Seville to Algeciras and Morocco, Grenada and the end of our Iberian adventure.

Looking at Gibraltar from Algeciras Harbor

We were now nearing the home stretch of our eight week odyssey across Spain and Portugal. We departed Seville by bus and headed to the southern tip of Spain. When we hit the coastal highway before Algeciras,  I excitedly scanned the sea to catch a glimpse of Africa. Eventually I was rewarded with the grey forms of that continent in the hazy distance!

Africa!

We were staying in Algeciras, a fairly unglamorous little city on the Mediterranean coast. We decided on this place because of its proximity to both Gibraltar and access to Morocco via ferry service. The hotel we stayed at was right on the harbor, which I thought was pretty cool, although the area around it is a little sketchy. Doing a little research I found that Gibraltar was an easy bus ride. Getting to Tangier was not too difficult either, the tour service I found would bus us to the nearby town of Tarifa, from which we could catch the ferry for the 45 minute cruise to Tangier. This, and a guided tour of the city was offered for 49 Euro's, (only about $75), so what the heck!

We went to Gibraltar first, the bus dropped us off at the neighboring Spanish town, then we walked over to the "Rock" It kind of reminded me of walking into Tijuana from San Ysidro, except that you had to cross Gibraltar's airport's runway to get into town! Man, you don't want to forget to look both ways there! 

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An iconic view.

There are lots of tunnel complexes all through the Rock!

I kid you not, you have to walk across the runway!

It's interesting to visit Gibraltar, one of those places you've heard about all your life. Mostly English is spoken here, although it seemed like most people working there had a pretty good accent. There were lots of pubs and we stopped and had a pint of course. We couldn't stay long though, and after hiking through the village we had to head back. Sadly, I didn't catch sight of the Gibraltar apes. Maybe next time! 

Actually, the bus ride to was interesting too. We realized that there was a lot more to Algeciras than the harbor, it's quite a large town. Strolling around looking for dinner we found some nice parts too with good shopping and dining. It's just the waterfront that's a little sketchy!

Next day, we caught our bus to Tarifa and boarded a large ferry to Tangier. I was happy to be able to squeeze this little side trip in; I wasn't sure if we could do it, but it turned out to be a pretty routine thing to do. The ferry ride was about 45 minutes or so and was pretty nice. Quite a variety of people on the ferry, kind of  an exotic looking crowd, too, with the Muslim and African influences mingling with the European. 

At Tangiers Harbor

Arriving at the harbor in Tangier, we cleared the immigration checkpoint easily, but had to wait for the rest of our small party booked for our tour. It was small indeed, with Shelly and I and another couple from Italy, our driver and our guide! We piled into a van and headed into town. The guide kept a running commentary going on about the history of Morocco and Tangier and pointed out several points of interest. At one point we stopped at a small field beside the road to see camels! This was a small tourist stand where you could ride and pose with the animals. We were content to just look at them and snapped a couple of photos.

We eventually came to a large square and alit from the the bus. Across the square we passed through an arched gate and entered the Kasbah! The Kasbah is really nothing more than a shopping district. Very quaint and cramped and interesting to visit. Eventually our guide brought us to a room for lunch. I would not have guessed it was a restaurant from the outside, but inside it was a nice comfortable place. There was even a quartet that performed for us during our meal. The food was not half bad either!

At the Kasbah!

They make these tours pay by taking the tourists to various vendors who hawk their wares to them. After lunch we were taken to a large rug maker's shop for the full treatment. Well, it wasn't too bad and I learned more about rugmaking than I ever wanted to. We also had the chance to visit some of the many small shops in the Kasbah and to be polite, we did buy a couple of small things. Then it was back to the ferry and back to Spain! All in all, it was a fun day and well worth the 50 Euros. It also gave me a taste of Morocco, I think I would like to wander through that country again someday...

It was now time to leave Algeciras and start heading back towards Madrid. Time for one more stop before that, so we booked a room in Granada! This was an impulse since I knew almost nothing about the city, but it was along the way to Madrid so what the heck? A little research revealed that the #1 tourist location in Granada was the Alhambra, a Moor citadel which was the final Moorish stronghold taken by the Spanish in the reconquista in 1492.

View of Granada from the Alhambra.

