People have been in the Balkans for quite a while.  First, there were Neolithic Farmers, then everyone from Greeks, to Romans, to Ottomans, to Austrians, to… Oops, did I skip the Paeonians.  Yeah, they are important to the story.  Turns outs the ancient kingdom of Paeonia, which was north of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia, […]

Good news, Austrian Airlines loads passengers from the outside in.  Window, then middle, then aisle seat.  Pretty cool, but disheartening if you have an aisle seat and don’t know why you’re getting on last.  Now I know, and approve. Bad news, I spent the first 6 days in Sofia battling a cold I caught from

Way back in June, I came to Barcelona, with the wide-eyed hope of an Ohio State Fair beauty queen first arriving in Hollywood.  I’m going to make it here!  But… No need to flip back to that post; here’s an extract. …“First thing I noticed: it is hot, humid and crowded.  The streets are always

Heading north from Valladolid, I first went to Bilboa and then San Sebastián.  Approaching Bilbao, the terrain changes from rolling plains to fairly rugged mountains.  Steep valleys make sightseeing impossible, but at least the trees start to look familiar.  Entering Bilboa is like entering a different country.  Which, depending on who you ask, it is. 

Sorry.  The story of Valladolid doesn’t have ancient Iberian tribes or Romans.  It was founded in the 11th century, was the capital of Spain for a time, kings were born here, and Christopher Columbus died here.  Oh, and it’s the capital of the region of capital of Castile and León.   Hardly any history at all,

Ah, Seville.  The capital of Andalucía.  That old Iberian town.  A Roman port on the Guadalquivir River; access to the Atlantic. Seat of power for the Abbadid and Almohad Dynasties.  Fell to the Catholic king in 1248.  Trade center with the new world (that’s us) until 1717.  Languishing ever since. Today, Seville is the capital

I spent 5 days in Granada, Andalucía, Spain.  I have to say that I found the city to be beautiful, fun, unique, and full of history.  Tourist flock to Granada in the Spring and Fall to visit the Alhambra.  Not so much in the Summer.  It’s very Goldilocks: not too big or too small; not

Planning stop-overs in every interesting town and village was not going to work.  Slowly, painfully, it occurred to me that I had to give up that idea.  What I needed were day trips.  I’d rented an apartment for a month in Madrid, at a considerable discount when compared to a hotel, so why should I

Madrid.  Capital of the Kingdom of Spain.  The largest city in Spain, with Barcelona a close second.  In spite of their sizes, Madrid is very different from Barcelona.  Perhaps it is because the city has been able to grow with any real physical constraints, unlike Barcelona which abuts the sea.  Tucked well within the metropolitan’s

Here are a few things I now remember. 1.  Learn the language.  Many years ago, I was chatting with Lieutenant in the Thai Air Force.  She mentioned a certain fruit, the name of which sounded like a letter in the Thai alphabet, one of the n-type letters.  I traced out the letter on the bench,