Our morning started with a tour of the Quinta da Roeda winery in Pinhao where they make Croft branded port wine. The Croft family history with the Portuguese port business dates back to the 1707 when the two Irish brothers moved to Portugal and began trading port wine. This estate was acquired by the family in 1889. We had a guided tour of the concrete vats where the grapes are still stomped by foot before being put into stainless steel or wooden barrels depending on the type of port wine they are making. We then moved out to the vineyards where we learned about the soil in the area, the use of olive trees to help with erosion and the fact that grape vines can produce grapes for up to 130 years. 

We then were taken into a modern, spacious tasting room with large tables with chairs that can seat about 12 people each where we tasted two of their port wines. We tasted a rose-colored port wine and a dark red port wine. The rose colored one, while being very sweet, was much smoother while the darker port was much stronger and less sweet tasting. 

Outside of the winery they have a display of an insect motel where insects can make their homes. Insects are an important part of the agricultural process but the use of chemicals often kills the needed insects. These motels allow the insects to find a home away from the pesticides and hopefully thrive. 

After the winery tour we were taken back to our vessel where we set sail down the Douro to the town of Lamego. We had a large buffet lunch with a served entrée of either a white fish or turkey legs. On the way to Lamego we passed through the Baguaste Lock with a height of 91 feet. At the Lamego pier we refueled the ship before moving to the other side of the river in the town of Regua. 

In the afternoon we visited the beautiful and historic town of Lamego with a population of about 25,000 people. The quaint town is filled with terra-cotta rooftops and tree lined streets. We first visited the Santuario de Nossa Senhoura dos Remedios or Sanctuary of Our Lady of Remedies. The church sits on a hilltop high above the city with wonderful views. The church is very ornate with a gilded altar, many side altars and blue and white ceramic tiles on the walls depicting biblical stories. The ceiling was painted with a beautiful shade of blue and white. From the hilltop location of the church, we began our descent of a 686-step staircase to admire the picturesque gardens, monuments, terraces, fountains and ornate tile mosaics surrounding the stairs. 

After the tour of the church we had some free time in the town center to shop, visit another church or rest in a café or bakery. The town is very clean with cobblestone sidewalks and narrow roads. The few shops that were open were very nice although many of the shops were not open. We returned to the ship about 5:30pm for a short rest before having a traditional Portuguese dinner in the dining room. 

After dinner we visited the Museu do Douro in Regua for a lecture and wine tasting to learn about the Douro River port wine making process.  A young man who works at the museum gave a 30-minute lecture with an audiovisual presentation. His command of the English language was very good except that he spoke very fast. We then tasted a 10-year old port from the area but it was not to my liking. 

Regua is a small town with a population of about 10,000 inhabitants and is famous for its Port Wine. The main street runs along the waterfront and is filled with small shops, cafes and restaurants. There were several river boats in port but there is a lot of dock space for the vessels to dock.

The village along the Douro River where we were docked on this day is called Pinhoa (population 1,000) although we took a bus to Vila Real about one-hour from the ship. Vila Real is the capital and largest city of the Vila Real District in northern Portugal, with a population of about 55,000 inhabitants. Founded in 1289 by King Denis of Portugal, Vila Real means Royal Town. The town has housed more members of the royal family during the middle ages than any other settlement in Portugal, with the exception of Lisbon. This area is known for its vineyards and export of red, white and pink wines. 

We visited the Mateus Palace of the Mateus winery fame. The palace is made up of three primary buildings; the manor, the winery and the chapel. The winery buildings date from the 16^th century and were modified in the 18^th century, around 1740. The current manor replaced a former family residence in the same location in the early 1600’s. In 1910, it was classified as a National monument. 

We had a walking tour at the Mateus Manor House and Gardens including a maze of manicured hedgerows, elegant gardens and a lake. The manor house has an extraordinary history and the interior rooms that are open to the public (only about seven) are filled with exception art, furnishings, books, sculpture, china and more. The ceilings are made of chestnut wood and the floors are a type of pine. Each window and interior set of doors has an elaborately hand-carved cornice box with tapestry draperies hanging to the floor. The library is filled is six-thousand collectable books, many of them handwritten. 

