This is the first European country we visited and it was an obvious choice for us – Thanks to the Bollywood movie we had watched over and over again “Zindagi Na Milega Dobara”, story of 3 Amigos and their road trip in Spain . We couldn’t visit all the places shown in the movie nor make the road trip which had ignited our imagination about the experiences, but Spain still amazed us with whatever we could manage to see & experience.
The Kingdom of Spain is regarded as one of the world’s best countries for tourists. Though we can’t agree more on that, one of the main reason we think is its stunning diversity which offers something for everyone.
BEST TIME TO VISIT
After much research and extensive internet browsing, we found that the best time to travel Spain is during March- May and September-October. We traveled during third week of March. The days were warm and the nights were pretty cool. The temperature range was around 13 degrees to 21 degrees which is very pleasant to European standards in March. It is better to wear clothes in layers.
EXPLORING SPAIN -MODE OF TRANSPORT
There are various means of transport to explore the country- Rent a car, taxi, high speed trains, buses and metro rail. We moved around inside the city in taxis and between the cities in high speed trains. It is advisable to book High speed train tickets prior to the travel. The tickets can be booked from Renfe website http://www.renfe.com/EN/viajeros/index.html
VISA
For Indians, Schengen visa is required. The process is quite elaborate and here in Doha, it is through a Visa agency (VFS Global /BLS international). We applied one month prior to the date of travel to keep the process hassle free (60 Euro/Person). It is free for kids below 6 years of age. Travel insurance is mandatory (approx 30 Euro/Person) for applying visa and can be easily obtained from any travel agency.
COMMUNICATION
Without Travel Guide, one can manage in most of the tourist places with English for all requirements but still you may get in situations wherein you feel uncomfortable or helpless without Spanish language knowledge. Thanks to Google Baba (The Deity/Saint Patron for Information 😉 ) with its translator & map apps makes your life little easy. The local people are polite and helpful although we didn’t find very friendly in comparison to other countries we had visited.
ITINERARY
DAY 1 – DOHA-BARCELONA
DAY 2 – BARCELONA – VALENCIA
DAY 3 – VALENCIA – BARCELONA
DAY 4 – BARCELONA
DAY 5- BARCELONA – MADRID – BARCELONA
DAY 6 – BARCELONA
DAY 7 – BARCELONA
DAY 8 – BARCELONA-DOHA
WHY ONLY THESE PLACES OF SPAIN
We had heard a lot from our colleagues about Barcelona city – it’s weather, architecture, beaches, cultural life, events, food, nightlife & of course the most popular foot ball club FC Barcelona. So had made up our mind to explore the city to the fullest possible extent.
Our idea was to navigate other places with Barcelona as epicenter. Then luckily we found “La Fallas” festival in the city of Valencia is during the same time of our tour and hence was the perfect chance to feel and get immersed and enjoy local culture of Spain. The Oceanographic Museum & The Science & Arts City attractions fueled our excitement and made Valencia a must visit city in this tour.
Having never traveled in High Speed Train before, it was a fantasy for us to have that experience and what if it allows to visit one more beautiful city, hence came the idea to visit stunningly beautiful city of Madrid.
DAY 1 : DOHA – BARCELONA-MAGIC FOUNTAIN OF MONTJUIC
We traveled in Pegasus airlines to Barcelona via Istanbul as a stop over. The views were amazing from the flight trespassing different landscapes. We were amused to find that the airlines charge additionally for everything that you can think of like water, crib, food, movie, seat preference etc but considering the price of air tickets that is paid we will not complain much :).
All together the flight duration was around 8 hours. Reached Barcelona airport at 1.20 pm. Got the immigration procedures done and moved out of the airport by 3.00 pm. We had booked our stay via Booking.com at Casa 125, Barcelona apartments, reached there quite easily. The apartment had a living room of decent size, bedroom, kitchen and toilet and found quite worth for the money paid.
