Madrid, plus a rough itinerary

        Madrid was incredible! Alvaro´s father was such a gracious host. We went hiking, visited the Palacio Real (Royal Palace), Madrid Rio, El Prado, La Puerta del Sol and many parks, experienced ´la marcha´ (Spain´s infamous nightlife), and spent a day in nearby Segovia and El Escorial.

Skaters blur by in El Parque de Retiro

        Almost everywhere we went I could see how Spain is ahead of the curve environmentally, in everything from hygene to consumerism. Toilets are always designed to save water (every single one I used had #1 and #2 flush settings :P), while as a shopper you actually have to pay for plastic disposable bags; everyone had their own reusable ones. Here, policy has done great things. In the US, if you actually use your resuable shopping bag at the grocery store, you´re inevitably labelled an environmentalist. But here, because of this decision, bringing your own bag is the more economical choice, too. You bring your own because is makes monetary sense, not just environmental sense, thereby prodding more people to save plastic and thus petroleum.

Recycling in a metro station

      


        The layout of the city was at once beautiful and sustainable. The Rio Madrid Project put a riverside highway underground and built a pedestrian- & cyclist- friendly park on top. Telephone cables and other unsightly infrastructure are beneath your feet, too, instead of cris-crossing the skyline and getting tangled in the numerous trees (apparently, Madrid boasts the most tree-lined streets in all of Europe).

One of many peaceful streets

       All in all, the air was clean, the parks green, the people passionate & friendly (and very patient with my Spanish), and the food fresh, meaty, and mouth-watering. ¡Viva Madrid!

A pool in Las Piedras

Incredible paella made by Alvaro (traditional Spanish dish with chicken, pork, seafood, veggies, & rice)

Biking the Rio

Fountain fun at the Rio

*        *        *        *       *

Below is a rough itinerary for the rest of our trip; it´s constantly having to be adjusted!

Benidorm: now until Wednesday, Sept. 19

Barcelona: September 19-24

Ibiza: 24-26

Paris: 27- October 1

Milan: 1-4

Rome: 4-10

Venice: 10-14

Florence & Pisa: 14-17

Nice & Monaco: 17-21

San Sebastian: 21-25

Madrid: 25-29

 

WE'RE OFF AGAIN! EUROPE 2012

¡Hola from Madrid, El Escorial, y Segovia!

Fútbol outside of the El Escorial Monastery

Europe 2012

We departed for Spain, France, and Italy on September 3; the adventure will last two months, until October 29!

Beginning with a visit to Madrid to see Álvaro's family, we'll continue on to Valencia, Benidorm, Ibiza, Barcelona, Marseille, Nice, Genova, Florence, Venice, and (possibly) Santiago, before coming full circle back to Madrid.

***Update! It ended being--> Madrid, Benidorm, Barcelona, Ibiza, Barcelona again, Limoges, Paris, Venice, Rome, Toulouse, San Sebastian, Seville, and back to Madrid
STAY TUNED FOR A POST FROM EACH CITY!

My next post will sum up my time here in Spain´s capital. Look for an entry as we depart from each location / city--- coming soon is a calendar outlining a loose itenerary so you´ll have a better idea when that will be.

So it seems the plan outlined in the previous post (east coast of Spain, southern France, northern Italy) needed to be revised. We severely OVERestimated Europe´s size... as we had planned to use our flexible Eurail "travel days" (one-way train trips) on what we didn´t realize were only 2-3 hour journeys (my how far transportation technologies have come). Alvaro´s family gave us invaluable advice; we´re paying for this train pass so why not get as much out of it as we can and take the longest trips possible in order to see the most beautiful and highly-recommended parts of the countries we´re visiting? And now that we´re more familiar with how these passes work, visiting these places no longer seems impossible. (How nice it is to have such knowledgable guides as we´re just starting out!)

Now, instead of skirting only the southernmost towns of France, we´ll be hopping from Barcelona to Paris; Paris to Milan; Milan to Rome, then Venice, Florence, and back to France to see Nice and the surrounding towns. After that, we´ll be heading back to Spain to see the northern coast (San Sebastian) and then bringing it full circle to Madrid.

This seems like a much better bang for our transportation buck; not to mention getting to see the capitals of these countries I may not see again for a very long time... if ever.

Once again, I welcome any feedback / advice.

Onward to Alicante & Benidorm tomorrow =)

The Agricultural Revolution in 11 minutes!

Fabulously entertaining explanation of agricultural history!

Sustainability at JMU

http://jmugreenroofproject.wordpress.com/
^ my other blog

... a la pura vida!

It's been a year since I've posted to this blog, and oh, what has happened! A study abroad trip to Costa Rica in May; focusing on sustainable or 'eco-' tourism, organic and small-scale agriculture, and globalization's effects on communities; was an absolutely life-changing experience. From the humid lowland Caribbean coast to the central mountain range to the tumultuous Pacific coast, we really milked our mere 2.5 weeks for all they were worth.

Some of our destinations:
- Las Vueltas lodge, where we worked on the Seelye farm with Andy and his family
- Jaguar Rescue Center just outside Puerto Viejo
- Ditsowou Centro de Communidad in BriBri, Limón
- La Finca Educativa Don Juan in La Fortuna
- La Cusinga coastal rainforest ecolodge
- Diamante Falls
- Hacienda Baru Wildlife Refuge
- Kéköldi Indigenous Territory & Iguana Sanctuary

Boundless peace <3

credit: (c) Álvaro Campomanes