Semana Santa

Spain being a Catholic country, we had 10 days of vacation for Easter. So we traversed the Iberian peninsula, traveling from Lisbon to the Costa Brava. The trip got off to an anxiety-causing start as Jennis and I arrived at the Madrid airport with 4 hours to spare before our flight which was delayed and delayed and delayed for 4 more hours, so we were in Barajas for a grand total of 8 hours. We ate at McDonald's on 3 separate occasions, and arrived in Lisbon around midnight. My friend David arrived from Madrid on an 8.5 hour bus ride before us.

BUT the apartment that we rented was adorable, on the top floor with a view of the ocean/river (I was never sure which was which). We spent Saturday walking all over the city, Sunday Jennis and I went to Portuguese Easter mass and then we all took the train to Sintra. On Monday, we spent the day walking around and getting to the airport.

Sintra

Sintra

Sintra

Sintra

the view from Sintra

Sintra

From Lisbon, we flew to Madrid and spent the night with David. Then on Tuesday, we went to the Francis Bacon exhibit at the Prado and took the AVE to Barcelona, where we spent one night. For dinner, the best kebab place in Barcelona had reopened (after being closed since January or so), so we ate there. And then on Wednesday, Jennis and I rented a car and drove to Calella de Palafrugell on the Costa Brava where we met Kelly and her boyfriend, Jorge Pep.

The coast was absolutely beautiful and it was nice to just sit on the beach and not feel the need to go anywhere, although the places we did go were also gorgeous. The sun was out for most of the day when we were there, and although it was cold, it was still pretty.

The beach.

He made that.

Kelly, Jorge Pep, me, and Jennis