Besalú

Time to head back to Barcelona for the Barcelona stage of this vacation.  But first, a detour to Besalú.

Besalú is a beautiful, thousand-year-old medieval town in the Catalan interior on the banks of the Rio Fluvia, about 20 minutes west of Figueres.  A side trip was in order.

The rental car this trip was a red striped diesel Mini Cooper.  Minis are fun cars to drive, with extremely forgiving transmission.  I would be cruising at highway speed and forget to take the car out of third gear, it was so smooth.

Besalú was not far.  And the biggest driving challenge was dodging bicycles.  The Figueres is a major road cycling area.  I do not know why.

We headed down a narrow alley.

And came across the beautiful ancient-looking church.   Sant Vicenç de Besalú.  San Vicente for your Spanish speakers.  The language of this area is Catalan.  Which is most decidedly NOT a "dialect" of Spanish.  It is a very distinct language that bears as much similarity to French as it does Spanish.  The people throughout this region are very appreciative when you recognize that they speak their own distinctive language.

 Sant Vicenç was interesting, but you could not go in.  It wasn't clear where the rest of Besalú was, since we did not come in the main way.  But it is a small city.

And it was easy to find the arched bridge that is the signature of Besalú.  So let's join the tourist hordes invading town from across the bridge.

But first, selfie time.

I can't get enough of me, apparently.  Now, to cross the bridge and enter Besalú.

The town is best viewed from the bridge.  Note that the bridge is flying the Catalan flag.  You don't (m)any Spanish flags in this part of Spain.  I've yet to see one, in fact.

Artsy "town reflected in water" shot.

This is the other medieval era church building in Besalú.

Monestir de Sant Pere de Besalú.

Oh.  Look at the time.  Time to head back to the Mini for the drive back to Barcelona.  We drove along the coast, but, alas, there were only a few brief glimpses of the Mediterranean.  The C-253, the road closest to the coast paralleling the coast, is not California Route 1 hugging the Pacific Ocean.  But there will be PLENTY of pictures of the Mediterranean from Barcelona

Afternoon at the Olympics (then BMW)

Freddie Mercury at the 1972 Munich Olympics because why the hell not?

From the Englischer Garten to the 1972 Munich Olympics featuring a chance encounter with Freddie Mercury (in bronze).

Walking to the Olympic grounds

The Olympic grounds on the north side of Munchen/Munich are dominated by a large tower.  Question, because I legitimately don't remember: was this tower part of the Olympics in '72?  Did Jim McKay and ABC ever cut to shots of the tower in their Olympic coverage (from back in the old days when they broadcast events when -- get this -- they were happening) (and they would show events where Americans not only would not medal, but wouldn't even be in the competition for medals) (all without wasting broadcast time on vaseline-focused "triumph over unfathomable adversity" human interest stories).

The pool is there.  I didn't recognize it since they really didn't do exterior shots on the broadcast back then.  Back in the old days, we walked through 20 feet of snow uphill and barefoot to watch the Summer Olympics.  And they only showed sports.  Now, the Olympic ground features small children trapped in plastic bubbles.  For out amusement.

Hey Germans. There's a kid inside those plastic bubbles

Do something

Well, I was amused.

We then climbed the tower (in an elevator, thankfully), to get the aerial view.

Better than looking through the head of Miss Bavaria 1844

The round buildings are BMW world headquarters

Aerial view of Sister and B-I-L

The tower featured a "rock museum" near the top, hence being greeted by the bronze Freddie Mercury on the way in.  Well, another one bites the dust.

From there, as you may have been able to tell from the aerial view of the Olympic grounds, it was a short walk to BMW museum and display case.  Lots of Beemers on display:

New crop of Beemers. Freshly harvested.

I'm not much of a BMW fan.  But I did like the Mini Cooper display.

A yellow Mini Cooper received automotive acupuncture

Mini in green

I really liked the look of this Countryman:

Only 40,000 euro

If I was ever in the market for a car ever again (I hope my A3 lasts another 20 years), I would seriously consider getting this.  You can actually order your BMW at this factory and take delivery here.

Unfortunately, I did not have the euro to take the Countryman home.  So I settled for this little BMW baby:

Screw you, helmet laws!

What an intense ride.

A Walk Through Cuidad Vieja

Viewing Palacio Salvo from Plaza Independencia

Another day.  Another "vieja."

My first day in Montevideo.  I had arranged several weeks ago to do a "walking tour" of the Cuidad Vieja in Montevideo.  I was to meet my tour guide at the Puerta de la Cuidadela on Plaza Independencia.  Plaza Independencia is the point that separates the old colonial era town from modern bustling Montevideo.  And right at the edge of Plaza Independencia is the signature building of the Montevideo skyline:  Palacio Salvo.  It's an art deco masterpiece from the 1920s.  There's an identical one in Buenos Aires.  The two were supposed to be "connected" in the 1920s sense by radio beam.  Unfortunately, that dang "curvature of the earth" intervened and the two could not be so linked.

