2014 In the Rear View Mirror

I can’t believe that I retired over 2 years ago. When this August 1st came along, I didn’t even realize that it was my retirement anniversary until I remembered it a week or so later. As I did last year, I wanted to share a review of 2014.

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, or Happy whatever-holiday-tradition-you-follow!

Early 2014

We brought in the New Year in Fort Collins with our boys (Cameron and Ryan). We got to learn more about Fort Collins and spent some quality time with the boys. Cameron and I skied Breckenridge and had a great time.

Horsetooth Reservoir

Cameron skiing

In February, we returned to Florida with much warmer weather than we had experienced in Colorado. We took some day trips a couple hours away to visit Port St. Joe, Apalachicola, and Cape San Blas. I spent my time fishing and golfing on warm days.

Cape San Blas

Sunset on Scenic 30A

Spring 2014

For Spring Break, we returned to Fort Collins.  Now that it was warming up a bit, we were able to hike and cycle the numerous scenic trails.

Cycling the Poudre Trail

Hiking Fort Collins

We also got out and explored the Fort Collins breweries. While visiting the local brew houses, we met some new friends (Doug and Julie) — they are also into craft breweries.

Pateros Creek Brewery

Tour of Funkwerks

Summer 2014

Our youngest son, Ryan, decided that he wanted to take the summer off and transfer from Colorado State University to the University of Florida. Since he was taking the summer off, we decided to travel to Europe for the summer. Our oldest son, Cameron, was working during the summer, so he stayed in Ft. Collins. This was the first time we had traveled with Ryan since we retired, it was a great way to spend the summer.

Paris, France

We spent 2 weeks in Paris, renting a small apartment just down the street from the Arch de Triomphe. We explored all that the city had to offer, visiting all of the major attractions and taking excursions to the French country side, visiting wineries and chateaus.

Chateau De Chenonceau

Chateau

Eiffel Tower

Spain

After leaving Paris, we flew to Barcelona, Spain.  We stayed in Spain for about a month and was able to visit Montserrat and Costa Brava.

Costa Brava

Montserrat

Park Guell in Barcelona Spain

Barcelona Beach

Our Spain trip was scheduled around the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, where we had front row seats from a balcony overlooking the festival. It was incredibly fun.

Ryan all dressed up

Running of the Bulls

We capped off our visit to Spain by visiting Valencia, Madrid, Laguardia, and Bilbao.

Valencia Spain

Flamenco Dancing in Madrid

Laguardia Spain

Incredible castle view – Laguardia Spain

Italy

After leaving Spain, we headed to Italy. We started our travels in northern Italy, visiting Milan and Lake Como.

Duomo in Milan

Lake Como

Lake Como

From here, we headed to the Italian Riviera which was probably our favorite area of Italy.

Vernazza

Monterosso

Italian Riviera – Monterosso

After leaving the Italian Riviera, we headed south to Rome, Tuscany, Pompeii and Capri. The blue grotto in Capri was stunning.

Rome

Tuscany

Pompeii

Capri

Blue Grotto

Portugal

Our final stop in Europe was in Portugal. We did not stay here very long but in hindsight, we should have stayed a few more days to take it all in.

Lisbon Portugal

Lisbon Portugal

Fall 2014

After Europe, we spent about a month in Fort Collins then headed back to Florida. Ryan came back with us so that he could take a Physics class as he awaited his acceptance to the University of Florida.

Ryan and I decided to challenge ourselves to cycle 50 miles on the bicycle (I did the challenge in 2013 but he wanted to try it as well). He and I trained hard and completed a 45 mile and 50 mile ride a week apart. We finished the 50 miles in just 3 hours, 45 minutes quicker than when I did it by myself in 2013.

With the great weather we’ve had in Florida since our return, we’ve been boating, swimming, fishing, and spending lots of time outside. It has been fun having Ryan with us for a few months. He starts at the University of Florida in January so we will miss him.

Huge Jelly Fish

Gliders on the beach

End of 2014

We are spending December in Florida. Cameron and Ryan will be here for Christmas so we will get to spend some great family time together.

In the Fall, we purchased a piece of land pretty close to the beach in Inlet Beach (about a mile from where we live today). We are planning to build a home on the lot, hopefully beginning in the Spring or early Summer.

We haven’t planned our next travel adventure yet, but we will definitely take a trip somewhere in 2015. Maybe Greece, Malta, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, or Finland? Not sure, but they all sound great!

