Day 2: Monday, November 21, 2011: Garriguela:

         Got up for a delicious breakfast at nine o’clock this morning in order to be ready to ride by ten. Breakfast was self serve with tons of options to choose from, cereal, bread and a toaster to toast it in, a big cheesecake like cake, biscotti (which were wrapped up like in the U.S. but were soft here rather than hard and crunchy,) yogurts and croissants. There was jam to spread on it all, including strawberry, orange and peach, which had actual pieces of peach in it. There was also a plate of cheese and meats, cold cuts rather than hot sausages or bacon.  There was also a pitcher of delicious orange juice as well as coffee. Our guide arrived at around ten once we were all dressed to ride and we headed out to meet the horses. (Though she gave us the option of skipping the riding today and visiting a museum instead as the weather was supposed to continue being rainy, we all opted to ride anyway.) We had to take a short van ride out of the city to where the horses staid for the night, which gave us a chance to see the town in the daylight. All the houses are built very close together with streets barely wide enough for our van let alone two cars, interestingly the houses were pretty much all concrete with stucco outsides, and were painted yellows and oranges making the whole picture much brighter than any American town. The horses staid a little bit outside of town, and when we arrived they were all tied along a wall with a trough in front of them for water. We each were introduced to our horses, I got Marrico, who is a little bay pony who likes to go very fast, so Denise told me I shouldn’t be afraid to pull very hard! Bri is riding a bigger horse named Ufano who is grey. We brushed as much of the mud of as we could though they were all wet from being out in the rain all night so we did the best we could so they would by comfortable with their saddles. Then we learned how to tack them up, they each get two saddle pads and their own saddle and bridle. The saddles are very big and heavy, almost like western saddles, though they are quite comfy for longer rides. Each horse also has saddlebags as well, inside the saddle bags are their brushes, a little foam pad to sit on at picnics and a little bag with some extra shoes sized for them inside. We can also put anything in the saddlebags that we want to take with us while we ride. Each horse has its own bridle as well, they are just the bit, crown piece, that goes over their head and behind their ears, and throat latch. They also keep their halters on while we ride so that when we get to where we stop they can wear their halters to be tied up to something. Once everyone was tacked up we set off on foot first, hiking up a dirt road, and avoiding puddles and the little rivers running down. When we got to a flat section a couple minutes later we all stopped, checked girths and then mounted up. Once everyone was on and Denise had checked everyone’s girth and tack we headed off. We rode onward up the road and up the hills. We passed tons of big fields with grape bushes, though nothing is growing at right now, in fact the leaves are a pretty orange and yellow almost like fall here in Virginia. Though up until this point the rain had been no more than a drizzle all of a sudden the skies just opened up and it began to pour. Despite our rain jackets we were all soaked within minutes, though considering it was so warm once we were wet it was ok (the trickling water down our backs when we were still dry was the uncomfortable part!) we continued to ride upwards and when we reached the top we would have gotten a view of the sea where we will ride on Friday but it was so cloudy that we couldn’t really see that far. The roads that we were ridding along were little more than tracks, or very rough dirt roads, however right at the top of the hill that we had been climbing we came upon a jeep, which seemed crazy considering the fact that it felt like we were on top of a mountain! We came down and met up with some considerable rivers, including a road that we hiked up where water was rushing down, it felt like we were climbing up a waterfall! We rode through part of the town of Garriguela, past the old church and on narrow roads until we came out at the other side leading to our starting point where we left the horses for the night. Once we got back, we dismounted and un-tacked, stowing our tack in a small horse trailer so it wouldn’t get wet (or wetter anyway.) Once the horses had had a little brush we climbed back into the van to head back to the inn. When we arrived we had an hour or so until lunch (which was to be around 2:30) enough time to get warm and dry again. For lunch we had salad with tomatoes, sliced apples and oranges, seeds, carrots and cheese topped with balsamic vinegar and local olive oil. There were also platters of cheese and meats to go with the bread and oil that seems to be a staple for every meal. This afternoon we decided to walk down the road five minutes to the local market. It is also a winery where all the local farmers bring their grapes to press into wine and the olives to make oil, like a co-op. This is apparently a typical arrangement for small towns in Catalonia as it is an easy way to make wine and oil affordably for smaller growers. Once back we had several hours for dinner, which was served traditionally late, around eight. We had pumpkin soup, a dish of egg, cheese and potatoes, spinach and fish with potatoes, and chocolate cake for dessert. By this time we were quite tired and therefore headed to bed early in order to get enough sleep for tomorrow!

