Committed

I am reading the book "Committed" by Elizabeth Gilbert. She is the author of "Eat, Pray, Love" which is one of my favorite books. I did not like the movie, just the book. I read it in a time when I was traveling a lot to get out of my own world. I did not want to stop and think about my problems. It was my way to deal with a broken heart and it worked. I identified with a lot of things about "Eat, Pray, Love" minus the year trip that she took. She came out with a new book which is about marriage. I bought it just because it was hers and I liked her writing. I didn't know what it was about. I love the coincidence that I read her books when something similar is happening to me. I feel like I need to highlight a sentence every few pages. She explains what I think and feel in better words than I can. This book, so far, is about making her peace with marriage and also explains what marriage means in different parts of the world. I read something that made me think a lot and it was that we all say that relationships are "hard work". The reason is that we have a pressure to make it perfect and to be happy. I have a tendency to plan things and if they don't go as planned I feel very disappointed. I can't make someone responsible for my happiness. I will try to keep this in mind as I make the commitment to spend my life with someone else. I want to finish the book and find out how it ends. I will keep highlighting sentences and post them when I am done!

I have to go pack now, we are leaving for Miami in the morning and I am not a morning person. I am going to a concert tomorrow ALONE! I am excited to see Luis Miguel and a little proud to go by myself and do what I want even if it feels weird. I love time alone but preferably when I don't have to speak (movies, reading, coffee, lunch during a work day).  The video below is from 1987!!! when I was madly in love with him!!!  He never sings this song :(

Destination: Hawaii

For our honeymoon we decided to go to Hawaii for 10 days. We are getting married in Colombia in August. We will get there 9 days before the wedding and will stay 2 days after the wedding. We will return to Tampa and fly to Honolulu the next day.

I initially wanted to go to an all-inclusive and my boyfriend wanted to go to Europe. I looked some Colombian destinations for the convenience of traveling inside the Country. I was surprised to see that neither San Andres nor Cartagena were affordable. I love these 2 places, but I have been to San Andres and Cartagena countless times. I will go back only if I find a good deal. The airfare alone was about $400 plus most of the packages that were decent priced are only for 3 nights. That is wayyy to short to plan a real honeymoon. We looked at some of the Caribbean islands and the deals are always great in Mexico and Dominican Republic. The problem is that planning a trip to the Caribbean is not a good idea in the middle of hurricane season. I also looked for cruises in Europe but, airfare alone was around $1500 per ticket or 80,000 AA miles. I also looked for South America and especially Brazil, BUT it is winter in August. The option of Hawaii was always in my mind, but I have already been to Hawaii so I didn't push to hard.

We found tickets with miles and that was all we needed to decide that our honeymoon will be in Hawaii. So, for 45,000 AA miles and $10 we will be spending 10 days in Paradise. We were only able to fly to Honolulu with miles. We will be staying 3 nights in Waikiki, then we will fly to Kauai to stay for 5 nights, and back to Oahu for 2 nights before we return to reality. I loved Oahu when I went 3 years ago. My boyfriend has never been to Hawaii and he wants to see Honolulu. He said we would go to any island I wanted, but he had to see Honolulu for a few days. It took us a while to decide which island to visit after Oahu. We decided that we will go to Kauai. We already booked the Kauai portion as a package from Honolulu. I still need to book the hotel and rental car in Oahu.

While I was trying to decide where to go after Oahu I found a lot of information that can be useful for someone trying to decide which Hawaiian Island to go to. It is hard to decide because they all seem to be different and they offer different activities.

Oahu

Since I already been to Oahu not long ago I will be the tour guide for this portion of the trip. The first 3 nights we will stay in Waikiki for the convenience of restaurants and entertainment. I would like to visit the Pearl Harbor Memorial since I didn't have enough time to go 3 years ago. This visit will probably take half day and it is located about 1 hour from Waikiki.

I loved the North Shore area during my first visit. I saw a beautiful Hawaiian green sea turtle by the beach and I want to see one (or more) again and hopefully swim next to them. Since this is my second time in Oahu, I would love to stay for a couple of nights in the north shore. There is a resort,The Turtle Bay Resort, that I want to stay at.  I saw it in a movie and I fell in love with the hotel. The movie is not great but if you are curious to see the hotel is "Forgetting Sara Marshall".

a hawaiian green sea turtle

If you are looking for hotels in Honolulu and you have never been to Hawaii I would recommend to stay in Waikiki. This is not the best beach in Oahu. It is small and crowded but it is so famous that at least you have to make a stop. It is very convenient to stay in the area since a lot of restaurants are located at walking distance. The diamond head is visible from this side of the island. I was thrilled when I looked at the volcano crater from my hotel window. Hotels are very reasonable priced, parking is expensive but not more that you would pay for parking in Miami Beach. Food was also more expensive than in the Continental US but not as bad as I expected. I would compare it to a City like NYC and LA.

