Travelog for: Baubles

I am getting prepared for my travels - i am off to Spain soon to stay with Irene - i am very excited about my new adventure & hopefully can complete part of my missons - more updates & pics to follow 

**** Also, if you think i would have a nice time staying with you & you can help with my life missions, please PM my mentor! I want to stay in Spain for half the summer then jet off somewhere exotic for the rest, before heading somewhere cold with lots of snow for Christmas  ***

Next host is: Pixiedustlady in the U.S.A
Then: minnihiiru in Estonia

Wow - a new friend has arrived - Pisoni & we have a new recruit TV Mr Bananas - who works @ Motability with Julie as their Team Mascott - it has been a very exciting week!

I am very excited to help Pisoni settle in to our life in England, then my adventure can start & i can leave for Spain next week!!!

We are all going out clubbing tonight with Julie - get to meet her friends, some dj's & maybe even have a mix - he he 

Went out Clubbing this weekend with Julie & the TV's - Mr Bananas & Pisoni - we had such a great time!

Then the weekend just got better as yesterday some new friends arrived: Claire Tamias & Rattie - i am off to Spain this weekend - i am so excited to start my voyage

Hi!

I am all packed up & on my way to Spain to stay with Irene - i am very excited, Pisoni got here in no time at all so i think the flight over wont take long at all!

I am really looking forward to some nice weather as been noting but rain here for days

Baubles xxx

Hi Mum!

Finally, after a long journey, I can say that I arrived safely to Spain. I was very nervous, but I already met some new friends: Breogán (Irene´s new TV); and Roderich and Bally, that are visiting Caldas this weekend. They are really nice with me!

Irene has promised me we are going to visit the town and eat some typical dishes (she told something about "tortilla"), so I am very excited!

Guess what! Pisoni's postcard arrived at the same time than me! Isn´t it funny? Irene has told me that Bristol seems a beautiful place  .

Well, Mum, just let you know I am ok, just a bit tired, so I think I am going to rest a little. Here you have a couple of pictures of my arrival.





Bye for now, I promise I will write soon (miss you),

Baubles

Hi Mum!

After a long (and deserved) rest, Irene has taken me to Santiago de Compostela, where I finally met María (she is a really nice girl).

The first thing that I did was to visit with my new friends Roderich, Bally and Tenderheartbear the Faculty of Philology, where both Irene and María are studying.









But do not think I am wasting my time here, I also attended to some classes:









Hope you like the pictures,

Love,

Baubles

Hi Mum!

This weekend I've been visiting my host's village, Caldas de Reis, and I also learnt something about the place with my new friens Bally and TenderheartBear.

The most outstanding feature of the villa is the existence of "thermal water" whose therapeutic properties were already know in Roman times. Romans were the first ones who got to know the therapeutic benefits of this water. This fact attracted the nobility, the clergy and a big amount of people who came to Caldas to enjoy the properties of the water, having baths in the ponds and in the typical basins of that time.

It will not be before the end of the XVIII th century when the Authority starts to concern about the sanitary of these places, D. Joaquín Dávila will be pioneer in having the first spa built, with the passing of time it has become the "Spa-Hotel Dávila". After him, Pedro Acuña will be the next to stablish another bathing-house at the beginning of this century. Nowadays it is the "Spa-Hotel Acuña" just at the riverbank, it is surprising the thermal water big pool in it.

Scientifically the water is composed of sulphurated sodium-chloride hiperthermal property, with certain radioactivity. The temperature balances between 40º and 49º centigrades depending on the spring. It is highly recommended for respiratory tracts, rheumatism, surgical problems and psychologic alterations.

Here you can see me visiting the thermal spring:





And this is one of the famous spas: Hotel Acuña:



I also saw some kind of washing place (here called "lavaderos"), but this one had the water rather warm! Irene says that it is usual to see people washing clothes in it.



We also visited a bridge that dates from Roman times:










Finally we went for a walk:















When we were walking aside the river I heard some frogs croaking in the water and jumping among the reeds.





I think it has been a well-spent weekend! I really enjoyed visiting Caldas de Reis and learning things about the place!

Love,

Baubles

Hi Mum!

This weekend I've been visiting Santiago de Compostela with Bally and Tenderheartbear. Santiago, as the capital of Galicia, exemplifies all the tradition and rich gastronomy of a cuisine admired for the quality of its sea and farm products.