    

The horses tied up and waiting for us!

Bri and her pony, Ufano

Me and my horse Marrico, on the left, and another horse on the right.

Us heading up the road, before mounting up!

Where we would have been able to see the sea if not for the rain.

The river that we walked through!

Day 1: Sunday, November 20: Washington, London, Barcelona to Garriguela

             We left from Dulles International Airport on Saturday, November 19 at 8 o’clock and took a flight first to London’s Heathrow and then on to Barcelona. We flew through the night from Washington to London, getting at least a little sleep, before arriving in London at nine the next morning, their time. We had plenty of time to find our next gate as our plane didn’t leave until 11:25 AM, however after getting on the plane we ended up waiting to leave for an hour more as the runway was running behind schedule due to foggy conditions that morning. We arrived in Barcelona at 3:30 instead of 2:30, though we didn’t realize this at the time not knowing that Barcelona is another hour later than London. We spent the first hour in Barcelona getting through customs and then getting our American dollars changed to Euros and grabbing a bite to eat. We then realized that it was five o’clock not four o’clock and rushed to find the meeting spot where we were getting picked up. It turned out that we were pretty much where we needed to be, and we met up with another girl who was also going on the tour. Our driver soon arrived and took us out to the bus where we loaded our luggage and began the journey into Barcelona. We stopped at a bus stop in down town Barcelona, which let us catch a glimpse of the beautiful city, and picked up a German couple who are joining us for the trip. We then started the long trek out into the countryside to the village of Garriguela where we are staying for the night. The bus ride took about two hours, and though I tried to stay awake in order to see as much as I could, once it was dark I ended up napping for a while until we arrived. The place that we are staying for tonight us a nice little bed and breakfast owned by an older woman and her daughter, who is not here this evening as she is working in the political elections that took place today. There are only four or five rooms that they rent out and we are staying in one of two that are outside through a little back garden, Ali who we met in the airport is staying next door to us. We put our bags down in the rooms and had a chance to change and stretch out for a minute before we gathered in the main room for dinner and the chance to meet our guide at eight. Our guide is a woman named Denise, from Switzerland though she speaks impressively good English and Spanish as well as German. She had us sign a couple of papers before explaining the rough plan for the week. It has been raining in Spain for three weeks at this point, which is very uncharacteristic for this time of year, and means that some of the trails the trip usually takes won’t be passable. Therefore, tomorrow rather than moving on to another place for the night we will spend another night here in Garriguela. Tomorrow, as long as the weather isn’t raining too hard, we will head out and meet the ponies at ten before taking a two hour trail ride up into the mountains a little way before looping back to the place that the horses live here. We then had dinner of leaks in a cheese sauce and veggies cooked with olive oil that could be eaten with bread. Then spaghetti with a vegetable sauce, or chicken for those who ate it, as well as fruits for dessert. Once dinner was done we said goodbye to our guide for the night, and headed back to our rooms for the night. After a wonderful shower after two days of traveling, I’m going to head to sleep.

                                Dinner on Sunday night in Garriguela: Leaks with cream sauce, bread with traditional vegetables in oil and pizza. 

    Our room for the first two nights of our trip.

                                                               Another photo of our room.

 In the Washington airport before boarding our flight to London.

Last minute details and information

            We depart for our trip in six days! Leaving out of Dulles International airport outside of Washington D.C. at 9 PM, flying into Heathrow where we will spend a couple hours before flying to Barcelona at 11:30 arriving there at 2:30 that afternoon. Our trip guides will pick us up at the airport at 6:30 so we are hoping to have a couple hours to do a little sight seeing in Barcelona before heading out into the country side. Our trip lasts from Sunday night until the next Sunday morning when we will be delivered back to the airport just in time for our flight back to London and then on to Virginia. We will be riding everyday from Monday until Saturday, circumnavigating the region of Catalonia including a gallop along the beach. We have reserved a ‘Yotel’ room in the Heathrow airport, a miniature hotel room located in the terminal for convenience, these hotels are a new feature in some international airports so we’ll be sure to let you know how it is!

