One of our last blurbs

Our last day. We were really lucky because the weather was cooperative for the time we spent at the pool on the roof. The view of the city from the rooftop was great. We were able to drink our own beer up top while relaxing in the sun. Just before we went back inside the weather did a 180 and the clouds rolled in.

For lunch we found a place which served two plus courses for a fixed price. At less than 13 euros we were able to have a starter salad, bread and butter, a bottle of red wine, a main dish (Jean had shrimp and Bobby had steak), and a choice of coffee or desert. This price includes tax and tip of course. The food was great and we enjoyed our time on the patio people watching.

In the late afternoon we met up with one of the cousins and family for cappuccinos and churros. For one last time we were able to meet and hang greats which added to the great times. We said our byes till the next morning because they were going to give us a ride to the airport.

Once the sun finally set, we went up top to the roof to check out the view. The city was full of brilliance and vigor. We had a drink and decided to finish packing before dinner.

For dinner we found another restaurant which offered the courses of meals at a fixed price 13€. What a deal!! The food was better and we had desert and coffee! There is something that has to be said, the Europeans appreciate good wine for value. The table wines all had a fine taste (we bought countless bottles at the stores from 2 - 5 euros and they were all great, it's like they keep their good wines and ship us their bad ones. Nevertheless, there are countless American wine makers which have no business being in business). Overall the meal was excellent and better than lunch.

We got back to our room and crashed to prepare for our 22 hour airport and airplane adventure.

All in all our flights back home were good. The flight from Barça to NYC was little over 8 hours, it was nice to have the ability to watch whatever you wanted in your seat. We watched a couple movies. The layover in NYC was almost 5 hours. That was ok as it allowed us to make some phone calls for the first time in over two weeks (imagine, not texts, or phone calls of two weeks!, worth it). We crashed on the flight from NYC to Phoenix. We were thankful that our flight landed early and our ride was there waiting for us. T couldn't have gone any smoother. Got home, crashed and woke up refreshed.

Today we played catch up and tomorrow the real world starts. There are ton of stories we didn't share on this blog but we will share them eventually. There are videos we have and need to get uploaded. We will eventually do a write up on a couple of those, we will probably provide some observations on the cultural differences of the countries inside Europe and Europe versus the USA. We believe this trip really opened our eyes for what is important and what is really necessary in life.

Until then, we say farewell and until next time.

Bobby and Jean the armature world travelers

The last couple days

Two days ago we walked the the El Borne area. This was one of our more favorite areas of the city which is geared towards tourists. It was much calmer than Las or the Ave of Gracia. We absolutely loved the sights which the area offered. We walked by the Picaso Museum, the Parks, Arc de Triumph (Barcelona versions), saw the many shops, and got aquatinted with the architecture.

Later in the evening we went out to listen to Jazz Music and met up with a new friend who lives here in Barcelona. He is originally from Argentina. We ate dinner at the place restaurant which had the Jazz Music. Before the night was over, he said he had to show us a bar which had a lot of history. There was a movie which Woody Allen filmed many years ago around the bar. It was located is a very interesting part of the city near where we were staying.... I could describe it in more detail but lets just say that we wouldn't venture there unless we were with someone so knew the turf. It was an experience.

Yesterday we checked out of our apartment and checked into the hotel. The hotel was a breath of fresh air, it is clean, chic, and in a nice area away from the busy tourist area of Las Ramblas (one can only handle so much busy noisy tourist area). Honestly this area which the holtel is has grown on us.

We did Crossfit in the morning with a serious hangover, needless to say it was a rough workout. The Reebok Barcelona Crossfit gym was very very nice.

Afterwards we had lunch with the family and it was great. Took an hour nap, played with the Luca Bobby's cousin's son, and went for a walk. The family showed us more of the city which opened our eyes to more beauty the city has to offer. This really is a charming city (we over using the word charming and quaint but we are lost for words).

Once our sunset night walk was over we went to a restaurant which had a Galicia theme (Galicia is where half of Bobby's Family is originally from - Grand Father). The food was amazing. Oh FYI per tradition we aways finish the meal with Orujo (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orujo), it helps with digestion - so they say. Essentially it is a spirit made from grapes.

After dinner the family and extended family walked us to our hotel which we said goodbyes. It was a sad moment as we all grew to care for each other and enjoy one another's company.

