First of all, as always, thank you to so many on this forum for your advice - from hotels to which roads to avoid in Andalusia, you were right on the mark. We had a wonderful trip to Spain, a country so much more beautiful than I had imagined. As I am not the fastest typist, I'll do this in segments.

To preface: we had not intended to go to Europe this year, as we were planning to go to Paris in December. But we had FF miles on Air France, and we decided that life is just too short, and we should go ahead and go. It turned out to be a wonderful, wonderful trip, for many reasons.

First of all, my beloved father unexpectedly passed away 10 days before the trip. He was 91 years old, still lived in his home, and was sharp as a tack. But he had fallen, and had complications, and died peacefully and without pain within a week. My four siblings and I had a week to remember him and both grieve and rejoice in his life and the legacy he left.

Dad had been in the Navy during WWII, on an oiler in the South Pacific, which pretty much constituted his "foreign travel". He and my mother made frequent and long (like, California-New Mexico-New Orleans-Massachusetts-Montreal long) trips, covering most of North America, but they never went to Europe. He was an amchair traveler, though, and loved to hear about and marvel over the travels of his children and grandchildren. He read books at the rate of 5 a week (I'm serious, he was a reading fool), so wherever you were going, he probably knew more than you did about the history, geography, and politics of the countries you were visiting. I loved to talk to him before we went - it always made a trip even more exciting to see it through his eyes.

So, Dad, I dedicate this trip report to you.



MADRID

We left Los Angeles April 16th on a late afternoon Air France flight from LAX, making a connection through CDG to Madrid. We had 1 1/2 hours for the connection, which had me a little concerned, but the transfer went off without a hitch. We landed at the 2F terminal and followed other passengers and the signs over a connecting bridge to the 2E terminal with no problems. There were few passengers at the time of our transfer, and it was a very quick process to go through (saying this to assuage some worries about connections at CDG!) I guess we were lucky, as we had time to sit a while in the terminal until our flight was called, and arrived in Madrid by 3:00 pm.

We hailed a taxi and drove into Madrid, and that was when I realized that Spain is just beautiful! We drove down a wide, tree-lined avenue, passing fountains and lovely buildings, to our hotel, the Catalonia Las Cortes, just a few clocks from the Plaza Santa Ana. It turned out to be a wonderful hotel and location.

First, a preamble: I really, really care about the hotels we stay in. I always ask for a room with a lot of light and windows, and a tub to soak in after long days of walking. So when we opened the door of our room, I was SO glad to see that the room was as lovely as I had hoped. There was a king size bed, night tables on each side, paneling on the walls with inset mirrors to expand the space, and a desk and chair. DH was happy to discover that the large (about 3 feet x 6 feet) shower had a rainshower head as well as a hand-held shower, and I was happy with the deep soaking tub. The front desk must have made a note of my "lots of windows and light", because our room (#408) overlooked a view of rooftops and the little street below.

We unpacked and walked only a little bit - DH had not slept at all in the last 36 hours - and had an unmemorable dinner and hit the sack.

The next morning we went down to breakfast, which was included in our room rate (internet only, not by calling the hotel) of 181 euros. Lovely dining room with cloth-covered tables, and a buffet spread to please anyone: juices, ham, manchego cheese, 2 types of Spanish omelets, eggs, pastries, breads, fruit. I considered this hotel to be outstanding - thanks to Maribel for her recommendation as well as TripAdvisor!

There was a light rain in Madrid (also in Granada) throughout our stay, but it wasn't a problem. We walked over to the Prado and spent a long morning there admiring the collection of Spanish masters (Goya, Velasquez, El Greco), among others. We then walked around the area, up to a church (whose name I don't recall) just above the museum, and stopped for lunch at a little cafe, the Restaurante El Botanico, near the Prado. Our meal was the menu especial (I think it was an appetizer, entree and dessert, including wine and coffee, for 42 E). The waiters were very friendly and the food very good, so we were glad we stumbled upon it.

Some of the days are a blur...but I think this was the day we also walked in the Retiro, a large park near the Prado. Beautiful trees, avenues, and a large lake in the center. That evening we had dinner at Miew (I think that was the name of it), a tapas bar on the Plaza Santa Ana. The food was very good (grilled shrimp and another item, and 2 glasses of wine, as I recall), which was very good but seemed a little expensive.