            I have been doing a little last minute research into some of the places that we will be staying along our trip, including some old farmhouses turned inns and most importantly the medieval village of Perelada and the castle of Espolla.  The village is an important historical sight, containing a perfectly intact roman bridge and an impressive castle with crenelated walls dating from the 14^th century. The castle dates back to the renaissance and has been added to over the years, most notably by the Rocaberti family in the 1800’s. Tomas de Rocaberti was the Spanish ambassador to France and started the library that today houses more than 88,000 books. The village contains many good restaurants including some built to emulate the medieval style of dinning. Other things to look for are the Albera cows allowed to roam free in the area and the forest of Lebanese cedars thought to have been planted by noblemen centuries ago. Everyday the trip gets closer and everyday I get a little more excited about all we will get to see and learn about. The week after we get back we are planning to post blog entries every day documenting our trip in chronological order as if you all were there with us. Starting with the flight out, the trip itself and then our journey home, including photos of it all, so look for that in just two weeks!

    ~ Frankie

OC Register Article and more updates

Hi everybody we are getting more and more excited about our upcoming adventure! It is officially 23 days until we take off. This week we have been working on a few last minute details such as getting a international cell phone and what to do during our 15 hour layover in London. We will be there from about 8pm until 11am so we are trying to decide if we are feeling adventurous enough for some quick sightseeing or if we would be better off staying in one of the new "yotel" rooms in the airport. If you have any suggestions we would appreciate it!  Also check out this article that appeared in the Orange County Register today http://www.ocregister.com/news/kaak-323934-riding-through.html.

The Monasterys of Girona

            The entire province of Girona spreads from mountains to sea, along the eastern end of the Pyrenees. It has two monasteries of great historical importance, that of Monestir de Santa Maria and Sant Joan de les Abadesses. The first is located in the town of Ripoll, which is thought to be the “Cradle of Catalonia.” The monastery was founded in 879 and was the power base of Wilfred the Hairy founder of the House of Barcelona. In the later 12^th century the west portal was decorated with some of the best Romanesque carvings in Spain. Luckily, these carvings as well as the cloisters have survived, though they are the only parts of the monastery that did. The second important monastery of the area is that of Sant Joan de les Abadesses, founded in 885 it was a gift from Count Guifre to his daughter who then became the first abbess. The monastery contains very little decoration except a wooden calvary, a sculpted representation of the crucifixion. Known as The Descent from the Cross, it was made in 1150 though it looks very modern. Interesting about this piece is that one of the thieves depicted on the side of Jesus was burnt during the Civil War but it has been replaced with a replica so skillfully crafted that it is hard to detect a difference between it and the original carving. There is a museum near the monastery that has the calvary on display as well as several Baroque and Renaissance altarpieces.
~Frankie 

Customs of Communication in Catalonia

Did you know that the way people communicate in Catalonia is much different than the ways we communicate here? In Catalonia the way people speak to each other in informal situations is often very direct and lacking what we consider in manors. For example it is not uncommon or considered rude for someone to ask for something without saying “please” or “thank you”. It is also not uncommon for people to speak or shout at the same time and switch topics very quickly, which is different from the more controlled conversations we are used to here in the US.  They also tend to use more body movements when they speak. It is considered normal to touch one another in the form of a hand on the shoulder or a pat on the back. It is also common to find someone you don’t know staring you directly in the eye.  It will be interesting to experience these things when we get there. I’m glad that I am learning about these things before we go so that I’m not surprised when the stranger on the train is staring at us, or when I’m talking to someone with their hand on my shoulder. I wonder if by the end of our trip we will be engaging in some of these different behaviors.   ~Bri

An Overview of Catalonian History from the Frist Evidence of Man to Today:

