hidden discovery

Cuchía (Cantabria), Spain

In search of the perfect place to get a coffee overlooking the sea, we stumbled upon this gem of a coastline.  I've been to Cantabria on a number of occasions, but had never had the privilege to see this until now.

mountains and sea

Liencres (Cantabria), Spain

This beautiful beach sits in the middle of a natural park, Parque Natural de las Dunas de Liencres.  Mountains and sea all in one shot... what more can you ask for?

 

on the move

Hamburg, Germany

An average of 450,000 passengers a day are on the move in the Hamburg Hauptbahnhof, central railway station.

Sellin Pier

Sellin - Rügen Island (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern), Germany

Sellin is a Baltic seaside spa resort on the Island of Rügen.  Sellin Pier, complete with its own restaurant, stands on South Beach and reaches close to 400 meters in length.

Inner Alster Lake

Hamburg, Germany

Inner Alster Lake is found in the city limits of Hamburg and is formed by the River Alster.  Many walkways surround this lake and the Hamburg city center acts as a beautiful backdrop.

Baltic Sea

Stralsund (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern), Germany

Taken from Rügen Island, the Baltic Sea in between...  Stralsund was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2002.

Merry Christmas!

Hamburg, Germany

Merry Christmas to all!

This picture is taken in the main square of Hamburg with the city hall in the background and a wonderful traditional Christmas market in the foreground.

 

Christmas Eve

Hamburg, Germany

Hamburg has the busiest train station in Germany and the 2nd busiest in Europe, after Gare du Nord in Paris.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

prehistoric

San Diego, California - USA

...so prehistoric looking!

San Diego

San Diego, California - USA

Portuguese born Juan Cabrillo claimed the area of San Diego in 1542, sailing in the name of Castile (today Spain).  In 1821 San Diego became part of Mexico and in 1850 it was taken over by the United States in the Mexican American War.  Today it is 2nd largest city of California.

Old Town

San Diego, California - USA

The Church of the Immaculate Conception is located in Old Town, the original center point of San Diego.  Spain claimed the entire west coast of what is California today and began preparations to occupy the land.  Ordered by the Spanish King in the late 1700s, Mission centers were built up and down the coast of California to spread the idea of Christianity among the native people.

SDSU

San Diego, California - USA

Hepner Hall, in Mission Revival Style architecture, is the icon representing San Diego State University.  Today it houses the School of Social Work, Department of Gerontology and the University Center on Aging.  

SDSU originated in 1897, under the name "San Diego Normal School", educating local women to become elementary school teachers.  Today it offers 189 types of Bachelor's degrees, 91 different Master's degrees and 22 types of Doctoral degrees.

historic landmark

San Diego, California - USA

These buildings make up part of Balboa Park, a park built to host the Panama-California Exposition and the California Pacific International Exposition.  The architecture of the buildings resembles what you would see in Spain.

goofy textures

San Diego, California - USA

Balboa Park

San Diego, California - USA

These water lilies are found in Balboa Park, named after the Spanish explorer (Vasco Núñez de Balboa) who is best known for having crossed the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean.  This park has over 15 museums, numerous gardens and cultural centers as well as the well-known San Diego Zoo.  It originated in 1915 for the Panama-California Exposition and then was later used for the California-Pacific International Exposition.  It has been declared a National Historic Landmark containing many architectural landmarks.

sun on the Pacific

Del Mar (San Diego), California - USA

One of countless sunsets to be seen on the Pacific Coast...

stripes

San Diego, California - USA

Zebras sure are funny looking creatures, aren't they?  Ever wonder why they have stripes?  I do!  They seem so perfect, it blows my mind!  Some say they help to hide in grass or when in a group the stripes confuse predators.  Others say they help in attracting fewer flies.  Evolution... Wow!

colorful lifeguard tower

Santa Monica, California - USA

When I arrived Santa Monica for the first time, I was amazed at the size of the beach, not necessarily its length of close to 6 kilometers, but rather its width.  It was one of the widest beaches I had ever seen.  This is the beach where the famed Baywatch was filmed.

USD

San Diego, California - USA

The University of San Diego, started in 1952, is a beautiful campus located in Alcalá Park, an elevated area of land overlooking Mission Bay and other parts of San Diego.  Its buildings are designed in a 16th-century Spanish Renaissance architectural style which pay homage to the University of Alcalá in Spain.  In 2011 this university was named by the magazine Travel+Leisure as one of the most beautiful college campuses in the United States.

Newport pier

Newport Beach, California - USA

Newport Beach, located in Orange County, is just one of many numerous places to enjoy its beaches.  Common to California's beaches are the piers; this particular one has a restaurant at the end of it.

Disney Concert Hall

Los Angeles, California - USA

Forming part of the Los Angeles Music Center, this concert hall is home to the Los Angeles Philharmonic orquestra and the Los Angeles Master Chorale.  Walt Disney's wife, Lilian, donated 50 million dollars to build a performance venue as a gift to the city and also a tribute to her husband's devotion to the arts and the city itself.  

Canadian arquitect, Frank Gehry, designed the building.  Other works by this arquitect are the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Experience Music Project in Seattle, Dancing House in Prague and the Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago, just to name a few.