One of my favorite sites in the island was the Lanai Lookout since it thought this was an amazing site. We saw it while we were driving to Hanauma Bay. Definitely worth a stop.

Lanai Lookout

I would love my boyfriend to go to the Polynesian Cultural Center. I call it the Disneyland of Hawaii but it is very educational for kids and adults. We will have to decide how to spend our days in Oahu. I highly recommend a visit if it is your first time in Hawaii. I read about some wonderful beaches on the east coast of Oahu that I want to visit this time: Lanikai Beach, Kailua, and Waimanalo. I need to get a map to locate them. I also want to hike the diamond head and take pictures from the top. Last time I went with my parents so we just drove to the base of the volcano. My parents are in no physical condition to hike. My sister hiked it once and said it was not too difficult and it took about one hour. She is not athletic so I know I can trust her when she says it was easy.  The lonely planet guide that I took to the trip recommended going to the Manoa Falls and it rated the hike as an easy hike. We went there thinking it would be a nice walk towards the waterfall. When we started we had no idea what we were getting into. My parents never exercise and most of the hike I was ready to catch my dad from falling. I did catch him twice. We saw the waterfall and walked back. It was a beautiful site and well worth the effort but get ready for a muddy and slippery walk up the mountain. It is not as easy as the travel guides make it sound. On a different day, we made a stop in the Waimea Valley to see the 45-foot waterfall. My sister told us stories about locals diving and hula dancers next to the water. I imagined that it would be like a perfect Hawaiian movie scene. We walked the mile-long trail just to get to a dry hole. This was a disappointment since they never told us the water was gone. Apparently it had dried out in the last couple of years. It was a beautiful walk and you can see many tropical flowers. Just don't go there expecting the waterfall. The entrance to the valley is $13.

Maui

Maui is supposed to be the most romantic island. I tried to find out why but, I still don't know the answer to why is Maui more romantic than the other islands. The prices are higher in Maui and I once heard that most people that come to Maui are either there for their honeymoon or for a family vacation. No offense to kids but I really want to relax by the pool instead of having kids screaming next to me. After reading so much about the islands, I think the magic of Maui is the whale watching season. I would love to watch the whales from a boat. Unfortunately, we will be going in August and the whales are in between November and March. I am sure that I will visit Maui some day and I will try to make it when the whales are close.

Maui Highlights (According to most websites):

• Lahaina – main town in Maui
• Haleakala National Park – I read that you must go to watch the sunrise from the top
• Hana – Famous for the scenic drive
• White sand, black sand and red sand beaches can be found in Maui

Kauai

I researched the islands for about one month before we decided where to go. Hawaii's official tourism website is very useful helping you decide which island to visit. Kauai is the oldest and northernmost island and only a 30 minute flight away from HNL. Kauai is is known as "The Garden Isle" and several people told me it is the most beautiful. Most of the activities are outdoor adventures. I live in Florida so even if I wanted to hike I could not do it often. I will hike to get to a site and I have seen many beautiful pictures of Kauai. I am looking forward to see the Waimea Canyon, often called "The Grand Canyon of the Pacific", taking a boat ride to see the Napali Coast, and a helicopter tour to see the inaccessible areas of the island. We booked the hotel based on the deals available at the time, but also trying to stay in the southern side of the island. We wanted to stay in Po'ipu Beach at the Sheraton Hotel. The hotel is having a great sale because it is under renovations until September. I didn't mind until I found out that the pool will be closed. We found the Marriott in Kalapaki Beach at 50% off the regular rate and is not undergoing renovations. We booked the Marriott for 5 nights, the flight from HNL to Kauai, and the rental car for about $650 per person.

Kauai Highlights (According to most websites):

• Napali Coast
• Poipu Beach Park
• Waimea Canyon
• Wailua Falls: I found this video of the falls>> http://vimeo.com/17084809
• Kalalau Trail

There are several areas to stay in the island; the north shore with several luxury hotels in the Princeville area, the east "coconut" coast of the island which has cheaper hotels, and the southern part of the island. The west side is where the canyon and the Napali Coast are so it is basically just nature. I wanted to stay in the south since most of the recommendations for the dry weather were in the south. I already traveled to an island in rainy season and it is depressing so this time I will stay away from the rain forest.

