Category: Travel

A month since I’ve written! How time flies.  The days are busy with our two active boys and our growing baby who is now starting to snake her way round the house.  Dave and I are both being kept on our toes. We had two minor accidents last week which were a good reality check.  Today there was a “hair” mishap – apparently when you are a ‘knight’, you need short hair. Fortunately there were no trips to the hospital…

I wanted to point out that if you are reading this blog, for some reason it reads much better via the actual site www.davidmayert.com.  We try to place the pictures near relevant text but it doesn’t display this way in email format.  Just an FYI!

To the Dordogne…

My adventures over the years have led me to France on numerous occasions.   I am drawn to this country.

I visited several times as a child with my British parents – we did a yearly trip to visit their own parents and family in England and it occasionally included a little French vacation.  When I was five, we lived in England for 6 months (I went to school and came out with a cute little English accent recorded by my parents on cassette tape).  On this particular trip, we also enjoyed a month of travelling around France.

When I was 12, we travelled around France again and brought with us my good family friend, Amy, from Vancouver Island.  I distinctly remember one of our days on this visit – staying in an actual ‘chateaux’ where we slept in antique four-posted beds and for dinner we ate delicious crispy haricots vert (green beens).

Later I explored France on my solo travels.   My first French experience alone was during my university summer holidays.  After an attempted stint as an Au Pair in Italy (which was cut short – long story), I was stuck for something to do so I headed by train from Lake Como to the south of France to visit mum’s cousin.  There I tried to find work but unfortunately my French wasn’t quite up to local employment status so after a few weeks of enjoying the area, I headed back to England and found a job there in a local Cornwall pub.

After university, I found myself pursuing my singing career in London, England.  From there, travel to anywhere in Europe was easy.  A weekend in France wasn’t that uncommon.  Pretty amazing to have all of Europe at your fingertips. The next trip I remember was going to meet up with mum and dad, the Robinson’s and some of their friends at a beautiful French farmhouse called “Le Pigeonniers” in the south of France.  I remember thinking I’d died and gone to heaven (especially coming from my shared 2 bedroom London flat – between five). The beautiful stone house, shimmering blue pool, amazing food on the terrace (especially enjoyed the tomato salads), beautiful countryside, delicious Rose wine and lots of good chat and laughter.

For my next French adventure, cousin Tessa from Vancouver came to meet me in the South of France (Nice).  We had made plans to explore the Cote D’Azur together by ‘bike’.  We found a rental agency who gave us two bikes at a reasonable price (heavy bikes, no panniers and mechanically un-sound) and we set off on our “adventure”.  Without much touring experience, and with limited funds, the trip was minimally planned.  Our goal was to ride in the morning, stop at a beach for a picnic lunch, glass of wine, mediterranean swim, a snooze and then ride a bit more and find ourselves somewhere to stay for the night – preferably with a pool.  We had 6 days. Apart from being sent off the main autoroute by the police on day one (no bikes allowed!), our first few days went fairly well and we managed about 60km each day.  Being the month of May, we thought booking accommodation was unnecessary.  This would have been the case if we hadn’t unknowingly chosen a “holiday” weekend.  On about day four, we arrived in the glamorous city of St. Tropez at 6pm with nowhere to stay! We ventured on only to find that every hotel in the vicinity was fully booked.  At 9pm we found ourselves in a restaurant trying to work out what to do and I daresay, with a few tears rolling down our cheeks.  The restaurant owners took pity on us and eventually sent us to the local church. The priest at the church kindly offered us a caravan to sleep in on the property (no bedding/shower/water/toilet etc.) for the night.  Squatters had definitely been there before us.  Needless to say we were both up and on our bikes by 6am the next day after a few hours of restless, cold sleep and we headed out of town.  Despite some definite hairy moments, this was an adventure to remember!

The next French travel chapter in my life began when I met Dave.  We were both equally excited to learn that one of our major passions was ‘travel’.  Within six months of meeting, we were headed off to Europe for 6 weeks during Dave’s school summer holidays.  As always I was drawn to France and he enthusiastically agreed to feature this country on our first adventure together.  From Paris to the Loire valley to Orange, Aix en Provence, Nice and surrounding areas.  Together we spoke French, we ate French food, drank French wine, observed the French ways, took in some French culture (Dave’s first opera experience was at the grand amphitheatre in Orange watching Roberto Alagno sing Pagliacci!), explored chateau’s, gardens, vineyards, beaches, cafes, restaurants, churches, cathedrals, old French farmhouses, and so much more.  France definitely helped bring us together and a year later, we were getting married in mum and dad’s English garden.

So young! Our first visit to France together.

Of course when Nick was born, where else to take him on his first travel adventure other than France. At 14 months old, Nick had shared some of our favourite French experiences with us.  Among many a wonderful memory will always be our week long stay with mum and dad in Villefranche-Sur-Mer (on the Cote D’Azur).  A two bedroom apartment at the top of the old village overlooking the town and the crystal blue mediterranean sea.  We floated in the salty mediterranean sea daily and enjoyed drinks by the boats on the sea front nightly.  Nick charmed all the locals and we enjoyed watching him grow through these experiences.

This brings us to now.  A little late on providing Matt with his first French experience maybe and perhaps a little early for Olivia’s, but here we are.  You have read a little about our first month in France exploring Biarritz and the surrounding Basque region.  This was all very new to me and quite different from any of my previous French experiences.  In fact so much so that I felt I was learning a whole new France! We had fun exploring and getting to know the area.  The Atlantic coast was quite spectacular with it’s roaring ocean and rugged shores.  I will miss my daily walks along the 5km promenade.

