Cologne is the 4th largest city in Germany, covering both sides of the Rhine River. Historically, the city was founded by the Romans in 50 AD who made it a military headquarters. Later Cologne was taken over by the Franks in 426. Location on the Rhine River made it one of the most important cities for trade between Eastern and Western Europe. Following the German conquest of Milan Italy, relics of the 3 Magi were relocated here. The grand Cologne Cathedral was built to house the relics and become a monument to Christianity. The Cathedral was started in 1248 but not fully completed until 1880. Unlike many cathedrals in Europe that have taken centuries to complete, the original plans were relocated in 1842 and followed to completion.
The Cologne Cathedral is the largest Gothic church in Northern Europe. The twin towers are 515 feet tall making them the second tallest spires in the world, and the entire façade is the largest of any church in the world. There are 20,000 visitors per day and many take to stairs to the top of the tower; there are 509 steps to the top. At the top is an impressive set of bells, 11 bells total, 4 of them dating back to medieval times. The Cathedral was hit by bombs 70 times during WWII, but it did not collapse. Restoration work was necessary, and completed in the 1950’s.
During WWI, Cologne did not suffer much damage, but WWII saw almost total decimation. There were 262 air raids targeting the city, including “Operation Millennium” which was the first 1000 bomber raid conducted by the Royal Air Force. The population of Cologne fell by 95% as a result of the war and did not fully recover until the 1970’s. Currently there are over 1 million people in Cologne and many more in the surrounding area.
Rebuilding after WWII was directed by Rudolf Schwartz an architect and urban planner. There were 12 Romanesque Churches rebuilt and several medieval buildings preserved, but much of the rest of the city is strikingly modern. Urban planning included preparation for more automotive traffic and parking. This gives the city a decidedly modern feel, with pedestrian malls, public transportation and access to a large train station. The trains are a combination of local trains and high speed transport between major European cities. Cologne has well over 2 million visitors per year. With more pubs per capita of any city in Germany and Europe’s largest Carnival Celebration, it is no wonder people come. Interestingly, when we were there, we encountered many a bachelor and bachelorette party. There was a feeling of excitement and optimism among the younger generation. The economy appeared to be doing well, as all the shops and restaurants were crowded. Cologne is a vibrant city with much to see and do, including over 300 museums and many other cultural events throughout the year. Not to mention Kolsch beer and traditional German food! Prost!
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Aachen Germany, Photos June 2013
Statue of Charlemagne
Remains of Charlemagne
Guilded walls of cathedral 
Ceiling of cathedral
12th century chandelier
Rathaus and fountain
Back side of Rathaus
Crown jewels
Fountain of Boy with Fish
Modern gargoyle
Street in Aachen
Modern Fountain
Aachen Germany, June 2013
Aachen, an historical spa town is also known to Germans as Bad Aachen, but the preference is to just use Aachen to keep it first alphabetically. Settled in prehistoric times, there traces of human activity there since 3000 AD. The Romans enjoyed the hot sulphur springs and built baths in the area by 124 AD. Romans packed up and left when they were taken over by the Franks and left by the beginning of the 5th century. Afterwards, Pippin the Younger had a castle residence built in the town. Most famous resident however was Charlemagne, The Holy Roman Emperor. Charlemagne made Aachen his winter home between 792 and his death in 814.
The church of Charlemagne is quite spectacular. It was started in 796 and has had several additions. This church became a cathedral and is one of the great examples of Byzantine architecture in this part of Europe. Charlemagne’s remains are interred here in this cathedral. During the 11th century an altar was added and then a chandelier in the 12th century. The art and guilding are quite extensive, making it one of the most beautiful cathedrals that I have seen. From 936 to 1531 all 30 of the German kings were crowned in the cathedral and civil ceremonies were carried out in the Rathaus, town hall. Remnants of other medieval structures are two city gates, five towers and parts of the city walls.