Settled down at the apartment, rested ourselves and got refreshed. Moved out to our first destination Mt Joic. Once we were out in the street,we were highly impressed and fell in love for beautiful views of the city. Urban planning concepts and minute detailing of facilities were very interesting especially for the amount of importance given to cycling and walking.
Met one neighborly friend, a Pakistani shopkeeper who directed us to the destination and finally reached the fountain after a long stroll. It was really cold in the evening and in particular for our 4 year old son Abhyuday who had not experienced this weather in our resident city. He made full use of all the clothing we carried.
The Magic Fountain of MontJuic– On weekends is a spectacular display of colour, light, motion, music and water acrobatics – All elements mixed together in just the right combinations. You end up experiencing pure magic. Decided to revisit during the day to click more pictures.
After the show, headed for an Indian restaurant for full course meal and back to apartments for sleep.
DAY 2 – BARCELONA-VALENCIA
Had pre-booked train at 7.00 am to Valencia from Sant station. Sant station was around 5 minutes drive in a taxi from our apartment. There we were with our first Euro train experience. No Wonder we were impressed by train interiors , cleanliness and the cafe facilities which offered some real good croissants & coffee. The travel time was around 3 hours. Abyuday was asleep in the train. As a ritual spent time playing cards. Reached our destination city Valencia at 10.15 am.
Had booked our stay at Tryp Valencia hotel which was around 5 kms from the city centre. The hotel room or facilities were not worth for the money paid. But this was the only place we could find vacant rooms since it was peak tourist time during Las Fellas festival.
Took a metro train to reach the hotel. Settled down at the room and moved out to the city in a taxi by 12.00 pm to witness La Fallas festival.
We had an elaborate vegan buffet meal with lot of interesting options at a local restaurant named “Nature” and prepared ourself for the long evening. Filled our tummy as much as it can hold and headed into the fantasy world of Ninots.
La Fallas Festival – (Pronounced as La Faiyyas)
Fallas” In the Valencian language, means “fires” which refers to the burning of huge puppet or doll structures made of cardboard, wood, paper-ache and plaster called “ninots“.The celebration takes place from 4 pm until past nightfall. The Festival reminds us the burning of Ravan statues in India during Dusshera.
La Fallas is about lots of fireworks, fiestas, amazing giant puppets, incredible bonfires, and of course lots of food. It is a traditional celebration held in commemoration of Saint Joseph, the patron saint of carpenters, stepdad to Jesus, similar to Vishwakarma in India for civil construction professionals.
The dressing for the festival is quite colorful and interesting. It was supposed to be the dress for the women working in the fields around Valencia which now is a traditional dress. A fully dressed and groomed girl or fallera is a sight to behold. After conversing with few of locals we understood it is a sentiment that runs deeply through Valencians, proud of their city and their traditions.
The night was long but it was great fun watching Ninots in several streets along with special local food. Late in the night witnessed the burning of Ninots and fireworks which officially ended the festival. For Abhyuday, it was like a fairy tale unfolding in front of his eyes, never had seen him before with so much of energy and excitement for the entire night.
DAY 3 – VALENCIA (Science & Arts City-Oceanographic Museum)
Oceanographic Museum -The most famous building in the Science and Arts city and largest complex of its type in Europe. It features all kinds of species representative of the world’s main marine ecosystems. We were informed that it houses over 45,000 of 500 different species.
We had pre-booked our entrance tickets from online website which avoided us from being stranded in long queues. Abhyuday was super excited to see his favorite bird the penguins for the first time.
Highlights of the museum were sharks, penguins, dolphins, sea lions, walruses, beluga whales and more, all inhabiting in underwater towers (9 Towers). Each tower is designed as two levels. The park also includes a Dolphinarium, an auditorium with a Red Sea aquarium, an area of mangrove swamps and marshland. Many mammals and birds can also been seen which live close to aquatic habitats.
The aquariums are large and the best part is there are places where you can walk with aquariums all around you ,that is above head and on the sides giving a feeling that you are walking among these aquatic life. There are so many species that one will really admire the diversity the Creator has created in these life forms.
