Getting through the hard days

I love having an adventure planned.  It's become a necessary part of my life.

It helps get me through some of the hard days.  

The days when this administration tries to strip away hard earned rights.  The days they flaunt their cruelty in a never ending grasp for more money and power.

I make plans and I try my ever-lovin' damndest to seek out and hold onto joy.

Holding onto our joy is, I believe, a form of resisting the bastards until they're gone.

Nobody ever said that resistance can't be fun.

I look for and find joy in many things - but an adventure tops the list.  

This one will be a biggie.  

We're not getting any younger. Who knows how many more trips we'll be lucky enough to have.  

We worked long and we worked hard for these adventures in our retirement.

We'll do it as long as we're able.

Trade Routes of the Middle Ages Viking Cruise

And, as most of you already know, I love scooting down rabbit holes of research about the places we visit on our excursions and adventures.

I'm going to ask you to join me in some of these rabbit holes.

Share with me, please, whatever you know about these stops on our itinerary.

For a place to start my research for this trip, I've bought

"Transportation and trade in the Middle Ages were more developed and varied than is commonly thought. This book examines why medieval Europeans traveled--from making pilgrimages to engaging in international trade--and surveys in detail how they traveled, both by land and water. Travel and trade were inextricably linked to transportation, and over time an infrastructure of roads, bridges, and accommodations grew across Europe, enabling people and goods to move around the continent and beyond. Also explored are the hardships faced by medieval travelers, including storms at sea, avalanches in the Alps, the presence of pirates and robbers, and the fundamental problems of finding a meal and shelter."

I'm seeking out books having to do with the spots we'll be visiting.

For our very first port of call, I got this beauty -

I have long had a fascination with Gaudi.

"The life of Antoni Gaudí (1852–1926) was full of complexity and contradictions. As a young man he joined the Catalonian nationalist movement and was critical of the church; toward the end of his life he devoted himself completely to the construction of one single spectacular church, La Sagrada Família. In his youth, he courted a glamorous social life and the demeanor of a dandy. By the time of his death in a tram accident on the streets of Barcelona, his clothes were so shabby that passersby assumed he was a beggar.

Gaudí’s incomparable architecture channels much of this multifaceted intricacy. From the shimmering surface textures and skeletal forms of Casa Batlló to the Hispano-Arabic matrix of Casa Vicens, his work merged the influences of Orientalism, natural forms, new materials, and religious faith into a unique Modernista aesthetic. Today, his buildings enjoy global popularity and acclaim; his magnum opus, the Sagrada Família, is the most-visited monument in Spain ahnd seven of his works are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Packed full of expert texts and hundreds of full-color illustrations, including new photography, this book presents Gaudí’s complete oeuvre. Like a personal tour through Barcelona, we explore his residential, religious, and public projects. We see how the “Dante of architecture” was a builder in the truest sense of the word, crafting extraordinary constructions out of minute and mesmerizing details, transforming fantastical visions into realities on the city streets."

Take a look at this list, please.

If you've visited any of these places, I'd love to hear from you.  What you loved, what you didn't love.  A favorite story or memory.

If you have books to recommend, please share them!

I've plugged in a few titles.  Some I've read, others I've just learned of.  I'll include a note with those I have read in case you're interested in escaping the real world by traveling through books.

Barcelona -

The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series by Carlos Ruiz Zafón - Outstanding!

Origin by Dan Brown - There are many who don't care for Dan Brown's work.  I am not among them.  I loved this Robert Langdon entry.

Homage to Barcelona by Colm Toibin - Just received it and am looking forward to reading.

Cartagena - 

Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez - Loved.

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell - Have not read.

Malaga -

Message from Malaga by Helen MacInnes - Read.  A very long time ago.  Being a fan of Macinnes, i may ave to read it again.

Porto -

Falmouth -

The Cornish House by Liz Fenwick - have not read.

Portsmouth -

Paris -

It just so happens, I do have a fairly lengthy list of Paris books -

Fiction - https://www.kayebarleymeanderingsandmuses.com/2018/01/my-paris-reading-list.html

And

Non-Fiction - https://www.kayebarleymeanderingsandmuses.com/2022/02/my-paris-reading-list-non-fiction.html

Bruges -

Amsterdam -

The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton.  Have not read.

Bergen - 

Bergen Spring by Michael Cummings - Arrived in today's mail.  Looking forward to reading it.

Here's to Adventures!

Rabbit Holes!

And Bracelets!

Happy Travels!

❤