During the medieval period, Aachen was prosperous due to its proximity to Flanders for trade in wool and other textiles. Since it was an important royal city, Aachen was left out of much of the politics of Europe at the time. But by the 16th century, the kings preferred to use Frankfurt as their royal city, leaving Aachen to be a spa town and a place for high paid prostitutes. During industrial times, Aachen again made use of its location, coal resources and train station to become an important city again. Aachen is well connected to all major cities in Europe, and has several high speed trains through it now. Currently Aachen is a major city for information technology in Germany and has several prominent universities. A lesser known fact is that Aachen is the birth place of Reuters News Agency. In 1850 Paul Julius Reuter founded a news agency in Aachen and used carrier pigeons to carry information between Aachen and Brussels.
Aachen was the first city in Germany to be captured by the Allies in WWII. Many historic buildings were damaged and have subsequently been restored. The cathedral however, was not damaged during WWII, but the Rathaus was fairly hard hit. Much of the area around the Rathaus square and cathedral retains their medieval charm, with narrow streets, cobblestones and ancient buildings. Inside the Rathaus you can see portraits of the kings of Germany, coronation items and beautiful frescos on the walls. The cathedral was the first building in Germany to make the UNESCO list. There is a treasury next to the cathedral with many historic religious articles and artifacts. All around town you can see many statues and fountains, some very old and some rather new. For such an ancient place, Aachen has a modern vibrant feel. It is a great place to make a day trip from any of the boarder countries or as we did from Cologne.
The church of Charlemagne is quite spectacular. It was started in 796 and has had several additions. This church became a cathedral and is one of the great examples of Byzantine architecture in this part of Europe. Charlemagne’s remains are interred here in this cathedral. During the 11th century an altar was added and then a chandelier in the 12th century. The art and guilding are quite extensive, making it one of the most beautiful cathedrals that I have seen. From 936 to 1531 all 30 of the German kings were crowned in the cathedral and civil ceremonies were carried out in the Rathaus, town hall. Remnants of other medieval structures are two city gates, five towers and parts of the city walls.
During the medieval period, Aachen was prosperous due to its proximity to Flanders for trade in wool and other textiles. Since it was an important royal city, Aachen was left out of much of the politics of Europe at the time. But by the 16th century, the kings preferred to use Frankfurt as their royal city, leaving Aachen to be a spa town and a place for high paid prostitutes. During industrial times, Aachen again made use of its location, coal resources and train station to become an important city again. Aachen is well connected to all major cities in Europe, and has several high speed trains through it now. Currently Aachen is a major city for information technology in Germany and has several prominent universities. A lesser known fact is that Aachen is the birth place of Reuters News Agency. In 1850 Paul Julius Reuter founded a news agency in Aachen and used carrier pigeons to carry information between Aachen and Brussels.
Aachen was the first city in Germany to be captured by the Allies in WWII. Many historic buildings were damaged and have subsequently been restored. The cathedral however, was not damaged during WWII, but the Rathaus was fairly hard hit. Much of the area around the Rathaus square and cathedral retains their medieval charm, with narrow streets, cobblestones and ancient buildings. Inside the Rathaus you can see portraits of the kings of Germany, coronation items and beautiful frescos on the walls. The cathedral was the first building in Germany to make the UNESCO list. There is a treasury next to the cathedral with many historic religious articles and artifacts. All around town you can see many statues and fountains, some very old and some rather new. For such an ancient place, Aachen has a modern vibrant feel. It is a great place to make a day trip from any of the boarder countries or as we did from Cologne.
