pau
so the conservative malaysian/singaporean here. ME. hahahahaha. all hum to strip.
angmoh julie acting tough on the beach.
angmoh lo soaking the sun.
2 angmohs and 1 banana looking at a sailing boat and thinking how nice it would be if we could sail to athens now and enjoy some greece :) but *cough* we were dreaming about it. no mula. too extravagant already.
group picture :)
pau
the main square. where i bought chestnuts. and munched on every other thing i could find. thus wasting all the remaining money i had and hence had to starve?! no la. but ya. sooo. this is the main square where on our last day (which is also our 2nd day hur) we saw red indians busking. funky like shit. hurhur though we felt for a moment they were just abit out of place. i don't know but i always thought them to be in the states. and for a moment because i was surrounded by so many english speaking tourist i actually thought i was in the states. but hurhur. nooo.
after checking in we headed out to explore the city. because lisbon was way more smaller than madrid we went about on foot. the weather was gorgeous. a very comfortable 18degrees celsius. this is the praca dom pedro IV. it's the square closest to our hostel.
after that we decided to walk to praca do comercio because lo has a fascination for ports and sea and boats. soo off we went. we walked down many streets filled with colour and fashion. hur. lisbon is way neater in its city layout. compared to florence, where there are absolutely no lane markings whatsoever and people drive everywhere and blah. soo lisbon was a nice change. and it did not lose too much of its old charm unlike madrid and barcelona, which were mainly filled with large streets. here they were still tiny but at least big enough for there to be walking path for pedestrians. whatever la. i just like lisbon.
after the port. we headed to castello de san jorge. we took a tram up and damn scary. you know how they are controlled by the current and shit. the guy driving the tram is some F1 driver. reckless. scary. but DAMN FUN. hahaha. free rollercoaster. so anyway, we got there safe and sound, and from there we managed to have a glimpse of the tiny island across. where they have the cross (which is similar to the big cross in brazil? anyone know what i'm talking about?) we did not have time to go over to the other nearby islands and really being in lisbon was really enough to satisfy us :)
the view of the city! oh and this castle is particularly special for this contraption that is similiar to the way cameras work. shit i can't explain it. basically it uses mirrors and lenses to capture images in real time. it was funky shit. could see most of the surroundings of the castle and it was weird how it was in real time. anyway this was the way the king kept an eye on his subjects. i gather he must have alot of fun from spying at them through their windows *cough*
of course after all that hiking around i was hungry. so what better to eat but a peacock. yummy.
after the castello we went for lunch at a tiny family-run cafe. where we saw the ginja (some portugese desert wine thing) and decided we had to get a bottle. sooo. after that we headed off to visit two churches. one was the igreja de santo antonio which was supposed to be the birth place of saint anthony and the other church was the igreja de lisboa. it was a monument built by the queen or something or some woman. shitt i can't remember. but when i do. i will err remember to write it down :)
so before we left for anywhere else. we ran into george clooney. julie's long lost lover. hurhur. it was a very happy reunion as you can see.
we did more walking and saw another church and an elevator, which led up to this church. the church was badly destroyed by the great earthquake in i can't remember when and it's ruins were kept to remind them of the disaster then that had affected them and how they pulled through. strength. honor. love. courage. the likes. soo. after that we walked more and more and then down ave da liberdade. after a DAMN long walk we decided to sit down. and of course whip out my camera and take retarded photos :)
and since we are in lisbon and it is the city of the sun (if i'm not wrong, i can't quite remember, as you can see i have bad memory) we decided we had to try and capture some of the sunset before it was all gone and we would never see it again. sooo. we ran across town (by the way it was mighty far) and found a nice spot by the err. "beach" and watched as the sun set behind the cross. that brought an end to our sightseeing. headed back to dorm and wheee.
our multi coloured room. sooo damn nice and comfortable to sleep in! omg. the best hostel ever. soo cheap and the guy was DAMN NICE. i cannot find a nicer guy really. so helpfun and everything :) we were soo excited when we got into the rooms. each room had a theme. i had the multi coloured madonna i think? i can't quite remember. shit this is danm bad. sooo. after we showered and changed and all. we left for dinner around 9pm. the streets of lisbon were empty! what a difference compared to spain (a city that NEVER ever sleeps) it was a bit daunting but. heck we were starving. and the man was so nice (yet again) that we had to eat dessert even after being stuffed like turkeys. but you cannot resist cute old men right?!