We are now in La Dordogne just a few minutes away from the Dordogne river.  I feel much more at home.  This is the France I know and have come to love.  The countryside is beautiful.  We are surrounded by luscious shades of green.  We are staying in a beautifully renovated stone farmhouse.  As I sit here at the large kitchen table, I can see the sun shining through the trees onto the terrace.  The pool is glistening blue.  The birds are chirping.  There are salamanders crawling over the warm stone walls.  The garden is on about 4 levels and the boys have had a great time exploring the grounds.  They have turned it into their own little chateaux with lookouts and battle grounds (hence the ‘knight’ haircut).  We hear the local church bell ring at 7am, 12pm and 7pm daily.  Someone actually climbs to the top of a ladder to ring them three times a day (and an extra ring on Sunday).  There are 200 inhabitants in this village and nothing but a church and many beautiful old stone farmhouses to see.

A few days ago we took the boys to their first real Chateaux.  Chateaux de Beynac.  What a grand fortress.  The boys were in awe.  Two moats to protect the castle.  A dungeaon.  A church.  A guards room.  Huge stone fireplaces to heat the rooms.  A big cooking pot.  Swords, shields and crossbows.  Knights in armour.  Chandeliers.  Meat hooks hanging from the ceiling.  Long dining tables.  Lookout towers and gun windows.  Winding staircases.  All at the very top of the village of Beynac.  The view was magnificent.  Overlooking the Dordogne river valley, surrounding fields and two other castles.   Looking down, the cars and people were miniatures.  We were on the edge of a cliff  hundreds of feet high.

There are several different outdoor markets to choose from in our surrounding villages/towns every day.  We have tried Confit de Canard, Foie Gras, Haricots Vert (just as good as I remember), Sarlat potatoes, Chocolate mousse, Tarte au citron, provencal rose, Bold Bordeaux red wine, heirloom tomatoes, goats cheese, aged cheddars, olives, olive tapenade and we enjoy a fresh baguette every day.  We’re pretty excited to have 3 more weeks to continue to explore the castles, markets, villages and towns of this region.

We are pretty excited to welcome cousin Jenny, Mike and Isaac who arrive today.  It will be lovely to have friends to share this place with.

This is the France I love.  So much history.  So many people and so much life has gone before us.  Love exploring it. Let’s hope the sun continues to shine…

It is hard for us to believe but we have been in Biarritz, France for almost a month now. The spring weather has been varied and unpredictable. Although this has meant fewer beach days than we might have liked, there has been plenty to keep us occupied.

When the weather has been warm (we have had days of up to 30 degrees Celsius) the beach has been fantastic. We have spent most of our beach time at the Biarritz Grande Plage just a short walk from our apartment. Full days at the beach with picnic lunches and ice cream when it gets too hot have been great fun for all! Between building chateau de sable, playing rugby, soccer or paddle ball and playing in the waves the kids have been fully entertained.

On the Biarritz Grand Plage between the Casino and Hotel de Palais is an original carousel. The boys had a blast trying it out. They also got to try out the two level Carousel from Bayonne dating back to 1900. Matt was quite pleased that he got to ride a bull!

Biarritz has a nice little aquarium on top of the hill by the La Rocher de la Vierge. The boys especially loved les tortues and the giant tank with les requines.

In working to get the boys excited about our trip Katy bought the boys messages in a bottle to throw out to sea. Biarritz was a perfect place for them to write their messages and throw them off the cliff into the Atlantic. They decided the Rocher de la Vierge was the best place and had fun letting them loose on a stormy day. Of course five minutes later Matt was already asking why we hadn’t heard back yet:)

As always the food in France is a highlight. Cooking here often involves a spicy red pepper called espellette, while other favourites for us have included Jambon Bayonne, cerise confiture, olive tapenade, gateaux Basque (a cherry or cream filled cake) and a unique lightly carbonated/low alcohol cider. I also found a fantastic summer wheat ale by La Superbe brewed locally.  Being on the ocean the seafood is also fantastic. The daily indoor market at Les Halles has been a great place to buy gateaux basque, moules, shrimp, local cheese, fresh bread, macaroons, saussicon basque, fruit and vegetables. Moules have quickly become a favourite with the kids. We enjoyed a great lunches at the Cafe du Commerce, Bar St Jean, and moules at La Tandem.

At the north end of Biarritz is the lighthouse. Our first excursion to the lighthouse ended with disappointment as the actual lighthouse was closed (open weekends only) but on our second visit we were able to climb 243 stairs to the top on a sunny day for some amazing views in all directions.

Bayonne was our first trip outside of Biarritz when I took the boys to a rugby match.  Chocolate is big in this region, as this was one of the first places it was introduced from the Americas. At this point in the trip we were without car. One rainy afternoon, we took the bus to Bayonne and found ourselves walking 20mins away from the centre into the industrial area of town where we discovered an Atelier du Chocolate. Here we learned a lot about the production of chocolate, the kids decorated their own chocolate fishes and we sampled many fantastic varieties. Nick even managed to find a chocolate egg, with a real egg shell.  The adventure was well worth the trip!

Bayonne has a much different feel to Biarritz. It is much older and has a more traditional French feel in the centre, but is also a very industrial city spread out along the river. This is a big contrast to the resort areas of Biarritz, Bidart and Anglet. The Musee Basque there is fantastic, giving both the history of the area and the Basque people. There were also lots of hands on exhibits for the boys to explore.

Three weeks in, Katy’s parents cycled into town and joined us for a week in Biarritz. They took the boys for a night so that Katy and I could get away. That gave us a couple days in San Sebastian to fully sample the tapas culture, with fantastic pinxtos including goat cheese risotto, pigs ear, and various other unique combinations of seafood, cured meats, and cheeses on little pieces of bread. It was also a great night away for Katy, Olivia and I, and a much needed break!

The rest of the week the boys had fun taking turns having sleepovers with the Nonna and Papa in their apartment with a fantastic view overlooking the Cote de Basque.

