The Photos Have Been Developed

The photos have been developed. Well not really! Aren't we so lucky these days that we do not have to wait for our photos to be developed? There is something to be said for instant gratification. One drawback of digital photos is that they look differently on different computers. Some shots that look totally spectacular on my desktop computer seem to lose something in the translation when viewed on the laptop or even the other desktop. I know it is all in the video card, but I want everyone to see the photos as I see them at their best.

Here is a reiteration of the trip. First, I joined Homeexchange.com. During my 14-day trial period, I received four offers for places in Europe. Cádiz was the most appealing due to transportation costs getting there and then doing short trips once there. Admittedly, I thought this was going to be a beach resort, which I would find boring as all get-out, but Ron was enthused and when we asked our friend Kat to join us, she was absolutely psyched. After the trial period, we continued getting offers for exchanges, but everyone seemed to want August; we had already committed.

We arrived late on July 31 flying from Budapest to Brussels to Seville. Once there, thanks to our exchange partner, for €6 each we bought Tarjeta Dorada cards. Anyone over 60 receives discounts on the trains.  On Mondays thru Thursdays, the discount is 40%. On Fridays thru Sundays, it is 25%. We did not arrive until late, so our first night was dinner out. After this, we shopped and Kat gleefully cooked dinner every night.
Cádiz is incredible! We, meaning me the non-sun worshipper, loved it heart and soul. There are incredible things to do and see; we did not even touch the surface. The city is completely tourist friendly with four walking tours painted on the streets and sidewalks in differing colors for self-guiding. The two sun bunnies did get their fill also.

We left Cádiz on August 9 to spend one partial day in Madrid. Kat paid €76.20 for her train ticket, while ours were €57.15 each. Leaving for Madrid on the 9am train got us into the city by 1pm. We checked into Hostal Oporto. The location could not be better.

Ron is like a human GPS. He can either briefly look at a map or if he has been somewhere, he remembers how to return to places. We did a lot of walking again.

Finally, we completed the day by having beer and mini sandwiches at Cerveceria 100 Montaditos at Calle Mayor 22, but to complete Kat’s brief Madrid experience we also stopped at Chocolatería San Ginés famous for their hot chocolate and churros since 1894.

Sunday morning, we had an easy walk to the airport bus, where for €5; we were whisked directly to our terminal. Coming home we flew TAP the Portugal airline, so we went from MAD to LIS to BUD. Unfortunately, the layover at LIS was 4 hours, but TAP screwed us by being an hour delayed without any notice. We were home by 8pm with a B and B guest waiting for us at the café around the corner.

Cádiz - Arrived July 31st and left August 9th
http://ryanandronworld.blogspot.hu/2014/08/spain-caadiz.html

Day trip - Puerto de Santa Maria August 3rd
http://ryanandronworld.blogspot.hu/2014/08/spain-puerto-de-santa-maria.html

Day trip - Seville or Sevilla August 5th
http://ryanandronworld.blogspot.hu/2014/08/spain-seville.html

Day trip - Jerez de la Frontera August 7
http://ryanandronworld.blogspot.hu/2014/08/spain-jerez-de-la-frontera.html
Went here for the horse show, but photos were not allowed.

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No Horsing Around Here - Only Serious Horse Play

 Thursday was our big day to travel to Jerez. Jerez has become known for two primary things: sherry production and Fundacion Real Escuela Andaluza del Arte Ecusetre. We had tickets for the only show of the day at 12 noon. We could choose between €21 or €27 seats. We chose the cheaper and it turned out to be fortuitous.

Again, due to scheduling, the bus was the best option for getting to Jerez. The trip cost €3.20 each for a one-way, pay the driver if you please, there are no tickets sold at the counter. The ride is a short 40 minutes.
A note about the school first and why we wanted to go…

In plain English the title is The Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art Foundation. They breed and train pure Spanish breeds of horses. The show is considered one of the best equestrian ballet shows in the world.
As it turned out, this was the highlight of the day. Our seats were in Section 3 row 5 seats 59, 61, and 63. Directly in front of us was the stairwell, giving us excellent foot freedom to stretch. There were only our 3 seats in our section, providing privacy. Though we were at the end of the ring, we did not miss a thing as most of the action either started or ended by us, but everything at least paraded around.

No one could have described to me in credible terms what these horses could accomplish. I have never seen horses skip, dance the way they did, or jump in the air from all 4 legs at once. The show was 1 ½ hours with a ten minute break. Well worth the time and money to get there. The only downer was there were no pictures or video allowed. They were strict about it too.

We had thought to go sherry tasting afterward, but it was hot and siesta time. Everything closed up until our bus was scheduled at 6pm. I will give just a brief tutorial on sherry, since I did not know anything about sherry.

Sherry is a protected name like Champagne, Port, and Roquefort. Products from out of their designated areas are not legally allowed to use the name on the products. Sherry is from a triangular region in Andalusia including Jerez de la Frontera, Sanlúcar de Barrameda, and El Puerto de Santa María. Produced mainly from the Palomino grape, a white variety, it can have a couple of other grape varieties added for an increase in color or alcohol content. During aging, the wine develops a layer of flor, similar to yeast.

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