Going for a ride is always a good idea

So I decided to rent a bike this morning and it turned out to be the best idea since I arrived in Malaga! I got a dark green one that was a bit too small for me and that I also had some trouble driving,  but it was ok for a few hours. I started driving east from Malaga and came along a few playas I can highly recommend if you are looking for some more relaxing and quiet beaches during the summer time. In the morning when I started my ride, it wasn’t so hot and crowded at all. While comfortably driving I  just sent some snaps for my friends to see that will hopefully maybe make them a bit jealous because who wouldn’t like to be at the beach asap?

Something really funny happened to me while driving along the promenade. When I was passing through a pavilion of a chiringuito and a man had to step aside to let me through, he said something like:

“Eh, la vuelta a España en bici“ - on a trip around Spain only by bike

And I was like: “Eh, no thanks, not with this one anyway, but thanks for the tip, maybe I’ll do it one day”…this response I only had in my mind and not saying it out loud of course :)

What was your funniest bikeride you ever did? And was it during your holidays, maybe also with a rented bike? I'm curious for your stories!

MalagArt

While still in Malaga I was visiting the CAC which is a museum of contemporary art located by the river and the port. The entrance is totally free so I had to give it a go!

And it was absolutely worth it. The art inside was exactly my taste. There were silkscreenprints by Andy Warhol and DFACE and there were also some crazy sculptures like a skeleton sitting in an edge as tall and long as the hall was high. You get to see pretty much cool stuff for like…nothing. Also when you step outside the CAC there is art at the sidewalls of the dry canal (that is actually only dry in the summer). I like ‘barrios’ like this one where you can find graffiti pieces of every kind and size around every corner.

So are you such a big streetart fan as me? Do you even like modern art?

Here I am. En Malaga y la quiero mucho!

 

As I stepped out of my kind of dirty but also very nice hostelroom, I found myself in a city that I would have never imagined to be so beautiful! I’m only one step away from the old town and city center. And all I can say so far is that the cities (okay I have recently been to only one of them one day) in southern Spain really have a lot of character, beauty and overall FLAIR.

And I now have the next few days to discover ‘todo’. Next to my apartment is the ‘Alcazaba’, a very old castle with lots of history. My friendly host recommended me some places to visit in the city and the only thing is that I can’t wait! But now I just need to sit down a little and sleep cause I didn’t get enough of that last night. One more thing that is also very beautiful about here is that the immense heat of 38 degrees actually doesn’t feel like it because of the wind that comes from the sea. Ohh the sea, I’m gonna head there tomorrow, too!

As I already mentioned I went on a trip to Spain and Portugal for the summer. Now I feel like giving  you some insights in my small and big adventures of that time. From now on I will post a short story from my travel diary everyday. I hope you'll enjoy it :)

After passing through the security check-in I was chilling on a half-comfortable bank and watching the small amount of people passing by. Heading to their departure gate or just on their way to the bathroom. That’s the ultimate so called ‘airport-life’ and it’s all about waiting of course.

Besides the waiting and sitting time out I feel excited and pretty anxious at the same time. Short: I don’t know what to feel. Only my stomach is telling me what I’m actually going through. So let’s see what happens next…

When I looked out the airplane window I felt like home immediately

So I was on that AB plane and felt like: ‘Oh my! At least my wanderlust and need for adventure arrived.’ As I closed my eyes and tried to sleep a bit, this feeling just came to me…yeah I’m leaving, don’t know when coming back…all THAT. And I loved it. And wanted more - that’s because I’m here.

Post Travel

So now It's done. I made this big step. Let the adventure happen, stepped foot on the unknown path, got lost, got found. I set off looking for nothing and finding everything.



I laughed, I cried, I felt fear and pain and also a lot of joy and happiness.
All that and even more happened to me during my two months of travel.
As I tried to expect hardly anything from this trip, I had such great luck almost all the time that I still can't believe it!



Now that I am home again in my very small village in Germany where it starts raining every once in a while and with all the people passing by my window I can recognize, I am thinking hard about my colorful time I had this summer.


So where did I go?
Spain it was!
From the south to the west, hitting up Portugal and then back to the centre of this beautiful (and hot!) country. Continuing in the cold and windy north with direction Basque country and finally finishing the adventure in my beloved Catalonia.



Short version for a long and great time I had, but enough to just give you and overlook of the places I've been to, because if I would list all these different places to noone would continue reading (if at least anyone does until now).



The thing I like to talk about in this 'Post Travel' blogpost is the feelings and thoughts I now have after I've finished the journey and what feelings I had during it that I can remember.
Because as everyone of you travellers knows, when you travel your mind sometimes plays crazy tricks on you or acts differently than in your normal ordinary life.