The gardens of the manor house are very beautiful even at this time of year when the spring and summer flowers have begun to fade. In the front of the house is a large reflecting pool which reflects the grandness of the manor house in its waters. Next to the reflecting pool is an enormous pine tree planted in 1870. The grounds around the manor include flowers, fruits and vegetable gardens. 

Our next stop was a visit to the Quinta da Avessada wine estate in the village of Favaios where we toured the winery and enjoyed a delicious lunch. This 2,500-acre wine estate is located on one of the highest peaks in the center of the Douro Valley (about 2,000 feet in elevation) with views of the entire region. There are four buildings dating back nearly 100 years surrounded by some 625 acres of planted grapevines, mostly the Muscat variety. They produce Moscatel de Favaios (Muscat of Favaios) which is a national aperitif or liqueur. To increase the world’s knowledge of this region’s wine, they started a cooperative with other growers in the area to expand their market share. 

Luis, one of the owners of the family business, was there to greet us and he was quite a character. He would introduce each course of our five-course lunch with a funny story. He would laugh at his own jokes and seemed really happy to be entertaining us. We enjoyed a salad and bread course followed by three appetizers, followed by a soup, followed by pot roast with vegetables, followed by three different dessert samples. All of this while the wine glasses never went empty. After the meal we enjoyed a Moscatel liqueur and a grappa. It was way too much food and drink for an afternoon lunch at 1:45 pm.  

After lunch we took a short tour of the neighboring building where they manually stomp the grapes in large concrete vats. Then we saw the barrel room and gift shop where you could purchase wines by the bottle and several other souvenirs like small paintings from a local artist. It was a great afternoon visit to the winery. We did have some rain showers throughout the day but usually while we were on the bus or inside so we never needed our umbrellas. 

After dinner we enjoyed Portuguese folk music by a group called Castas do Douro. The group of nine family members performed for an hour a variety of popular folk songs from the region. After the popular songs they also performed a few Fado style songs. This folk music typically has harsh lyrics accompanied by a wire strung acoustic guitar and is sung with the sadness of poverty and loneliness, but remains dignified and fully in control. This genre of music has its roots from the 15^th century when women longed for their husbands that sailed the never-ending seas. Today, many artists have used this style of music to express their opinions on social and political issues. 

On this day we took a bus about 45-minutes from the ship to the fortified hill town of Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo, a national monument in the municipality of Guarda in Portugal. The drive took us past miles of beautifully terraced hillsides of grapes, olive and almond trees. The terraces have been created over the centuries by hand using stones gathered from the land and dry-stacked into beautiful walls. The trees only get rain water, are not irrigated and they must be hand-picked due to the steep hillsides. 

This Portuguese town along the border with Spain has a population of approximately 6,500 inhabitants. We traveled further up the hill to the old castle ruins where only about 55 residents reside. We took a brief walking tour to see the city walls, the 16^th century pillory (wooden framework with holes for your head and hands in which an offender was imprisoned and exposed to public ridicule) and the local Parish Church of Castelo Rodrigo. 

The Parish Church was founded in 1192 by a brotherhood of Hospitaller friars in order to assist with the pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela. The church was originally built in the Romanesque style although later enlarged and enhanced.  The wooden altar with gold embellishments dates back to 1686 while the coffered ceiling decorated with paintings of saints is from the 18^th century. It is a very dark church and not well lit as to preserve the interior. There is a small statue of St. Sebastian that is now recognized by the LGBTQ+ community to be their patron saint. 

It is thought that the medieval castle now in ruins was built in the sixth century by Alfonso IX of Leon as part of his defensive line. The name of the castle and the surrounding village comes from the name of Count Rodrigo Gonzalez de Giron who was responsible for the defense of the castle. The fortress, walled fence, moats and 13 turrets were rebuilt in the 14^th century. The ruins have been listed as a National monument since 1922. 

While in town we were introduced to the culinary culture in the area with a tasting of some of the local products. Candied almonds with both savory and sweet flavors are popular as well as local wines, liqueurs and cheeses. We sampled almond liqueur with a sparkling soda water which was very refreshing. Also available in the shops were many purses, shoes and jewelry made from the local cork. 

The downside of our outing today was that it was raining and extremely windy on the hillside. We had umbrellas but with the strong winds they were not keeping much of the rain off of us. 