Reading some tourist literature, I was getting a little apprehensive about being able to visit the Alhambra, as it is one of the most visited tourist attractions in Spain! It sounded like getting passes was really difficult unless you had made reservations. However, it all turned out fine since we were definitely in the off season; early November! There was a large line when we approached the entrance, but I noticed something that indicated that the lines were at the "cash only" gates. There was another set of kiosks for credit cards that were hardly being used! I walked up and got our passes, then we just walked up through the gates, no waiting at all!

An example of the Moorish design of the Alhambra.

The Alhambra is a vast complex of buildings. However, I think the most impressive feature is simply the view of Granada from the Alhambra. Just wonderful.

After spend several hours there, we walked back into town and wandered around. We had dinner at "Shawarma King", a mediterranean style cafe which looked suspiciously like a Burger King.
Next day we were back on the train for Madrid. We stayed at the AC Carlton, the same place we stayed the first night eight weeks ago, and which was very close to the train station. We walked around a bit. The Prado was not very far from our hotel and offered free admission in the evening so we went by and took in some of the art.

Finally back in Madrid...we find a mariachi band!

We spent a couple of nights in Madrid, preparing for the long flight home. As we were old hands now at Spanish life, we found a comfortable small cafe for breakfast and enjoyed our last cafe con leche.

Finally it was time for one last train ride...to the airport. We packed up our larger things into a duffel and checked it on our flight. Our route home took us back through DFW, where we had some extremely expensive beer...then back in the air for our final leg home. We'd been gone for 8 weeks, and it was good to be back home. Sam had watched our house for us while we were gone and he had done a good job keeping clean! The only bad news was the small flood that occurred in our garage during a freak downpour. Fortunately no permanent damage occurred. 

Doing the Camino de Santiago was an experience I'll remember all my life. The three weeks of touring after were also exciting but man, oh man, we were beat! Next time I will do the Camino and then go home.Do touring in a separate trip, combining the two was just too much; we carried some stuff on the Camino for our tour afterwards that we didn't use for those first 5 weeks, and then we carried a lot of stuff while touring that was only useful for the Camino! So that's my advice to anyone who wants to do the Camino: plan on doing just that! It will make things a lot simpler!

But most of all, do it!

Here's a selfie taken at the start of the
Camino at St. Jean Pied de Port...

...And here we are after 8 weeks of travel.

Death Valley sojourn.

Zabriskie Point

We decided to head out to Death Valley for a couple of days this past spring, before the heat set in. We spent the first night at Lone Pine, the next at Stovepipe Wells, then two nights in Beatty before heading back. This was a hotelling trip, no camping this time.

We took the Tacoma because we wanted to explore some of the more remote places and we figured we would need the ground clearance that our Prerunner offers.

The Taco on Racetrack Road

Charcoal kilns

After spending an uneventful night in Lone Pine, we headed for the Park. There is a large visitor's center just outside of Lone Pine and its a good place to check on conditions. There are some interesting displays to check out as well.

We then entered the Park, there is no kiosk or gate, you just keep driving along Highway 136/190. We turned south, off the highway and headed the Wildrose Mountain. The road took us through some pretty canyons and the wildflowers were still blooming, a good sign of things to come. Eventually we drove to the Charcoal Kilns, built about a over hundred years ago to supply charcoal to some smelters. The hills around are studded with small pinon pines and these were the fuel for these kilns way back then. Fortunately, the kilns shut down and the trees have managed to make a decent comeback.

Close-up of a kiln.

After visiting the kilns we headed back the way we came. We took a side trip to Aguereberry Point to get a view of the valley. The road goes up pretty high and the view is amazing. On the way back to the main road we stopped at Aguereberry's old mine and camp. (Aguereberry was an miner).

Aguereberry Point, looking east into Death Valley.

Aguereberry Camp

Mr. Aguereberry ran quite a big mine considering he was practically a one man operation. He scratched out a living from the mine but not much more. He also made the road to Aguereberry Point, just for kicks.

Heading back to the main highway we made our way to Stovepipe Wells. We had booked a room there and checked in. Not a great room, but the only one in town! After that, we decided to take a quick trip up to Mosaic Canyon which was just up a nearby road.

Marble canyon walls

The striking feature of this canyon are its marble walls. The smooth cream colored stone is really beautiful. After our hike we returned to Stovepipe and went to the saloon for dinner. It was actually a pretty nice place with an excellent beer selection!

That night, we drove to the dunes to observe the night sky. In a stroke of luck, we happened upon a Ranger's talk on the stars and joined the group.

The next morning we headed out and stopped to take a few pictures of the great sand dunes there.

The sand dunes outside of Stovepipe Wells.

