Ronda

Somehow I forgot to post my pictures of Rondo. It's a city founded in the 6th century in southern Spain.

It has a large bridge spanning the canyon in the middle of the town that is 120 meters high.

All the more impressive because it was built in 1750.

The beginning of the end...

We are coming to the end of our adventure and the preparation for return to the USA is underway.

We had to move all of our stuff out into the main room to make room for the furnished apartment stuff. Putting all of your stuff out makes you realize how much stuff you have.

The hallway was full and everything had a label of pack or don't pack.

 Then they spent the day boxing everything up.

 A lot of cardboard...

 Not looking forward to unpacking it all...

 Here's our bedroom. It was not a peaceful night sleep with wall-to-wall boxes.

 Here's the container that pulled up in front of our house. It should be heading out for the water soon.

 Now we are living in an IKEA showroom with loads of extra space.

Marbella

We were vacationing in Marbella in Spain which is a lovely town by the Mediterranean Sea. We did not go to a bull fight.

The area is on the water with lovely ports and pretty mountains in the background.

We also found a restaurant or two that had ice cream for dessert.

Vacation was designed around the feedback from the kids which stated that it should be more fun than "churches and museums".

Monkeys

One of the things that Gibraltar is famous for is the wild monkeys on the island. It is the only wild primates on the European continent.

The boys were looking forward to seeing them and we had to make sure that they understood that these are wild animals with a mentality of a pickpocket.

They were everywhere and they were always on the lookout for a free meal. Julia liked the one who stole an ice cream bar and was licking the stick like a child.

They also hung around the tourist spots checking out the view.

Gibraltar

After Barcelona, we traveled down to the Costa del Sol to chase the sun. While staying in Andalucia, we made a day trip to Gibraltar..

 

This allowed us to go to the southern point of Europe and look over at Africa.

The rock of Gibraltar is pretty impressive. We took a cable car up to the top which provided great views in all directions.

Get a piece of the rock.

Here we stopped long enough to view the big ships in the harbor.

Brian was not amused.

This is the proof that the kids were officially in the UK.

Game

The reason for the short trip to Barcelona was partially for the birthday present of Brian and David. We were able to go to a FC Barcelona football (soccer) game. You can see the club statement written on the stands across from our seats. The club has become a symbol of Catalan culture and Catalanism, hence the motto "Més que un club" (More than a club).

It was a bit like seeing the Yankees play in Yankee stadium.  They won 5-0 so everyone was happy.

The boys stopped for some Barca gear and posed next to the outfit for Messi - number 10 - the best player in the world (and on xbox).

Barcelona

We went in search of the sun for our Easter break. Our trip included a weekend in Barcelona.

Here Julia visits the Gaudi cathedral which is still under construction after 100 years and will still need another 20 year. 

Huge and interesting and the most unusual church we have ever seen.

 

The streets of Barcelona were wide with great walking paths. We only had a few hours in the city but we were able to walk and see a great deal of the sites.

This was the only seafood Brian liked on the entire trip. Notice the bundled up people. Summer has not arrived just yet...

Brandenburg Gate and area

 One of our stops was the Brandenburg Gate. The gate is the monumental entry to the boulevard of linden trees which formerly led directly to the city palace of the Prussian monarchs. After the 1806 Prussians were defeated, Napoleon was the first to use the Brandenburg Gate for a triumphal procession and took its Quadriga to Paris. Reagan stood in front of the gate and said, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall..."

A short walk down the street leads to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. The 5 acre site makes for a very powerful visual monument.

There are 2700 concrete slabs or stelae. According to the architect's project text, the stelae are designed to produce an uneasy, confusing atmosphere, and the whole sculpture aims to represent a supposedly ordered system that has lost touch with human reason.

The ground is uneven inside the area and all the slabs have different angles

 

It does produce a strange feeling as you are walking through the stones.

 

And yes - there is a dunkin donuts right by the Brandenburg Gate.

Berlin Bears

 The bear is the symbol of Berlin. We had a good time with a contest where everyone tried to be the first to spot a new bear.

 Once we all were yelling "Bear!" throughout the city - Mom decided the game was over.

 I think Julia was winning with about 25 but David, Brian and I were not far behind.

 

Businesses sponsor each bear and decorate it with a theme or their brand.

Bears also turned out to be the favorite souvenir.