Santiago de Compostela was declared a World Heritage City by UNESCO in 1985, in view of its urban beauty and monumental integrity, as well as the profound echoes of its spiritual significance as an apostolic sanctuary and the destination of the Middle Ages' most important religious and cultural movement: the Way of St. James prilgrimage. Since then, numerous prizes and awards have been added to the worldwide recognition of the magnificent preservation and habitability of Compostela's heritage.

Until the 9th century, the city of Santiago did not exist as such. However, archaeological excavations have shown that the present-day location of the old town was the site, in antiquity, of a Roman town that acquired certain importance and remained until the 7th century, forming part of the Swabian kingdom during some time. In the 1st century, alongside the walled enclosure of the Roman “civitas”, a pagan mausoleum was erected that subsequently gave rise to the cathedral. It has been demonstrated that, in that same century, three Christian martyrs were buried in the mausoleum, which became an established centre of worship, as shown by the nearby Christian cemetery that was used until the 7th century.

The cathedral borders the main plaza of the old and well-preserved city. Across the square is the Pazo de Raxoi (Raxoi's Palace), the town hall and seat of the Galician Xunta, and on the right from the cathedral steps is the Hostal dos Reis Católicos, founded in 1492 by the Catholic Monarchs, Isabella of Castille and Ferdinand of Aragon, as a pilgrim's hospice (now a parador). The Obradoiro façade of the cathedral, the best known, is depicted on the Spanish euro coins of 1 cent, 2 cents, and 5 cents (€0.01, €0.02, and €0.05).

Santiago is the site of the University of Santiago de Compostela, established in the early 16th century. The main campus can be seen best from an alcove in the large municipal park in the centre of the city.

Within the old town there are many narrow winding streets full of historic buildings. The new town all around it has less character though some of the older parts of the new town have some big apartments in them.

Santiago de Compostela has a substantial nightlife. Divided between the new town (la zona nueva or ensanche) and the old town (la zona vieja or a zona vella), one can often find a mix of middle-aged residents and younger students running throughout the city until the early hours of the morning. Radiating from the center of the city, the historic cathedral is surrounded by paved granite streets, tucked away in the old town, and separated from the newer part of the city by the largest of many parks throughout the city, Parque da Alameda. Whether in the old town or the new town, party-goers will often find themselves following their tapas by dancing the night away.

Santiago gives its name to one of the four military orders of Spain: Santiago, Calatrava, Alcantara and Montesa.

According to legend, the apostle Saint James the Greater brought the Message of Christ to the Celts in the Iberian Peninsula. In 44 AD he was beheaded in Jerusalem. His remains were later brought back to Galicia, Spain. Following Roman persecutions of Spanish Christians, his tomb was abandoned in the 3rd century. Still according to legend, this tomb was rediscovered in 814 AD by Pelayo, a hermit, after witnessing strange lights in the night sky. Bishop Theodemir of Iria recognized this as a miracle and informed the Asturian king Alfonso II (791-842). The king ordered the construction of a chapel on the site. Legend has it that the king became the first pilgrim to this shrine. This was followed by a first church in 829 AD and again in 899 AD by a pre-Romanesque church, at the order of king Alfonso III of León, causing the gradual development of a major place of pilgrimage. In 997 this early church was reduced to ashes by Mohammed ibn-Abi Amir (938-1002), army commander of the caliph of Córdoba, Spain. The gates and the bells, carried by Christian captives to Córdoba, were added to the Aljama Mosque. When Córdoba was taken by king Ferdinand III of Castile in 1236, these same gates and bells were then transported by Muslim captives to Toledo, to be inserted in the cathedral Santa Maria.

Construction of the present cathedral began in 1075 under the reign of Alfonso VI of Castile (1040-1109) and the patronage of bishop Diego Peláez. It was built according to the same plan as the monastic brick church of Saint Sernin in Toulouse, probably the greatest Romanesque edifice in France. It was built mostly in granite. Construction was halted several times and, according to the Liber Sancti Iacobi, the last stone was laid in 1122. But by then, the construction of the cathedral was certainly not finished. The cathedral was consecrated in 1128 in the presence of king Alfonso IX of Leon.