The following morning we walked over to the Palacio Real. Wow. Some of the rooms were incredible - a chinoiserie-themed room with embellished walls that seemed to undulate and a porcelain room. Someone else can desribe it better than I (I'd look back at my travel books, but I tore them all up and left them in Spain!) so I hope I'm recalling these correctly .

We had a wonderful lunch at a restaurant right next to our hotel, Las Letras, which I would recommend! They were listed in a few guide books, and were very good. We had gazpacho followed by dorado, dessert, and wine, and the bill was only $56.00 (I see in my bank account). In the evening we went to the Reina Sofia museum to view Picasso's Guernice.

For those who do not know, the Spanish government commissioned Picasso to paint a mural for the 1937 World's Fair in Paris. Picasso began the painting 15 days after the bombing of the Basque vilage of Guernica, to draw world attention to the horrors of the Spanish Civil War.

It was very most moving to be in that room and experience the people of Spain viewing this monumental artwork. There was a silence and a reverence in the room as they took in the painting, which was much larger than I had imagined - 25 feet long and 11 feet high. I am so glad we did not miss it.

The next day we caught our reserved train to Granada at Atocha station and had our first "adventure". (I call it that, DH calls ir something else. (no comment). We arrived on the second floor of the station about an hour or more ahead of time, and enjoyed the tropical gardens in the station (go online and take a look - the whole center of the station is planted and has misters to keep it cool). OK, so I'm figuring, hey, no problem, we have p-l-e-n-t-y of time here, let's sit on the first floor and relax and watch the signs and mosey on over when they list our track assignment. I could see all these people coming out of the track area, looked good to me! So about 15 minutes before launch, after DH keeps saying, maybe we should go over there and I keep saying, no, no, why stand around when we can sit, we see our track come on the board. We walked over to board the train and security stopped us - no, you exit on the first floor, you BOARD on the second floor.

Oops. So we go tearing up the escalator and see - I kid you not - 50 children standing in line, waiting to go past security. My heart just SANK. Thank goodness, they were just being prepared (Unlike, say, moi and their train was not there yet, so we hauled past them, raced down the track, threw our luggage in the rack, and sat down.

I bless my DH every day for conveniently "forgetting" this experience. (And as long as he never reads this, he shall not be reminded of it, haha).

Thus ends Part I of our trip to Spain! On to Granada.

GRANADA

I read half a novel and took several naps during our 5 hour train ride from Madid, and every time I opened my eyes I saw olive trees. I had no idea that Spain had so many olive trees! I'm going to look at all the bottles, next time I hit Trader Joe's.

Anyway. We arrived at the train station in Granada, hailed a cab, and went on a ride up to our little hotel, the Carmen de la Alcubilla del Caracol. The instructions said to tell the driver to go past the Hotel Alhambra Palace to the Carmen de San Miguel restaurant and then call them, because their street was hard to get to. Right. It was a Sunday, and the restaurant (and its phone service) was closed, but we figured, hey, it must be down this little "street", so off I went to locate it. The street (called an "Aire" for obvious reasons to me!) was at a steep angle and made of river rocks. I almost missed the Carmen, but I turned around and there it was, with a wrought iron gate and blue sign. I waved to my husband, who by now was halfway down the hill, rang the bell, and entered the front gardens.

Wonderful! What an oasis of cool colors and foliage! I'd hoped for the best room in the house, El Torre, but didn't reserve in time so we had the Buganvilla room - which was great. It was one floor down, and had a little antechamber with a chair and table, nice bathroom (although the bathtub was 6" shorter than the usual, so no "soaking" took place there, unless you're talking ankles), and a large bedroom with shuttered french doors which opened to a small terrace with a view of the city.

Upon the great suggestion of Ana, the receptionist, we walked up to the Alhambra to collect out reserved tickets that evening. Great advice! You just put in the same credit card you used for your online payment and the tickets spit out. It saved us from the crowds and from back-tracking the next morning, as the ticket booths are up at the top of the hill and the entrance to the palaces is at the bottom. (Relatively speaking).

We then decided to walk down to the city for dinner, and set off down a street staircase some might find...hum, quite a few flights? (Probably why we gained almost nothing on this trip, hallelujah). I do think this must be the main route from town up to the Alhambra, as we passed quite a few people on our many trips up and down. We found a little tapas bar not too far away, ate, and returned for an early night.