Thursday, August 1, 2013
B is for Belgium B is for Beer Photos May 2013
Sint Sixtus Monastery
Westvlereten Pick up
De Struise Browers
Hop Fields
't Hommelhof
Chef Stefaan Couttenye
Markt, Bruges
Bell Tower by day
Bell Tower by night
In a secret garden
Church of Our Lady
Canal Scene
Flemish Primitive, Gerard David
B is for Belgium B is for Beer
B is for Belgium, B is for beer. There are over 175 breweries in Belgium putting out numerous types of beer. The number one beer in the world which also happens to be the rarest beer in the world is found in Westvleteren Belgium. So, of course we had to get some! What is this beer and how do you get it? The beer is called Westvleteren and is brewed in small quantities by the Cistercian (Trappist) monks of Sint Sixtus Abbey which was founded in 1038. They brew beer in order to meet the expenses of the abbey, no more beer than that is made. In order to get the beer you can do one of two things: visit the abbey on Mondays to Thursdays or Saturday to go the beer shop. There they offer small quantities of beer for sale, when it is gone, it’s gone- the shop closes for the day! Or you can call and make a reservation to pick up a maximum of two cases of beer. Now, that appears to be a simple means to get the product, however, everyone wants this beer and everyone is trying to make the call. I called and got a busy signal, so I kept at it for over three hours. Later I found out that only one person out of twenty actually gets through to make the reservation. So off we went to Westvleteren to rendezvous with the monks. Once there, we kept our appointment and picked up the 2 cases of Westvleteren 12s. The shop was open as well, so we also purchased a few additional styles of the beer. Westvleteren makes a 6%, an 8% and a 12% beer, we are missing the 8’s!
So once we had beer in trunk, we were able to relax and enjoy the rest of the weekend. Well, what to do? We decided to stay in an area of Belgium called Poperinge right across the border with France. Watou is a small town located there. Watou happens to be the home of St. Bernardus Brewery. This brewery shares a history with Sint Sixtus. Following WWII Sint Sixtus was looking for a partner to assist with the commercialization of their beer. There was a cheese factory nearby which was founded in the 19th century by monks who left France due to the French Revolution. The French monks had since returned to France and left the cheese factory to Evarist Decoinck to continue making cheese. The monks from Sint Sixtus brought the brewmaster, the recipes and yeast strain from Westvlereten to the cheese factory to start up production. These beers were sold as Trappist Westvlereten, St. Sixtus and Sixtus. For the next 46 years this was the way they brewed, the monks brewed at the monastery to meet their needs and the commercial end was in Watou. In 1992, Belgian beer laws changed to require that the name “Trappist beer” was reserved for those beers that are brewed in a monastery by monks. So the name of the beer in Watou was changed to St. Bernardus, but all else remained the same: the recipes and the yeast. St. Bernardus offers tours in English on Saturdays, which includes a tour of the brewery, warehouse, hop fields and tasting room.
Another highlight of the trip was a visit to the De Struise Browers in Oostvleteren, not far away. This brewery started as an ostrich farm with visitors. The farmers wanted to serve regional beer to their guests, so they began making their own. They rapidly became a microbrewery. Their name is a slang term for ostrich which also happens to mean tough. They feature ostriches on many labels. Currently, many of their beers have been rated in the top 20 beers of the world, and they are in second place to their neighbors, the Sint Sixtus monks! In addition to producing their own beers, the De Struise Browers have collaborated with other microbrewers such as Mikkellers in Denmark-a blog posting to come will be about a trip to Copenhagen.
So a day full of beer touring leaves one with a big appetite! Luckily Watou is home to a Michelin Starred chef and we were able to make a reservation. Chef Stefaan Couttenye the founder of “Cuisine a la Biere” is the first chef to combine beer in cooking and pairing beer to the menu. The restaurant is cozy and comfortable, yet refined enough to reflect the cuisine. We opted for the seasonal tasting menu. Since it was spring in Belgium, there was plenty of asparagus on the menu. The first course featured a lobster terrine with green and white asparagus and marinated asparagus in kriek. My favorite course came next, a stew of eel in a green herb sauce with cream and Belgian Triple, with asparagus. The 3rd course was lamb roasted in a dark abbey beer accompanied by …. Yes…asparagus! The final course was without asparagus, but not without beer, a dessert of chef’s choice. What an end to a perfect day!