We went with Katy’s parents and their friends down to St Jean de Luz for a day. We were pleasantly surprised by what used to be a fishing and port for the corsaires and pirates. It had a much more traditional feel than upscale Biarritz and it was nice to immerse ourselves in it for the day. The church had a traditional basque interior with balconies on the side for the congregation. It also had a great protected beach which was perfect for the boys. They even found pirate treasure in the form of a pirate candy store.

After renting a car, we have also spent a couple afternoons just north of Biarritz in Anglet. It is a much more modern resort area with the typical condo type accommodations of the 1970s and 1980s and numerous golf courses. There are many great beaches and boardwalks to explore. We also found a great recreation complex at the mouth of the river. Along with an ice rink, there is beach access, a skatepark and huge play areas for the kids. This was one of Matt’s favourite spots as he could “skateboard” and play in the playground. The playgrounds were well laid out with 6 separate areas (2-6 years, 2-8 years, 2-12 years, a small soccer pitch, and two adult exercise area).

We also ventured out into the Basque countryside to take the single gauge railway up to the top of La Rhune. The railway ride was a little steep and unsettling for some of us but the views, landscape and wild horses at the top made it well worth the trip.

While in Morocco we met a nice couple from Ireland. The wife was French and had spent six months in Biarritz as an au pair twenty years ago. One of her recommendations was to go to a “Venta” for dinner. A venta is a traditional family run roadside restaurant in Spain or the Basque country. We found one nearby in Bidart, and while it was a little more commercial than what we may have found in the countryside (or twenty years ago), we had a great meal. Katy and I both had the Plat de Pays. I had a plate of jambon Serrano, followed by axoa de veau (mashed veal, onions, tomatoes sauté and flavoured with red Espelette pepper) with fries, followed by some black cherry gateaux basque and some patxaran liqueur (made by soaking blackthorn fruit, coffee beans, and cinnamon pods in anisette for eight months). Katy went with a salmon cru entree, followed by a tuna main with artichoke and olives, and Basque Brebis (sheep’s milk cheese) with cherry confiture for dessert. It was great to see the multiple pilota courts in the centre of town and the kids playing there while their parents enjoyed a meal or a drink.

As our month here comes to an end we are looking forward to our next stop in the Dordogne to explore the regional cuisine, chateaus, and hopefully some warm weather by the pool.

We have been in the French resort town of Biarritz for over two weeks now. The area is really the combination of 4 towns, each with it’s own unique flavour: Biarritz, Bayonne, Anglet, and Bidart. We have spent a little time exploring each but have stayed close to home in Biarritz the majority of the time.

Biarritz is on the Atlantic Coast about 25 km north of Spain. It was a small Basque fishing and whaling port until the late 1800’s when it became a favourite spot for Napoleon III (Louis Napoleon)  and Empress Eugenie, his wife. With them came nobles from around Europe, and Biarritz became a very popular beach destination. Ambassadors and royalty from around Europe spent time in Biarritz and built huge villas on the cliffs. Because of this the architecture is fairly new compared to the rest of France. The location remained a popular resort destination with Hotel du Palais and the Casino being focal points on the Grande Plage. In the 1950s surfing was introduced and the coast became the centre for surfing in France. Because of this there is a unique mix of upmarket tourism and the surfing and beach lifestyle.

In addition to this, Biarritz is part of the Pays Basque (a distinct cultural region in southwest France and northern Spain), which brings with it it’s own language, food, culture and sports.

We have found Biarritz to have a very active and sporty population and have jumped right in alongside them. They have some great public exercise routes integrated into the infrastructure and ideas for the public to keep fit that they can access on their smartphone through posted QR codes. Katy and I have been jogging daily along the unbelievably scenic waterfront. The views make it difficult to work too hard. From the Hotel du Palais, along the Grande Plage, past the Port de Pecheurs, Plage de Port Vieux, Rocher de la Vierge, and along the Cote de Basques beach and up the stairs has been our daily route.

Katy talked in an earlier post about the Plage de Port Vieux and the swim club there. The other thing that has been a common occurrence there and on the Grande Plage is surf rescue training. There is even a school program for high school aged kids during the day where they practice rescues, surf skiing and swimming in the waves..

On our first day here we celebrated Matt’s 4th birthday.  It isn’t easy to pack birthday presents while on vacation, but he was pretty happy with his toy cobra from the markets of Marrakesh and a new skateboard from a surf shop in Biarritz. Of course we had to get one for Nick too, but they have loved skateboarding on sunny days along the waterfront. They are even starting to get the hang of it…

We have been lucky enough to take in two professional rugby games since we have been here. The first was a night game in Bayonne with Avion Bayonais. It was a little late for the whole family to go, so I took the boys. They had fun, but were exhausted and we left just after half time. Matt’s favourite discovery there was a sandwich American, which consisted of a half baguette with two hamburger patties inside and stuffed with fries.

Like watching FC Sevilla, I was in awe of the crowd singing the team song before the game.

The second match was an afternoon game in Biarritz with the Biarritz Olympique playing Montparnesse. It was the last regular season game and Biarritz played well in an exciting, high scoring match to beat Montparnesse. After enjoying so much sevens lately we had almost forgotten what a tough physical game 15 aside is. The boys loved waving their flags when Biarritz scored, and Olivia seemed to love the chanting and drums in the crowd. The crowd was passionate and had a family friendly vibe to it. The Basque supporters singing their songs before hand was great to see.

After the game we went to the otherside of the Biarritz athletics grounds to watch the semi-final of the French Cesta Punta (or jai alai) Championship. It was interesting to learn that jai alai originated here in the Basque country along with several other handball related sports called together Pelote Basque. From here jai alai travelled to the Americas where it is popular in Florida and South America. The speed of the ball was amazing, we were told the ball travels at speeds up to 400km/hour.