Today Jean and I are spending our last day together to make the most of the daylight which Barça has to offer! This has been a memorable adventure, experience or journey.

Tomorrow at NYC we will provide perhaps our last update for our Blog on this adventure. We may update one more time after landing in Arizona to provided a link for more Photos with no commentary. That will be a week or so later.

Until next time.

Bobby and Jean armature world travelers

El día del turista! The day of the tourist!

Monday we spent a day visiting many sights in Barcelona. This city is full of places to see. The history is spread out all over the city. There was a famous architect named Guadi who is essentially the equivalent of the USA version of Frank Lloyd Wright. His buildings are everywhere and they are impressive.

The city is diverse, the diversity was apparent because we would see he differences as we walked through different neighborhoods. There are parks, plazas, and statutes everywhere (took over 300 pictures)

Late Monday afternoon we took a siesta... Cuz it is what the country does. After our siesta we went to the FC Barcelona Museum and Stadium, wow! One could get used to this lifestyle. We went back to the local market and bought sashimi grade tuna. Our dinner was terrific.

In the evening we went out to go watch Bobby's cousin Glassshat DJ at the night club called Jamboree. He put on an impressive show, provided us superior hospitality and we had a blast. We went out around midnight and prior to going out we talked about going home around 2:00 AM. Right around 5:00 AM we went home... Suffice to say it was more than a good time as we danced the night away. We met some very nice people throughout the night too.

Tuesday wasn't exactly much of a day because we are acclimated to the Barça lifestyle. Tuesday afternoon we went back to the major market to buy some gifts and other one offs. Tuesday evening we went to the cousin's house to have a traditional Spanish dinner and watch España play Francia in futbol (soccer). The dinner was delicious and the night ended great because España won.

Today we walked another part of Barcelona and saw more sights.

It is difficult to realize that we have two full days left after today. This trip has provided much perspective and has definitely been relaxing. Tomorrow we are going to the Crossfit in Barcelona and checking into our Hotel, leaving this apartment. That will be nice because we are staying in an area which is loud during the night.

Till next time.

Bobby and Jean the amateur world travelers

Meeting Mí familia in Barcelona

Hola....we made it safe and sound to Spain and am enjoying the city so far. Our apartment we rented is quaint, in the busy area of Las Ramblas. We have been quite lucky thus far since we have the whole flat to ourselves and no immediate neighbors.

The first night we met up with Bobby's extended family for tapas and drinks. Yesterday we spent the majority of the day with the family and met even more of them. We started out with a first class tour of the city, then had a lazy EXTENDED lunch along the coast (Catalunya style) coffee, then drinks and lots of chatting. So much food, but all amazing. We cannot say enough how generous and loving everyone of the family is. It has been fun helping each other learn the languages.

Today we are going to do some sightseeing on our own, then meet up with cousins to see the FC Barcelona stadium, and then go out later to watch a cousin DJ....what seems late to us is early to them (midnight).

Barcelona is such a charming and active city, so much to do and see, the people generally are nice. The culture seems to be much slower and laid back compared to what we are used to. There are neighborhoods that are essentially villages within the city in which everyone knows each other. Majority of life is spent outside the house visiting, talking, seeing, and doing rather than inside the domain of the house.

It seems that we have five more full days of tourist things and family events. So much to look forward to.......

Until next time.
Bobby and Jean

Driving along the sea

On our last full day in France we felt it would be nice to take a drive to see the coastal towns along with the Mediterranean Sea. Our goal was to drive from Antibes to San Tropez along the road which tracked the coast. This drive was spectacular! It was without a doubt one of the most beautiful drives we have witnessed. The pictures taken along the way can't provide the justice for what our eyes saw. We took a couple videos but our camera won't transfer videos to our tablet. We'll try to share some later.

We cruised through a couple towns along the way and wow where they neat. The houses which face the Mediterranean Sea were gorgeous. One has to wonder who owns such houses/mansions/palaces and how they could build these amazing places in the side of a mountain?!? Nevertheless talk about prime real estate, and it just continued on and on and on.

We didn't make it to San Tropez, we stopped at San Rafael (30-40 km away from our San Tropez). The time passed by far to quickly. We grabbed a drink on the boardwalk in San Rafael and people watched. We came to a conclusion during this activity of people watching, San Rafael is the Fort Lauderdale or the Sun City of France.

