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United Kingdom

A great day in London

We signed up for a WW I and WW II battlefield tour with a company called Trafalgar tours. The first two days of the tour were in London and it provided us with some time to explore some of the iconic sites.

We walked along the Thames River and enjoyed some of the iconic views.

View of Elizabeth Tower “known as Big Ben” in London

We walked for several kilometers along the path near the Thames River. Along the way, we saw the Westminster Palace, a beautiful building with great architecture.

Elizabeth Tower in London
Westminster Palace in London
Another view of the Westminster Palace in London

All along the road that followed the Thames River, there were some great architectural buildings. Some of the buildings we recognized while other we did not.

View along the Thames River of some of the beautiful buildings

We walked for about an hour along the streets of London.

Wellington Arch in London
The Gates near Hyde Park in London

We went to Trafalgar Square and stopped there to admire the location and take a few pictures.

Trafalgar Square in London
Shelley and Ray in Trafalgar Square in London
Fountain in Trafalgar Square in London

We saw some interesting monuments on our tour through parts of London. There was a unique large bronze horse head statue.

Bronze horse head statue in London
Lion statue at Trafalgar Square

We went the Buckingham Palace to see the changing of the guards.

A view of Buckingham Palace from the garden area

There was a very large crowd of people gathered there to watch the changing of the guards.

Changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace in London

We walked along the Princess of Wales Memorial Walk and decided to take a picture of the plaque.

Ray and Shelley’s foot with the Princess of Wales Memorial Walk plaque

It was a very enjoyable day exploring parts of London. There were so many interesting things to see.

“Ta ta and Cheerio”

 

Spain

Pottery in Agost

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We took a trip out to Agost, a small town near Alicante. This town is known worldwide for its excellent handcrafted pottery.

We went to a family operated pottery facility which has been in the same family for two hundred years. They provided us with a tour throughout their entire process of making handmade pottery.

We started outside and the guide explained how they select the soil, clean and treat it in preparation to make it into clay.

Guide, explaining the process of selecting the soil for clay
Flatbeds for drying the washed soil for clay

We then headed inside the factory to see the next stages of the pottery being created.

The filter process of the soil used for clay
The guide demonstrating the pump system used to get clay

We went into a work area where we watched a potterer create pottery from clay.

A worker making clay pottery and demonstrating the process

We enjoyed the tour and learning about the art of pottery making. We then visited the showroom where there was some very neat handcrafted pottery.

Pottery showroom
Some of the finished pottery on display in the showroom

There is definitely an art to making pottery and it was a very interesting process.

“Adios y que tenga un grand dia”

Spain

Caves del Canelobre

We went to Busot, Spain which is a small mountain town 18 kilometers from Alicante. The views were amazing on the way up the mountain on our way to see the Caves of Canelobre.

View from the entrance area of the caves in Busot, Spain

The entrance to the caves is on the northern slopes of the mountain ridge known as Cabezón de Oro.

Entrance to the Caves

We went to buy our tickets to go and see the caves but discovered that they just closed for the day. Our friend Felipe who is also a tourist guide spoke to the manager. He did his magic and the manager opened up the caves just for us. We went down a long hallway to the entrance of the caves.

The hallway to the “Coves del Canelobre”

When we reached the end of the hallway we came to an open cavern area. There was a platform which you could see the large cave area.

Ray in the Caves of Canelobre
The main platform area in the caves

We were able to go to the edge of the platform where we could see all the main areas of the cave. We looked at the main cave area which has a height of 70 meters and is shaped like a cathedral ceiling.

The cave which has many stalactites and stalagmites and is similar in shape as a cathedral ceiling.

It is amazing to see the caves, which were formed millions of years ago.  There were different size stalactites and stalagmites throughout the cave. They only grow about 1 cm every one hundred years. Stalagmites are formed by calcium salt deposits formed by dripping water and often unit with stalactites.

Stalactites and stalagmites throughout the cave.

It was neat to be the only ones in the caves and able to see them without any other people around. The main cave area is the candelabra formation, which is the official name of the caves.

Stalagmites formed over many thousands of years.

The caves are a true natural wonder and an amazing site. We enjoyed our visit to the caves and were very thankful to have a private viewing of the caves.

“Adios y que tenga un grand dia”

Spain

The City of Cartagena

We went to Cartagena and explored this wonderful city. Located on the coast of the mediterranean sea, it has a long and rich history. We walked through the streets in the old quarter of Cartagena and admired some of the unique architecture.

Architecture in the old quarter in Cartagena

What was very different was the walkway itself which was covered in beautiful marble and was polished smooth.

the polished marble on the walkways in the old quarter of Cartagena

We walked along the streets and came across city hall which had nice architectural features.

City hall in Cartagena Spain

We went into city hall and checked out the lobby area. There was security at the door and we were not able to explore the remainder of city hall.

Shelley and Ray at the base of the main stairway in city hall in Cartagena

The ceiling had beautiful features and was stunning to see.

Ceiling above the main staircase in city hall in Cartagena

The outside features of city hall were also impressive.

above the main entrance of city hall in Cartagena
A section of city hall in Cartagena

The building was attacked repeatedly over the centuries and there are remnants of damage from cannon balls hitting the building.

Damage caused by a cannon ball visible on the wall at city hall

We then walked down towards the waterfront and admired the views from the boardwalk.

Boardwalk area near the waterfront in Cartagena, Spain

We came across a sailor and decided to get our picture taken with him.

Ray and Shelley with statue of sailor near the waterfront in Cartagena, Spain

The views from the waterfront were great and we walked the full length of the boardwalk.

The marina area in Cartagena, Spain

We saw many beautiful boats and the view of the mountains was spectacular. Overall a very enjoyable day in Cartagena.

“Adios y que tenga un grand dia”

 

Spain

The Roman Theatre in Cartagena

One of our favorite sites in Cartagena was the Roman theater. When we first walked to the top of the hill and saw the theater for the first time it was spectacular. It was located on the hillside which made it quite large and impressive.

View from the top of the Roman theater in Cartagena, Spain

The theater was much larger than we expected and it could hold up to 7000 spectators. The theater was in use between 5 and 1 BC and it was in excellent condition considering how ancient the structure was.

Ray and Shelley with Roman Theater in the background.
section of the Roman theater

We were able to freely walk throughout the majority of the theater admiring the architecture. The design of the theater was similar to a modern theater with exit aisles and divided into sections to accommodate the spectators.

Aisles divide the theater into sections for the spectators

We walked to the lower section of the theater and could see some of the marble columns which held up the wooden sections of the structure.

Columns in Roman theater in Cartagena
Columns at the outer wall of the theater.

The entire theater was well designed and had spectacular features. The stone stairs were even cut out and designed.

Stairs carved out of stone in theater

We walked throughout the theater for almost an hour enjoying the beautiful historic site.

Section at the base of the theater
Corridor to the section behind the seating area
Ray in section at base of the theater

It is truly hard to imagine the amount of history that occurred in the theater since 5 BC. It was a great experience and a very enjoyable time

Adios y que tenga un grand dia”