some fantasy creatures.  Inside, the main hall has a vaulted ceiling over 100 feet high and a majestic staircase that goes up one side and then splits off to left and right.  On the other side of the room there are beautiful, large, marble spiral staircases with intricate decorations.  Currently in this hall there are four models of what the city looked like in 1689, 1939, 1945 and today.  

The highlight of the tour was taking the elevator up to the roof area and then getting in an elevator they have designed to climb to the top of the dome so we can get a good view of the city.  The elevator has glass in the floor and ceiling so you can see the elevator shaft and it is very interesting.  It is a small elevator that can only hold six people (one of which is the operator) so only five go up at a time.  The elevator goes up at an angle of 17 degrees and you really feel like you are going to fall over at times.  The wall around the elevator is all brick and you can see the curve in the wall through the windows so it's quite an interesting ride.  Once out of the elevator you can climb a metal spiral staircase to get up another three or four floors to the top viewing level and you can see for miles.  It was a beautiful clear day so we literally could see forever.  It was nice to see how big the lake was that we were walking around last night, and it was nice to see where else we were going to go on our walking tour today.  And before leaving city hall I should also not that just outside in a park there is a statue of an archer with his arrow pointed right at the mayor's office.  We never quite figured out the significance of that.

On our walking tour we walked through the Saturday Flea Market.  It was nothing exciting, just the usual flea market you see everyday that proves one man's junk is another man's treasure.  It all looked like junk to me.  We also went through Market Hall which is over 4,000 square metres filled with vendors selling fruit, bread, vegetables and all kinds of cooked food.  The aromas were very tantalizing and there were a lot of people sitting around enjoying the food and beverages that were offered.  We had already eaten at another square where a jazz group was playing.  The pork schnitzel and bun (schnitzel six times the size of the bun!) was too much for me so I couldn't eat any more.

All along the streets there are restaurants and bars offering great food and seating outside.  It's very inviting and hard to resist as you walk by.  The pedestrian streets are large and so nice to visit without cars involved.  The stores looked great but I have to say that I didn't go in many.  I went into the Mephisto store but $150 for a new pare of sandals just didn't sound like a bargain.  Nearby there are sections of the old city wall remaining, and from pictures and models I know that the original city was totally enclosed and part of a great defence fortress but I never figured out exactly when.

I went into the Market Church for a quick visit.  the Church is rather plain but it has a large beautiful organ at the back.  There was a concert at 6 pm and I did think about going back.  Then they told me it was half organ and half reading.  Since the readings were in German I decided not to bother going.  The church was built in the 14th century on the site of a 12th century church.  Some of the old church foundations can still be seen.  If it was ornately decorated when it was first built, it was certainly made plainer during the reformation and it now sits as a very plain church with high columns and arches, high windows - some plain and some stained glass - with one bright blue window high in the back.   The main attraction as you enter the church is the altar screen which has a golden glow to it although it is just carved linden wood with good lighting on it.  It is not large - maybe only 4 feet high and 16 feet wide but it is impressive.  The carvings or pictures on it are all really detailed, and the two side panels fold in so that the whole altar can be closed if needed.  Much of the church was destroyed during WWII and rebuilt in the 50's.  This likely explains the mix of stone and brick on the exterior walls, which are supposedly in a German Brick Gothic style.  The tower is 98 meters high and is a city landmark.  However, it was supposed to be twice that height but they ran out of money.  It's still impressive at the lower height.

The Old City Hall was not far away and it too is an impressive building.  Built originally in 1410 it apparently went through many renovations due to the different politicians in charge and many of the wings really didn't match.  At one point they were going to tear iit down but instead they restored it to its original 15th century glory with stepped pinnacled gables and decorations in a gothic style.  It looks very authentic on the outside but is apparently modernized on the inside with a glass atrium.  There is even a gargoyle on the outside of the building, apparently a way of warding off evil spirits in the old days.