Back onboard our vessel we set sail down river and were given a basic lesson in the Portuguese language. The language is similar in some instances to Spanish but mostly much more complicated than Spanish or English. We also had a demonstration on the making of a classic Portuguese egg pastry called the Pasteis de Nata. Along with the pastries we were introduced to the Portuguese tea traditions, tea drinking and tea production. The pastries were delicious although doubt I would ever try to make them myself. 

By 11:00am we set sail on the UNESCO listed Douro River lined with beautiful terraced hillsides of vineyards, olive orchards and rural estates known as quintas. We had intermittent showers but the narrow river lined with steep hillsides was breathtaking. We transited through the Pocinho and Valeira locks on this day with 72 and 109-foot drops. We docked in the small town of Pinhao about 7:00pm for the night. 

Dinner included an oxtail appetizer, fish or pork cheek entrée, spinach soup, lemon cake. The food has been plentiful and good but not extraordinary. After dinner in the dining room we enjoyed Luis, the ships pianist who played a wide variety of music from Portuguese songs to American Classics. 

First thing this morning Kent was getting on the coach and had an accident. As he was boarding the coach with his carry-on bag, he slipped and fell backwards out of the coach door landing on the concrete on his back and hitting the back of his head. A doctor and nurse traveling with us checked on him and we got ice from the hotel for him to reduce the swelling. He decided to continue on the trip without going to the hospital. By the end of the day he was feeling sore but felt certain that he had not broken anything. 

We traveled by motor coach about three hours to the city of Salamanca which is about 120 miles west of Madrid, with a population of about 150,000 inhabitants. Along the way we stopped in a small town called Avila where had a comfort stop. The town sits on the Adaja River where there is a small four posted shrine with a cross in it built in 1566 on the site of a former Roman Temple. Many believe that it is where seven-year-old Saint Teresa tried to run away to seek martyrdom in the battle with the Moors. Her Uncle, Francisco, stopped her and made her return to the city as the story goes. 

In Salamanca we took a walking tour of the UNESCO listed historic old city and its gorgeous Grand Cathedral. The cathedral of Salamanca is a combination of both an old cathedral dating back to the 12^th and 13^th centuries, as well as a newer cathedral built in the 16^th century. The old cathedral was built in the Romanesque style with an incredible Gallo Tower in the shape of a lantern with faceted sides rather than a traditional dome. The cathedral is filled with ornate murals and its tomb of the bishops’ is filled with members of nobility. 

The old town’s cobblestone streets and pedestrian only streets make it an easy town to navigate on foot. The traditional buildings with wrought iron railings and glass enclosed verandas were inviting. The Plaza Mayor is filled with cafes where you can sit and visit with friends or just watch the people go by. Kent spent most of the afternoon on the main square watching the people go by while Mark went on the walking tour. 

After some time to explore Salamanca and have a bite of lunch we drove about two hours to a small village located in a gorgeous valley called Barca D’Alva in Portugal near the border with Spain. The village is located in a quiet rural area of rolling hills covered with grapevines, almond orchards and olive trees. The village is known for its wine making as well as being a gateway to riverboats on the Douro River. 

Here we boarded our river boat called the Douro Serenity which we would call home for the next week. The riverboat was built in 2017 and can accommodate up to 126 guests. Like most riverboats it is long and low with three decks including a restaurant, bar/lounge and a roof top pool deck. The cabins are small but nicely appointed with everything you might need including a private bath with shower. 

After settling into our cabin, we had a welcome drink and briefing in the lounge before enjoying a delicious dinner onboard. After dinner a local Spanish Flamenco Show provided the evening’s entertainment. There were three Flamenco dancers who were excellent and one of them sang the songs with her beautiful voice. Not sure that we have ever seen a Flamenco show in person so it was very high energy and interesting. 

First stop this morning was the small ancient Egyptian Templo de Debod or Temple of Debod. The temple was first erected in Egypt in the early 2^nd Century BC and over the years it was expanded to a small single-room chapel dedicated to the god Amun (god of wind). In 1960 during the construction of the Aswan High Dam in Egypt, Spain assisted with saving the temples of Abu Simbel. As a thank you from the Egyptian people, this small temple and two gates were given to Madrid. The temple was disassembled and moved to Madrid where it was reassembled. The temple stands in the Parque del Oeste or Western Park and was opened in 1972. Unfortunately, the only day the temple is not open to go inside is Monday, which is the day we came to see it. 