Of course surfing is a major draw in Biarritz. Knowing this, the first thing I did was seek out a wetsuit and board to rent. I have surfed a fair bit in Tofino over the years, but for the last 10 years or so I probably get in one weekend a year. The size and the strength of the waves here in spring was therefore a little intimidating. After renting a 2/3 wetsuit which has been plenty warm for here, I unsuccessfully tried out a board left at our apartment that was far too small for me. I soon gave up and pulled out a boogie board, which the boys took a turn with as well. The next day I rented a 7’6″ board for a week so I could surf at the Grande Plage  (although not the easiest of waves it is the closest and a great place for the kids to play on the beach). The first day with the new board started off great and with some hard work I was able to get past the breakers and surf a couple good waves. I found the waves pretty crowded though and was constantly working hard to get out of other peoples way, so after awhile I surfed the inside.  The next couple days as the weather turned and the waves moved to 8-10 feet, I found myself getting a great workout and thrown around by the ocean but not riding a lot of waves, although I got to watch some great surfing. Most days I managed to catch a good wave or two, but the takeoff was a lot steeper and quicker than I’m used to in Tofino and I had some spectacular falls. When the weather turned really bad later in the week it wasn’t worth me going out with the debris in the water and rough conditions. As the weather improves this week I will be back in the water and will probably try out the Cote de Basques waves as well which look far more mellow.

There is an indoor salt water swimming pool right on the beach a short walk from our apartment. This has been a great spot to get the kids some exercise on a rainy day. The swimming pool rules are a little different here though. You must wear a swim cap and only tight fitting speedos or boxer type suits are allowed. We went shopping, picked up some new suits and went with the flow.

The first Sunday we were in Biarritz they had an event called Biarritz en Forme. There were booths setup along the waterfront promenade and casino advertising all the athletic clubs available including yoga, ultimate, surfing, surf rescue, tai chi, biking, zumba, karate, gymnastics, crossfit, golf, swimming and athletics. Most gave people the opportunity to try the activity out. The boys loved getting on some bikes and tried out the obstacle course. Katy got the chance to try out an electric bike and loved it. She could see how handy the little electric assist would be going uphill with Olivia in the chariot behind her. They also had a challenge to record how many steps the people of Biarritz did that day. The boys were given pedometers and Matt ran in circles all afternoon to increase his total. One booth had a bike powered blender to make smoothies with which was a lot of fun to try out.

It has been a great start in Biarritz despite the weather, but I’ll leave the rest of our adventures for another post. Au revoir!

We have arrived in Biarritz, France.   A picturesque surfing town.  We were told on arrival that we would likely experience all 4 seasons in one day! C’ést vrai…

Our 2 bedroom apartment is just a 5 minute walk from the “Grande Plage”.  Today, the kids learned the word ‘beach’ in French: “plage”.  We will try to learn one French word every day.

The Grande Plage has enormous waves.  We have seen some top notch surfing, in fact the first day a surfing contest was taking place.  We have watched for hours from the sand but unfortunately the waves are much too big for the kids to even paddle in…

So on Wednesday morning, we decided to venture over a little further.  The kids were desperate to swim and boogie board. We packed up our two-wheeled shopping cart, 2 boogie boards, a surf board, 3 wetsuits, 2 skate boards, helmets, pads, some beach mats, beach pails and shovels, towels and a picnic lunch and we headed over to a beach called “Port Vieux” on foot.  We had read that this beach is often protected from wind and waves. We didn’t bother to check the weather.  The sun was out and there were only a few clouds in the sky.  There was a light breeze in the air.  We wore shorts and lathered ourselves in sunscreen.

We made our way down to the promenade starting at the Grande Plage.  Our load was heavy.  As we walked, we began to notice more than a ‘light breeze’.  The waves were crashing against the shore.  The beaches were empty.  Most walkers were wearing parkas.

Spirits still high, we ventured on.  15 minutes into our heavily laden walk, Matt declared sore feet.  Sure enough he had a blisters on both.  His shoes are officially too small.  To continue on or to turn back – that was the question.  The shoes were removed and we ventured on – barefoot.  Stunning views.  Amazing architecture.  A gothic church.  An old fishing port.  A statue of the virgin on the cliff.  Sun still shining.  Winds picking up slightly.  Huge waves. The ocean is powerful.  We could watch it for hours.

45 minutes later, we made it to our beach! We climbed down several flights of stairs with our heavy load and headed into the middle of the empty, clean and beautifully swept, beach.  Not a soul to be seen.  The wind was howling.  The waves were crashing against the shore.  The sand was whipping against our faces. We had to yell to be heard.  “Time for a picnic anyone?”

It may not have been protected but it was all ours.  We devoured our picnic of French bread, brie, saucisson and apple.  The boys dug in the sand.  Olivia gulped down a bottle.  And we gazed out to sea…

As we allowed our minds to drift into the big unknown, we slowly began to notice the ocean filling up with people. One by one, emerging out from rock cliff behind us, were men and women in bathing suits, swim caps and some had flippers.  They tottered down to the beach, walked into the ocean (it’s almost as cold as Tofino FYI!), and began to swim (or as Dave noticed, many were just floating/bobbing in one place).  (Today, on my walk, I returned to this beach to discover a private swim club built into the cliff.  It even had change rooms and showers.  There was a group of young kids (probably 8-10 year olds) doing beach drills with their coach as the lifeguards prepared their rescue surf boards.   The kids were apparently headed into the wild, roaring ocean for some boogie board fun.  They must be such incredibly strong swimmers.  The waves were crashing against the rock walls and the swell was coming way up the beach.  My boys are most definitely not ready for this!)

Back to our walk… A promise of ice cream helped the boys get back to the Grande Plage.  Turns out that this was the protected beach of the day and so we settled into another couple hours of beach play, boogie boarding (short lived), surfing and sand play.