the next day we went to another part of town and saw another church. i know we sound like we are damn fascinated by churches but it cannot be helped okay. the only places that are of any interest are the churches! really. sooo. this one had a mass going on so we left. and retired to the nearby park.
well. i did say retire right. we took a nap and err tanned? hahaha and julie read her book :) it was a nice park. so green and so colourful and it smelled fresh. yepp. i like. and got damn alot of cute dogs. hahaha i wanttt.
after the park we had a light lunch before heading off and walking into the residential areas of lisbon. so cosy and colourful and just pleasant. i don't know. so different from the huge hdb blocks back in singapore and from the gaudy looking villas in florence. soo. quite a change and a much needed one. and this is how we bid our dear lisbon goodbye.
pau
the cat's hostel. it was really nice decor. a pretty big place but we didn't really enjoy ourselves that much because our room smelt of stinking feet and it was perpetually dark. but that's what happens when you decide to share a room with 14people. cheapskate travelling stinks. but if not. the hostel was pleasing to the eye. after washing up and everything we headed out to the tourist information place. since madrid is a rather big city with alot of the monuments being far apart, we decided to take the coach. headed down to plaza mayor. from there we walked to puerto del sol (gate of the sun), which is the main shopping district and walked around a bit before heading down their business district and taking the madrid vision tour bus.
one of their administrative buildings. grandeur dude.
madrid was much colder than barcelona. so all of us wrapped up like crazy. like bachang! hahaha. the real killer was the wind. CHILLING to the BONE. chattering teeth all the way. but we had to sit on top to get a nice view of everything. took many pictures i believe. not too sure. haahha.
first stop was the retiro park. a huge park, the biggest in madrid. not too sure about how big it is compared to central park in newyork. anyway. it has a stage built infront of a large pond?! right now i can't think of a better word to describe the pool of water. it's the size of 3 swimming pools and is shaped like a rectangle. so go figure it out yourself, damnit. it was a really beautiful place and the heat from the sun was so relieving from the chilling cold. we decided to bake for a while.
the stage is a round stage. okay actually i wouldn't quite call it a stage. ahh. whatever it is la. so hot chocolate in hand, we sat there and relaxed. watch male ducks chase this female duck who's in heat around the whole pool of water thing. hilarious. there were like 5 of them trying desperately to rape her. but she was a smart duck. escaped a number of times but hey she was outnumbered so obviously she was found every time. but at least she had some time alone before they came again.
the rest of the day was spent going around town on the madridvision. and laughing our asses off whenever we listened to their anti-climatic commentary. for example: "to your left, a modern building with a rather old design of a brick facade. *pause* *music*" it was a very entertaining bus ride. so while we were on the bus we saw the football stadium, forgot the name, we passed plaza de espagna where there were the monuments of cervantes and don quixote. can't remember what else. but anyway, that night we decided that we have pretty much covered the main places and went about shopping! shopping in spain is really cheap. seriously. but err we are all on budjet so after a while, we winded up watching a bunch of buskers perform. they were really good. according to lo. they were playing the typical classic pieces.
the next day. julie was feeling sick so she stayed in the hostel while lo and i went around doing more sightseeing. before the palaccio real, we went to the prado museum. pepole planning trips to madrid YOU must visit this museum. it's huge and you would probably have to spend the whole day there if you intend to go through it all. we knew we did not have whole day so we picked a few artists and quickly headed to the exhibition rooms. spent a good 3hours in there before heading out to palaccio real.
it's the palace of the spanish monarch. if i'm not wrong (though there's a high chance i am) it is still the current residence of the monarch. but really. you shouldn't trust me. i have a shitty memory. we met a bunch of italian students here. a very friendly bunch. hah.
i have to admit. i make a damn good guard. seriously look damn strong. hahahahha.
the interior of the palace. full of frescoes and sculptures.
and of course lo had to pose with one of the religious sculptures and think about her very non-regligious friend and hence take a totally redundant photo. har.
after that, we headed to the nearby park. forgot the name. there were 2 main ones surrounding the palace, but we couldn't find the other one after a very long time, so we just stayed here for a long time and had a milkshake. yum :) it was much warmer that day.
