Tag Archives: Chaput foot prints

Spain

Bodega Remigio de Salas Jalón experience

We went to explore the Riebera del Duero wine region of Spain. It is one of the top wine making regions in Spain. The area is located on the extensive, elevated northern plateau of the Iberian Peninsula. It follows the Duero river and has ideal conditions for wine making. 

View of part of the Riebera del Duero region in Spain.

We were excited to visit some of the bodegas and experience some wine tours. We began with a visit to the bodega called Remigio de Salas Jalón located in the highest part of the urban centre of Dueñas. It is located in the side of a mountain and the majority of the bodega is located inside manmade caves and is underground. We did a little exploring in the area before heading to the bodega.

Shelley on the mountain side near the bodega
The road up to the bodega Remigio de Salas Jalón
The entrance to the bodega Remigio de Salas Jalón

This area has a long history of ancient wineries and the Salas family has maintained  an authentic age-old wine tradition. The Salas have been making wine since 1738 on this land. This is the fifth generation of the Salas family that has followed in the tradition of wine making on this land.

We were fortunate to have had a private tour of the winery and explored some of the caves that hold the wine.  The grapes are transported to the bodega by tractor and then brought into the bodega by a conveyor type system.  

Grapes brought to the bodega for processing into wine
Wine grapes being loaded into the bodega through a conveyor type system

We began our tour in the main entrance area and before long we were walking down a corridor that went into the dug caves created in the mountain side. It felt as if we were walking back in time to a different era. 

One of the corridors in the cave system of the bodega.

The entire bodega was very impressive but the most unique thing was the Original Roman era wine press that was still inside the bodega. 

The wheel section of the Roman wine press.

The lever area where the wine would be pressed.
Ray in front of the Roman wine press

Once we had toured the bodega of course we had to sample some of their wines. It was a great experience and very memorable. 

“El vino es un pasaporte al mundo.” – Thom Elkjer

Italy

The Colosseum in Rome

One of the highlights of Rome is the Colosseum. It is considered and listed as one of the new wonders of the World.  For us this has been on our list of must see for years.  This amazing structure is 52 meters high, which is the equivalent of a 17-storey structure.

 

It is an amazing structure with the arch architectural element. There are  80 arches over four floors that creates the famous elliptical shape of the Colosseum. The history of the colosseum is quite interesting. In fact in ancient Romans times it was called ” Flavian Amphitheater” which came from the name of the imperial family Flavia.

Shelley and Ray in front of the Colosseum in Rome

We were awed by the sheer size of the pillars, arches and overall size of the colosseum.  

The inner section of the entry pillars of the colosseum

The amphitheater was a massive project and was designed to seat over 55,000 people. The amphitheater’s construction was funded with the spoils seized from the Jewish Temple after Roman crushed the Jewish Revolt of 70 AD. Stolen Jewish artifacts not only funded the building of the Colosseum, but Jewish slaves seized during the revolt built the building.

Image of the massive size of the colosseum in Rome.

At the end of the construction, the inauguration was celebrated with extraordinary games and fights that lasted 100 days. 

We were fortunate to have an in depth tour of the colosseum with access to the underground area.  A truly amazing structure and design known as the hypogeum.  It was a network of tunnels and chambers distributed in two levels where gladiators and animals were kept before appearing in the arena above.

Lower rooms and hallways of the colosseum

We walked through the underground areas and could just imagine the chaos and sounds of the gladiators, animals and people.  

We saw a recreation of the elevator type structures used to raise gladiators and animals into the colosseum arena. 

Recreation of Roman elevator system in colosseum
recreation of a cage area of elevator at colosseum

After exploring the lower level of the colosseum we went to the reconstructed section of the arena floor where gladiators would have fought. The view from the arena floor gave us a unique perspective of just what the gladiators would have seen. 

Shelley and Ray on the colosseum arena floor area.

We then explored the upper areas of the colosseum and saw the areas where over 50,000 spectators would watch the battles. Senators and the wealthy had reserved seats engraved in marble. 

View of the colosseum walls under the floor.

It was one of those pinch me moments touring the colosseum and seeing such a unique and awe inspiring historical structure. 

“afferrare la vita e non rimandare a domani cosa puoi fare oggi”

Italy

Rome Italy

Rome for over a millennium was the centre of power and controlled most of the world. It has a complex and deep history, so we decided to take some time and explore this amazing city. We walked through many of the streets that had remnants of  Roman ruins and historic sites.  We were in awe at the richness of the history.  We went to the normal tourist sites like the Trevi Fountain. It is an 18th-century fountain in the Trevi district in Rome. It is very impressive standing 26.3 metres high and 49.15 metres wide. This is the largest Baroque fountain in the city or Rome and one of the most famous fountains in the world.
The Trevi Fountain in Rome
Shelley and Ray in front of the Trevi Fountain
The ornate statues in the Trevi Fountain in Rome
We also went to see the Spanish Steps which climb a steep slope between the Piazza di Spagna at the base and  by the Trinità dei Monti church, at the top. 
Spanish Steps in Rome

There was a police presence there and they were watching the tourist and keeping them from loitering too much or sitting down on the steps.