The next day, after a nice breakfast at the Carmen - the Alhambra. I had studied it during my design training, but photographs in architectual books just cannot do it justice. I would say that, of all of the (somewhat limited) places I've seen, the Alhambra would be one of my absolute favorites. It was magical the way Mont Saint Michel and San Marco in Venice are - so different, so mystical. Every room was carved, the floors were just beautiful, the fountains, the flowers, the views. And the Generalife gardens!

It was misting, and we were fortunate to have cooler weather (we could actually see snow on the nearby mountains), so perhaps April was the best month to see everything. I especially loved the pathways of river rocks with designs of flowing flowers, geometric designs, and arabesques. We'd love to replicate that in our gardens at home.

After our long morning there, we returned to the Carmen and asked for lunch recommendation from our host, Miguel. Senor Miguel (I do not know his last name), we learned as we were leaving, is a professor of fine arts at the University in Granada, which explained the exqusite decorating of the hotel. He was the most gracious and sweet man, carrying on conversations with my husband in a mix of Spanish and English.

We walked down to town and ate at Oliver, located pretty much in the center of town, not far from the cathedral. We chose to eat in the covered terrace in the square (there was also indoor seating and a tapas bar), and were the only patrons there. Our waiter was just delightful and the food was wonderful: gazpacho, little bread rolls with tuna, a potato salad with shrimp (really good), a platter of roasted vegetables, and dorado a la plancha with salad. We had a half bottle of wine as well, and the total bill was $117.00. One of our favorite meals of the trip!

After that, we walked back up the hill (I snagged a pastry on the way up for later) and took a nap. When we woke we decided to go over to the Mirador San Nicolas to see the sun set over the Alhambra. So we walked down (again) and caught a bus in the square for the trip to the Albaicin, the old Arab quarter.

Some guidebooks had (I think) suggested walking up to the Mirador to see the sunset, but I would have to say - no way, Jose, would I put my life on the line to walk up there. I'm not talking about the hills, I'm talking about the lack of sidewalks! The minibus we were in just about scraped the sides of the buildings, so how one would flatten oneself against them to avoid losing body parts is beyond me. It was quite a bumpy ride!

We did arrive in time to see the sunset gild the palace buildings across the valley, and it was worth it. There were some guitarists playing, with their comical dog laying alongside (he would open one eye and look up, then close it and go back to sleep), and a young man with what I imagined was a book of poetry propped against a large cross, looking sort of like a beatnik. Quite colorful! That was fun. Then we took the wild bus ride back down, had a sandwich, and walked back up the hill to the Carmen. Where I ate my pastry and went to bed.

Next segment: Benaojan, near Ronda, and the adventures of driving in Spain.

Can't wait for the rest Iwant2go. Assume you visited Pileta caves in Benaojan. We leave in 4 weeks for our 2 week Andalusia trip.

Oops, the host at the Carmen is Manuel, not Miguel.

I'm really enjoying your report, dedicated to your dad. My sincere condolences to you on the loss of your father. You've painted a lovely portrait of him.

Am really eager to hear the rest of your story!

Nice report Iwan2

I also made the same mistake in the Madrid train station and almost missed my train. I also thought the Madrid train station was lovely. The turtles in the pond were adorable. Can’t wait to read the rest of your trip.

So sorry to hear of your father but as Maribel says, you have painted a nice portrait of him. And good report so far. I am specially curious to hear of your driving experiences in Spain.

First, thank you for your encouraging words! It's always nice to know when someone reads these reports. Unfortunately, mikewalsh, we didn't go to the Pilota Caves. Probably should have, as we were right there. Next time, maybe.

So - onward!

BENAOJAN (and Ronda)

We rented a car through AutoEurope, which turned out to be Avis, at the Granada train station. The fellow seemed to be so helpful, and we (or rather, DH) decided to go for the no-deductible insurance, because he didn't want to have any hassles should there be a problem or accident. (Frnakly, judging from the driving habits and dings on cars, it was probably a good idea). So we signed the papers and the man directed us over to the nearby parking lot. We found our car, which was pretty banged up. Hum, maybe we need to go back and have him document this. Went right back, and he was nowhere to be found.

So much for helpful agents.

Well, we figured we have full coverage, so we loaded up and off we went. (To avoid any wondering if another shoe is going to drop, I will spare you the suspense - it was fine. Questions at the other end, but no liability).