While the Palacio Salvo is the signature building of Montevideo, its identical twin the Palacio Barolo does not fill that role in Buenos Aires at all.  If one were so inclined, one could comment on how this reflects upon each of those cities, with either city in the more favorable of the two comparisons.  It was a cool and foggy in old Montevideo Town, so my photos of Palacio Salvo do it no justice:

Palacio Salvo

I got to the Puerta de la Cuidadela at 9:45AM, surprisingly well before the 10:00AM scheduled "meet up" time for me who is not a morning person especially when I don't get to my hotel room until 3:00AM.  There was no one there who looked like he was a tour guide for Cuidad Vieja Tours.  So I waited.

Puerta de la Cuidadela, on the opposite end of Plaza Independencia from Palacio Salvo

 And I waited.

Someone muy importante en la historia de Uruguay astride a horse in Plaza Independencia

And I waited.  I've been in Montevideo for about eight hours and this is the second time someone who was supposed to meet me was a "no call no show."  The tour was supposed to cost $25 U.S.  Glad I didn't pay in advance!  Of course, if I had, then maybe my tour guide wouldn't have been NCNS.  So, armed with my trusty tourist map, I decide to take my own-guided walking tour of Cuidad Vieja.

Plaza de la Constitucion

One block into the Cuidad Vieja, I see that a flea market has broken out in Plaza de la Constitucion, which is only two short blocks from Plaza Independencia.  And I'm all about the fleas, so I decide that this would be a good place to shop for a souvenir mate gourd.  (Yes, someone on my souvenir-shopping list wanted an authentic Uruguayan mate gourd.  And, this surprised me, you see people walking the streets of Montevideo with a mate gourd in hand and a stainless steel thermos, presumably keeping the mate hot.  I would like to get a picture, but it's tough to stop people on the street and asked them to pose so you can get a picture of them looking all Uruguayan with their mate gourd.)

Catedral Metropolitana de Montevideo

The Catedral Metropolitana is right on the edge of Plaza de la Constitucion.  Meanwhile, on the opposite side of Plaza de la Constitucion, some sort of road race has broken out.

At the Plaza de la Constitucion

A second after I shot this, the white Mercedes peeled out and roared down the street.  It appears to be a charity event time trial thing.  What sort of charity I haven't a clue.  The sign "Mujeres al Volante" translates to "Women Drivers," so that's not really a clue.  I guess I could ask, but I'd probably get an answer in Spanish that I couldn't "entiendo," so por qué bother?  I did like that old red Saab parked by the starting gate.

A Mini.  A real one.  Trez British from the 60s.

I did see a real Mini waiting in the queue.  But I didn't wait around to see it sputter out of the starting gate.

Plaza Zabala

I continue walking in the general direction of the harbor.  The neighborhood starts getting dicier at this point.  I had read that Cuidad Vieja is a "no va" zone once the sun goes down and some people on tripadvisor.com were even saying it was "not so safe" in the daylight.  So, in orders to not stand out, I decide to wander around aimlessly snapping pictures with my camera, so that I don't stand out as a turista.

Attractive older building somewhat in a state of decay

The reason this is a "no go" zone at night may be that it is a pedestrian only walkway.  You don't get traffic going through these streets at night.  And "no traffic" tends to equal "breeding ground for crime."

Upward slope.  Could this be the "mountain" that resulted in the town name of "I see a mountain"?

The gates of the Mercado del Puerto

I finally arrive at the Mercado del Puerto, with its famous wrought iron gates.  Inside, there are more than a dozen restaurants, sit-down and counter-service, all grilling delicious cuts of meat.  And by meat I generally mean "steak," although sausages and some chickens were roasting.  The aroma is incredible.  This is carnivore heaven.  This is why we visit Monevideo.  Shall we take a look inside?

Yes.  We shall.  But I will save that for its own post.  It's worth it.

Walking up Perez Castellano

I decide to hoof it back to Plaza Independencia to catch a cab back to my hotel.

Sarandi street scene

Up Sarandi street.

Puerta de la Cuidadela with Palacio Salvo in the background

And I see la Puerta de la Cuidadela, which means I'm about to emerge from the Cuidad Vieja and into the real city.

Neoclassical(ish) style building on the south side of Plaza Independencia

I wander around Plaza Independencia looking for the best place to catch a cab.

Teatro Solis

This is the reknowned Teatro Solis, sitting on the southwest corner of Plaza Independencia.  This is where you go to see the "high art" performing arts in Uruguay.

Palacio Salvo

Then one last look at Palacio Salvo and it's time to cab it back to the hotel.