But no trip to Belgium is complete without a visit to Bruges! I love Bruges and so do many others. We went on a sunny Sunday to do a little sightseeing. Bruges is the largest city in West Flanders with over 250,000 in the metropolitan area. What most people come to see it the old city. Romans first built a fortified city in the first century BC, and now what remains are the walls, buildings and canals that were built after the charter of 1128. Bruges was a strategic location for northern and southern European trade. The main trade through the region was cloth, and then later woolen mills started along with weaving, lace and huge trade markets. The volume of trade was large and a great deal of money was exchanged and hence the first Stock Exchange was set up here. All was going great, until the river started silting up and there was no way to get the large ships into the port. So the decline came in the late 1500s. Bruges revival came as the first tourist destination in the second half of the 19th century. Tourists came to marvel at the intact medieval city complete with canals. The city has many things going for it, from a 13th century belfry, one of the tallest brick towers in the world, relics of the blood of Christ brought back by Thierry of Alsace after the 2nd Crusade, sculptures by Michelangelo and a large collection of Flemish Primitive paintings. Come for the art, the architecture, the chocolate or the food and beer. Bruges is delightful, picturesque and completely magical. I’ll be returning soon.
So once we had beer in trunk, we were able to relax and enjoy the rest of the weekend. Well, what to do? We decided to stay in an area of Belgium called Poperinge right across the border with France. Watou is a small town located there. Watou happens to be the home of St. Bernardus Brewery. This brewery shares a history with Sint Sixtus. Following WWII Sint Sixtus was looking for a partner to assist with the commercialization of their beer. There was a cheese factory nearby which was founded in the 19th century by monks who left France due to the French Revolution. The French monks had since returned to France and left the cheese factory to Evarist Decoinck to continue making cheese. The monks from Sint Sixtus brought the brewmaster, the recipes and yeast strain from Westvlereten to the cheese factory to start up production. These beers were sold as Trappist Westvlereten, St. Sixtus and Sixtus. For the next 46 years this was the way they brewed, the monks brewed at the monastery to meet their needs and the commercial end was in Watou. In 1992, Belgian beer laws changed to require that the name “Trappist beer” was reserved for those beers that are brewed in a monastery by monks. So the name of the beer in Watou was changed to St. Bernardus, but all else remained the same: the recipes and the yeast. St. Bernardus offers tours in English on Saturdays, which includes a tour of the brewery, warehouse, hop fields and tasting room.
Another highlight of the trip was a visit to the De Struise Browers in Oostvleteren, not far away. This brewery started as an ostrich farm with visitors. The farmers wanted to serve regional beer to their guests, so they began making their own. They rapidly became a microbrewery. Their name is a slang term for ostrich which also happens to mean tough. They feature ostriches on many labels. Currently, many of their beers have been rated in the top 20 beers of the world, and they are in second place to their neighbors, the Sint Sixtus monks! In addition to producing their own beers, the De Struise Browers have collaborated with other microbrewers such as Mikkellers in Denmark-a blog posting to come will be about a trip to Copenhagen.
So a day full of beer touring leaves one with a big appetite! Luckily Watou is home to a Michelin Starred chef and we were able to make a reservation. Chef Stefaan Couttenye the founder of “Cuisine a la Biere” is the first chef to combine beer in cooking and pairing beer to the menu. The restaurant is cozy and comfortable, yet refined enough to reflect the cuisine. We opted for the seasonal tasting menu. Since it was spring in Belgium, there was plenty of asparagus on the menu. The first course featured a lobster terrine with green and white asparagus and marinated asparagus in kriek. My favorite course came next, a stew of eel in a green herb sauce with cream and Belgian Triple, with asparagus. The 3rd course was lamb roasted in a dark abbey beer accompanied by …. Yes…asparagus! The final course was without asparagus, but not without beer, a dessert of chef’s choice. What an end to a perfect day!