According to the Codex Calixtinus the architects were "Bernard the elder, a wonderful master", his assistant Robertus Galperinus and, later possibly, "Esteban, master of the cathedral works". In the last stage "Bernard, the younger" was finishing the building, while Galperinus was in charge of the coordination. He also constructed a monumental fountain in front of the north portal in 1122.

The church became an episcopal see in 1075 and, due to its growing importance as a place of pilgrimage, it was soon raised to an archiepiscopal see by pope Urban II in 1100. A university was added in 1495.

The cathedral has been embellished and expanded between the 16th and the 18th century.



So here you have my pictures:



















Here is the Cathedral's most famous facade.







This is another entrance: Puerta de las Platerías:





This is the entrance Puerta Santa (Holy Door) that it's open just in Holy year (when the festivity of the Cathedral is on Sunday, next year)

















This is a typical view of the Old Town:













As you can see, it was a quite busy weekend!

Lots of love,

Baubles

Hi Mum!

Here in Santiago we are having a wonderful weather, so I spend most of the day having sunbathes, even I think that I am getting a suntan  . However, Maria and Irene are not so happy, as they are having exams, I feel so sorry for them...

Anyway, this weekend they took us for a walk to "La Alameda", where we saw an exhibition of "cemented people". This was part of a volunteering campaign.

I cant upload the pictures right now (I have a problem with the computer) but I'll do it soon, I promise. I am also very excited, Irene has promised me a surprise for this weekend, I wonder what it's going to be... .

Kind regards,

Baubles

So here you have the pictures:

Hi Mum!

How are you doing? I am fine although a bit sad because Bally left to continue his adventure  . However we enjoyed our last days very much, especially when we spend a whole day in Portugal  .

























We also enjoyed our last meal together: a Galician typical dish called  "empanada".




We're going to miss Bally!

Baubles

Hi Mum!

Last Tuesday Irene took me to the traditional midsummer party in Spain, called "Noche de San Juan" (Night of Saint John). . Parties are organised usually at beaches, where bonfires are lit always at 00:00 and a set of firework displays usually take place. Bonfires are lit in the streets and there are fireworks too. This protective character of fire wards men off evil spirits and witches (here called Meigas).
In Caldas, they build a structure in the middle of the river and build something (this year they built a model of the town hall).

Midsummer tradition is also especially strong in northern areas of the country, such as Galicia, where one can easily identify the rituals that reveal the pagan beliefs widespread throughout Europe in Neolithic times.

Traditionally, people collect several species of plants on St. John's eve,  including thyme, lemon verbena and sage among others; they are dipped in a vessel with water and left outside exposed to the dew of night until the following morning, when people use the resulting flower water to wash their faces. Supposedly, that will shoo the witches  .

Irene has also told me that this night young people also play jokes (althought I think that sometimes they are not very nice, she told me about her granny's gateway been stolen as a "joke").

Here you have the pictures, unfortunately, it was kind of difficult to take photos as there were so much people and most of the pictures were blurred, so I chose the best ones.








Firefighters were there to control the fire:





In the final picture you can see where they were roasting sardines, a  typical dish this night.

Lots of love

Baubles

HI Mum!

Sorry I didn't write, Irene had not Internet for two long weeks! However, I been doing some interesting things: I been learning some Spanish (Irene says I am a good learner) and I went to the beach.


First of all, aprendiendo español (learning Spanish):




Here you have some of the things I've been learning:

Hola = Hello
Buenos Días = Good morning
Buenas tardes = Good afternoon
Buenas noches = good night
Me llamo Baubles = My name is Baubles


I also know the numbers, the colours and Irene is going to teach me much more things, so I will become a good Spanish speaker.

About the beach, I have no pictures, we didn´t take the camera with us, but I have to say that the water was really cold

Best wishes, I will write soon and I hope I have some pictures on the beach.

Lots of love,

Baubles

Hi Mum!

Guess what I've been doing this weekend!!! I went to the Circus! It was a very simple show  : just a juggler, a horsebreaker (he also had camels and ponies) and, the best, the clowns  . I spend a great day and I had a lot of fun!

I promise I will update the photos very soon .

Best wishes,

Baubles

Hi Mum!

Well, finally the computer is working and I can upload my opictures of the Circus!










Tonight I am going to a concert with Irene's sister, next week Irene is going to take me to the zoo, and then I am going to the USA! I am really nervous but hope everything will be alright.

So long,

Baubles