It took almost 5 Hrs for us to explore the complete Aquarium. We headed out for other buildings in Science & arts City. Was amazed by the architecture too.
Clicked photos outside science museum. Got back to hotel. Checked out and took train back to next destination to Barcelona.
DAY 4 – BARCELONA
Our first visit for the day was to Sagrada Familia. The tickets and English Tour guide were booked prior through online website for entrance at 9.00 am. Pre-booking of tickets again was a savior from long queues.
Sagrada Familia is a famous Roman catholic church in Barcelona. The construction of the church started in 1862 and it is still incomplete. Expected completion of construction by 2026. The church was designed by a famous architect Antonio Gaudi. Gaudi had always been a religious man. He worked on the church for more than 40 years before he died tragically in 1926 from injuries suffered in a tram accident. The church wasn’t even 25% complete. Today, nearly 90 years later, the church STILL isn’t complete. Crews have been working off Gaudi’s original designs ever since his death, but progress is slow.
The church currently has two facades – the Nativity Facade and the Passion Facade. The first thing we will notice when we walk inside is the sheer HEIGHT of the ceilings inside the nave. Massive pillars stretch from floor to ceiling, absolutely dwarfing every human inside. On two of the main outer walls, stained glass windows paint the church’s interior in different shades of greens, blues, reds, and yellows.
Our last stop in Sagrada Familia was the Schools building. This was a school originally designed by Gaudi in 1909 for the children of the church’s construction workers. Today the building houses an exhibition about the history of Sagrada Familia and Gaudi’s designs.
Headed out from the Church for a delicious brunch in one of the Cafe nearby. Filled our tummy with yummy potato stuffed Spanish tortillas, fresh thin crest pizzas and Vegetable Paella. Moved towards Casa Batllo.
We had to fight a one hour long queue for tickets. Finally manged to get in. It will be better if one may visit this place by 8.30 am which help avoiding crowds and long queue for tickets. Audio guides were provided here for exploring Antoni Gaudi’s masterpiece.
Casa Batllo, with its intriguing interior and attractive facade, offers a glimpse into the life of the Batllo family who occupied the mezzanine part of the house. The nature-inspired exterior, complete with ivory colored balconies and colorful glass shards, is a sight to behold. Inside, every element of the house – from the magnificent oak staircase to the light-filled central courtyard, helps form a detailed picture of art in the time of Antoni Gaudi. The rooftop, designed like a dragon’s scales, boasts of curved chimneys that are unique to Casa Batllo.
Eyes filled with colorful images of Casa Batllo, we made a move to our next point FC Barcelona. Purchased the tickets. Luckily it was not very crowded. The tickets are bit overpriced .It is 28 Euro per head.
This is the home of Barcelona’s hugely successful football team and during the day you can take a tour of the stadium to get a behind the scenes look at everything from the VIP suites, player dressing rooms to the commentary boxes. You can even sit in the seats the coach sits during the game.There’s also a well laid out museum which takes you through the history of the club, it’s impact on the city, and some of its notable players and achievements (Leonardo Messi being the most popular). There are four Ballons d’Or and three golden boots.
Vinay and I really enjoyed the visit , despite neither of us being football fans. Completed the tour of the stadium and museum in 2 hours, completed our customary photoshops and headed out to next attraction Park Guell.
Park Guell is one of the masterpieces of the famous Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi.Inagurated as public park in 1926, now listed as UNESCO world heritage site. Antoni Gaudi created this miniature city of houses for wealthy to live within landscape gardens. Park Guell is a testimony to the architect’s passion for natural forms.
The interesting fact is that the project was unsuccessful and dismissed in 1941 due to economic non viability after Gaudi had built some three kilometres of walkways, roads , plaza , steps and two gatehouses.
One needs 3-4 hours for exploring this place. We purchased tickets and a guide through online Park Guell website prior to the trip. This helps to avoid long queue at ticket window.