We came to the road junction and headed north, to Ubehebe Crater and the Racetrack Playa. I was anxious  to drive to the Playa, reports I had read were a little sketchy. It turned out to be a 27 mile jaunt on rugged but passable dirt track. We left the tar road just past Ubehebe Crater, and gradually rose up a pass populated by Joshua Trees.

You know it'll be a fun road when you see this sign...

After summitting the pass we continued down to Teakettle Junction and its colorful teapot collection. After Teakettle the road began to deteriorate a bit. A few deep holes and some bad washboard.

Teakettle Junction, on the way to the Racetrack Playa!

 Finally, the Racetrack came into view! A bright white patch with the dark grandstand in its middle.

The Racetrack.

The famous rocks are found at the far end of the playa. We pulled off the road and walked across the hard playa surface. We viewed several of them and their tracks.  The rocks we found were fairly small, but they still made great pictures!

The Racetrack!

On our way back from the Racetrack, we stopped at Ubehebe Crater and took in that magnificent view.

Ubehebe Crater

After Ubehebe, we drove to Scotty's Castle, a pretty oasis on the eastern edge of Death Valley. After having a small lunch we caught a tour of the Castle which was built by a Chicago businessman, his wife and Scotty, a cowboy/conman who provided the local color. An interesting place, well worth the visit.

Scotty's Castle

After Scotty's, we drove out the east side of DV to Beatty, Nevada where we stayed at the "Atomic Inn". Well, the AI had seen better days, but it was okay for a couple of nights. We could walk to downtown Beatty, where we found places to eat and drink. The first night we ate at a bar, the food was alright, the beer choice was limited. We walked around and spotted other places to visit for the next night.

Next morning we headed back to DV. We stopped just outside of Beatty to visit Rhyolite, an abandoned mining town. Lots of interesting old building slowly falling apart.

Rhyolite NV

After Rhyolite, we took a turn off the highway and headed down Red Pass road, leading to Titus Canyon! This felt like a real adventure, running on a dirt track up through the Red Pass, down through Leadville and through Titus Canyon, finally reaching the other side and entering Death Valley again. Along this road we found some beautiful country, a ghost town and some ancient petroglyphs...really worth the trip.

Along Red Pass Road

Red Pass

At Leadville Ghost town.

Look closely and you can discern the faint petroglyphs.

Titus Canyon

Driving out of Titus Canyon and entering Death Valley

Upon reaching the highway, we turned south and headed south, stopping at the Devil's Golf course. We then turned around and drove to Zabriskie Point. After taking in that panorama, we headed up to Dante's View and enjoying the stunning view from up there. We then drove back to Beatty for the night.

Devil's Golf Course

Dante's View

We spent one more night in Beatty, visiting the large Casino there where I actually managed to win a jackpot on the poker machine! Next day we left Beatty and DV and drove north through some lonely stretches of western Nevada, stopping at one ghost town, Palmetto,  then making the long drive back to home, via Lake Tahoe.

At Palmetto, NV.

This was a really nice little trip and we enjoyed Death Valley. Next time we will take our little trailer and camp, rather than using hotels, it will be cheaper and more comfortable.

In Palmetto.

Lisbon, Sintra, Lagos and Seville.

The old Moorish fortress at Sintra.

Our journey now took us from Porto southward to Lisbon. Lisbon is a huge city with, fortunately, a first rate metro. We were able to transfer from the train station to the metro easily and were soon at our hotel, a nice place that was pretty much in the middle of town. It was an easy walk to the large square by the waterfront.

On the waterfront in Lisbon

Lisbon is a nice enough city. We wandered around a bit and took in the Gulbenkian museum, which has exhibits from ancient times to modern. Lots of shopping although we weren't really interested in buying much. I did have to track down and audiologist in order to buy hearing aid batteries!

Some of the crazy Portuguese artwork.

As in Porto, the street art really grabs your attention. Strolling through the city, we noticed a lot of graffiti...but it almost seems to be encouraged. The one shown above had to be sponsored by the city!

Outside of Lisbon, towards the coast, is the old town of Sintra. It held a strategic position and was a Moorish strongpoint. A large portion of the battlements still stand and restoration and archaeological work is continuing here. It was a brisk uphill walk to the old fort through some old parts of the town and a woodland.

View from the fortress looking out to the Atlantic.

The Moorish fortress at Sintra is an interesting side trip from Lisbon, a fairly short train ride west of town. The village itself is a nice albeit touristy place. Many interesting shops, cafes and villas are around the area.