Slideshow of our Spain Trip

Summer is coming to an end so I wanted to pass along some of the pictures we took while in Spain this Summer.  Simply click the slideshows below and ready your dancing shoes — you will experience an electric slide of pictures.

Barcelona

We hung out in Barcelona for a little over a week, visiting Montserrat and Coasta Brava during our trip. Barcelona has lots to offer, from Gaudi-inspired architecture to incredible coastal views just north in Coasta Brava. Enjoy the slideshow.

Valencia

We boarded a train and in just over 2 hours we arrived in Valencia, directly south of Barcelona. As soon as we arrived, it felt like we were on a beach vacation. The vibe was more laid back, the prices were lower and seafood restaurants dominated the seaside boardwalk. We only stayed here a couple of days but I could see spending lots more time in Valencia.

Madrid

We visited Madrid for just 2 days but it happened to land on our youngest son’s (Ryan) birthday. To celebrate his birthday, we scheduled a Flamenco dance show and it turned out to be one of our favorite events of our trip.

Lagrono and La Rioja

We had heard that La Rioja was the Tuscany of Spain and it was true. It had rolling hills and was dotted with award winning wineries. The wineries here are small and mostly family owned. It was the first time we have ever tasted wine right out of the wine vat — and it was a treat.

Bilbao and the Guggenheim Museum

On our way to Pamplona to see the Running of the Bulls, we had an extra 2 days to kill so we dropped by Bilbao to see the Guggenheim Museum. It was the most contemporary museum we visited on our European trip with an incredible exhibit that was an audio experience like no other. It was filmed in an old mansion and had 8 wall-sized screens showing a different musician playing their part of a song that came together as a harmonic experience that involved all the senses.

Running with the Bulls in Pomplona

Our entire trip to Spain centered around the week in Pomplona where the Running of the Bulls takes place. Most of us are familiar with this Spanish tradition so it was a real treat to witness it first-hand. It reminded us of New Orleans during Mardi Gras — a festive atmosphere with people partying all hours of the day and night.

Running of the Bulls in Pamplona Spain

The Running of the Bulls in Pamplona Spain was the first thing we put on the calendar when our vacation planning started. All other planning centered around that weekend. After visiting Paris, Barcelona, Valencia, Madrid, Logrono, and Bilbao, this weekend finally arrived for the Running of the Bulls.

This festival dates back to the 13th century and was made famous by Ernest Hemingway’s book “The Sun Also Rises“.  As Hemingway chronicled, the festival is awash in wine and sangria, and runners partake copiously during long nights of partying.

When you arrive here, the first thing you notice is everyone is dressed in the traditional red and white attire, which can be purchased at almost every street corner.

Ryan all dressed up

Hey — when in Rome…

It is definitely a festive atmosphere, with people drinking and having fun, and street performers everywhere. Music blasts and people of all ages join in.

Spanish Michael Jackson!

Street Performers

A festival for all ages

On our second day in Pamplona, we awoke at 5 a.m. to head down to the Running of the Bulls. As we made our way towards the apartment at around 6 a.m., there were lots of drunk people staggering around and were just about to call it a night. We rented an apartment balcony on the street where the running begins, along with about 12 other Americans. We had a great view of the action.

Our balcony

At 8 a.m. sharp, the cannons fired and the bulls came blazing around the corner. People spread like wildfire, some people ducking into side gates, others climbing up the first wall they could find. Some of the more brave ran in front or behind the bulls. From our vantage point, it was over in about 10 seconds but the entire run lasts about 3 minutes. There were medics and ambulances parked outside every turn and they carted 3 people off to the hospital today.

Running of the Bulls

Running of the Bulls

Running of the Bulls

We capped off our day with a traditional bull fight. Bull fights are no longer legal in Barcelona, Valencia and a lot of other Spanish cities, but you can still see them in Madrid and Pamplona. I enjoyed the pageantry of the Matadors but I was not big fan of seeing the bull get killed at the end — I can understand why they outlawed it in many cities.

Sea of People at the Bull Fight

Traditional Bull Fight

Valencia Spain

Prior to arriving in Pamplona, we made several stops along the way once we left Barcelona. Our first stop was Valencia. This is a beach town that is about a 2.5 hour train ride south from Barcelona. I really liked Valencia, it has a more hip feel and a cool beach vibe. We headed down to the beach, drank sangria and I took a swim in the Mediterranean. It was hot — about 88 degrees but the Mediterranean Sea was cool. I could have spent more time here, it was a great place to visit.