I found these websites that I am planning to use for the activities in Kauai:

http://www.kauaiexplorer.com/hiking_kauai/hanakapiai_hike.php
http://www.napali.com/compare_boat_tours/
http://www.gohawaii.com/kauai/experiences/honeymoon
http://www.hawaii-guide.com/index.php/kauai/spot/where_to_stay_on_kauai

When we get back I will write a detailed blog with our favorite sights in Kauai and Oahu. The date is getting closer and I can't wait to visit the Hawaiian Islands again. We are thinking about getting a nice camera for the trip, but with all the expenses that we have now it is hard to add more things to our budget. We are assuming that we can buy it with the wedding "gifts". The problem is that we leave the morning after we get back from Cali, and we wont have time to shop for a camera. What is a good camera for us? We love to take pictures but we are not trying to be professional photographers. Any recommendations for a camera under $700?

Sunset from the airplane

I took these pictures a couple of weeks ago when I was on my way to Miami. I was watching the sunset from my window.  I was with the camera in my hand waiting for the announcement to use electronics. I could have gotten better pictures when we just took off, but I don't take the risk of interfering with the communications. 

Leaving Tampa Bay

Maybe AA is interested in buying my picture with miles?

Viceroy Hotel, Downtown Miami

Two weekends ago, I went to Miami with 3 friends for a nice and relaxing weekend. We wanted to stay at a nice hotel and we were between the beach or the downtown area. Since most of us always stay at the beach we decided to stay in Brickell, the financial district of Miami. We found a nice hotel with the best pool at a very good rate. We booked the Viceroy Hotel for 2 nights. When we arrived we were extremely happy with our room, changed clothes, and headed to the spa. It was a rainy afternoon and it was perfect to have a nice and long massage. The spa was wonderful and we felt pampered from the moment that we walked in. The jacuzzi area was incredible with floor to ceiling windows overlooking the bay. I was able to take one picture hiding from the staff. Pictures are not allowed during treatment hours for privacy. My apologies for the 2 girls in the bikini in my picture but they were in the way of my quick picture. The hot and polar pools are perfect to relax and drink a mimosa before or after treatments. I had the raindrop massage for 90 minutes and it was the best massage of my life. This is the description from their website:

Raindrop Harmony:Drops of essential oils fall like rain onto the spine and are then massaged in using a gentle feathering technique to stimulate the central nervous system. Your therapist then performs a full-body massage that leaves you detoxified and balanced. The service concludes with a comforting foot massage.

spa with water therapies

Photo credit: Viceroy Hotel website

We later learned that the pool and spa are shared by the Viceroy Hotel and a luxury residential building. The gym is also located in the spa, it has the basic cardio and weights and also personal trainers to hire. I didn't ask the PT rates but I am sure they are much higher than in Tampa. The gym also has a spinning studio that transforms into an aerobics room for group classes that hotel guests can do for $15 a class. The spa's ladies room had lockers, showers, sauna, a eucalyptus steam room, and it is equipped with everything you could need including slippers, towels, razors, iced cold towels for the steam room, and ice cold water with orange slices that gave it a nice flavor. They also have the floor to ceiling windows overlooking the bay. If I lived there I would never leave my home to go to work! It would be impossible to get away from that pool and the bay views from the windows. Unfortunately, we did not had a nice view from our room.

Photo credit: Viceroy Hotel website

Photo Credit: Viceroy Hotel website (the middle pool is a jacuzzi)

Friday night we went to Club 50, located in the 50th floor of the hotel. Since we were guests at the hotel we had no problem getting in a guy with us but if you are going in a group of boys and girls get ready to wait by the door for a while or get there very early. At club 50 there was a private pool deck with a bar and inside was a lounge with windows all over to let you see the Miami skyline. The music was a mix of house, hip hop, and Latin music. 

Photo Credit: Viceroy Hotel website

Photo credit: 2night.com

Our room was the "deluxe king" room. It had a tub and a shower and no privacy as the "wall" was just a wood cut out shape between the bed and the bathroom. The room had a kitchen with a stove, microwave, glassware, mini bar, and a fancy cappuccino maker. we had to watch a video on how to use the cappuccino machine which wasn't that good without cream and I got billed $4 for it. There was a channel just for that on our TV. We ordered room service at 4:00 AM after we returned from the club. We ordered a delicious pizza and a guacamole with chips for $40. It was a bit high but it was very good and considering the time we didn't want to go look for food somewhere else. We also ordered food at the pool's restaurant Cafe Icon. The paninis were good and reasonable priced but be prepared to pay almost $4 for a can of soda and a 18% tip automatically added to everything.