Pictures of Lisbon, Lagos and Seville

We soon departed Lisbon, taking the southbound train to far southern Portugal, ending up in the little coastal town of Lagos. As we entered the town I was struck by the beach town like feel to the place, like I was in Pacific Beach! Then, we came to an Irish pub! Well that was odd, but welcome, and we sat down for a couple of beers and hamburgers which were actually good!

Feeling like SoCal!

Lagos was a nice town and we stayed in a pretty cool little place, Casa da Moura. A bit old fashioned but the ladies running this hotel were helpful and friendly and they provided a really good breakfast. I found Lagos to be more fun than Lisbon, I like smaller towns I suppose. One day we walked a coastal trail to the lighthouse.

Lighthouse at Lagos.

Later, we took a bus out to Sagres and on to Cabo de Sao Vicente, the extreme southwestern tip of the country. Shelly was anxious to see the old hostel she stayed at when she was backpacking out here many years ago. Sadly, it is no longer possible to get to the place, cliff erosion has caused the area to become too unstable. We did get to the lighthouse though, and the point was a pretty impressive view in itself.

Another lighthouse! At Cabo de Sao Vicente

Soon it was time to leave Lagos and so we took the train from Lagos to Seville, arriving after dark. Luckily our hotel was pretty close to the station, an easy walk. We had a supper of tapas and beer at a place in a nearby mall, our server was an expatriated Aussie! During our stay we visited the cathedral in Seville, ever mindful of our regret at not visiting the cathedral in Burgos back on the Camino!! I must say the the Cathedral in Seville is a most impressive place! It was originally a Moorish temple re-purposed to a catholic cathedral after the Reconquista.  It even has the tomb of Christopher Columbus! It also has a large bell tower which affords a terrific view of the city.

The Bell Tower of the Seville Cathedral...

...and the view from that tower.

Wandering through town we encountered an "international" fair. We were naturally interested to see what the USA exhibit was. Turned out to be pretty small, featuring fried chicken and Duff Beer! Turns out that the Duff actually came from Australia.

Seville was a wonderful town, you could spend a lot more time there than we did. But now we were planning the final phases of our adventure. We decided to go to the bottom of Spain, and with luck, maybe see Africa!

Post Camino Wanderings: Porto, Portugal.

The Riverfront in Porto.

Well, we have completed the Camino. Having lanced a painful, infected blister, my foot pain level was returning to tolerable. Shelly and I now prepared to leave Santiago and tour through Portugal and Southern Spain. First stop: Porto, Portugal.

We left Santiago via bus and headed south, traveling through fine looking, wooded countryside. Eventually, we came to the outskirts of Porto, which turned out to be very vast, indeed. Our bus stopped at the airport, then it was another rather unremarkable 45 minutes to an hour to get to the center of town!

The square just outside our hotel.

Thanks to Booking.com, we had a decent room in the center of old Porto. Believe me, that's where you want to be. The newer parts of town aren't all that fascinating. The old town has lots of interesting old architecture and sights to see.

A parade of students!

One afternoon, when we were getting something to eat at an outdoor cafe in the square pictured above, we witnessed a giant gathering of college kids taking part in some sort of public ceremony. As I understand it, these were underclassmen who now attained the right to become upperclassmen, signified by the donning of  a robe. So all these kids were marching through the square along a sort of parade route, whooping it up. I think there might have been some drinking occurring, too! Anyway, that provided us with some entertainment while we enjoyed our dinner.

Blue painted tile is a traditional decoration in Porto.

Old Porto.

Porto is set on the Douro River, and the Douro wine region is to the east. This is a very old wine-making region and has led to the creation of a unique product, Port Wine.

It so happens that Porto is where Port wine was developed. The English, way back in the late 1600's, needed to insure a steady supply of good wine, due to sketchy relations with the French. They came to their ally, Portugal and developed the fortified wine we now call Port. I never cared much for Port before I became educated about it here! We visited a few Port "Lodges" and toured one, Taylor's. and enjoyed some samples. I found my favorite was Taylor's "Late Bottled Vintage", (LBV).

At the tour of Taylor's Port Lodge.

We spent a lot of time strolling through town and enjoying the sites. Old Porto is a nice place and definitely worth a visit if you're in the area!

Near the river.

Douro River, in the center is a replica rabelo boat.

Exploring old Porto.

Sé do Porto

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