All in all it was a great drive. Our return drive was on the freeway/tollway. It allowed us to drive past a few wineries.

Currently we are typing this update while we are flying to Barcelona which will be the next chapter of our adventure. Overall France was a pleasant surprise and for the most part the people in southern France were very friendly.

Till next time.

Bobby Jean the amateur world travelers

Atari's Pole Position of Monaco

Yesterday we had the pleasure of going Monaco for the day. Suffice to say the drive was flat out exhilarating! The area reminds me that of the roads near San Francisco and then some. We drove through mountains via tunnels and we hit this incredibly steep road which was set on switch backs hair pin with S turns (more like Z turns) for kilometers.

On arrival to Monaco we decided to change our plans for the second half of our trip. We were suppose to drive to Salou Spain from Barcelona but there was a gentleman (John) we met here in Mougins who informed us that the town is pretty much shut down during this time of the year. This would force us to drive to Tarragona in order to find things to do. Thus we decided it would be better to make a change. We rebooked our trip to stay in Barcelona versus drive to Salou/Tarragona. We won't have a rental car now but big bonus is that Bobby has family in Barcelona.

The Monaco area was a sight for sore eyes of amazement... Because the country is literally built o a cliff. There is a harbor which housed some boats which were floating mansions. We saw the palace of royalty and the guard.

Later we had crepes along the harbor and they were good! (yes our appetizer-crepe had nutella). After our food we had to hike to hike back to our car and venture off to the Crossfit Monaco. This drive going to be easy, however we thought we had the directions but our directions were not to a specific location but the general area of the town. As we drove along the confusing roads (and unfamiliar soon to be familiar parts of Monaco proper), we stoped to ask for directions at a gas station. Let's just say that the directions to an area were quite confusing because we didn't even have the specific address. As we toured the area, worried we would miss the class we found a tourist office (because we are amateur world travelers and that is we we do). We were informed that our directions were to an area but not a specific location. Eventually we conned the lady there to call the Crossfit location to get us specific directions, turns out we had already drove by the place twice.

Today we drove the coastal road along souther France west from Cannes....

The adventure continues

Till next time.

Au revoir.

Bobby and Jean the amateur world travelers.

Opening up a Canne(s) in France

Yesterday we spent our first full day in France. We drove to the city of Cannes, where we saw the market, the film festival center, a castle, many shops, the beach, the Mediterranean sea, crazy drivers, people playing the French version of bocci ball, and we drank a ton of café. The town has a bigger city feel, it reminds us of parts of San Diego. The food, well it is great and we even bought our dinner which was fresh off of the boat.

Today we spent our time in Mougins, in the old historic part of town (about 2 km from our resort). Very quaint village, cute small shops, extremely nice people, and very very good food. The only bummer today was the rain but we survived. It was just a neat experience!

Tomorrow we are heading out to Monte Carlo for sight seeing, Crossfit, and activities which would make James Bond jealous.

Below are some pictures of Cannes.

Turning the page to the next chapter of our trip....

We are now in Mougins, France which we arrived to late last night after a drive from Nice. that flight decent was so beautiful that the pilot decided to fly past airport twice...lol. But we did land safely and arrived to the hotel....but wow the roads are narrow and they drive fast here!

Yesterday brought our journey in Amsterdam to an end. Not one bad transaction throughout the trip there...loving every second of being immersed in such a wonderful, unique, and diverse village.

Note to all amateur travelers.....one carry on bag means ONE!

Our next post will be about our adventure days in France. Below are a few pictures of our last days in Amsterdam.

FRIENDLY REMINDER...CLICK PICTURE TO VIEW THE WHOLE PHOTO.

Bobby and Jean the amateur world travelers

A city, it charms as a village

We'll make this a quickie, just because we slept in. This city is amazing. It is so different compared to places which we have been to in the USA. The main city area sits in a design of a horseshoe. This was the capital of Europe way back when, and it sure has maintained its diverse culture. The food here is great, we went to an Argentina Steak restaurant, fries with mayo (oh my these were soooo good), raw beef sausage at a bar which serves its own amazing micro brew beer (half price after the exchange rate too), and much more. It is such a charming village despite snowing or raining on us the whole time!

