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Report 2007: Rambling through Southern Andalucia

By kathyk from Michigan, Spring 2012

Trip Description: Late February, early March 2012 for three weeks in Barcelona, then down to Andalucia in the company of American friends for a 10 day car trip.

Destinations: Countries - Spain; Regions/Cities - Andalusia, Barcelona

Categories: Family/Friends; Hotels/B&Bs; Vacation Rentals; Sightseeing; Independent Travel; 3-4 people

Mid day meal with Carmen and family

It was good to leave Northern Michigan in late February and land in Barcelona. I had arrived five days earlier than planned because of an open window in flights. That meant I would spend two weeks in the home (apartment) of my friend. During that time, I was the helper, assisting my friend do the shopping, going to the bread store, and helping her to pick up and deliver her grand kids - quite a muscular job, involving lifting the baby stroller up and down stairs, squeezing it into elevators, and transporting it and the kids on buses and subways.

During this time period I got my Spanish cell phone. Sounds simple but here lines, long lines and long waits are the norm.

On one "free" day (free of child care and meal prep for the family) we took the train up to Girona. We wandered around the old city center, walked up along the old walls and sat and took in the view from the cathedral, the distant mountains and the cityscape below.

My friend, Carmen, included a visit to the convent school where she received many years of her education. It was emotional for her because those were not happy years, not due to treatment, but rather being away from her village home and family. Her middle class parents made great efforts to get her a good education and that meant boarding school at a Catholic convent. In the 40's,through the 60's, the Franco dictatorship did not spend much money on public education, especially in the regions that opposed him in the war. Catholic schools offered the best education possible for children then and there.