so peaceful yes? there were tons of people here. either reading, writing poetry, playing some music or having a picnic. a beautiful place. a nice place to relax. and a nice way to meet random people i must say. and of course watch ducks chasing one another around.
that night. we left for lisbon. we took the train again. and we loved our sleeper cabin! there were only 4beds! and finally a REAL pillow. hahaha so comfortable. it was amazing. oh plus we had our own washing area. thank god. no one to fight the toilet with! :)
pau
we reached barcelona at 930am. took the subway into the city and the weather was just perfect. the sun was shinning brightly, you could feel the heat on your back and there was a cooling breeze blowing. just the way i like it. found our hotel. very good location and it was rather cheap. BUT of course. too perfect yes. they had problems finding out reservation because their computer system sucks and they thought we were coming in on the 8th instead of the 9th. so we had to wait around for like a hour before we were given rooms. and because of all that inconvenience, they gave us free linens and towels. hahaha. so i can't say that that was a bad deal :) saving money is a good way to go. more money more food :) i like.
left the hostel around 11am and walked around the city. the buildings in barcelona are beautiful. very artistic. well we are talking about gaudi, a talented architect of his time. a mix of old and new. felt a little like london except that people drove on the other side of the road, which until now i have not gotten used to. yes call me an idiot. i know. sooo. we walked along la rambla (the main streets) and chanced upon many stalls selling exotic animals. and i mean EXOTIC.
(whoops. haha what's a city without it's pigeons right?)
so here we go. roosters in the middle of town. being sold for like 10euros i think? i can't remember. then there were reptiles. ECK. disgusting like shit. huge tortoises. poor tortoises. exotic parrots. RATS. yes rats. omg. ahhh. i can feeling that running all over my body right now *shivers*. but the most amazing thing must be the..
so after that traumatic experience. we headed to st joseph market and ate a hell alot. well there was so much food there it was hard not to want to eat everything! look at all those sweet dates and candy! ahhh. i want it all. so we bought bread, olives, cheese, strawberries (1.50 euros for 1kg) and dates. yummm. we went to a nearby park to eat it all. yummy!
after that we headed to a nearby church. it was a pretty church. there was a garden in the middle. so pretty. and then there were tons of geese. okay at first i thought they were ducks. obviously i have trouble distinguishing between animals. hurhur. good job.
so after the church we headed to the park. there were a bunch of guys playing soccer. and this huge ice cream truck came and one of them exclaimed, "holy glory that's the biggest ice cream truck i've ever seen!" sooo funny. hahaaha :)
that night it was flamenco night! the hostel arranged this outing for everyone who stayed at the hostel. we got a buffet of tapas (not enough to feed me though, five only leh) and sangria. YUM. loving sangria. just kept drinking sangria the whole time we were in spain. goes great with the food. :)
the next day, we toured the city. we did the gaudi walk. gaudi is a famous spanish architect who is soooo brilliant. he is inspired by things in nature. and the theme for this building is the sea. waves. seaweed for hand rails. blue tiles. can't raelly see the blue now. but it was a really chio building. the rooms were so spacious and very modern of its time. the centre is empty so the breeze can enter. something to do with physics and shit (none of which i can remember) :)
the view from the top of the building :)
sagrada familia. it was the last of gaudi's designs. it is still in construction. has been for the past 120 years. its amazingly MASSIVE. the guy is such a whiz. you know how you would have to calculate all kinds of shit to ensure that the building is stable and stuff. what he did was use steal chains and hung them upside town. marked out all the tension lines and from there contructed massive dome-like structures from the math he did after observing the steel chains. short-cut man :)
the old hospital which we visited. massive building and beautiful architecture. nothing compared to err. NUH :) hahaha.
the view from the top of park guell. another of gaudi's famous developements (i am lacking in vocabulary here) that's pretty much all of barcelona. you can see the coast!
the wind was blowing hard. i dared not walk around that tiny mount. i'm so freaking scared of heights. it's not even funny.
the famous mosiac tile benches. according to our dear lo, it was in many movies (though i really haven't seen any of which park guell was used as a setting)
we were really tired from all the walking. we walked everywhere. because barcelona is somewhat small. and we are budget travellers. where we can save, so we can eat more, we SAVE. hahaha :) kiasuness is the key to budget travelling. singapore has taught me well :)
by the barcelona coast! :)
pau