There are a number of monuments and fountains and other important items that are smaller than buildings.  One is the Kropcke Clock.  Located at Kropcke Square and where all lines of the metro meet and within easy walking distance of all important areas, it is also a favourite meeting place for the locals.  The clock was originally built in 1885, and rebuilt in 1977.  Kropcke owned a nearby cafe that was very popular and rebuilt three times (after fires and war) because the people could not imagine life without the cafe.  The clock now stands at the edge of the square and reminds me of the one in Gastown in Vancouver.  Another meeting place for the locals is "beneath the tail" or just under the statue of King Ernst August I on horseback.  He was the first King of Hanover who lived in the city and the statue is right in front of the train station and just across from the tourist information office where we started and ended our tour.

There were of course other things on the tour like museums and galleries but we didn't have time for them.  There were also a lot of very large ornate buildings, many of them with stepped gables and Gothic designs.  There was also a church, or at least the walls of a church which had been bombed during the war.  It is now a memorial to those who died and the bells toll four times a day - at five past the hour so they are not drowned out by other church bells.  There are a couple of palaces in Hanover.  We went past the Leine Palace which is home to the State Parliament, and Wangenheim Palace where the King resided for a few years in the 19th century

The old town area had a lot of construction taking place so we couldn't follow it precisely.  We did see the old tower that was once part of the city fortification wall and other old buildings adjoining it.  We couldn't go in as they are now museums and were closed.  They were right along the river though and the promenade was very nice.  That's where we bought our schnitzel in a bun.  In the old town square there was a concert underway so we stopped at a cafe and had a drink while we listened for awhile.  The old town has many half-timbered buildings, which are very unique looking.  They are not necessarily from the area originally but were brought from other places in Germany and rebuilt here.  They definitely give the area an authentic German look.  The oldest house actually from Hanover is also in this area and it is very decorated on the outside and is from the 16th century.

That night for dinner we just went down the street to an outdoor restaurant.  I don't remember what I had to eat but I do remember that their pizzas were huge - bigger than any pizza I had ever seen before and they were individual pizzas.  They were amazing and a lot of people were eating them - and I don't think I saw anyone leaving with a doggie bag.  I don't know how they did it.

Sunday, August 2nd - Hannover to Leipzig, Germany

We had another relaxing late start to our day as check out wasn't until 12 noon and our train wasn't leaving until 1:30 p.m.  That meant I had lots of time to upload more pictures GoogleDrive but it is an incredibly slow process even with good internet.  I'm still trying to finish up the Silk Road Trip and haven't even started the River Cruise.  Oh well, I have nothing better to do on mornings like this.  I wouldn't want to be out enjoying the nice weather or anything.

I'm assuming this is going to be a short blog - I hope - as I have so many others to get caught up on.  We walked to the train station and waited a few minutes for our train.  We didn't have seats together so it was just a quiet train ride to Leipzig enjoying the countryside as it flew by.  All I remember about that is a lot of fields and a lot of crops.  It's definitely farm country.

Why Leipzig you might ask.  Well, my friend and former associate dean is playing field hockey in a tournament over here and we decided to come and support her and the other Canadians.  I think there are 5 or 6 Canadian teams so it should be interesting.  It's a senior's tournament and not too serious so it should be fun to watch.  Gillian's sister is also playing in the tournament but Gillian could not stay to watch as she had to be at a sailing regatta in California at the same time.  Some people lead such active lives.  Except for walking, I seem to be a better spectator.

We checked into our hotel and got settled in.  We were both hungry and didn't know the area so went down to the desk to ask them for a recommendation.  They said there was a Greek restaurant just down the street maybe 5 minutes away.  We've come to doubt these 5 minutes away suggestions as they usually turn out to be half an hour away but this time it was indeed 5 minutes - just down to the corner and across the street.