We had no problems driving the highways, which were well sign-posted, and I was enjoying the scenery when all of a sudden I realized we were in Ronda. "Where do we go?" says my husband. Got me, make a right. So our first encounter in a town was a bit nerve-racking, and we drove pretty much in circles until we found a very nice Spanish gentleman who told us how to get out of town and over to Benaojan. Which wasn't too complicated, so off we went to our next hotel, the Molino del Santo.

I had read a lot on TA and had seen their website, and was very pleased with the hotel. It is only about 10 - 15 minutes from Ronda, set near a little village and alongside a rushing stream. The hotel is a series of buildings, rooms with private terraces and patios, and the price was very reasonable (126 euros per night).

We had room 15, a junior suite with a large terrace overlooking the pool. It had a large bedroom, then a built-in center closet which separated the bedroom area from a tiny sitting area with 2 chairs, with the terrace beyond. I wished it had been one large room - it would have had a more gracious feel - but I think there was a structural column in the closet. (Whatever, it was still a lovely room). Should you decide to sray there, I would suggest getting a second floor room as we did for additional privacy.

Most of the guests were friendly English people (the owners are English, although all of the staff are Spanish and just wonderful). There was dining on the brookside terrace as well as in the dining room, and the food was pretty good. Not outstanding, but good. A great place if you just want to relax, maybe hike, and stay away from the bustle and crowds of Ronda. And, as I said, very well priced. We had some lunch (squash soup, salmon, a glass of wine), and just hung around the hotel and read on the terrace.

The next morning after breakfast we drove over to Ronda. DH wanted to park at the train station on the way in, but I thought we could get a closer-in parking place, so I encouraged him to try. R-e-a-l-l-y bad move. We ended up driving down the main street, past the parador, over the bridge, and into the other half of the town. He was, shall I say, not a happy camper - it was very tense and nerve-racking, driving in these little towns. So he made a circle and we headed back, past the bullring, back through the town, and found a space.

You know, vacations can tell you a lot about your relationship. Like, back off and listen to your spouse. So, I apologized for putting him in that position, he accepted my apology, we kissed and made up, and went off to discover Ronda.

We walked through a lovely garden and over to the precipice to see the incredible views over the Ronda sierra. Wow. There were little towns and fields far, far below - I can see why Ronda is the picture in all the guidebooks. We wandered over to the parador and checked out the menu, walked back to another restaurant I'd noted in a guidebook, made a lunch reservation there for a few hours later, and went to see the bullring.

We had heard about the bullring from some fellow tourists and went there first. It's the oldest bullring in Spain (I think), and has a wonderful museum. We admired the costumes - both matadors and women's clothing, as well as the incredible garments for the horses. Gold tassels and embroidery, silk swags, bells and jewels. It was well worth the time. We also toured the bullring itself, and could see where the animals were kept prior to the fights. Very interesting.

The bullring has a very, very nice gift shop as well, and we bought a gift for our son who went to culinary school: a pink matador's outfit apron, with an oven mitt (which velcro'd on the apron) shaped like a matador's hat. (He loved it). There were also some scarves I was eyeing, but I refrained.

We walked a very short distance to our lunch on the terrace at the Restaurante del Escudero. The terrace overlooks the valley, and it was great. We had soup, salmon with langostines, capuccino and coffee, and wine for 54 euros. Very nice, and I'd go back there.

After leaving Ronda we decided to see another of the white villages, so we went over to Grazalema, which looked like the closest one. We drove through low hills and some higher peaks, through olive groves and green fields. to come around a curve and see the town spilling down the hillside. It was charming, and we parked in the lot overlooking the valley and relaxed there for a while. There was a goatherd in the valley below, moving his flock (do you call it a "flock" when it's goats?) to another area.

Of course, we'd timed it wrong and most of the stores were closed. Whatever. We stayed about an hour, found a market and bought some meat, cheese and bread, and drove back to our hotel for dinner alfresco on the terrace.

By the way - I had asked earlier on this forum about what roads we should avoid (to prevent heart failure, haha). One of them you mentioned was the Pass of the Pigeons - the name alone would be a warning! - which we did see, said - oh look, that's where that thing is! - and went the other way. Probably it would be fine, but we gave it a pass. (haha, a pun

Anyway, we were told to also avoid the road from the A375 (or 376, the numbers apparently change all the time, but it's the road from Ronda to Algondales) through Montejaque to Benaojan. Just passing on what we heard.

The next morning, after a good night's sleep and a nice breakfast, we drove on to Seville!