Also, in the Western Park is a large rose garden that we checked out. The giant park was created in 1905 where there was once a trash dump. The rose garden was designed in 1955 by Ramon Ortiz, Madrid’s head gardener. The garden features about 600 different varieties of rose bushes. Every spring the park hosts an international rose show, and in 2006, it won the Garden of Excellence Award granted by the World Federation of Rose Societies, recognizing it as one of the exceptional rose gardens of the world. The roses were not at their prime at this time of year but many of the roses were still in bloom. The garden has many divided beds of roses, arbors covered with roses, ponds and fountains. 

We then headed back to the Royal Palace that we had seen briefly yesterday for a closer look around. The Royal Palace, owned by the Spanish state, is the official residence of the Spanish royal family, although is now used only for state ceremonies. The palace is the largest in Europe with 3,418 rooms and 1,450,000 square feet of floor space. A palace was originally built on this site by Muhammad I between 860 and 880 but was severely damaged in 1476. The castle had been added onto and renovated many times through the years, until 1734 when the palace was once again destroyed by fire. After the palace was destroyed work began again to build a new palace which was later enlarged and renovated over the years. The building is quite regal looking and is very prominent in the city skyline as it sits on an elevated hill above the city. 

Next door to the Royal Palace stands the Almudena Cathedral that had a groundbreaking in 1883 but was not completed until 1993. In that same year it was consecrated by Pope John Paul II. King Felipe VI, then crown prince, and Letizia Ortiz Rocasolano were married in the cathedral in 2004. 

Our last stop was the Plaza de Espana which is a large public square with temporary structures where people were selling food and beverages, cheeses, jewelry and more. The square was recently renovated for over two years and is also the site of a monument to Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, the famous Spanish author who wrote Don Quixote in 1605 prior to his death in 1615. 

For dinner we met up with Ric and Kevin and headed out to a neighborhood restaurant called Casa Mono or Monkey House. The restaurant was very comfortable high ceilings, tons of black wrought iron decorative window frames and interesting objects of art. They had a large menu with all sorts of appetizers, entrees like Indian Chicken, roast boneless suckling pig and even a hamburger. Everyone was able to find something that they enjoyed and the food was good. Even better was that the prices were very reasonable including three-euro beers and large bottles of water. 

This morning we were taken on a sightseeing tour of the city. A motor coach took us to the Puerta del Sol, one of the gates in the city wall that surrounded Madrid in the 15^th century. The name of the gate came from the rising sun which decorated the entry since the gate faces east. 

We passed by the Atocha Railway Station also named Madrid Puerta de Atocha which is the first major railway station in Madrid dating back to 1851. It is the largest rail station serving commuter trains, regional trains and even train service to Marseille, France. After a major fire destroyed the original station it was rebuilt in 1892. Alberto de Palacio Elissagne along with collaboration from Gustave Eiffel built what was called a wrought iron renewal style structure. Two gorgeous brick buildings flank the train platforms which are covered with a steel and glass roof. In 1992 the original building was taken out of service as a newer station replaced it and it was converted into a concourse with shops and cafes. The area where the train tracks would have run is now an acre sized covered tropical garden.  

We drove by one of Madrid’s largest parks at 350-acres, called Retiro Park. The park belonged to the Spanish Monarchy until the late 1800’s when it became a public park. In 2021 the park became a part of a combined UNESCO Heritage Site along with the Paseo del Prado. The park includes a man-made lake, galleries, gardens, fountains, statuary and many venues where public events are held. 

The Gran Via or “Great Way” street in central Madrid is one of the city’s most important shopping areas. Madrid’s urban planners in the mid 19^th century decided that a new thoroughfare should be created to connect the Calle de Alcala with the Plaza de Espana. After much planning and opposition, in 1904 the plan was approved and in 1910 construction began. The project involved the demolition of many buildings and much new construction. The entire project was not completed for nearly 20 years. The new avenue brought out many architects of the time and many beautiful new buildings. 

To finish off our tour of Madrid we arrived at the Mercado de San Miguel or Market of San Miguel. Originally built in 1916 this covered market is housed in an ornate stunning glass and wrought iron building. Inside there are small stalls of vendors selling all types of food items like tapas, fresh fruits, empanadas, desserts, fish, cheeses, breads, beer, wine and sangria. 