Picture taken from the bathroom with my phone

As we get ready to take another road trip to Jacksonville tomorrow, I am looking forward to spend the following weekend in Miami. I met a girl that works at the Gansevoort Hotel in south Beach and she offered to get me good rates. I texted her this week to ask about a room and I am waiting for a response on the rate. Take a look at the pictures from their website and you will understand why I am excited to possibly staying here.

**Please forgive me for the formatting issues with this post. I did everything I could to correct them but I couldn't get it to work. Blogger had maintenance yesterday and it might had to do with it. **

Dance Lessons

I am from Cali, the Salsa Dancing capital of the world. I have danced my whole life and I need dancing lessons. I feel terrible to say this, my poor ego is sad to know that it is true. My boyfriend and I need dancing lessons before the wedding. He doesn't know how to dance and I can't teach him. I've tried but I dance because I feel the beat in the music and I feel a passion for salsa that I can't explain. I can be the best dancer if I have a good leader or I can be really bad if my partner gets lost. We do not need to have a first dance with a soft song, we just need to get the party started with a merengue or a salsa. This is the song that I think we will be dancing together.

I asked my zumba teacher if she would give us private lessons. She said she would but she didn't say how much it would cost us. How much are dance lessons typically? I love dancing but I don't like zumba. I do it because it is a good way to get some cardio done and to change the treadmill routine.

This is how I want to dance:

I am obsessed with Delirio and the dancers. They look like they are flying on the stage. I am flying to Cali just in time for their monthly show. There is a new show that is coming out at the end of May so hopefully in July they will still be presenting it. If you didn't see my post about Cali and the salsa you can read it here.

Sunset Sunday @ Tampa Bay

This pictures were taken with my iphone. I was doing my cardio session outside with the dog when the sun started to come down. This is the bay next to the intestate not Bayshore Boulevard. I love walking outside and living next to the water.  

Connan posing for the picture

Full Month

This month started out with my "girl's weekend" in Miami. Right now, I'm in the car on my way to Jacksonville. My boyfriend's parents live in Ecuador but their family is from Jacksonville. They are visiting for a couple of weeks. I feel bad that I wont be spending mother's day with my mom but he has not seen his parent for over 16 months. We will drive to Jacksonville next weekend as well. The following weekend I have a concert in Miami. This is the concert that I am going alone. I got one ticket only. I was not sure about going by myself but I know that I was going to be upset if I missed it. This is a spanish singer, Luis Miguel, that I have been a fan since I was a little girl. More than a fan, I was in love with him for many years. The weekend after the concert it's memorial weekend and since it is the first holiday of the year (after January 1st), I am sure that we probably will go somewhere. Probably to Disney since we recently got the annual passes.

I love having a busy life but this is why I have a hard time having a strict diet and exercise routine. It is so easy to get lazy... I will do my best to stay on track. I'm getting married in 3 months and I am no where near the weight that I want to be! I take my workout clothes everywhere but they never make it out of the bag!

Sunset Sunday

These are some of the pictures that I took at one of my best friend's wedding. It was a beautiful place and that it why I decided to add more to the post not just the sunset pictures. This is an hacienda outside of Cali where I wanted to do my wedding. I decided to stay closer to the City to avoid a headache with transportation arrangements. I also found out that recently they stopped organizing any events. 

sugar cane plantations on our way there

the entrance

Girls Weekend in Miami

For my bachelorette party I didn't want the typical girls night out where I have to dress as a bride and I have a list of challenges to do. I wanted a fun and relaxed weekend with my a few of my closest friends. We decided to go to Miami. We all live in different cities. Only one of them lives in the Miami area but we all love the night life in Miami. I found a great deal at the Viceroy Hotel in downtown Miami and according to a friend their spa is one of the best. I fly after work tonight but tomorrow is when the fun really starts. I will be having a massage in the afternoon and as many mojitos as I can. I don't go out as often as I did before and the clubs in Miami close at 5:00 AM. I'm afraid that I wont be able to handle it after I made my friends travel for a party weekend. Hopefully they are also getting old and feel the same way as me. I will post some pictures when I get back! :)

Viceroy Hotel Rooftop Pool. Photo Credit: Viceroy Hotel



Sunset Sunday Colombian Style

Today's sunset pictures were taken by my mother from her balcony in Cali. The far left hill is a landmark from the City. El Cerro de las 3 Cruces is a monument with 3 crosses on top of the mountain. The legend says that the devil was in this mountain and that is why those crosses are there, to make sure that the devil never came back. Many people walk up the hill during Easter as a sacrifice and others do it during the weekend for exercise. I always heard that it was not a safe place to go and I have never been up. I am sure the view has to be amazing from the top.  The hill is in the west side of the City and I can see the crosses every time I am in Cali. I can't believe that will be there in 3 months to get married. 

