Category Archives: Uncategorized

Day 8: Cordoba, La Mancha, Madrid

Pushing north now after a huge hotel breakfast, first stop, Cordoba, which, historically and visually, is one of the most interesting places we’ve ever visited.  It is very old; pre-historic remains have been discovered there; and the Romans, Visigoths, and … Continue reading

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Day 7: Seville

We took off on our own this morning for a walking exploration of old Seville.  Luis had warned us that all maps of Seville are notoriously incomplete; that there are hundreds of streets that do not appear on any map, … Continue reading

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Day 6: The Road to Seville

Following the seat rotation system, we had the front seat, right behind our driver Sergio, and just across the aisle from Luis, for the whole day from Lisbon to Seville.  Great views of the countryside, with Sergio taking us off … Continue reading

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Day 5: Lisbon, Cascais, Sintra

Excursion day with local Lisbon guide, Marina.  Luis took the day off.  We began down on the waterfront, the banks of the river Tagus, where it empties into the Atlantic.  The “April 25th Bridge” crosses the river near the mouth, … Continue reading

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Day 4: Fatima, Obidos, Lisbon

Before we hit the road again, a little word about breakfast.  As we mentioned earlier, this jaunt very quickly became as much about food as beautiful sights.  Several dinners were included in the package, but every day there was a … Continue reading

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Day 3: Avila, Salamanca, Coimbra

The Brits were a few minutes late getting on the bus but Luis declined to make them sing and we came to love them down the road for their uniqueness and extraordinary goodness anyway.  Luis introduced us to Sergio, our … Continue reading

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Day 2: Madrid

We had information from the tour booklet that a certain bus would take us from the airport to very near our hotel, the Hotel Abba, in the Madrid city center.  With only a little translation difficulty we located the stop … Continue reading

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Day 1; Philadelphia and Pond-Hopping

Ten days ago we took the Skinny Island Post on the road again, but technical issues and budget constraints would not allow us to post from the trail, so we are doing that now, after the fact, from the safe … Continue reading

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A Little Mangrove Essay

 OK, so we haven’t cooled the presses just yet.  A little bike ride this morning with the sky closing in from the south and the beach littered with a variety of stuff, both natural and human inflicted, generated a little … Continue reading

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Damage Assessments and Spanish Boots

It’s getting to be almost commonplace.  Our little unnamed, all-night outburst of last Sunday did more damage than any of the named storms that cruised by offshore through the summer.  The unnamed ones tend to sneak up on you; there’s … Continue reading

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