But no trip to Belgium is complete without a visit to Bruges! I love Bruges and so do many others. We went on a sunny Sunday to do a little sightseeing. Bruges is the largest city in West Flanders with over 250,000 in the metropolitan area. What most people come to see it the old city. Romans first built a fortified city in the first century BC, and now what remains are the walls, buildings and canals that were built after the charter of 1128. Bruges was a strategic location for northern and southern European trade. The main trade through the region was cloth, and then later woolen mills started along with weaving, lace and huge trade markets. The volume of trade was large and a great deal of money was exchanged and hence the first Stock Exchange was set up here. All was going great, until the river started silting up and there was no way to get the large ships into the port. So the decline came in the late 1500s. Bruges revival came as the first tourist destination in the second half of the 19th century. Tourists came to marvel at the intact medieval city complete with canals. The city has many things going for it, from a 13th century belfry, one of the tallest brick towers in the world, relics of the blood of Christ brought back by Thierry of Alsace after the 2nd Crusade, sculptures by Michelangelo and a large collection of Flemish Primitive paintings. Come for the art, the architecture, the chocolate or the food and beer. Bruges is delightful, picturesque and completely magical. I’ll be returning soon.
Thursday, July 25, 2013
Rioja Region of Spain, Photos May 2014
San Sebastian, Spain
Rioja winery
My sister the pilgrim
Pamplona, Spain
Laguardia, Spain
Wine cellars in Laguardia
View from Laguardia
Muga Bodega
Heredia Bodega
La Rioja Bodega
La Rioja Bodega
Gomez Cruzado Bodega
Hotel Marques de Riscal
Rioja Region of Spain, May 2014
All of the eastern part of Spain is located within a few hours’ drive of Toulouse France. During the month of May, the French enjoy several holidays, so why not take a few days to explore nearby Spain? And so we did. After a quick stop in the rain in Biarritz France for the plat de jour for lunch (a delicious lamb dish) we crossed the border into Spain. Our first destination was San Sebastian, a lovely beach resort. The city has been a beach destination since the late 19th century. In the old town there are many a tapas bar and restaurants and fabulous cathedrals and government buildings. High above town there is the Castillo de Santa Cruz de la Mota, an old ruin of a castle and fort. It offers some of the best views of the beach and surrounding area. The restaurant where we had dinner was the oldest restaurant directly on the beach built in an Art Deco style. We stayed for a night in San Sebastian before heading on to the real destination: The Rioja, a famous Spanish wine region.
The Rioja is located in north central Spain south of the Catabrian Mountains along the Ebro River. This is subdivided into three areas:
Rioja Alta: higher altitude, shorter season, lighter old world styles of wine
Rioja Baja: hot climate, deep colored, higher alcohol content, up to 18% ETOH, used primarily for blending
Rioja Alavesa: full bodied, high acidity, poor soil so fields have low vine density
Wine making is a tradition in the area, dating back to the Roman times. During the middle ages monks were in charge of the whole wine making process. In 1635 the mayor of Logrono passed a law forbidding carts on streets where there were wine caves, fearing that the vibrations would upset the wines and cause them to deteriorate. This wine region has set standards for itself since 1650 with the goal of promoting the cultivation and commercialization of Rioja wines.
Grapes varieties include, but are not limited to Tempranillo, Garnacha Tinta, Graciano and Mazuelo. The wine is aged in oak, traditionally French oak, now a bit more American oak. The Spanish bring the wooden planks in, but have a history of crafting their own barrels. The current trend is a preference for French oak made into smaller barrels, with wine spending shorter time in the barrel, but wines have to be labeled as such. The categorization of the wine depends on aging and time in the barrel.
Rioja: youngest wine spending less than a year in an oak barrel.
Crianza: aged at least two years and at least one year in an oak barrel.
Rioja Reserva: aged at least 3 years and at least one year in an oak barrel.
Rioja Gran Reserva: aged two years in oak and the three years in a bottle.
