We had a wonderful two week trip to Spain that ended early this month. We spent five nights each in Barcelona and Seville plus two nights each in Cordoba and Madrid. We saw numerous “big” sights - Sagrada Família, Casa Mila, Picasso Museum, Sevilla Cathedral, Real Alcázar, Mezquita, Royal Palace, Reina Sofia, Prado, Royal Palace, etc. - and loved them all. And we met some wonderful locals and other tourists from around the world. But my favorite parts of the trip were mostly just happenstance. We wandered through Barcelona neighborhoods and watched kids playing soccer, met a famous Spanish comedy duo on a train to Madrid, in Triana we happened upon a magnificent wedding and watched the beautiful bride beam as she walked down the aisle on the arm of her father, took Iphone photos for families waiting outside a church for their babies’ baptisms to begin, attended a 900am Tuesday Mass in the Mezquita where I couldn’t understand hardly a word of the uplifting and inspirational Spanish liturgy, met a Spanish journalist in line at the Reina Sofia, traded emails with a Polish couple we ran into several times in Seville…. Though I’d gladly revisit every place we paid to see it was the other kind of experiences that really made our trip special. Can’t wait to go back to Spain. We’re hoping for a month this October! Happy travels!
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
8588 posts
Sounds like you had a wonderful experience and that the highlights are not always those things on the planned itinerary. Those serendipitous encounters are frequently what make a trip memorable.
Posted by
240 posts
It was good of you to post this; yours is a message that needs to get out there from time to time. I, also, have found the unexpected experiences to be among the more memorable ones; and though most of my travelling has been in Latin America, I too have had such experiences in Spain. In Madrid many years ago, they included the delightfully temperamental classical guitarist I saw performing one evening under the arches in the Plaza Mayor, and a flamenco performance in a small, charming, untouristed venue that was announced in a poster I just happened to spot on a wall as I was wandering around in my usual 'flâneur' style (and which I'm sure I would have missed if I had just been going around on a tour bus).
Posted by
Eastern Europe August 2023 Tour
9 posts
We’re considering the 14-day Rick Steves Best of Spain tour this September/October. Has anyone taken this tour? How does it compare to the other RS tours?
Posted by
East Coast USA
131 posts
Oftentimes when people travel as tourists, they seem to forget they are visiting places where real people live, work, go to school, play, eat, dance, and so forth.
For me, one of the most important experiences I get from my travel is learning about a country's culture--both past and present. I also try to acculturate, and enrich myself by full participation in the country, if possible.
I lived, worked, and attended university in Spain, so I think of it as almost a second home. It is hard to share that feeling with people who usually just visit and tour around for a short time, as they do not understand what it can mean to feel like one is accepted and can belong.
I am so pleased you enjoyed your visit and will now return. Spain is special!
Posted by
15 posts
What a beautiful post — and so true. The unplanned moments are almost always the ones that stay with you longest. Spain has a particular gift for that: a city that pulls you in with its monuments but keeps you with its street corners, its squares, its people. If you do make it back in October, Seville will reward that same open, unhurried approach beautifully. One of those happy discoveries you might stumble upon: Masakali Sweets, with two spots in the city — one under Las Setas at Plaza de la Encarnación and another at Plaza de San Francisco, right by the Town Hall. Artisan cakes handcrafted daily, outstanding specialty coffee, bagels and smoothies. The kind of local place you'd walk past, peek in, and end up staying far longer than planned. Exactly the spirit you're describing. Can't wait to hear about the October trip!