That night Dave and I both collapsed on the sofa with a nice cold glass of Rosé…

We have arrived in Marrakech, Morocco where we have treated ourselves to a couple weeks at an all-inclusive resort. This is the first time we have ever done this as a family. We decided to go the resort route for a couple reasons. Firstly we liked the idea of a break from cooking and cleaning, but also the ability for the kids to join in the kids club. The kids club gives them the opportunity to interact with others their age, which is one of the main things they are missing having been taken out of school and pre-school. Nick especially had really settled well into kindergarten and is missing school and his friends. It has also given us all a little break from each other… None of us, kids included, is used to being together 24 hours a day like we have been for the last month. Katy and I have had a great time going to spinning classes and playing tennis for a couple hours each morning while Olivia naps in the stroller, before picking the boys up in time for lunch. We would have loved to have stayed in a traditional Riad, but a common courtyard didn’t seem like a good fit for three young kids – the other guests would not have loved us. We have heard since arriving that they are also quite cold this time of year so we are happy with our accommodation. Maybe we will try the Riad when Katy and I come back without the kids someday.

Our first day here was cold with quite a breeze so we thought we may be in for a repeat of unusually cold weather like we had in Seville, but luckily the sun is out and it is nice and hot. Most days seem to hit the mid to high 20s. This means on the very warm days the unheated pools are great, although we have been sticking to the heated pool most of the time. The kids pool has a fantastic water park but is a little cold most days.

We arrived in Marrakech to a beautiful new airport which we were told was entirely run on solar power.  Several planes showed up at the same time and it looked like we would have a real fun time with three kids waiting in the queue, but they saw us and put us in a separate line for families – a huge relief. Everywhere we have gone they have been very accommodating to kids here, they seem to really love children. The initial trip from the airport to our hotel was interesting. The first thing we found out when people heard that we were Canadian is that everyone seems to have family or friends in Montreal. After we found the car for the ride to the hotel we got to see the old city wall, the new city and a strange mix of old and new. Cars and buses shared the road with motorbikes, scooters and carts pulled by donkeys. The rules of the road also seemed to only be loosely followed. We saw a woman holding a baby in her arms sitting as the passenger on the back of a scooter.

Our first trip into the old city was quite an adventure. After being dropped off by the hotel shuttle, avoiding the first of the onslaught of offers for tourists, and finding diapers and formula for Olivia, we set off to find  Jemaa el Fnna square. The first landmark we found was the towering Koutoubia mosque. It looks taller than it is as we have been told the building restrictions say no other structure may be taller than the height of a palm tree, so it really sticks out. Just behind the mosque we found the square.

Jemaa el Fnna market square at mid day was an interesting sight. The combination of snake charmers, monkeys, and their aggressive handlers looking to place a monkey on your shoulder or snake around your neck followed by a demand for payment was a little intimidating. Add to this the musicians, people dressed up in traditional garb to take pictures with and aggressive sales people selling tourist trinkets, selfie sticks, sunglasses or water and it was a bit of a sensory overload. At one point a musician put his arm around Nick and was trying to take him off to play the drum with him. Luckily Katy had a tight grasp on Nick’s hand and saw it happening.  The aggressive sales tactics were a bit overwhelming for us meek Canadians. I don’t think I have ever said “Non merci!” so many times. We passed by the square (I took a noticeably wider birth around the snakes and especially the handlers trying to place them on tourists…) and escaped into the souks.

We randomly chose a road and checked out the shops along the way selling everything from leather goods, shoes, blankets, spices, tourist trinkets, raw meat, pastries, clothes, scarfs, metal lamps, to jewelry. This was not the relaxed shopping experience we were used to. High pressure sales is the norm, not to mention the haggling. Not knowing what a fair or reasonable price might be doesn’t help the process, but we had some fun trying our hand at it and probably overpaid for the clothes we bought for the kids but had fun and they were very excited by their new outfits.

When you were not on your toes dealing with the salespeople you also had to be vigilant to avoid the speedy motorbikes, bicycles, carts and donkeys navigating the same narrow alleyways. A three year old and a baby in a stroller don’t make this an easy task. At one point we almost ran into a donkey carrying a load of bricks to a job site.

We also got out for a ride on the camels. The boys had a blast and even Olivia was able to go. We weren’t quite aware of how large an animal a camel is, it was a long way up. We went for a short 30 minute ride. It wasn’t the most comfortable ride, so as romantic as the camel ride through the desert looks and sounds, the slow jolty rocking would undoubtedly leave you sore by the end of the day.

My travel read for Morocco was Lords of the Atlas by Gavin Maxwell. It was fascinating to read about the not so distant past with the French colonial history and that of the Moroccan warlords from the Atlas Mountains including the Glaoua. The fact that this all ended just 60 years ago was eye-opening. We really wanted to get out to the desert or Atlas Mountains for an overnight in the Bedouin tents, but the length of the bus trip out there just wasn’t conducive for the kids (talking to a few adults who did the trip they felt it was far too long on a bus, so it seems we made the right choice). Again another outing for the future trip sans enfants.

We managed to get back into the souks one more time before we left and felt more comfortable manoeuvring our way through. We decided on a route and stuck to it.  Matt had requested a toy cobra snake for his 4th birthday so Nick and Katy snuck away to buy him one (he was thrilled!).  On our way to the souks the second time, we happened upon the Artisans market.  This turned out to be great! We were able to see some traditional Marrakesh artists at work and we were also able to purchase some true Moroccan pieces. (The prices were listed and there was no haggling which was great, but did take away a bit from the traditional Moroccan shopping experience) We had been told earlier that most of what is found in the souk market is actually made in China.  We purchased a beautiful Moroccan wind instrument called a raita, which we have all attempted to play but so far only I seem to be able to make any sound!  The Arabic writing is beautiful, almost like an art itself.  We found a place that would write each of the kid’s names on a card in Arabic that we could buy as a souvenir.  The boys were engrossed watching for over 10 minutes as this man painted the phonetic sounds of their names on paper.