I don't know a thing about Spain, but I'm thoroughly enjoying your report. More, please!

Thank you for your expressions of sympathy about my Dad. He was, as my brother put it in his eulogy, "an ordinary American". He was kind, curious, and honorable. He was always asking people questions about themselves, their jobs and hobbies, why they believed as they did, what experiences had shaped them. I think if he had been able to go to Europe, he would have been thrilled.

I mentioned him in the beginning of my report because his death, so soon before we left, made this a very different trip. I was more introspective, and tried not to be as harried and hurried, but to drink in the experience as it came to me. It was almost like being in a sort of a fog - but in a good way.

I think that a lot of my interest about the rest of the world came through him and the books he left around the house. I remember when my Mom would tell my sister and I to "clean out the bookcase." Well, we'd find a book or a National Geographic and just get lost in it. He did have several travel adventure books (probably from the 1930s) by Richard Halliburton. Wow, the mental images he painted of the Well of Death in the Yucatan, or the camel journeys across the desert!

So I guess it was like Dad's spirit was with me on this trip, and I tried to see the wonders of the world through his eyes.

SEVILLE

Our drive to Seville took about 2 1/2 hours. The first half was through green hills, and then the terrain changed to a more arid landscape. We actually had a map of the city of Seville, and only had a few turns to make to get to the train station to return the car on Avenue Kansas City (who knew? Kansas in Seville). Only problem was, we could see virtually NO street signs - I was navigating by instinct. We made a right turn a bit short of the train station for gas, and got back on the street, then sort of counted main boulevards and looked for the signs for Santa Justa station.

To summarize, since you asked, comfyshoes, I'd say that we did have a little harder time in Spain than in France. We had the Michelin 578 map, which was very good for the outlying roads. But I would agree with others that driving in the city is not a good idea.

However! We succeeded, dropped off the car, made some disparaging comments about the Avis guy in Granada, and got a cab to our next location, the Hotel Amadeus.

Many others have recommended the Hotel Amadeus, and we concur. The small hotel is located on a small pedestrian street and is decorated with tiles on the walls. One could sit in the lobby and play the piano, or go up to the roof top deck/terrace for breakfast or just to relax. It was darling, and the hosts there were marvelous.

We had the Mozart room, which is the junior suite, on the third (American) floor, with lots of windows, a king sized bed, a rather uncomfortable loveseat, and a big jacuzzi tub dividing the bathroom space from the sleeping space. Loved it! The cost of the junior suite was 135 euros, and breakfast - very nice - was 7 euros pp.

I would like to point out, for those who might want to stay there, that some of the rooms are more quiet than others. There are three rooms on the ground floor, and I would not have wanted to have the one facing the street, as its entry was right on the lobby. The very top floor had a nice room with a fairly private seating area, unless lots of people were walking past to get to the deck. We did see the room's occupants sitting outside enjoying a glass of wine, so I guess they liked it!

We unpacked and walked past the cathedral to Enrique Becerra restaurant for lunch (I'd seen it in a guidebook). Got there JUST in time (maybe 1:30) to snag a table and had a great lunch: olives, bread (I asked for butter - mantiquilla - and they charged a euro for it! Big surprise), soup, slamon, a bottle of wine, and a glass of sherry for a total of 73 euros. That was wonderful, we agreed, and left to walk around some more.

And then it happened. I was looking at the map - not where I was going - and, whomp, stepped off a curb I didn't see. I just crumpled to the ground in pain (very inelegantly, my mind was saying, and I was thinking "Arrggg, that hurts!".). Now, these are the times I am very grateful that my DH is a family medicine doctor. He palpated my ankle and asked some questions, and I hobbled back to the hotel (probably 3/4 mile?) leaning on his arm and thinking, hey, this isn't so bad, I'll be fine.

I got in bed, and he went out to get me some crutches. We had trip insurance and called them, and they said, ok, just let us know what happens. I took some medicine and a one hour nap, and woke up with a throbbing leg.

Not good. I needed an x-ray to see if I had broken anything. DH (he by now was becoming DDDH) asked downstairs about where we should go. The desk receptionist called the owner, who directed us to the public hospital several miles away. (The owner was absolutely wonderful, and all the staff was very concerned and made sure my needs were met). So off we went for a new adventure (keeping up a positive attitude!).