One observation and realization we have made is that the tourist stuff is expensive but this is not true for everything. We have found many bargains away from those areas. The grocery store also gave us an opportunity to save money as we loaded up some food for our hotel fridge. The deli meats and cheese is cheap, the produce is fresh and very good akin to the organic conventional paradigm, and the beer is cheap.

Today starts another adventure.

Bobby and Jean the amateur world travelers

Touchdown!!

We finally made it to Amsterdam after a good 30 plus hours of travel. Our first observation after landing, taking a train, riding a bus and checking into our hotel is that everyone is very friendly. Another thing is that the city seems to be very clean too.

We are off to eat, explore and then crossfit later today.

Can express how happy we are to be here finally because the travel was an emotional roller coaster.

Thank goodness.

Until next time!

Ciao

Pics below are at the train station.

A humbling flight mishap...

The last ten hours have giving us a perspective to reminisce because it had been quite humbling. We felt it would be worth sharing the last several hours of our adventure. We believe our lesson will provide thoughtful education for our followers. Who else better to learn from, the mistakes of amateur world travelers!

Cliff note version. We missed our flight out of Phoenix and we are currently in the middle of our eleven hour layover in the grand city of Detroit Michigan. This twist of events totally blind-sided us as we never heard of an airline who would not give us flight credit for missing a flight. We grasp the reality of the meaning of the phrase "for Queen and Country."


More detailed version for those of you who actually read the books... Our original flight was on British Airways (BA), and to our surprise the airfare was non refundable, non transferable, no credits, no questions answered as the rules are the rules. "for Queen and country." And our airfare had these rules of, miss flight, don't pass go, and no getting on the next flight card. Hoocudanoode!

How did we end up in Detroit? Last night after we got to the airport, the BA ticket desk was closed, their 800# was closed (till 0400 next day, some customer service eh) and the flight was already in the air. It was obvious that we were in the mist of one of those are you kidding me moments? As such we had to make an executive decision, there had to be no waffling here or there and were weren't going to fold like a lawn chair. Decisions had to be made ASAP.

Thus we bought a one way ticket to Amsterdam assuming that we still had a return flight home on BA. After our arrival in the grand airport of Detroit we came to find out that our whole BA flight had been cancelled without any options period. The only option is to purchase a return home new ticket.

The adventure must go on and it will. We were able to add a return flight from the new airfare ticket we purchased last night. Let that marinade for bit... We were forced to buy a second ticket (our only ticket) the night of our scheduled flight. Either that or cancel the whole trip.

Now we are good to go, just going to arrive roughly 12 hours later than we initially planned.

For those of you who are keeping score, double check departure time the day before leaving and check the actual ticket not your notes. Occasionally mistakes are made and some of those mistakes are more meaningful lessons than others!

On the bright side, we consider this a weird experience. (Insert 3-4 words of profanity here) Something akin to this should dissolve any potential strangeness from the rest of our adventure. Mishaps can happen, some more humbling than others.

We are Bobby and Jean the amateur world travelers.

Until next time. Ciao!

Our bags are packed!

"Tempus fugit," time sure does fly!

The morning of our trip.

We have been waiting on this trip for the last eight months. Needless to say Jean is excited better yet she is pumped, so pumped that the neighborhood bike tires are full! As for myself, well I am trying to not think about it. Ahem, not until we are on the plane and they are serving cocktails. Catch my drift? (for those of you keeping score at home Jean is my wife and I am Bobby, we are using our middle names for this blog).

Over the next two weeks we will keep you updated on our adventure. Our adventure will span from northern part of Europe to the south. We will spend four days in Amsterdam, four days in the French Rivera, and six days along the coast of Spain. At no time will we be staying in a van down by the river. We'll fly between the major areas and rent cars while in France and Spain.

Many of you might be curious just if we are ready? Well that is a definite duh! We brushed up on the Latin language Spanish via lesson one and two of Rosetta Stone. While our boots are on the ground we are coming prepared because we bought a few Rick Steeves basic phrase books for Spanish and French. Yeah, I said French and those Frenchies better be polite as we butcher their language with pride while asking for directions. "We we" or "oui oui."

As you all should be made aware we are amateur world travelers. We will try to post every other day give or take, they should be a light read and entertaining.

Till next time
Norm AKA Bobby
Steph AKA Jean

Oh, we are using a tablet to write this blog. Please excuse the spelling, grammar, and brevity of our posts.