We enjoyed 12 days of blissful sunshine (and a small amount of r&r) in Marrakesh.  The hotel was great and the staff were awesome.  Olivia was a hit with ALL of the staff.  She was danced with most days and she charmed them all with her infectious smile.  The food was great (especially the tajines) and it was really nice to have planned daily activities like spinning and archery, (I even tried the trapeze!).  Matt loved the mini-disco and was found dancing nightly at 8:30pm (the same 6 choreographed dances every night, so he got to know them well). The pool, tennis and soccer were hits with Nick. We all enjoyed the small animal farm including the day old baby goat. Katy got an afternoon in the spa and Hammam and I even got away for a day of mountain biking in the Agafay desert. I took a guided trip with Pierre-Alain and Rasheed from Marrakesh Bike Action. It was a great experience and I would highly recommend them.

We left the hotel at 3:30am on Easter Sunday morning.  The children were woken very early and loaded into a taxi along with all of our belongings.  It was a VERY long day but we finally arrived in Biarritz to our new apartment 100meters from the beach at about 7pm that night.  And so the next phase of our adventure begins…

As our time in Sevilla comes to an end, we can honestly say we have had some great experiences and really enjoyed our time in Spain (despite the unusually rainy weather we experienced).  We wrote about some of them in an earlier post Sightseeing in Sevilla. Here is a little summary of some final impressions of Seville from the both of us:

• Seville is a very social city and at the same time Seville is a very child/family friendly city.  Every restaurant/cafe/bar etc welcomes children and so often there is a playground nearby for children to play while adults socialize. We have been lucky with this!

• It is important to have a very solid/strong stroller for travelling along the cobbled streets.  Babies enjoy very bumpy rides here. It often put Olivia to sleep, but it is taking a toll on our poor old stroller.
• It seems we have been very unlucky with the weather (apparently this is unusual for this time of year).  Lots of rain which means lots of umbrellas on the streets!  Everyone is ready to quickly pull out the umbrella when the sudden downpours occur.
• Most women have long hair here (we’ve seen very few short haircuts).
• There is very little craft beer here – if you order a beer (un cerveza por favor or uno canas) you automatically get a light pilsner called CruzCampo.  Everyone drinks the same beer and it often costs less than bottled water.  They seem to have a monopoly! If you find other types of beer, it’s usually very expensive. Dave tried a couple craft beers here and there, but they were hard to find. The best he sampled came from a brewery out of northern Spain called DouGalls who had some decent pale and amber ales. The Andalusian craft beers available on tap all seemed to be lagers.
• Apparently it is so hot here during the summer that everyone goes inside from 1-9pm (for siesta and the air conditioning).  Everyone then comes outside to play and socialize at 9pm (kids included!).  Makes sense in the summer but pretty strange for us at this time of year, and hard to adjust to with three young kids.
• Our favoritelocal foods have included: Churros con chocolate, salted almonds soaked in olive oil, rustico loaves of bread – x3 for 90 cents – (bought fresh/warm in the morning), manchego cheese, Iberian ham, paella (meat or fish), Solomillo al Whisky (pork in whisky), large sweet strawberries, oranges, carrots, Calamari, Salted cod (We have not figured out how to cook the salted fish – Katy tried and it was VERY salty), cola del toro (bulls tail), large fresh shrimp (gambas).  Here’s Dave’s first delicious attempt at a seafood (calamari and shrimp) Paella (yum!)

• There seems to be a beautiful church on almost every street corner and they are frequented daily and are welcoming to the public.  Religion is a big part of the community here.  Young and old attend and seem very committed to their local church. It was great to see each church in preparation for Semana Santa. Last Sunday, we noticed a very large number of people entering and exiting the church next to our apartment.  There was a constant flow all afternoon.  Curiosity finally took the better of us and we decided to follow the crowd in.  We stood in awe as we gazed upon four “pasos” that were beautiful carved and decorated in golds and silvers, with statues of Jesus and the Macarena on top. We also witnessed one of the bands that accompany the procession perform at  the square. It was a lot like our pipe bands but with trumpets instead of bag pipes.

• The other religion here seems to be football. There are two teams in La Liga in Seville: FC Sevilla and FC Betis. Betis seems to be the most popular, especially in our neighbourhood, but FC Sevilla seems to be more successful. Nick and I were lucky enough to catch a match between Sevilla FC and Valencia FC. We were unable to get 4 or even 3 tickets together (in a stadium of 42,700 seats), which is unfortunate because Katy, and hopefully Matt, would have really enjoyed it. It also became apparent that infants were not really welcome in the stadium. We got there early, bought our scarf to support Sevilla and had a hotdog lunch. The game started with the entire crowd standing and singing the team song and it seemed many fans didn’t sit down the rest of the game.
• The game ended in a 2-0 loss, but Seville went on to win last week in Champions league play against Manchester United and their birth in the quarter finals has the city excited. Our trip ended with Nick asking for a soccer ball, which I happily obliged. There have been daily games of street soccer with Matt ever since.
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• Construction is constant here.  The outside of buildings seems to be kept intact and the inside is often gutted.  So much cement is being made at each site.  It looks like very complicated work – the workers seem to always be ‘patching’.
• Flamenco dance is a major art form here.  The flamenco dance performance we saw was truly wonderful at the Flamenco Museo.  Intimate theatre environment, stunning dresses, incredible dancers (male and female) – such intensity and strength in their performance. We didn’t realize they did so much percussion with their feet/shoes! They aren’t tap shoes but they are specific Flamenco shoes (a bit like character shoes) and they play incredible quick and wonderful rhythms with their feet.   The flamenco guitar playing is also beautiful – classical intricate finger plucking – it really guides the whole structure for the dance and voice.  The voices seems a bit less classical trained – it’s very speech like/story telling.  Lots of moving chromatic melismatic lines – and contrasting dynamics.  Perhaps reflecting the emotion of the story or the characters dancing? Even when not singing, they are always calling out throughout the performance (we wondered what they were shouting!)
• Flamenco dresses.  Every other shop here seems to have beautiful flamenco dresses.  Mixes of so many different colours and patterns. There are also beautiful tasseled shawls of all different colors and floral patterns.  I was in a department store this week that had a new stunning display of silk flowers for the hair set-up (I’m wondering if it was for Semana Santa or the April Feria?).