To me it seemed like I felt a hundred percent more than when I am at home. There are so many new things to see, smell and touch...whether you just take a quick walk in the surrounding of the place you're staying in or you are on a day trip to a more far away destination. They are just everywhere.



And then there are too, the people you meet on the road. I learnt that a short moment with a stranger on the road, whether it's asking for a destination or just bumping into each other :D can mean even more to you than a whole friendship...to me, that's only what I felt like. Of course for everyone and every situation it's totally different. But I lost my heart so many times to several people on the raod, as well as places, beaches or terrasses (one of my favourites!).

 

You never know what will happen to you, who or what you will fall in love with that will give you some kind of heartache. There's a nice quote by Lisa St. Aubin de Teran that describes very well the way I felt like so often on the road:
TRAVELLING IS LIKE FLIRTING WITH LIFE
It's like saying: " I would stay and love you, but I have to go, this is my station. "



The thing is, you can prepare for everything but not for your randomly occuring feelings on travel ( as well as a drop of 30° inbetween only 4 hours of driving )



My advice is to let things happen, try to accept and embrace also even less comfortable situations but saying no or leaving when something stinks.
Also not to put too much preparation in it because if you do it like me, 3 month in advance it will drive you nuts . In fact, when you finally set off you don't want to read your 100 pages self-printed travel guide all the time, you better live and be spontaneous in all kind of ways, especially when it comes to changing your "travel route" :)



Hope you enjoyed this post and my confused writing! Have you ever been in this big "post-travel-mood" after a longer trip. You know what I mean? Yes, exactly, that feeling when you don't know what to do with your life after arriving at home. Tell me your story! (and maybe some tips how I can overcome it better :) )

T'ESTIMO

A loveletter to Costa Brava in pictures


First stop: Sitges -  take a walk along the promenade, lay on the beach, breathe in the sea air and enjoy your life

 
Pa amb tomaquet and Catalan beer – what else? Anything better for enjoying an afternoon ?

 
Calella de Palafrugell is a village with lots of charme and character that makes you feel connected to it in some kind of way even by the first time you visit it

 
Tossa de Mar - medieval treasure chest meets playa. There's something for everyone!

 
Besalú - fans of the middle ages you’re more than welcome and don't forget your sword :)

 

Jardí Botànic Marimurtra - I just love botanic gardens! – their tranquil atmosphere is very relaxing after a day full of sightseeing and long walks in the summer sun

 

And when it comes to Barcelona...

 
Park Güell - even if it is a great tourist attraction and can get quite crowded during the day, it’s nice spending some time there in the evening light just before it closes its doors

 
Modernisme (Art Nouveau) - not only at the Sagrada Famila, you can find Gaudi's masterpieces all over the city!

 
Arc de Triomf - no plans for hanging out in Barcelona before the sun is setting? Grab a blanket, some food and something to read or sketch and sit down along the Passeig Lluís Companys and watch the people passing by

 
Streetart, especially in Barcelona . There’s also a whole post about it

 
Bunkers del Carmel - really worth the way for the best view over the city!
I hope you could get a little insight in Catalunya's beauty and diversity. Of course there's a lot more to show and tell about this beautiful part of spain.
So have you ever been to Spain? and if, which places did you fall in in love with ?

Waiting is the hardest part

Do you know that feeling? When you're taking a map and looking at it while thinking how big the world is and how many places you haven't been to yet. This feeling always makes me wanna pack my bag and immediately go!



And when I've got some travel plans for the next countries I want to visit, there's nothing that can stop me. Because if I only have a hint of an idea I start dreaming and planning on it. Firstly that only happens in my head most of the time, until I've found a way to make my dreamtrip a reality. After that there's nothing like it was before I decided to go. As I'm waking up every morning my brain starts to make its own traveling plans and imaginations and after I've had my first coffee I start to think about those imaginations and find out if they are possible realizing. Sometimes this 'need for travel' can be quite annoying because I can't barely think about anything else without not being interrupted by thoughts on traveling. All the decisions I make during these days I make with the reminder in the back of my head that I soon wanna go on a trip and that has first priority. Always. Whether I'm in a shop just seeing a nice t-shirt that is also in my budget, I although think three times about buying it. Cause will I need it during my travel period at all? What could I get for the same amount of money that would be more necessary? All these questions...but they help me focusing more on what I want and need and what is sometimes only a desire of a specific moment. So when I think more than twice about buying a cheap shirt, I guess it's time to set off !

What are your feelings and actions before an upcoming trip? And what is your special trick to overcome the waiting?