The restaurant was an old house and it had outdoor seating on the terrace so we sat outside.  It was a lovely setting and there were several other groups around.  The first thing they brought us was a free drink and the last thing they brought us was another free drink.  I can't even remember what the first one was (ouzo or retsina or something else equally Greek) but the last one was a flaming brandy and it was very good.  Between those drinks and the wine we ordered before we ever knew we were getting free drinks, we were doing well.  The meal was great and not very expensive so it really was a great suggestion.

After dinner we went back to the hotel and sat in the lobby trying to upload some more pictures until it was time to go to bed.  WiFi isn't a lot stronger here but at least it's working - slow and steady is going to be the motto for this place.

Friday, August 21, 2015 - Mataro, Spain

I had another long leisurely breakfast this morning and eventually went down the block to a liquidation store that looked like it might have some good deals on clothes.  After much looking and much trying on, I ended up with a top and a light pair of pants for 12.5 euros or about $18.  It wasn't a real bargain as you got into the bigger sizes, which I need, but some of the smaller things were only $3-5.00 so it looked good when you started.

I then went across to the grocery store because I needed some deodorant and sunscreen.  At the deodorant counter I always have to smell the deodorant because a lot of them are so perfumed they make me start sneezing.  I would actually have to do the same thing with the sunscreen but I didn't get that far.  Some lady started yelling from down at the end of the aisle and came rushing toward me.  When I realized she was yelling at me I stood there looking at her (as did everyone else in the store!).  She finally used some broken English to tell me not to open the containers.  I said I had to smell them and she said no.  She made such a fuss over it and so loudly, that I decided just to leave the store.  It as rather embarrassing to say the least.

I went back to the hotel and blogged for a while because it had clouded over and looked like it was going to rain.  After a while it seemed to clear up so I headed for the beach.  Along the way I stopped at a little outdoor cafe for a bikini - a ham and cheese panini in our language - and an ice tea and both were delicious and only cost 3.5 euros or about $5.  Just past there I saw another grocery store so I decided to try my luck again with the deodorant.  Well, their deodorants were locked in plastic boxes so you could see the details but you couldn't touch them.  Obviously deodorant sniffing is a big problem in this country, or maybe people just stop by the store to use the deodorant and then put it back on the shelf.  Who knows.  I went to the sunscreen and some of them were the same but not as bad as the deodorants.  And most of the sunscreens were sprays, which I didn't want any way so I didn't buy anything.

By the time I got down to the beach it was clouded over again and after 3 p.m. so I decided I wasn't going to go settle myself in the sun for what might be just a short period.  Instead I found a nice bench in the shade and sat and read for a couple of hours.  Then I decided to walk south along the beach, yacht club and beach area.  It was a nice walk as the sun wasn't too bright so it wasn't too hot.  The south beach is definitely not as nice or as big as the one we normally go to but it had a lot of people at it.  After the beach it is a rock wall or breaker with huge rocks.  There were some people out fishing from the rocks but it didn't look like they were catching anything.  

Farther down the way there is another underpass so I took that to head back to the hotel.  They have a beautiful promenade and street right on the beach area but then immediately you get the train station with its many tracks.  As a result you always have to find an underpass to get from the beach back to the town area.  The one I used was the last one to the south and brought me out on a big street that led to a traffic circle just two blocks south of our hotel in the park that I had sat and read for a while the other day.  I got a bit closer to the hotel and then sat down again for some more reading in the shade as it was still before 6 p.m.  

About 6:30 I went to the hotel and showered and changed for dinner and did some more blogging before we headed out at 8 p.m.  Tonight we went just down the street from the hotel to a little place with about 4 tables out on the sidewalk.  We both had the steak dinner and it was huge with a thin but large steak, french fries, salad and two fried eggs.  It was delicious and cost 9.9 euros or about $15.  From there we went back to the hotel to stare at our computer screens a bit more before bed time.