• Not to mention the children’s clothes for first communion…
  

  

  
• We had lovely visits from Peter, Will, Maria and three B-R aunties (Jane, Sue and Annie)!  Thank you for coming and sharing our Spanish experience with us.  It was SO lovely to see you all:)

• The Seville Communion was our other travel read for Seville. It put you right into the setting of Seville and gave you a feel for the city including the importance of the church, bullfighting, flamenco, the former nobility, Santa Cruz, Triana and the tapas culture. It was a good read before our visit.

Our next instalment will be from sunny (hopefully) Marrakesh, Morocco!

Over the last three days we ventured out of Sevilla by train to visit the ancient cities of Cordoba and Granada. We negotiated through the ticket purchase at the Santa Justa station in Sevilla and ended up with tickets for the high speed train to Cordoba and then a late afternoon high speed train to Antequera and a bus (the new line was under construction) on to Granada. The high speed train was great but twice the price of the regional media distance routes.

Day 1

The train ride to Cordoba, the first ever for Matt, lasted about 45 minutes through orchards of oranges, and upon arrival we were ready to locate the famous mosque… that is after we fed the kids.

We found a restaurant with a patio where Nick had calamari (a new staple of his diet), Matt tried the Iberian sausage, but again defaulted to the bread (so far the staple of his diet) while Katy went with the artichoke tapas, and I tried the cold, creamy tomato soup called salmorejo. Yes we are travelling through Spain on our stomachs.

This was also our first hot weather, reaching the mid 20s by the middle of the day. It gave us our first feel of how hot it must be in the summer and why they need siesta time. Cordoba displayed a lot of history with Roman ruins and ancient bridges. We were also surprised by how muddy the rivers were, probably due to the amount of rain we have been experiencing here in Andalusia.

When we finally got to the Mezquita (mosque), it was an amazing mix of a church (16th century), built within a a mosque (8th century), built on top of a church.  We were in awe of the size of the structure, the columns (over 850 of them), the arches and the blending of Catholic and Moorish architecture.

The sun really came out in time to visit the Alcazar de los Reyes Cristianos (Palace of the Christian Kings).  The gardens, pools and fountains were outstanding, especially in the sun. With everything in bloom they would be even that much more amazing. It was originally built for King Alphonso XI, but housed Isabel and Ferdinand II during their campaign to conquer the Moors in Granada.

It was then back on the train. For a short trip to Antequera during which Matt had a much needed nap. Passing field upon field of olive trees. We then jumped on a bus to take us into the hills and up to Granada. The valleys and ridges along the way let you imagine the Bandelleros looking down for their next prize, as Washington Irving describes. That is, as long as you can ignore the wind turbines, solar fields and gas stations.

After finding our accommodations for the night, we ventured out to get some dinner before getting a good nights sleep. We have been happily subsiding off tapas in Seville, the serving size is great for the boys and we have enjoyed the variety and price. To our surprise we found the restaurants in the section of Granada were only serving entrees in the restaurants. This was both a lot of food and quite expensive compared to what we had been used to (Spain on the whole has been quite reasonable). We had calamari (for Nick), meatballs (for Matt), and more artichokes (for Katy), and I had some of each. We later found we were in a very touristy part of Granada and received some good recommendations for the next night (unfortunately none of them opened until 8pm…). After getting the kids to bed (with a chapter of Cervantes’ Don Quixote to lull them to sleep) we decided to stay another night in Granada, unfortunately the hotel we were in didn’t have a vacancy and we had to look for another spot, which is not easy when travelling with a young family of five…

Day 2

We woke up in Granada, had breakfast at the hotel, packed up all our stuff and headed for the Alhambra. We took the bus up the steep windy road and arrived fresh and ready to explore. To our surprise, and disappointment, the tickets including the Nasrid Palace were sold-out both for the day, the night and the next day. We settled for the tickets to the Generalife and Alcazaba. My mother-in-law, Annette gifted me with a lovely copy of Tales of the Alhambra– by Washington Irving for Christmas which was a wonderful way to get a feel for the Alhambra before hand. Both Irving’s description of his visit in the early 1800s and the legends of the palace he relays were thoroughly entertaining and set the scene for the visit. The Generalife, which was the traditional summer home of royalty when it gets too hot in the Alhambra, was a highlight with it’s pools, fountains and waterways. It would be marvellous to see when all the flowers are in bloom. We also really enjoyed the Palace of Charles V which was a renaissance building designed by a student of Michelangelo. From the outside it is a square building but inside it has a circular courtyard surrounded by great pillars. The Alcazaba was the bell tower, traditional defences and fortress that offered some amazing views over Granada and down to the Paseo de Los Tristes below. While we were disappointed in not seeing the Camares Palace and the Palace of the Lions, it was a pretty full morning with three young kids. I guess we will just have to come back one day… and book ahead!

Early afternoon we headed back down into Granada and went to find our new hotel, a single room with 4 single beds and a crib… This was looking to be a fun night. We checked out the train schedules and decided we would leave late morning the next day, so we headed for the Cathedral de Granada as we wouldn’t have time in the morning. It was an amazing space and had a great kids audioguide. Unfortunately the audioguide promised a surprise at the end of the tour and the bookmark didn’t quite meet Matt’s expectations, which meant the next hour with a tired Matt, was not a lot of fun.

