The week of Easter we took a trip to the Costa Brava in Spain. We flew into Barcelona and then drove up the coast to a small town called Palafrugell. We rented a small apartment there and made that our base for exploring the Costa Brava.
Kids in the apartment the first night. They were so excited to see their favorite shows in English!
The fist day we went to the coastal village of Llafranc.
Llafranc
The day started a bit chilly, but that did not stop us from putting our toes into the Mediterranean.
Lore Mae thinking about going into the water.
No smiling dogs are allowed on the beach.
Still in Llafranc...the sun finally came out.
Had lunch at a restaurant across from the beach. Lore Mae enjoying her juice.
Cerveza!
Cy says, "I love Spain!"
After lunch, the sun was warm and the water was too enticing. Bathing suits are optional in Llafranc! (at least for the under 5 crowd)
Back in Palafrugell...this was a chocolate shop displaying all of their Easter themed creations.
Beautiful Grace
The second day started much like the first, cold and rainy. We took a picnic to another local beach, and it was fun even if we got wet.
Since it was raining we decided to drive to Figueres, the birthplace of Salvador Dali, and to visit the Dali museum. This is the museum from the outside.
Walking to the entrance of the museum. The kids are thinking, "where are our parents taking us now?"
The queue for entrance to the museum was so long and it was raining so hard we decided to skip the museum, and decided to have hot chocolate and coffee at a bar instead.
Everyone was much happier after getting out of the rain and warming up with hot chocolate.
On the drive home from Figueres we went along the coast to a town called Roses. I could not get over the landscape of the coast. So different from what we are used to seeing.
Roses
The third day we went to Girona.
The original wall that was built around the city in the first century is still there and you can walk on top of it and climb the towers to get a great view of the whole city.
Cy making a funny face, with Girona in the background.
We ate lunch at the first place we could find space at. We were all starving and getting a little on the grouchy side. I did not have my hopes too high about the quality of food, but Tommy said, "this might just be my favorite restaurant in Europe." The beer was cold the burger was good and the service was nothing if not entertaining. Thanks, San Felix.
Onyar River
More pictures from the top of the wall.
Happy boy!
Easter morning. The kids were pretty impressed that the Easter bunny found us in Spain.
Palafrugell had a fresh market everyday with fruits, vegetables and a meat and fish market, but on Sundays (even Easter Sunday) they have a huge market with anything your heart may desire to have. It incorporates most of the city. Our contact person for the apartment warned us that we would not be able to get the car out of the garage on Sunday...she was right.
We stayed in Palafrugell and enjoyed the market. The girls and I walked around all morning and shopped.
Tommy and the little kids found a playground.
Not your traditional Easter dinner with ham and potato salad, but I think this was Tommy's favorite part about the trip...Cooking!
Dessert and Sangria...Yumm!
On Easter Monday we drove to Barcelona to spend the day. First, and most important, we found the playground.
Small garden in the middle of Barcelona.
The boy loves chocolate ice cream.
I have to say that Barcelona was by far my favorite city of the ones we have visited. I love the old buildings and narrow streets. The people were so friendly and laid back. I hate that we only spent one whole day there. It is definitely on the "must return" list.
We wanted to see as much of the city as possible, so we decided to take a bike tour. Cy checking out the bikes.
The trailer set up for Cy. He was so excited.
Our tour guide, Buddha. If you have a chance to go to Barcelona, check out Fat Tire Bike Tours. So worth it. Lots of fun for the adults and the kids. They also have tours in Paris, Berlin and London. (ok there is my endorsement)
These are the steps where Columbus asked Queen Isabella for the money to fund his exploration. They are about the only original part of the palace that survived Franco and Hitler.
Our group was about 20 people on bikes. I was a little worried about Sarah and Grace getting lost. We told them to stay with the tour guide or with us at all times. They chose Buddha...I wonder why.
Barcelona's Arc de Triomphe
The city "triumphed" over the plague 5 times. I guess that is a good enough reason to put up a monument.
Arenas de Barcelona...for bullfighting
Gaudi's La Sagrada Familia
The beach was our last stop on the tour.
Yeah, I'm cool.
Beach Bar where we stopped for Sangria and a little snack.
On the last day we went back to the beach where we had a picnic earlier in the week. The weather was much better.
Even though the water was ice cold, we could not keep the kids out of it.
Tommy went exploring while the kids and I soaked up the Mediterranean sun. I think he said these were not Roman ruins, but Greek. That's pretty old!
Yes we found yet another playground. I think we hit all of them along the Costa Brava. Maybe that is why Cy loved this trip so much...or maybe it was the cheeseburgers, coca cola and ice cream at every meal.
Regardless, it was a great trip.