Grapes can also come from a few other areas in Navarre and the Basque region. Many wines are blends of several of these locations and varietals. Traditionally, winemakers decide when the wine is ready to be released, and sometimes they may wait a few years longer before they do. It is worth the wait. These wines range from being fruity and easy to drink to more rustic styles that can be cellared for years.
Haro Spain is a small town in the center of the Rioja region. It hosts a wine festival every year on June 29th. Everyone dresses in white, gets up early, and lugs jugs of wine with them out of the town and up the hill. After Mass, everyone starts throwing wine at each other. Everyone leaves the festival in purple clothing! Unfortunately we were early for this festival, but made up for it by trying wine at the Bodegas. These are the wineries of the major Rioja producers. They each have their tasting rooms conveniently located next to each other with well-marked paths between them. It is an easy way to try the different styles of Rioja. In the end, I had a preference for the traditional style of Lopez de Heredia.
Since you cannot spend all of your time in the bodegas, there is plenty to see in the surrounding areas. We had a day in Pamplona which was the historic capitol of Navarre. It was named for the Roman general Pompey who camped in that area during the war against Sertorius. Many have ruled this town from the Visigoths, the Muslims, and the French to name a few. During Medieval times, the town was a major stop off for pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostella. The pilgrims were vital to the economic development of the town and keeping communication going between the rest of Europe. Today it is still a major staging town for pilgrims crossing the Pyrenees or those who are just starting their pilgrimage. The way is marked with a symbol of the scallop shell and can be seen all throughout town and the surrounding areas. Many restaurants offer pilgrim’s menus, and high calorie, filling yet inexpensive menu. Luckily there are many shops in town to help outfit the pilgrim. Since it was raining, I was able to find a very lightweight durable umbrella in one of the shops. Pilgrims aside, what makes Pamplona most famous today is San Fernin’s Festival. This is the annual festival from July 6-14th when the bulls are let loose to run through the streets. Brave souls jump in front of the bulls and try to beat them to the arena. Not for the faint of heart, and not for me. We did follow the route and see the statue of Earnest Hemmingway whose book The Sun Also Rises brought international prominence to the festival.
Another great stop is Laguardia, a tiny walled town near the Cantabrian Mountains. Established in the 10th century as a fortress town, the residents dug caves under their houses and streets for storage in the event of siege. A little later on, these caves were converted into wine caves. Several with tours are still in continuous operation today. We toured the bell tower and our guide pointed out the town of Elciego. She said it was worth the trip. She may have said a few other things, but I have become so confused between trying to learn French and having a basic command of Spanish that I never know what I’m hearing or saying. She also mentioned that the lakes in the distance were important stops for migratory birds on their trips between Europe and Africa. So off to Elciego we went in search of something worth seeing.
What we found was a nice old town, but really she intended us to see the Hotel Marques de Riscal designed by Frank Gehry. It is a magical wonder popping out of the fields around it. The day was partly cloudy to mostly sunny, so the titanium on the building reflected the colors beautifully. With the vineyards in the background plus fields of poppies, it was stunning. We were able to walk on the grounds and through the lobby. With a price tag of 361-520 euros per night, we decided that was all we could do was take pictures and leave a few footprints! Oh yes, we might have brought a few bottles of wine home for the cellar.
Salude Rioja!
The Rioja is located in north central Spain south of the Catabrian Mountains along the Ebro River. This is subdivided into three areas:
Rioja Alta: higher altitude, shorter season, lighter old world styles of wine
Rioja Baja: hot climate, deep colored, higher alcohol content, up to 18% ETOH, used primarily for blending
Rioja Alavesa: full bodied, high acidity, poor soil so fields have low vine density
Wine making is a tradition in the area, dating back to the Roman times. During the middle ages monks were in charge of the whole wine making process. In 1635 the mayor of Logrono passed a law forbidding carts on streets where there were wine caves, fearing that the vibrations would upset the wines and cause them to deteriorate. This wine region has set standards for itself since 1650 with the goal of promoting the cultivation and commercialization of Rioja wines.