Valencia Beach

Tons of Beach Side Restaurants

Valencia Beach

One of the fun excursions we took was a 3 hour bicycle tour through Valencia. It allowed us to get a little exercise while seeing the sights.

Bike tour in Valencia Spain

Valencia Spain

Valencia Spain

Valencia Spain

Valencia Spain

Valencia Spain

Valencia Spain

Valencia Spain

Valencia Spain

Madrid

We only had a couple of days in Madrid, but we took a tour to see the major sights like the Royal Palace. At this point, we did not want to see another Tapas Bar, so got our American food fix when we stumbled on a TGIF!

Royal Palace

Madrid Spain

Madrid Spain

Madrid Spain

The highlight of Madrid for us was a Flamenco dancing show, we scheduled this for Ryan’s birthday and we all really enjoyed it. The dance is very passionate and awe inspiring. By the time we got back to the hotel, Ryan was performing Flamenco for us.

Flamenco Dancing

The guy in the picture above had a very distinct Spanish look, I could see most of the women swooning over him. His hair was really long and after a few minutes of dancing, it came out of the ponytail. Everytime he would spin, his sweat would spray the people in the front seats of the audience.

Flamenco Dancing

Flamenco Dancing

Flamenco Dancing

Logrono and the La Rioja Wine Area

As we slowly made our way towards Pamplona, we planned a stop in Logrono and the La Rioja wine area. Although Logrono was a nice stop along the way, there were not many sights to see.

Logrono Spain

Logrono Spain – our apartment view

Laguardia is a medieval town just minutes from Logrono where several wineries now occupy rooms of an old castle built in the 10th  century. The castle is now occupied by about 1,500 residents, mostly merchants of the many food and wine stores located inside of the castle. The castle is surrounded by a beautifully landscaped walking path lined with trees and flowers.

Laguardia Spain

Laguardia Spain

Laguardia Spain

Laguardia Spain

Laguardia Spain

Medieval Village

Laguardia Spain

The view from the castle is incredible — you can see all of the vineyards that are used to produce the incredible Spanish wine.

Incredible castle view

Incredible castle view

We scheduled 2 wine tours there and were not disappointed. When the castle was built in the 10th century, they built escape tunnels underneath to allow people to escape in the event of a siege. Later, these tunnels were turned into wineries because the caves offer the perfect condition for storing and aging wine (about 13 – 15 degrees celsius).  The first winery we visited was a small winery that produces only about 40,000 bottles a year. Our guide allowed us to the sample the wine directly from the cement tanks, not something you get to do every day.

Small winery

Small winery

The second winery was bigger (considered a mid-sized winery in Spain). It was in a section of the castle that housed some of the royal family members in the early days. They spent 4 years remodeling the winery after it had fell into disrepair. During this time, their excavation work uncovered huge cells that were used in the past for storing of wine.

Mid sized winery

Mid sized winery

Tasty Spanish wines

Future Matador

Bilbao

Our final stop before Pamplona was in Bilbao Spain.

Bilbao Spain

Bilbao Spain

Bilbao Spain

We had heard a lot about the Guggenheim Museum located there and it was not disappointing. The first floor was the most impressive, it had a really large room with about 9 really large TV screens (floor to ceiling) and an incredible sound system. They had recorded a 60 minute song where each screen showed a different singer (singing and playing instruments) for the same melody — but each person was in a different room of the mansion. It was incredibly arranged and mesmerizing to watch and as you stood in front of a specific screen, you would hear more of the singing and instrumentation that was provided by the specific person in that room. It was a really cool thing to experience.

Guggenheim Museum

Guggenheim Museum

Other areas of  the first floor had other video inspired art as well as some large steel art that served as mazes. The look of that art was different from the ground floor than when looking down upon it from the 2nd floor. It was very nicely done.

Steel mazes

The second floor showcased more traditional art (drawings and paintings). The third floor was totally devoted to Yoko Ono. It included video of her performances and lots of art inspired by her. The coolest thing on this floor was a transparent cube that you could walk through to the center of the cube. It was like being in a carnival attraction — kind of like a house of mirrors but it was all plexiglass. You walked through it like a maze and it was hard to distinguish an opening from a real wall so people would run into the wall thinking it was an opening (myself included).

Guggenheim Museum

Guggenheim Museum

This wrapped up our time in Spain. Next we are heading to Italy to experience Milan, Lake Como, Cinque Terre, Florence, Rome, Capri and Pompeii.

