Valencia, Spain

Today was our first day to explore Valencia. We strolled through the Turia Gardens which is a 10 kilometer park that winds through the city. This park was once a riverbed, but back in 1957 a catastrophic flood devastated the city, leaving much of it underwater and costing many lives. The government decided to divert the river to an area South of the city. The government wanted to create a highway system but the citizens of Spain wanted green space and so this lovely park was created.

We also explored Old Town which was extremely busy today. It is a beautiful city with many ornate buildings. We spent a few hours just wandering the narrow cobblestone streets and admiring the architecture.

Street art, Valencia, Spain

These are just a few of the street art photos that we took as we strolled through the neighborhoods of Valencia.

Funchal, Madeira, Portugal

This is our last day in Madeira. We strolled along the Promenade and explored more of Old Town. These are just a few photos that we took along the way.

Monte Palace Tropical Garden, Madeira, Portugal

We rode the cable car to the top of the mountain rising from 0 feet to 1,800 feet. The Monte Palace Tropical Garden is located at the very top of the mountain and features a collection of exotic plants from around the world, including azaleas from Belgium, heather from Scotland, and ancient olive trees. Along the walkways, you can see Portuguese tile panels dating from the 15th to the 20th centuries, many of which depict historical scenes, such as “The Adventure of the Portuguese in Japan.” There were also many beautiful statues that had an African flair. The Oriental garden features massive stone lanterns, ornate pagodas, and several “Foo Dogs” (guardian lions) scattered throughout the foliage. The most iconic features are the bright red bridges over koi ponds, which are filled with hundreds of colorful fish. I most enjoyed watching the beautiful white peacock. It seemed to enjoy blocking the pathway and showing off its beauty.

Madeira Flower Classic Auto Parade, Funchal, Madeira

Today we explored more of Funchal Old Town, the Promenade and the Marina. We also attended the Madeira Flower Classic Auto Parade which featured more than 350 vehicles, including classic cars and bicycles, complemented by several hundred participants dressed in costumes featuring floral motifs. So many lovely dresses, flowers and nicely decorated cars!

Funchal, Madeira, Portugal

Wow! What a beautiful island. It is the most hilly place that we have been. Everything is uphill. We took the hop-on-hop off bus tour today. It was a great way to see parts of Funchal that we would not be able to see on our own. We also took a stroll along the promenade. May is the Madeira flower festival so there are celebrations through out the month. It is very tropical here and the flowers are in full bloom.

Gran Canaria, Spain

We have enjoyed our time on the island. This was the first time that we have stayed at an all inclusive resort. We had our choice of a few different restaurants and all served delicious food. The resort is huge with several swimming pools and lovely grounds to stroll in. It seems most people are here to relax, eat, drink and lay by the pool. There has been nightly entertainment which we enjoyed.

Marrakech food tour, Morocco

We spent the evening enjoying a food tour in the Medina and the souks. We started with snails, tried various teas, tomato soup, a variety of sweet things and finished with a typical Moroccan meal of Tanjia and Tagine. It was our first food tour and I felt like I ate too much. It was interesting to see the Medina at night. It is an incredibly busy and vibrant area.

Marrakech, Morocco

This is our 50th country to visit. We have been hesitant about this one, especially due to the recent warnings for tourists from the US and Canada. We thought about cancelling at the last minute but decided to carry on.

Today we took a 3 hour tour of the Medina Market and the Souks. The souks within the Marrakech medina are a vibrant, labyrinthine network of over 2,500 stalls selling artisanal goods, spices, leather, and textiles. It was quite busy with tourists, scooters, donkeys and delivery vehicles.

We also took a tour of the Bahia Palace which has very beautiful ceilings and doors. Some parts of the palace were damaged due to an earthquake from 2 years ago.

Our last stop was for lunch at a recommended restaurant in the Medina. We tried the famous Tangia which is a slow cooked stew with lamb or beef. We tried some of each and both were delicious.

Malaga, Spain

This is our first stop on our European tour. Today we visited the Alcazaba Fortress and Gibralfaro Castle.  The castle dates back to the 14th-century and sits high atop a hill. It was about a 20 minute uphill walk to the castle, but the views at the top were worth it. We also visited the Roman Theatre which is the oldest monument in the city and dates back to the 1st century BC.