Headed out to the heart and vibes of Barcelona – Las Ramblas. Mapped out an Indian restaurant in Las Ramblas. Yes, our tongues were in urge for Indian breads and spices after a long love story with pizzas and croissants. There were lot of restaurants and cafes to hang out. Decided to hang out in some cafes in coming days. We were running short of energy and our bodies were requesting us to wind up the day. Decided to explore Las Ramblas street on another day.
DAY 5 – BARCELONA – MADRID
Renfe -High Speed Train
Thanks to High speed train (300 km/hr) because of which we could visit the beautiful capital city Madrid. Madrid is km far from Barcelona. The travel was around 2 hr 45 minutes.
One important thing we noticed here was Porterage is not found in these trains. The only assistance provided at the station is wheelchair assistance and that needs to be booked well in advance. High Speed train agency can arrange storage and separate transportation for any heavy items that one don’t require for the full duration of your trip. But if you are travelling with a few cases and have some mobility issues (such as infants/kids) or want an extra helping hand – it will not be available at the station.
The high-speed trains have great cafe/snack areas but you can also order in-seat meals. If you are travelling with a premium ticket, you’ll enjoy free snacks and meals.The ambiance was just perfect with calm serene environment ,comfortable seats and for us who would love reading books during travelling it was a delight to board this train. Before we knew we were in Madrid railway station.
Madrid
Our first visit for the day was to Royal Palace of Madrid. Any visit to Madrid city is incomplete without visiting this most impressive building of the city , Palacio Real. This is the official residence of Royal family of Spain but they do not stay here permanently. It is only used for state ceremonies.
The Palacio Real is truly a site of wealth and beauty. We were told it has 3,418 rooms although only a few of the larger rooms are open to the public. The rooms are decorated with paintings by famous artists like Caravaggio, Velasquez, and Goya and the palace also holds one of the largest collections of historic Armour!
While the palace itself has many beautiful rooms, the plazas and parks around the palace are also worth visiting. Next to the palace is the Plaza de Armería where you can see the changing of the guards at the beginning of each month. Behind the palace there are the Campo del Moro gardens, which are perfect for a long stroll along the tree-lined paths. Finally, there is the Plaza del Oriente, a large walking plaza filled with statues of Gothic kings! On any day, the Palacio Real and its adjoining plazas are a great way to visit and discover the history of the Spanish monarchy!
The Palacio Real can get quite busy, so it is best to book a ticket ahead of time to avoid lines. But we purchased the tickets on the spot and had to be in queue for around 40 minutes. After this we took a taxi and moved to Plaza Mayor.
Plaza Mayor (Main Square) is a 15 century complex building which was used as the main market of the town. The main highlights of the areas is the uniformity of the architecture. A great place to hangout in cafes housed in it and also perfect place to take some pictures especially the ones in traditional Spanish costumes. The famous movie Vantage point scenes were shot at this location, we found Its worth a visit for 45 mins-1 hr to this place.
Parque del Buen Retiro ( The Buen Retiro Park ) – Our next destination was to this beautiful park in the heart of Madrid, the park is filled with amazing sculptures and monuments, galleries, a tranquil lake, and the best part is boating in the lake and view of Monument to Alfonso XII which makes this place so memorable, had a good 2 hrs stroll to see all the attractions of the park and moved to see some candid views of Madrid city.
Street views – Best thing that we observed in Madrid City was how well the look and feel of many historic neighborhoods and streets have been preserved even though the city has transformed to have all the modern day infrastructure. We walked around the city watching as much as we can, the things that caught our attention was Cybele Palace (Palace of Communication) , St Barbara’s Church and the statues everywhere.
We were very impressed with the human statues all over the streets of Madrid. Had tons of fun clicking pictures with these statues.
As we were enjoying the views evening happened and it was time to bid adieu to this beautiful city. One day in Madrid is too less to explore the city it is strongly recommended at least for 3-4 days to see all the major attractions. With lot of reluctance, headed back to railway station.