 

Summer in Barcelona Spain and 3 Surrounding Areas

This was our first trip to Spain and Barcelona was a great starting point. In our 1 week stay, we visited most of the sights and even took in a few surrounding areas. I was surprised to learn that many in Barcelona speak Catalan instead of Spanish, but most understand Spanish and some English as well. The northeast area of Spain (Barcelona and the Costa Brava area) has a rich Catalonian history and they have a referendum coming up to allow them to declare independence.

Around Barcelona

Barcelona is a really clean city (more so than Paris) with a good Catalonian culture, plenty of sights to visit, and a welcoming vibe. Admittedly, we liked the architecture of Paris better but the Barcelona architecture is whimsical and fun — inspired by Antoni Gaudi and the modernista era.

Sagrada Familia – The most famous church in Spain

Park Guell

Park Guell – Notice the slanted beams

Park Guell – The columns are not square and plum

Park Guell

Park Guell

You can just imagine Hansel and Gretel living in this house:

Park Guell

Many wondered if Antoni Gaudi was a genius or a flake. It was not until we visited the inside of the Sagrada Familia until we really saw his brilliance — this was the most beautifully architected church interior I’ve ever seen. Living from 1852 to 1926, Gaudi grew up with a big appreciation of nature. You will see from the interior of the Sagrada Familia that the columns look like tree trunks and nature inspired art is everywhere. The pictures can’t come close to doing it justice — you have to see it in person!

Sagrada Familia

Sagrada Familia

Sagrada Familia

Sagrada Familia

They say that Gaudi was a really nice dresser as a young man but as he got older he became more frugal and rarely bought new suits. Many people that did not know him personally would have mistaken him for a beggar. When he was 73 years old, he was on his way to a church when he was hit by a tram. They took him to the hospital for treatment but because of how he was dressed, they assumed he was a beggar and did not give him very good care. Once they realized who he was, they tried to give him better care but it was too late. He died a day later.

Antoni Gaudi

Not all of the architecture is Modernista, there is a thriving financial district that looks more like Paris or other European cities. A cool thing about Barcelona is that it is a beach-front city with easy access to the Mediterranean Sea. You could see lots of young people riding the metro to the beach with their towels, sunglasses and beach bags in hand — you don’t see that in a big city every day!

Barcelona Beach

Barcelona Beach

Barcelona Beach

Barcelona Beach

Barcelona Beach

We took a sunset sail around the outer banks of Barcelona, a very cool way to end the day.

Sailing Barcelona

Sailing Barcelona

Sailing Barcelona

Sailing Barcelona

Montserrat

Montserrat (which means “serrated mountain”) is an hour trip from Barcelona. It is perched upon an almost 4,000 foot mountain. It is the site of a Basilica and is home to about 40 to 50 young boys (aged 12-15) that study music. They become part of the boys choir, watched by many that visit. It has trains that take you to the top of the mountain, hiking trails, and restaurants. It also serves as the home of the “Black Mary (or Madonna)” where people wait in line for an hour or more just to touch the statue inside the Basilica.

Montserrat

Montserrat

Montserrat

Montserrat

Montserrat – The Black Madonna

Montserrat

Costa Brava

Costa Brava is a northeastern Catalonian town where Salvador Dali once lived. It sports some of the most beautiful Mediterranean beaches in Europe. We spent a few hours here in the town of Calella de Plafregell and ate the best Lobster paella I’ve ever had (OK it is the only one I’ve had but it was still great!). The pictures below don’t do this place justice, it is incredibly scenic:

Costa Brava

Costa Brava

Costa Brava

Costa Brava

Costa Brava

Costa Brava

Salvador Dali

At some point in our life, we’ve all read about Salvador Dali. He is the wacky Catalonian that has confused and inspired painters for the past century. Born in 1904, Dali died in 1989 with an incredible portfolio of paintings, sculptures, and drawings.

Salvador Dali

We first visited the castle he purchased for his wife, situated in a small village of about 300-400 people in Costa Brava.

Castle Village

From his Castle

Afterwards, we visited his museum about 40 minutes from here and he had some very awe inspiring technical paintings and other comical ones that just make you go “hmmmm”. His museum is a statement of his life — expansive, funny, and very well done. If you are in this area, it is a must see.

Dali Museum

Dali Museum

Dali Museum

Dali Museum

Dali Museum

Dali Museum

Dali Museum