We stopped at one of the vendors where they treated us to a choice of drink and two tapas. The tapa choices were calamari, shrimp, crab, prosciutto ham and others. There was a section that had small tables to sit once you made your selection of items. Each vendor’s selection of food items was beautifully arranged making them difficult to resist if you were just planning to stop in for a look. 

Compared with our experience yesterday when the streets were incredibly busy, today, on a Sunday morning, the streets were quiet and many of the shops had not yet opened. The streets are not laid out in a grid pattern, but instead curve and meander making navigating the streets difficult. Some streets are extremely narrow one-way cobble stone streets, while others are broad eight lane boulevards. Overall the streets appeared well maintained; the buildings are well kept with the exception of a vast amount of graffiti. 

In the afternoon Mark took a tour of the Museo Nacional del Prado or Prado Museum while Kent stayed at the hotel to rest. He had been to the museum in the past when he was studying Spanish in Bilbao. The museum holds one of the finest collections of European art, dating from the 12^th century to the early 20^th century. The museum was founded in 1819 and has the single best collection of Spanish art in the world. Francisco Goya, Rubens, Titian and Diego Velazquez are some of the highlights of the collection. The collection contains more than 8,000 drawings, 7,500 paintings, 4,800 prints and 1,000 sculptures. Currently about 1,800 works of art in the permanent collection are presented in more than 100 galleries. 

The building that houses the museum was designed in 1785 by architect of the Enlightenment in Spain, Juan de Villanueva on orders of Charles III. The building’s final function was not decided until Ferdinand VII, encouraged by his wife, Queen Maria Isabel de Braganza, decided to use it as a new Royal Museum of Paintings and Sculpture. The museum opened to the public in 1819 with a collection of 311 paintings to show works of art belonging to the Spanish Crown and to show the rest of Europe that Spanish art was on equal footing with other European art. The museum has continued to expand including approval in 2021 of a 60,000 square foot remodel of an existing building nearby. 

There were 26 of us on the tour of the museum and we were split into two groups, each with a guide. My guide did an incredible job of taking us through the museum explaining the most important works of art. She spoke for two hours without missing a note. She easily answered folks’ questions and kept us moving along. Some museums you have trouble finding things that are impressive to you, but here everywhere you look has something of interest. It was not too busy and we used ear pieces to hear the guides commentary. It was a great afternoon. 

For dinner the group was taken to a restaurant not far from our hotel called Asador de Aranda where their specialty is roasted lamb. The charming traditional styled restaurant has been in existence since 1883. It has two floors with rustic beams, plastered walls and a large wood fired oven where they roast the lamb. We were seated on the lower level where they have room for a group the size of ours; about 100 guests. 

For appetizers they served Spanish omelet’s, roasted Piquillo peppers (similar to a bell pepper), black pudding with rice and chorizo pork sausage. The entrée was a roasted suckling lamb from the fired oven, a salad of greens, tomatoes and onions, and roasted potatoes. For dessert they served a puff pastry with a cream filling, coffee and tea and a homemade liquor with small dry dough donuts. Red wine, water, coffee and tea flowed as well. Everything was very good and we ate more than we needed. 

After dinner many of our travel companions joined us for the 30 minute walk back to our hotel. It was a busy day but very enjoyable. 

This was our first full day in the bustling metropolitan city of Madrid, the capital city of Spain. The city of Madrid has a population of around 3.5 million people while the entire metropolitan area has nearly 7 million inhabitants. Madrid is the second largest city in all of the European Union just slightly smaller than Berlin. While the city has a modern infrastructure, it has preserved many of its historical neighborhoods and landmarks. 

We ventured out from our hotel where we explored both the major shopping avenues and many small narrow neighborhood streets. It was a Saturday morning but the streets were bustling with many people out shopping, going to the theater and parks. The main avenue has wide sidewalks but there were so many people it was often difficult to walk without slowing down or going weaving in and out of the crowd. Along the way we found both homeless people and buskers wearing very oversized costumes of animals like pandas and Koala where you could tip them to get a photo with them. 

On this day there was also an enormous protest down the main street where local retirees were demanding higher retirement earnings so they could live a decent life without struggle. The protest included one contingent after another with colorful banners, flags and noise making horns. There seemed to be no sight in end to the number of people involved in the protest. 