That reminds me that not all computer time today was blogging.  We actually managed to book accommodation for a couple of weeks in Zanzibar over Christmas.  I also did several e-mails for Canadian Humanitarian re Ethiopia and Malawi in October, November and December.  One of my colleagues from the College is going to be working in Ethiopia from September 30th to November 20th and then in Malawi for three weeks.  She is teaching entrepreneurial skills to the senior students in the schools in Ethiopia and then teaching the same modules to the teachers in Malawi so it sounds interesting.  I started some of this work when I was in Ethiopia last year so it would be great to see (and help) it continue.  

I sent Lynn a long e-mail explaining some of my experiences and how things differ in Africa from Canada.  For example, the hairdressers I was talking to, said word of mouth would be a good way to promote their business and I readily agreed.  Luckily I said that if a friend of mine or a family member told me a certain hairdresser did a great job I would be much more likely to go to that hairdresser.  My interpreter at the time caught what was happening and explained to me that "word of mouth" in Ethiopia meant renting a car and megaphone and driving up and down the streets broadcasting your business.  I explained what it meant in Canada and then we all agreed that the Canadian version would be a better way to promote a hairdressing business.  

Then we  got talking about reputation and good service and what that meant to a hairdresser.  Time is not a really punctual thing for most Ethiopians so I asked what they would do if someone had an appointment for a certain time but they (the hairdressers) were running late and wouldn't be able to take the person at that time.  The first response was simply to tell  them to go away and come back some other time.  At my look of dismay they tried to come up with some other solutions like explaining the situation and offering them a cool drink or offering them another appointment but the concept of good service and time are just totally different in their culture.  It was definitely a learning experience for all of us and I'd love to do some more of it so that might take up some of my fall time - if only as a backup for my colleague.

Friday, July 31st - Amsterdam to Hanover

This morning Gillian left for the airport around 8:30.  Randy and I went over for breakfast later on and we sat outside because for once it wasn't raining and the temperature wasn't too bad if you were in the sun.  About 11 we checked out of our hotel and made our way by tram down to Central Station to catch our train to Hanover.

The  four hour ride was great and went by very quickly.  The countryside was very flat and when I checked my camera we were at a minus elevation.  There were small fields of crops as we started out and then larger fields as we went along.  Everything looked very green and lush as we were speeding along.  We were going so fast that I couldn't take any pictures and, since I'm writing this on August 20th, I really don't remember much more about it, which is a shame because I'm sure it was beautiful.  Sigh.

We arrived in Hanover and decided to buy our ticket to Leipzig before leaving the station.  The line-up was quite long so while Randy stood in line with his suitcase there, I wandered with my suitcase to find the tourist information place, which was supposed to be in the station, so I could figure out exactly how to get to our hotel which was supposed to be within walking distance.  Well, in my opinion, the tourist information place was barely within walking distance.  It was not in the station but rather outside across the square and the street and down a block or two.  However, I did find it.  Even had to carry my suitcase upstairs to get in the place!

The lady inside was very helpful.  She gave me a couple of maps and marked where we were and where our hotel was.  She also marked a few of the main sights and told me about a festival that was happening up on the lake (within walking distance) starting tonight.  There would be lots of food stalls and entertainment and definitely lots of people.  That sounded like a good place to go tonight for dinner.  She also gave me a brochure that included a walking tour of Hanover called The Red Thread.  The red thread is a red line painted on the sidewalk and you just follow it around from sight to sight and at each marked place you stop and read the description.  That sounded like a great way to see the city on our one full day tomorrow.

I went back to the train station and Randy was still waiting.  Once we got our tickets we were off on our trek to our hotel.  It really wasn't that far but when you have a backpack on your back and you're pushing or pulling a suitcase and you're already tired from all the touring you're doing, it seemed like a long way.  However, we made it and checked in and all was fine.

We did walk down to the lake to the festival shortly after we checked in.  We thought we had the route all sorted out but crowds of other people seemed to be taking a different route so we followed them.  We did end up where we were supposed to but I guess they just new some of the shortcuts along the way.  It was a couple of kilometres at least but it was also new territory so interesting with lots of big beautiful buildings, parks and statues along the way.