Route 66 - end of the trail

Santa Monica, California - USA

life guard on duty

La Jolla, California - USA

beachfront

Newport Beach, California - USA

Torrey Pines Natural Reserve

San Diego, California - USA

Coronado Island

Coronado Island - San Diego, California - USA

University of San Diego

San Diego, California - USA

la Cibeles

Madrid, Spain

La Cibeles, the Mother goddess - a sculpture designed in the late 18th century by Ventura Rodríguez - lies in the heart of this metropolis, an icon for the city of Madrid.

stepping back in time

Pedraza (Segovia - Castilla y León), Spain

Walking around Pedraza is as if you were stepping back in time...

end of the day

Sepúlveda (Segovia - Castilla y León), Spain

With natural parks and mountains to its east, west and south, this medieval town lies in a privileged location.

modern Lisbon

Lisbon, Portugal

Contrasting the city center, Lisbon has ultra modern neighborhoods as well.  Venture off to the Parque das Nações and see the area that was built to get ready for the 1998 World Fair.  This particular residential building in the background, facing the Tagus River, was built after the fair.  There are actually two, one standing next to the other, and they are called Torre São Gabriel and Torre São Rafael.

a hidden paradise

Ilha do Farol (Faro - Algarve), Portugal

With a library of books, I would be happy to stay here for a while...

in the heart of the Pyrenees

Ochagavía (Navarra), Spain

This medieval village located in the heart of the Pyrenees mountains, just minutes away from the French border, is worth a visit.  Its stone houses along the Anduña River create a picturesque setting for any time of the year.

 

shades of green

Elmwood, Wisconsin - USA

Wisconsin offers any shade of green you can imagine!

To take our minds off the cold weather we've been having, here's a picture from summer to warm us up a bit!

H A P P Y   T H A N K S G I V I N G !

Alfama

Lisbon, Portugal

Alfama - the oldest district of Lisbon transports you back in time and does something to your state of mind that is impossible to explain...

view from the castle

Castelo de Vide, Portugal - Region of Alentejo

This time, as opposed to a previous post for Castelo de Vide, the view of this marvellous medieval town has been taken from the castle.

Portugal and Spain

Valença do Minho (Norte Region), Portugal

Portugal on one side and Spain on the other...  the Minho River forming the border between the two.

dusk

Valença do Minho (Region Norte), Portugal

defense walls

Valença do Minho (Norte Region), Portugal

Valença do Minho used these defense walls to protect themselves from invasions centuries ago.

the beauty of balconies

Valença do Minho (Norte Region), Portugal

Sometimes the simpler something is, the more it grabs your attention.

village life

Wamba (Valladolid - Castillia y León), Spain

an everyday sight for people living in the Spanish countryside...  off to get the bread...

the lone cathedral tower

Valladolid (Valladolid - Castilla y León), Spain

The cathedral of Valladolid was a work in progress that was never finished as planned.  There were supposed to be four towers, similar to the one seen in this picture, one on each corner (two tall towers and two shorter towers), but only one was actually built.  If the project would have been carried out as Juan de Herrera, planned, it would have been one of the biggest cathedrals in Spain.  Construction slowed and funds were cut when the capital city of Spain moved from Valladolid to Madrid in the 1560s.

Mercat Central

Valencia (Valencia), Spain

The Mercat Central (Central Market) of Valencia is considered one of the largest and oldest European markets still running.  It began its construction during the modernist movement in 1914 using iron, brick, stone, marble, ceramic tiles and mosaics and was originally meant to hold 959 stands for the sale of fresh products.  Designed by Francesc Guàrdia i Vial and Alexandre Soler i March, both trained at the Architecture School in Barcelona, this beautiful market is a treat for the eyes and definitely worth visiting.

boat rides on the Albufera

El Palmar (Valencia), Spain

The Albufera (Arabic word meaning "small sea.") is a privileged nature reserve of more than 21,000 hectares (52,000 acres) containing a freshwater lagoon surrounded by rice fields, where flora and fauna thrive year-round.  

El Palmar (10 km south of the capital city of Valencia) offers many delicious restaurants serving the famed paella rice dish which is said to have originated in the Albufera in the 19th century.  The word paella is a Valencian/Catalan word meaning "pan", referring to the shallow pan they use to make this marvelous dish.  The restaurants in this town are lined up along a canal in a pleasant setting.  I highly recommend trying paella in any one of them.  You'll be glad you did!

ornate façades

Valencia (Valencia), Spain

Many ornate façades can be seen walking around Valencia.

 

Columbus Market

Valencia (Valencia), Spain

Built at the turn of the 20th century, Mercat de Colom (Columbus Market) was built in Art Nouveau style and served as a food market.  In 2003 it was converted into a leisure area with shopping, various restaurants and cafés.  It's a beautiful building worth a vist.

L' Àgora

Valencia (Valencia), Spain

L´Àgora is the newest edition to the City of Arts and Sciences and is used to host sporting events, concerts, performances, exhibitions and meetings.  Also seen in this picture are the tops of the suspension bridge, interactive science museum as well as the opera house.

L'Umbracle

Valencia (Valencia), Spain

L'Umbracle is a landscaped walkway making up part of the City of Arts and Sciences and was designed to display plant species indigenous to the area around Valencia.  It also exhibits an outdoor art gallery of contemporary sculptures by several different artists.  It is 320 meters long and 60 meters wide.

What I love most about this architectural complex is the contrast of the blue sky with the simple clean white lines of the different structures that make up this marvelous area.

City of Arts and Sciences

Valencia (Valencia), Spain

This complex of seven different structures and buildings devoted to the Arts and Sciences was designed by Santiago Calatrava and Félix Candela and initiated  in 1996.  Things such as an IMAX theater, planetarium, interactive science museum, landscaped walk with plants indigenous to Valencia, oceanographic aquarium, opera house and performing arts center, concerts and sporting events can all be enjoyed in the City of Arts and Sciences.

on the border

Salto de Saucelle (Salamanca - Castilla y León), Spain

If my memory doesn't fail me, I believe this picture was taken on the Spanish side of the Duero River (Douro in Portuguese).  No matter what side you're on, Spain or Portugal, it's equally beautiful to see how this river forms the natural border between the two countries.