The hotel concierge said that we should also check out the Chueca neighborhood as it was an artsy neighborhood. When we arrived there we soon realized that it was Madrid’s gay neighborhood named after composer and author Federico Chueca. The Chueca neighborhood is known for its lively atmosphere, many street cafes and boutique shops. It is also considered a very inclusive neighborhood regardless of one’s sexual orientation. During gay pride every year the neighborhood features famous and not so famous gay artists’ works. 

Everywhere we went in the center of Madrid the streets are filled with beautiful vintage buildings with ornate architecture. Many of the historic buildings in Madrid were built during the reign of the Hapsburgs (Reigned from 1516 to 1700) using brick facades with ornate interiors, but the most common buildings today are from the late 19^th-Century when the city expanded dramatically. These buildings line many of the streets are around eight stories tall, butted up side by side with plaster facades, ornate ornamentation and many balustrades. The streets and buildings are very regal and elegant looking. 

Back at our hotel we enjoyed a bite of lunch in the private lobby area called The Level which we are able to use based on our hotel room status. They had a huge selection of tasty looking tapas treats to choose from and we indulged in a few too many. A tapa is an appetizer or snack in Spanish cuisine and can be served hot or cold. According to the Joy of Cooking, the original tapas were thin slices of bread or meat which sherry drinkers in Andalusia (Southern Spain) taverns used to cover their glasses between sips. The measure was used to prevent fruit flies from hovering over the sweet sherry. Ham and chorizo were the most common meat used which are both very salty and would also activate the thirst. Because of this tavern owners would serve the snacks with the sherry and increase their alcohol sales. 

Our dear friends Ric and Kevin arrived this afternoon from Rancho Mirage near Palm Springs. We are looking forward to catching up with them and spending the next two weeks together exploring Spain and Portugal. Another friend, Carlos, was unable to join us as his father is quite ill and he had to travel to San Antonio, Texas to be with his family. We will miss him, but are wishing him all the best at this difficult time. 

This evening we met up with the rest of the Vantage Travel group for an orientation and to meet our tour group leader Patricia and the concierge for our trip named Lidia. There are about 100 of us on the trip and mostly retired looking. The orientation was too quick and not clear enough for people to understand. 

After the orientation we enjoyed a delicious dinner in the Melia Hotel’s dining room. They served us an avocado and shrimp salad for starters followed by a beef tenderloin with potatoes, stewed whole tomato and asparagus. For dessert they served a chocolate cake from a miniature Bundt pan with chocolate pudding inside the ring. 

It was a very early morning for us as we prepared to depart Frankfurt on a 10:50am flight bound for Madrid, Spain. We were up by 5:00am to get ready to leave and have breakfast before our taxi arrived at 7:15am to take us to the airport. We arrived early as our hotel receptionist advised but the Air Europa desk didn’t open until 8:50am. 

Once we arrived in Madrid we found a taxi to take us into the city and to our hotel for the next four nights, the Melia Madrid Princesa. We were put in a room on the eleventh floor that was part of what they call The Level. The Level is a premier floor where they have a concierge, special check in services, etc. They also have an extraordinary array of coffee and cookies, tapas, sandwiches, wine, champagne, waters, soft drinks, nuts, olives and more for guests from 1:00pm to 11:00pm. In the mornings from 7:30am to 11:00am they serve breakfast. 

After a few snacks to tide us over we headed out for a walk to learn a little about our location in the center of Madrid. The main street in front of our hotel is called Calle de la Princesa and is lined with a shopping mall, shops and restaurants of all types. Similar to places all over the world these days, we came across many homeless folks silently begging with signs asking for money. 

We then came upon a huge well-maintained park called Parque del Oeste or Western Park which was once main landfill for the city. The park includes all sorts of monuments, a rose garden, fountains and more. On the street adjoining the park is the 150-foot-tall Arco de la Victoria or triumphant arch in honor of the 1936 Battle of Ciudad Universitaria, part of the Spanish Civil War. Just beyond the arch stands the Faro de Moncloa, a 300-foot-tall transmission tower with an observation deck. 