Since we were leaving the next morning we decided to fight through the meltdown (probably to be blamed on the parents for the heavily scheduled day) and see the Capilla Real (Royal Chapel) of Granada with the tombs of Isabelle and Ferdinand II. It was great to see the chapel after reading Dogs of God – by James Reston Jr, a great recommendation from family friend. It gives a great history of the creation of the Spanish nation state, Spanish Inquisition, Spanish conquest of Granada, and the beginnings of the exploration of the Americas. With Seville and Granada being major settings for much of the historical action this was a great travel read, thanks Hugh!

This was an ambitious day with the kids, and as we looked for somewhere for dinner we realized how tired the boys were. When we discovered all of our recommended dinner spots were not going to open until 8pm we decided to split up and Olivia and I hit up the grocery store to buy dinner, while Nick, Matt and Katy headed back to the hotel. Luckily the boys were exhausted and when Olivia and I returned Nick was already in bed. After a quick dinner (bread, ham & cheese) and a reading of the “Legend of the Two Discreet Statues” from the Tales of the Alhambra, everyone crashed (in the morning I discovered this was with the exception of Katy and Olivia who hung out a bit longer, much to Katy’s dismay).

Day 3

After a late start (everyone slept in after the big day before despite all five of us being in the same room) and a packed lunch (yes bread, meat and cheese again), we caught the 11am bus to Antequera and then the media distance (slow regional) train from there to Sevilla, during which Olivia caught a little more sleep.

The high speed route from Sevilla to Granada looks great (most of the line has been laid) and will probably cut the travel time in half, but unfortunately we were too early too take advantage of it. Once in Sevilla, the boys were happy to be “home”. While it was great to explore a little bit more of Andalusia, our little road trip confirmed for us that we made the right decision to base ourselves in one location for longer periods of time. With 3 young kids the varied train schedules, carrying luggage, uncertain accommodations, less than ideal sleeping arrangements, inconsistent meal times and over scheduled sightseeing make short term travel quite a challenge.  We now await the arrival of three of Katy’s aunts who will be visiting during the rest of our stay in Seville. It will be great to again have visitors come see us here in Sevilla!

Last Sunday, we headed out for our usual morning walk and noticed a large group of people gathering just outside our apartment.  Curiosity took us closer and we noticed a number of Spanish men (of very similar build, height and age and all wearing white undershirts) helping each other fasten something on their heads.  It looked like this:

We walked a little further and noticed a big wooden structure loaded on top with blocks of heavy cement.  Underneath the structure looked like more than 30 men huddled together in a crouched position preparing for something (see picture below)? An older gentleman (leader) suddenly shouted something and then the men grunted and jumped up onto their tiptoes lifting the structure up before gently settling it onto the back ‘roll’ of their headpieces.  The men then slowly began to shuffle their feet in unison – at first rocking back and forth – then inching forwarded.  When they came to a corner they rocked back and forth again in unison slowly turning each time they rocked.

We found out that this is called a “pasos” (float) and is carried by 24 to 54 men during the Semana Santa procession.  And here’s a little video of the men lifting the pasos up in rehearsal.

It turns out we happened upon a ‘rehearsal’ for the big Semana Santa (holy week).  This year it is March 25th to April 1st and it starts soon after we leave Seville.  Originally we had hoped to be in town for it but all the accommodation (including our apartment) was more than double the price and apparently it is a VERY busy week in the city so we decided it probably wasn’t worth it with our entourage.

As we continued our walk, we happened upon a number of other rehearsals throughout the city.  There are apparently over 70 ‘brotherhoods’ who will have one to three (very heavy) ‘pasos’ that will be carried through the streets of Seville during the week of Semana Santa.

Each float will go from its own church to the Seville Cathedral and back home again. Some can take up to 14 hours.

These images show what some of the floats look like.  The men we saw rehearsing are hidden under the float that is beautifully carved and is dressed in flowers, candles and fabric.  There are hundreds of other people in the procession as well as thousands of people watching from the streets. This is taken from Wikipedia to explain what Semana Santa is: ” It is celebrated in the week leading up to Easter (Holy Week among Christians), and features the procession of pasos, floats of lifelike wooden sculptures of individual scenes of sorrowfull Mysteries of the Rosary, or images of the grieving Virgin Mary.”

Some processions are silent while others have a music accompanying them (in the form of a brass quartet, trumpets and drum, brass band or accapella choir).

La Catedral

La Giralda and La Catedral in the background

On one of our very first walks to the Cathedral back in February, we passed through the Plaza Nuevo.  We noticed a large amount of scaffolding type materials leaning up against the wall of the city hall.  At first we wondered if maybe they were preparing for a concert in the square?  As it turns out, they were actually preparing for La Semana Santa (1 month before)!  We walk through this plaza most days now and they are busy every time we pass through setting up the stands – a carpeted viewing area as the pasos arrive to the cathedra for this massive week long celebration.  There are many workers involved in setting it up and they have been at it for 3 weeks already! In the image below you can see 2 cars parked – this is where the procession will pass through.

Something else that has taken us a bit by surprise – but we have come to notice all over Seville – is this ‘head dress’ – it is called the “Capirotes” (tall pointed hoods with eye holes).

This is a widely celebrated image in Spain.  We have seen both young and old trying on their Capirotes in shops in preparation for the Semana Santa week.  It will be worn as a sign of mourning for Christ.  It will then be removed in jubilation when he is resurrected.  This image can also be found in most souvenir shops – in the form of dolls, candy lollipops, cakes, costume etc.

We feel privileged to have witnessed some of the Semana Santa preparations.  It has been very interesting for us all to see how passionate and dedicated the Spanish people are to their religion.  There is a sense of belonging.  Of community.  The boys have asked many great questions which we have done our best to answer.

After we witnessed the ‘rehearsal’ last Sunday, we later found all these same men filling the bars socializing and having a good time together with their families!  They are really good at enjoying life here in Spain.