We saw first hand just how intense and dangerous it can be to drive in Paris. We were on the Hop-on bus touring the city of Paris and watched how the drivers navigated the streets. The traffic is heavy and there are numerous scooters and motorcycles on the roads.
Heavy traffic in downtown Paris
Some of the streets are multi-lane up to four or five lanes wide.
The motorcycles and scooters swerve through traffic sometimes in very dangerous maneuvers.
Motorcycles passing on the right of the bus and cutting off pedestrians crossing the road in Paris.
In order to demonstrate the intense traffic and dangerous driving of some motorist in Paris, we made a short YouTube video. The video is quickened to not be too long but you will get a good sense of the driving there. Take a look at the YouTube video and let us know what you think.
We went to London for a few days to tour the city. We took a hop-on bus, in order to view as many of the sites as possible. The capital of England is a very large city with a population of over 8.6 million people.
We started our day with a tour of the main section of London. We saw some beautiful and historic sites. The tower of London was interesting because the tower is not very high, certainly not what we expected.
The Tower of London
We also saw “Big Ben” which is the nickname for the great bell in the clock tower. People refer to the clock tower as Big Ben, but the tower is officially called the “Elizabeth Tower” named in 2012 to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II. The tower holds the second largest four-faced chiming clock in the world and is very impressive.
Palace of Westminster with the Elizabeth Tower.
We also stopped at Buckingham Palace. The exterior of the Palace is very spectacular. We walked around the outside of Buckingham Palace admiring the building.
Buckingham Palace in London
Buckingham Palace has a large steel fence with several gates at the front. The gates are very large and have the royal coat of arms prominently displayed on them.
Ray and Shelley at the front of Buckingham Palace gates
Inside the fenced area of Buckingham Palace, we could see the Royal guards as well as regular police security.
Royal Guard at the Buckingham Palace
We then took a riverboat cruise on the Thames River. The views from the water were different from seeing the sites from the hop-on bus. We traveled the Thames River up to the tower bridge which is an iconic symbol of London.
Tower Bridge in LondonA view of the Tower Bridge in London from the Thames RiverShelley and Ray on the shore of the Thames River with the Tower Bridge in the background
Along, our water cruise, we saw the London Eye which is basically a giant Ferris wheel with observation platforms.
A view of the London Eye from the Thames River
We saw some very interesting buildings along the Thames River including a Pup called “The Anchor Bankside” which was a pup under different for over 800 years. It was also a location for a scene in the Mission Impossible movie.
A view of the Anchor Bankside Pup on the south bank of the Thames River in London.
We also saw the London Bridge which was quite a surprise for us. The bridge was not very impressive and was plain.
A view of the London Bridge from the Thames RiverUnder the London Bridge
We spent the entire day traveling throughout London looking at the many historic sites. Unfortunately, we did not have enough time to tour inside any of the sites. We will plan another trip to London in the future to visit this amazing city in more detail.
We took the high-speed rail system to Cuenca Spain, a small quaint city in the mountains. We arrived at the train station “Cuenca Fernando Zobel” which is a new station located on the outskirts of Cuenca.
Cuenca, Spain the new RENFE train station platform
The new train station is a beautiful new facility and is quite impressive. It looks more like an airport than a train station.
Inside of the RENFE train station in Cuenca, Spain
We decided to walk into Cuenca and headed down the sidewalk towards the city.
Walking along the new sidewalk away from the train station toward Cuenca.
As we continued the walk the sidewalk ended and we were walking along the roadway.
Walking along the side of the road heading towards Cuenca.
We continued to walk for approximately 30 minutes when a priest stopped his car and approached us. He asked us if we were ok and where we were headed. We told him to our hotel in Cuenca and he indicated that we were about 6 kilometers away from our hotel. He offered to take us there in his vehicle and we decided to take him up on his offer. The four of us and our carry bags squeezed into his small compact 4 cylinder car. The priest was very helpful and drove us to the hotel.
Priest driving us to the hotel in Cuenca
We thanked him very much and offered him some money, which he refused. He told us to pray for him and wished us well. It is nice to see the goodwill of strangers and to be the recipient of a random act of kindness.
Our hotel “Torremangana” in Cuenca, Spain
We settled into our hotel rooms and prepared for the next few days of exploration and adventures in Cuenca Spain.
We decided to take the bus and head out to Arenales for a walk along the beach. The bus from Alicante to Arenales takes about a half and hour and provides some beautiful views of the Mediterranean Sea along the way.
Brad and Louise on the Bus to Arenales
Once we got to Arenales we decided to have lunch before heading out to the beach.
Beachside restaurant in Arenales
We enjoyed some traditional Spanish food, which consisted of Potato salad with tuna, ham, Seafood salad, and refreshments. After lunch, we walked along the beach working our way to the point towards Santa Pola. The beach and scenery were beautiful.
Ray and Brad walking along the beach in Arenales
We walked approximately 2 kilometers up the beach and decided to stop and have a break at a beach front bar.
Ray, Brad, Louise, and Shelley at beach front bar
After our break, we continued up the beach. Along the walk, we found an interesting fish?? washed up on the beach.
Fish?? washed up on the beach in Arenales
Ray and Brad decided that a swim in the Mediterranean Sea was a good idea. They both went into the water and enjoyed swimming in the Sea and body surfing the waves.
Ray and Brad in the Sea
After the swim and walk along the beach, we headed back to the bus stop and returned to Alicante. It was a very enjoyable full day of walking the beach and lots of sun.
On Sunday went to the Mercado de San Miguel in Madrid with friends to check it out. The Market is a very popular and lively place where the locals come to eat and socialize. The market which has been established for over 100 years is set in a unique old structure.
San Miguel Market Madrid
The market was very busy and there were people wandering around the market eating and looking at the products.
Inside the San Miguel Market
We walked around checking out each market stall. There were amazing fruits, fish, vegetables and assorted other unique items.
People walking through the market
There was an olive stall selling every imaginable type of olive. They even had olives made into small sandwiches with sardines and other meats.
Olives and assorted olive sandwiches
We decided to buy a few different olives and try them. We had an assortment of olives, with sardines, cheeses, garlic and in different brines. They were extremely tasty and went very well with the beverages.
Shelley, Louise, and Ray having a drink and olives at the market
After having a few snacks of olives we walked around and checked out the other stalls. There was a stall with homemade potato chips which looked very appealing. Brad decided to buy some and try them out. It was all very tasty and fresh.
stall of homemade chips, sweets, and assorted desertsBard with homemade potato chips
We walked through the market for almost an hour enjoying the sights, smells, and sounds of the market. Below are just a few of the neat things we saw.
fruit drinks and smoothies of all kinds.sweet treats of very kind imaginablebags of mini sausages, bacon, and hamhomemade peanut brittle and peanuts candies
There were several stalls with fish and seafood in the market. One display of seafood contained fish on ice that you could buy. It drew our attention because there was a huge fish on display.
Huge fish on display at the marketFish at the marketBig fish on ice at the marketAssorted fish on display at market
The market was very impressive and unique. It was not just a market but also a restaurant for people to sit and enjoy the food. We enjoyed ourselves at the market.
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