We of course had to walk up the 135 steps to the top. The view from the top of the Spanish Steps gave a nice view of Rome.
 
The view from the top of the Spanish Steps in Rome.
At the base of the Spanish Stairs is the  Fontana della Barcaccia .
The fountain of Barcaccia, which is fountain of the boat in Italian.
We walked to different piazzas and almost each one had amazing sites and statues. We  came to the National Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II which is also known as Altare della Patria meaning Altar of the Fatherland in english..
It is an amazing and impressive building located in the center of ancient Rome. 
The front of the National Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II

There are large statues and fountains along the building.

Side view of some of the statues at the National Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II
view of the Alter of the Fatherland statue as sun sets in Rome

All along the ancient centre of Rome are ruins, statues and remnants of the Roman empire.  

Shelley and Ray in front of Roman ruins
Arco di Costatino in Rome
Santa Maria Di Loreto in Rome with the Colonna Trajana in the foreground

We of course went to see the colosseum which was amazing and we will do a separate post on the colosseum. 

The colosseum of Rome
Castel San Angelo in Rome

These were beautiful and awe inspiring sites to see, but what we really enjoyed was the people and food of Rome. 

“L’esperienza è l’insegnante di tutte le cose.” – Julius Caesar

Spain

Aljaferia Palace in Zaragoza

We went and explored the Palicio de la Aljafería located in Zaragoza Spain.

Shelley and Ray outside of the Aljaferia Palace in Zaragoza Spain

As we approached the palace it was obvious that this was a fortified palace build several centuries ago. We went through the main gate and into a beautiful inner courtyard. There were orange trees and the smell of orange was prominent in the courtyard. 

Centre courtyard of the Aljaferia Palace in Zaragoza Spain

There was an overwhelming islamic architecture design in the palace. 

From ornate islamic designed frames of doorways to unique ceilings.

Shelley in the Palace of Aljaferia checking out the islamic architecture

We soon discovered that the Palacio de la Aljafería palace was built during the second half of the 11th century in Zaragoza, Spain.  It was designated as a World Heritage Site in 2001 and known for its Spanish Islamic design.

Shelley and Ray in one of the palace rooms with an ornate ceiling design

We wandered through the different rooms and were amazed by the size of the palace even the staircase was massive.

Shelley on the large staircase
One of the staircases in the Aljaferia palace

The palace reflects the amazing details and ornate design during the period attained by the Taifa of Zaragoza. This history was preserved and today the palace is home to regional parliament of Aragon. 

Parliament room in the Aljaferia palace

It was a great place to explore and learn about the rich history of Islamic influence here in Spain. 

“Muchas flores diferentes hacen un ramo”. ~ Proverbio islámico

Spain

A few days in Zaragoza Spain

We spent a few days exploring Zaragoza, which is a beautiful city located in the northeastern part of Spain. The city has a rich history and was founded at the end of the 1st century. There are Roman ruins and reminders of its rich history throughout the city.

We walked through parts of the old section of the city admiring the old architecture and beautiful plazas. 

The bullring in Zaragoza which is called MIsericordia
Central Market in Zaragoza
Tram system with view of central Market in distance

We walked through the shops and restaurants towards the main plaza enjoying the sites and sounds. There was lots of things to see and the shops were full of interesting stuff. 

Eventually we reached the Plaza de la Seo which is truly stunning and has unique features.  The ground s of the plaza were covered in beautiful marble tiles.

There was the stunning Cathedral at one section of the plaza which gave the plaza a very grandiose feel.

We explored the plaza de la Seo and were amazed at all the features and unique statues and items in the plaza.

Shelley and Ray with waterfall feature in the main plaza of Zaragoza, Spain

We bought a ticket to go up the tower of the Cathedral of Zaragoza to get views of the city.  The tower was built on the site of the ancient Roman forum of Augustus and of the main mosque. The new tower, which was designed in Rome in 1683 by Juan Bautista Contini in the Baroque style, was started in 1686 and finished in 1704 with the placement of the spire. There are elements of the minaret that form part of the current tower. 

There was an elevator that took us up to the first level of the tower. From there we took stairs which made its way up to the very top of the tower.

When we reached the top the views were amazing. We could see entire city from the tower.

View of the Roman bridge and Cathedral of Zaragoza from the tower of Zaragoza
View from the tower of Zaragoza

The city of Zaragoza surprised us with its dynamic and vibrant city centre. There were lots of unique things to see, including Roman ruins, historic sites and architecture.

“La vida es un viaje, disfruta de las aventuras en el camino”