Back at our hotel we met up with a French student named Olivier from SDSU who studied in San Diego in 2008. In our travels, we have met him all over the world since then including when he was studying in Australia. Olivier has a beautiful condo in central Paris but he gets claustrophobic after being home for more than a month and gets on the road traveling. While he is away he rents his condo in Paris, mostly to Americans. Lucky for him, he has a great job in human resources where he can work remotely from anywhere in the world. He is even thinking of buying another home in the south of Spain for its better climate. 

Olivier took us to a very unique little restaurant not far from our hotel called El Jardin Secreto or the Secret Garden. It was a kitschy spot where none of the furniture matched but instead looked like it was sourced from second hand shops. Every surface of the restaurant was covered in odd stuffed animals, pottery, plants, lights, decorative objects and more. Everywhere you looked there was something new to take in. The food was typical Spanish tapas and was quite good. We had a curry chicken dish, some empanadas that we might call pot stickers and a Greek style moussaka. We enjoyed hearing about Olivier’s life, especially about Pablo, his significant other, and were happy he made time for us.

The weather on this day was cool and gray but luckily no rain to speak of except for a few sprinkles. We spent a leisurely morning in the hotel.  In the afternoon one of our students from SDSU in 2009, Marc, came from Munich to visit with us. We spent the day eating and walking our way through town. 

We first stopped at a charming café by the name of Utopia where we had cakes and coffee while we caught up on each other’s lives. It was filled with red velvet banquettes and delicious tasting cakes. The place was filled with tables of retired older women which Marc said was a good sign as these older women know good cakes when they taste them. 

We explored the city on foot wandering around the Old Jewish Cemetery where the walls surrounding the cemetery are filled with the names of those killed in concentration camps. Small metal boxes mounted on the walls record the names, the concentration camp, if known, as well as the date of birth and date of death if known. The headstones date as far back as 1272 – the oldest material evidence of Jewish life in Frankfurt. This cemetery was used until 1828 when a new cemetery was created. The cemetery itself does not appear to be so well maintained due to the fact that in 1939 the Jewish community was forced to sell their cemeteries and other properties in Frankfurt to the city. The plan had been to level the cemetery and in 1943 6,500 gravestones were demolished. Only about 175 selected tombstones of historical importance, or value from an artistic sense, were saved. Fortunately, demolition of the cemetery was halted due to bombings. Debris and rubble were dumped there instead. As a result, 2,500 tombstones remain fully preserved along with thousands of fragments. At the end of Nazi rule, the cemetery was returned to the newly formed Jewish Community and clean-up work continued until the 1950’s. 

Our next stop was the majestic St. Bartholomew’s Church known for its history as the former election and coronation church of the Holy Roman Empire. Today’s church, built in the 1950’s after suffering severe damage during the war, is the third known church on the site with the oldest dating back to the seventh century. 

We spent some time sitting in the main town square outside the city hall building watching the people go by. For dinner we found a wonderful brasserie called Oscar’s in a fancy hotel where we had a delicious dinner. The boneless lamb shank with couscous, roasted vegetables, dates and almonds was very tasty. Kent enjoyed a burger!

This was another quiet morning where we enjoyed the buffet breakfast in our hotel and caught up on emails. 

In the afternoon we walked in the park that wraps around the old city center enjoying the many sculptures, fountains, lakes and children’s play areas. Many locals enjoy the park with the children or take a lunch break in the park before returning to work. The park is busy with bicycles, scooters, dog walkers, baby carriages and walkers. People of every age range can be seen enjoying the park. 

For an early dinner we decided to try a small Italian restaurant very near the main train station called Pizzeria 7 Bello. Our student Johannes said that it is one of the best places in the city for Italian food. When we arrived the very small dining room was not particularly busy but within ten minutes you could hardly get into the door. The entire restaurant only has about six large tables with stools around them and every one of them was soon surrounded by as many people as could fit around a table. No matter where you are from, you get pushed into a table with new friends. 

The menu included salads, pizza’s and pasta dishes of all types. One not so friendly waiter makes his way around from table to table taking orders and bringing food and drinks to your table. The waiter is also the cashier. The only other person we saw was a young man making the pizzas. Once we ordered, the food came very quickly and we were so happy that we got in before the major crowd arrived. The food was good and the price was excellent. For a good-sized salad, a decent sized pizza and two soft drinks the total bill was only 17 euros. We woofed down our food and made a quick exit to our hotel before we got claustrophobia.