         The Catalonian region of Spain has been settled since the Stone Age and between times of war and peace it has grown to be an area thick with history. The first evidence of early man in the area can be found in the Alt Emporda region, located in the northeast corner of Catalonia, bordering France and the Mediterranean Sea. Here discoveries of Dolmens, early tombs made of two side by side upright stones with one stone laid across the top have been found and can be dated back to the Neolithic Era, considered to be the last part of the stone age, beginning in roughly 9500 BC. This shows that man was living in Catalonia very early on and has continued to settle there since. Later evidence of man is also seen in the first trade ports of the area located at Empurie, dating back to 550 BC, though it has continued to be functional throughout history. Life and growth was flourishing throughout Catalonia at this time as the ports continued to grow. However, the Romans attacked the area in 218 BC after Hannibal and his elephants marched over the Pyrenees and Alps from Catalonia and into France and Rome. They wiped out the civilizations and cities and created their own capitol of the region in south Catalonia known as Tarraco. Today there are still vestiges of the old city within Barcelona that I hope to be able to look at in the time that we have there. Once the Roman Empire collapsed the Visigoths controlled the peninsula for a short time before the Muslim and Berber tribes moved in and took power. The Muslims remained in power for only a short time before the Franks and Charlemagne were able to reclaim Catalonia in 801. Interesting to note is that because the reign of the Muslims over Catalonia was so short their art and culture was not affected by Islamic culture and remains as it was before their rule, unlike the rest of Spain and the peninsula.

            Thus begins the rule of the Counts of Barcelona who were entrusted with the buffer state that Charlemagne created along the Pyrenees between France and Spain, including modern day Catalonia. The counts were local lords that Charlemagne put in power and their rule remained unbroken for five hundred years. Under the rule of Ramon Bereguer I Catalonia established the first constitutional government that Europe had ever seen. They created the Usatges in 1060, the first bill of rights. This led to a period of expansion and development, where Catalonia grew to become the ruler of the sea, expanding trade under a code Libre del Consolat de Mar created in 1258. Catalonia and Barcelona grew and flourished with more trade than any other region. However, this all ended when Fernando the II came into power in 1556 and united all of Spain under one Catholic rule. He then drove out the Jews who were key players in the growing trade and business industry causing the industry to collapse and trade to move elsewhere. Trade remained low and the wealth of the area dwindled through the taking of power by Felipe the IV in 1621. He began his rule by starting the thirty years war with France. However, the people of Catalonia saw no reason to fight with France, especially since they had in times past been a part of that country, and so they rose up and killed the Viceroy assigned to rule Catalonia for King Felipe. Spain didn’t succeed in winning the war and ceded all the Catalan lands north of the Pyrennes to France. This shows how the border initially developed and this is how it still lies today. Dark times continued to befall Catalonia as a war broke out between the two ruling families, the Hadsburgs and the Bourbons, Barcelona siding with the Hadsburgs. This led to a heavy besiegement of Barcelona, with the city eventually falling on September 11, 1714, now celebrated as National Day, the victory was then granted to the Bourbons. Here followed a long period of wars with France, including the Peninsula wars, and the War of Independence after Napoleon put his brother Joseph on the throne much to the disparagement of the people of Spain. Though trading restrictions were lifted and Catalonia began to trade freely with the Americas, the continuous wars impeded on the growth that could otherwise have been expected. However, we do see a rise in the power and prestige of Barcelona when it became the first city to industrialize in 1854 through the manufacturing of cotton goods with raw materials from America. This growth led to a late renaissance in Catalonia beginning in 1859, an era of cultural growth where it was a source of pride to be a Catalan. The first home rule party of Catalonia was founded in 1887 and it furthered disputes with the central government over the perceived unnecessary conflicts in Morocco, and lose of trade with the American colonies. However, Barcelona was able to remain a strong city and in 1888 it held the first Universal Exhibition, showing off the power and wealth of the city. This led to a surge in new buildings and architectural growth that, due to Spain’s non-participation in World War I, still stand today. Through this long history we see the strength and power of Catalonia remain vastly unchanged by the sea of cultures around it. Though once it was a part of France and under Islamic rule, the culture remains a pure representation of the citizens and the area. 

     ~Frankie