Grapes varieties include, but are not limited to Tempranillo, Garnacha Tinta, Graciano and Mazuelo. The wine is aged in oak, traditionally French oak, now a bit more American oak. The Spanish bring the wooden planks in, but have a history of crafting their own barrels. The current trend is a preference for French oak made into smaller barrels, with wine spending shorter time in the barrel, but wines have to be labeled as such. The categorization of the wine depends on aging and time in the barrel.
Rioja: youngest wine spending less than a year in an oak barrel.
Crianza: aged at least two years and at least one year in an oak barrel.
Rioja Reserva: aged at least 3 years and at least one year in an oak barrel.
Rioja Gran Reserva: aged two years in oak and the three years in a bottle.
Grapes can also come from a few other areas in Navarre and the Basque region. Many wines are blends of several of these locations and varietals. Traditionally, winemakers decide when the wine is ready to be released, and sometimes they may wait a few years longer before they do. It is worth the wait. These wines range from being fruity and easy to drink to more rustic styles that can be cellared for years.
Haro Spain is a small town in the center of the Rioja region. It hosts a wine festival every year on June 29th. Everyone dresses in white, gets up early, and lugs jugs of wine with them out of the town and up the hill. After Mass, everyone starts throwing wine at each other. Everyone leaves the festival in purple clothing! Unfortunately we were early for this festival, but made up for it by trying wine at the Bodegas. These are the wineries of the major Rioja producers. They each have their tasting rooms conveniently located next to each other with well-marked paths between them. It is an easy way to try the different styles of Rioja. In the end, I had a preference for the traditional style of Lopez de Heredia.
Since you cannot spend all of your time in the bodegas, there is plenty to see in the surrounding areas. We had a day in Pamplona which was the historic capitol of Navarre. It was named for the Roman general Pompey who camped in that area during the war against Sertorius. Many have ruled this town from the Visigoths, the Muslims, and the French to name a few. During Medieval times, the town was a major stop off for pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostella. The pilgrims were vital to the economic development of the town and keeping communication going between the rest of Europe. Today it is still a major staging town for pilgrims crossing the Pyrenees or those who are just starting their pilgrimage. The way is marked with a symbol of the scallop shell and can be seen all throughout town and the surrounding areas. Many restaurants offer pilgrim’s menus, and high calorie, filling yet inexpensive menu. Luckily there are many shops in town to help outfit the pilgrim. Since it was raining, I was able to find a very lightweight durable umbrella in one of the shops. Pilgrims aside, what makes Pamplona most famous today is San Fernin’s Festival. This is the annual festival from July 6-14th when the bulls are let loose to run through the streets. Brave souls jump in front of the bulls and try to beat them to the arena. Not for the faint of heart, and not for me. We did follow the route and see the statue of Earnest Hemmingway whose book The Sun Also Rises brought international prominence to the festival.
Another great stop is Laguardia, a tiny walled town near the Cantabrian Mountains. Established in the 10th century as a fortress town, the residents dug caves under their houses and streets for storage in the event of siege. A little later on, these caves were converted into wine caves. Several with tours are still in continuous operation today. We toured the bell tower and our guide pointed out the town of Elciego. She said it was worth the trip. She may have said a few other things, but I have become so confused between trying to learn French and having a basic command of Spanish that I never know what I’m hearing or saying. She also mentioned that the lakes in the distance were important stops for migratory birds on their trips between Europe and Africa. So off to Elciego we went in search of something worth seeing.
What we found was a nice old town, but really she intended us to see the Hotel Marques de Riscal designed by Frank Gehry. It is a magical wonder popping out of the fields around it. The day was partly cloudy to mostly sunny, so the titanium on the building reflected the colors beautifully. With the vineyards in the background plus fields of poppies, it was stunning. We were able to walk on the grounds and through the lobby. With a price tag of 361-520 euros per night, we decided that was all we could do was take pictures and leave a few footprints! Oh yes, we might have brought a few bottles of wine home for the cellar.
Salude Rioja!
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