The Maschseefest is held every year over a two week period all around Lake Maschsee, which is an artificial lake built on top of a marshy area where two rivers often flooded, and was originally part of a conservation or water control system.  Built in the 1930's, it is 78 hectares in size has trees and walkways all around it.  There are boats on it and people swim in it and it's right in the middle of the city behind city hall.  During WWII it was covered with floating islands so the Allied troops would not be able to identify it and the city of Hanover.  The festival was started in 1986 to honour the 50th year of the lake and the festival is obviously still going strong.

The tourist office was right.  There were lots of people around.  Apparently over the two week festival they have over 2 million visitors.  We wandered around and through the many booths and displays at the end of the lake and down each of the sides.  We later found out thee was way more going on in other locations all around the lake but we weren't that eager to walk all around the lake.  It's 2.5 km long so going around it was a bit more than I was up to.  We stopped at a pizza place for dinner and ended up having calzones which were absolutely delicious - the best I've ever tasted.  We also stopped by one of the brewery booth and had a beer.  I had a lemon beer and it was pretty good.  We enjoyed those while sitting on the shore of the lake.

 

We wandered around for a couple of hours, watched the sun set over the other side of the lake, and then wandered back to our hotel to call it a night so we are ready for our walking tour of the city in the morning.

Thursday, August 20th - Mataro, Spain

This relaxing and being lazy is getting very habit forming.  However, I think my body has gone into rejection mode.  I am stiff and sore and can barely walk at times.  After two months of non-stop walking I think my legs are saying, "that's enough - you've slowed down now and I'm not speeding up again."  Anyway, as you might imagine after those comments, I didn't do much of anything today.

Breakfast was about 9 a.m. and last until about 11 a.m.  It's not a very busy place so they don't seem to mind if you hang around for a long time.  By the time I leave I've generally checked e-mail and facebook and read the news from Kelowna and maybe other news as well.  It's quite a novel way to spend a morning, at least in my books.

After going back to the room I decided to spend some time in the park reading my book.  I've started Pillars of the Earth and if you've read you know that there is a lot of reading in it.  By the end of several hours of reading today I reached the end of Part I so it was a good time to stop.  I then went back to the room and blogged for a while.  I think I now have Prague totally up to date so I am making progress.

Then I went down to the exercise room to do some stretching and weights and machines to see if I could limber up my legs.  The bike seemed easy so that was a good sign.  Some of the other machines were easy too but some of them definitely hurt my knees so I didn't stay too long on them.  It was good and definitely told me I have to do more stretching if I'm going to keep up the pace of walking, especially here in Europe where everything is up or down hill. I walk regularly but basically only on the flat so I'm not used to the stairs and slopes.

I went to use the spa area, which to me is all part of the same facility.  They have a dry sauna, wet sauna and pool so it seemed like a good way to spend an hour or so before dinner.  Well it turns out they wanted 10 euros for the visit and I wasn't about to pay that amount so I just left and went back to my room.  The spa area is nice.  I was in there the other day when I had my massage and no one told me then that I was getting the spa for free because of my massage so I just assumed that I could use the spa any time.  Oh well, that was not to be.

I went back to the room and showered and washed my hair and it was soon time for dinner.  We went down the street to a restaurant with outside seating.  The high was 28 today and there are lots of restaurants with outside seating so we thought we should take one given the nice weather.  I had ribs, potatoes asparagus and egg plant and it was all good.  I'm not a egg plant lover so that part of the meal I easily shared.  The rest I devoured.  With two main courses, one dessert and a bottle of wine the cost was 30 euros or about $45 so not a bad deal.

From there I walked home to do some blogging (this one in particular!) and then went to bed.  It's hard to believe you can be tired after such a relaxing day when you didn't really do anything, but I was tired.  I wonder whether I'll get caught up on all my sleep before the 28th when we move to Barcelona to start our Spain / Portugal tour?  I certainly hope so!!!