Walking all the day had drained out all our energy and best thing that could happen to us was a calm train journey to find solace in sleep. Reached Barcelona late night and moved back to our apartments with tons of picturesque memories in our mind.
DAY 6- Montserrat-BARCELONA – We had heard a lot about the mountain ranges of Montserrat (means ‘serrated mountain’). So we planned a day trip from Barcelona to here. It was with a group of visitors like us through a local travel agency. We had gone there in a mini bus with a English speaking guide, The Guide was very polite and knowledgeable and was explaining all along journey the various things about Barcelona city -Catalonian history, language and heritage. He gave a detailed description regarding the Spanish Civil war – its effect on the Monteserrat Mountains of Catalonia .
Basilica Of Montserrat :- There is a Monastery of 11th century that housed lots of Monks and Nuns and still now some monks live here, a serene and pleasant place to roam and no wonder this place has been chosen as a place of meditation. Montserrat’s highest point, Sant Jeroni, can be reached by footpaths leading from the monastery. From Sant Jeroni, almost all of Catalonia (Autonomous Region of Spain) can be seen.The Monastery also has a interesting museum which portrays modern/ ancient paintings and Archaeological objects displaying Biblical artifacts of Egypt, Cyprus, Mesopotamia and Holy land.
The boys’ choir at Montserrat is very famous all over the world for the high standard of music they produce. The hall was overcrowded but we managed to get a small glance of this choir .
We took a funicular ride Funicular de Sant Joan. This funicular takes you on a steep journey up the side of the mountain from Montserrat Monastery, allowing you a birds eye view of the entire site.
Got back to the apartment by evening. Rested ourselves for a while and headed out for a pleasant evening stroll at Las Ramblas.
Las Ramblas is a street in central Barcelona, popular with tourists and locals alike. It stretches for 1.2 kilometers. It is a series of contiguous streets that stretches from Plaza Cataluniya to the Mediterranean sea. The street is lined with giant arching trees and blocked off from car traffic, creating a wide pedestrian mall. There are a number of restaurants,cafes, souvenir shops and flower shops on either side of the pedestrian mall. You can get hand sketched cartoons from the artists on street which is quite popular.
Important thing to know is Las Ramblas is a very busy, crowded and of course full of tourists. This makes it a slice of pure pickpocket heaven. One should keep a close eye and a tightly clenched fists on phone, bags and wallets. Always wear bag on the front.
After a long stroll through the vibes of the street, headed back to the apartment with our funny cartoon faces sketched and a sovereign wall hanging of Barcelona for our memories in Spain .
DAY 7
Tibidabo hills & Amusement Park :- The park is among the oldest in the world still functioning. It is Spain’s longest running amusement park and Europe’s third-oldest. Most of the original rides, some of which date to the turn of the 20th century, are still in use. The park is now owned by the Barcelona City Council.
In Amusement Park, one can enjoy all the thrills that have been designed for kids, teenagers and adults alike. To top it all, you get amazing views over the city of Barcelona. Walking around the Park a fun attraction in itself. There is a church on the summit of the hill offering an amazing view of the city. There are quite a few good cafes and restaurants. We felt it has everything you need to make your visit to the Park as enjoyable as possible.
Reaching the park was a bit tough . We took a taxi, tram and a funicular (Cable Car) to reach over there. At evening, taxis were not available from the hill.The only option was to take bus and buses too are not very frequent.
DAY 8
Mount Joic and Airport :- Last day of the trip is always a day of mixed emotions , We took our time to have a lazy morning with big breakfast as decided earlier paid a visit to lovely Mount Joic, took some pictures came back to apartments and left for Airport in late afternoon for flight to Doha.
Spain has so much to offer that you could spend a lifetime here … We will Miss you and come back another day for sure …ADIEOS ESPANOL –
For any details/queries, please feel free to contact us on beshilpa@gmail.com.
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