Well, all I have got to say is, if you are going to have any kind of orthopedic problem, do it in Seville! I waited maybe half an hour for x-rays and perhaps another 45 minutes to see the doctor. He and DH looked at the x-rays - no break! Praise the Lord. And this is when I realized that my wonderful spouse could really speak Spanish well! Between the two of them, in two languages (three, if you could the Latin), they discussed what to do.

The young Spanish doctor wanted to go ahead and put on a walking cast, which I guess is the textbook solution. Problem with that is, he and DH explained to me, if one is immobilized on the long flight home, one also needs heparin shots as an anticoagulant. It seems that otherwise you can get a blood clot which could go to your lungs, even a week later, with the possibility of very serious results (like, death). Women on hormones, immobilized, on a flight lasting longer than 8 hours, is at risk.

I wasn't too thrilled with the idea of getting heparin shots in my abdomen (or the "death" part), much less with the idea of a walking cast - might as well go home. We went back into the waiting room and DH turned to me and said, "You know, I've practiced for over 30 years. And while this physician is certainly recommending a valid course of action, from experience I can tell you that I think you will do fine with an ankle wrap and crutches". OK by me!!! I was willing to try it. We took my pain medicine (vicadin), got an ace bandage, and went off to pay the bill.

The best part is - when we asked where to pay, we were told that it was FREE. Now that is a great country! Viva Espana!

So...our sojourn in Seville from then on was a little constricted. I used the crutches the next day, as we walked over to see the magnificent cathedral. We just took our time, and sat and took it all in - the tomb, the artwork, the gold retablo. Later, we had a nice lunch at Robles (I have the bill, but it's all in Spanish - looks like "racion de ventresc.." and "racion de alcachof..." and half a bottle of wine for 52 euros. I think it was good, I just can't remember what it was.

That night, I dragged (I mean this literally) myself up to the rooftop deck with a book. Wonderful! There was the Giralda (the belltower of the cathedral), just a few blocks away. After an hour or so I went down stairs, took a vicadin, and slept like a log til 9:00.

The next day - getting better by the minute with this crutch thing - we went to the Jardines de Murillo, then to the Alcazares, the beautiful palace and gardens reminiscent of the Alhambra in Seville. Again, it was enchanting. As this was our last full day in the city, we decided to reprise our favorite lunch at Enrique Becarra (I know, boring, but we liked it!) so we did that. Also did a little shopping - not as much as I had intended, but whatever, and returned to the hotel.

That night I enticed DH to join me on the rooftop terrace. We brought books and never read them - we just sat and took in the city. There were these swarms of birds, as far as the eye could see, flying lickety-split all over. I was wondering what species they were, and was describing them to my sister. "Did they fly like they were on crack?" Well, yes, you could say that. "Swallows." I guess they were swallows, unless one of you knows better!

So. That is how I will remember Seville, and actually all of Spain. Friendly, gracious people, wonderful food, (crazy swallows), lovely gardens, beautiful cathedrals and palaces, and crutches.

On to Paris!

And I never got to use that jacuzzi! Seems that soaking in hot water is the absolutely wrong thing to do.

Too bad, it looked really nice.

You helped me to relive my trip in April to Madrid-title "Watering the Flowers thru Spain and Portugal". I have been disappointed noone has read it. It does take time to write these report.

I really sympathize with you losing your Dad and then the injury to the leg. I had a knee replacement 2 years ago. I am doing okay,but the Alhambra was really hard on it. Think I enjoyed the Alcazar in Seville more as it was not as difficult physically. Wish I had gotten to Ronda.

Spain is a lovely country,but like you I had never realized it had all those olive trees. We also enjoyed Portugal. Lisbon is an interesting city,but one with its cobblestone streets is hard on the legs.

Thanks for sharing.

To finally put this trip report to bed - Paris.

We left Seville on a 7am flight on ClickAir, and were surprised to see such a long line when we arrived at the airport at 5:15am. Who knew that so many people would take the "2 hour" arrival thing so seriously. The 7am flight was fine (we slept the whole time) and arrived at Orly by 9:00. Into town on the Air France bus, which dropped us off at Invalides. We simply walked a few steps to the metro entrance and went one stop to Latour Maubourg (it had an escalator, thank goodness).

Paris is our favorite city, and we were looking forward to finishing up our trip with a few days there. We selected the Hotel La Tour Maubourg in the seventh arrondisement, having stayed in the 5th and the 1st before. It's a small hotel, right as you come up from the metro, fronting on a leafy square. There was some problem with our reserved room, so the hotel upgraded us at no charge to a larger room with a view of the square. We had a big bedroom and very large bath (with a curtained french door - lots of light!). Hotel staff were wonderful, nice breakfast, recommended hotel.

We had a coffee and croissant, walked around a bit, then looked for a place for a late lunch (it was a Sunday). Although we were not particularly well-dressed, we were warmly welcomed at Pasco, 74, Blvd. de la Tour Maubourg. It was a charming restaurant, with brick arches and a little terrace. The first course was amazing - I had a "ceviche of frambois and melon" with basil sorbet as my entree (DH had something else and wanted mine). We also had fish with fennel and roasted tomatoes, pear with chocolate fondant and whipped cream, a bottle of Bordeaux, and coffee. Total was €72,5.

The following day we had a tour with Michael Osman. He's the best. We'd told him we wanted to see parts of Paris we'd missed before, with an eye for renting a less expensive apartment in the future. We walked around the Canal St. Martin and Batignolles areas, then to the Marais. Michael showed us several little bistros for lunch, but we'd passed by Bofinger and I remembered reading about it, so we went there (I mention him showing us other places, because I appreciated his efforts to keep the bill lower). We were seated in the back room, just beautiful! and had a very good meal. I kept looking at the prix fixe (that's not spelled right...) but really wanted the a la carte, so we ordered onion soup, the special crab entree, choucroute, fish, wine, coffee. Total was €150 for three. We finished up the day at the Arch de Triomphe, got some fruit at the market, and relaxed that evening. We probably walked 8 - 10 miles, me totally cured, and DH telling me I walked his feet off. (Don't know where I got the energy, but it helped, because I didn't gain much this time!)

The next day was sort of a downer. We woke up late and went over to the Palais Royal to try a little place I'd read about and wanted to try for our then-projected December trip. We should have had something little for breakfast, because by the time we got there we were really hungry.

OK, this is the one place on our trip that I will NOT recommend. It was the Table d'Hote du Palasi Royal, a very small (6 or 7 tables) place behind the gardens. When we arrived, the host was just a grump. He seated us and we ordered some wine, which DH began to drink right away (on an empty stomach). DH looked at me and said, "There's a cat over there, and it just came out of the kitchen. I don't like it here." Uh oh. Did he want to leave? No, let's stay. Well, the food was OK but the host was just - unfriendly. He also had a cold, and went outside to blow his nose, then served the food without washing his hands. NOT a good experience, and expensive - €80. We should have left.

After that, we went around the corner to a little jewelry store I went to before, Babylone, and I found some wonderful necklaces and earrings for our daughter/in-laws. Then we toured to Opera Garnier, which we loved. Returned back to the 7th. where I dropped off DH so he could relax, and I went out again to do some local shopping.

I found a wonderful store, La Factory, at 16 rue Cler. The darling owner had studied in the US and Canada (I think) and had some great accessories. I got two beautiful wool shawls for €35 each, and a pair of earrings. I also found a neck scarf at Mandalas, which was somewhere maybe on the rue St. Dominque? I think. I also got some silverplated table accessories at MacAbane, nearby, which I thought were a very good value and I love them! (a set of salad servers and a cake server with faux ivory handles).

The next day, our last, we were determined to pick up and enjoy! We went to Angelina for breakfast, and that was great. We had hot chocolate, and it was like drinking a chocolate bar. Amazing. Also quiche and a salad. Loved it - what a beautiful place! From there we went over to the Louvre for a few hours.

We finished off our trip with dinner that night at the Fountaine de Mars. It was the night before the May 1st holiday, so we were unable to get a reservation at one of Christian Constant's places. It was ok, the servers were just wonderful, the food good although a little pricey. But we were in Paris! and toasted our immense good fortune.

The next morning we took a little walk around to say goodbye to the city we love. We thought we would be returning in December with our family, but it turns out that our children have new jobs and that won't happen. We'll have to make memories somewhere else.

Still, we had a great time together, and are so glad that we journeyed to Spain - what a lovely, friendly country - and Paris. We'll just - have to go back!

I am enjoying. Maybe for future planning. Sorry about your Dad. Mine is 92, also lives alone. He did get to travel a lot (cheap dollar then) but mostly tours. Thanks for all the detail!

Thank you for your report.

read and enjoyed!

Thanks for sharing your trip with us.