Sunset in Cali

Day view from the Balcony

Headache Go Away!!

For the past week I had a headache. Every day of the week for 7 days. The headache woke me up at 4:00 AM and I went back to sleep only to wake up again at 6:00 AM. I took a tylenol 3 and tried to sleep again. The pain was so bad that I couldn't. I went to work and the computer made everything worse. By 10:00 AM I asked if I could go home. I decided to go to a walk in clinic to see if they could give me something stronger and also to have some proof at work that I was not faking the pain. The doctor at the walk in clinic asked me to get a brain MRI and see a neurologist to check for an aneurysm. This just that sounded like a bad dream and I didn't believe it. I had the MRI the same day and I was told the results were normal. I made an appointement with a neurologist that I was referred to for the following week. I had a deadline at work in 3 days and I was concerned about getting back to finish this. The headache or migraine got better but it didn't go away.

I finally had my appointment with the neurologist on Monday. He diagnosed me with migraine and prescribed me  medication and asked me to return in one month. I never had migraines and I was not sure if what I had was a migraine. I was told that women "my age" get them for no clear reason. The neurologist said that most women that NEVER had a migraine problem start having it in their late 20's and early 30s. I felt sick after taking the medicine and I had to go home again. Now I am headache free and the statistics I read at the Doctor's office said that most migraine "attacks" only happen every 2 to 6 months. So if I can survive the next 4 month without a migraine I will blame it to the pre-wedding stress, if not then I really have migraines. I do not like to take time off to go home because I am sick. My vacation time is very valuable to spend it in bed!!! I refuse to be sick or to get sick again. I have come to work with strep throat, the flu, a cold, hangover, or jet-lagged just so that I do not spend a personal day at home.

Sometimes I hear a judgemental statement from someone that asks me very surprised WHY I am stressed. I try not to show that it upsets me, but every person has a different level of tolerance for problems. My life might be "normal" but there are situations that stress me. I like to keep a calm attitude even if I am going at 100 miles per hour inside. I do not like to show my feelings to the world. Only a few people get to know what really happens to me. I hate to be judged and I try not to judge, but I think this is probably one of people's favorite sports. Basically, if you don't have a terrible circumstance in your life you can not get stressed. I have always been impatient and probably that is the reason of my stress: lack of patient with day to day situations. I wish it was as easy as "just relaxing" and letting stress go. I can not pretend everything is OK when it is not OK and just relax. I do have a job that brings a lot of stress in my life, I never know when we will have a big deadline and have to stay overnight working and that stresses me a lot. I am a planner and when I can't plan because my work is unpredictable it makes me upset. I am also planning my wedding that it could be worse if I didn't have my mom as my official planner. Since I cant control much of what is going to happen until when I get there the week before, I just have to wait. I don't even know who will be going to the wedding because everybody has to travel but, I am not concerned of too many people showing up. At least not from the US because of the high price in plane tickets. The budget is driving me crazy and planning the honeymoon is the best part but not after we have to pay for the wedding just days before. I am not very good at saving and this is probably the time when I have to prove myself that I can save. Also, I am NOT relaxed about how I am going to look that day. I am very concerned about looking fat in a white dress and having terrible wedding pictures.

My diet efforts have paid off and I am 13 pounds lighter than when I started in January. This is only the weight that I gained when I moved with my boyfriend last summer and started eating ice cream every night. It is never good enough so I have a goal to lose at least 15 more in 3 months. I have a dress that will not need much alterations because it is not fitted below the ribs. I am doing spinning regularly and I hired my personal trainer from 4 years ago for a 30 minute session once a week to work out. I also bought a package that was featured in livingsocial that allows me to use a local gym that specializes in power plate. The package included 3 months membership and 3 personal training sessions. I also bought 10 classes to try the power plate group workouts. I've heard it is the best way to tone but it is very challenging. My only friends that have abs love using the power plate. The said it will take me at least one month to get used to it. I had a 30 minute session last Saturday and I was only able to do 20 minutes. I got very dizzy and my heart rate was so fast that I couldn't breathe. I thought it was because I still didn't feel 100% OK from the migraines not because I was weak. The workout feels hard not just in the muscles hurting, but the head vibrates and with the mild headache that I had that day it was not OK. I felt stronger and headache free on Wednesday, but I could only do it 20 minutes. I felt that my cardio was getting really good for all the spinning that I've been doing, but i was WRONG.  I have another PT session on the power plate next week and hopefully I can take the whole 30 minutes of the session. Otherwise I just wasted 3 paid PT sessions because I got dizzy. I still have the 10 classes to do that I don't really want to do. I would probably be the only person that has to stop before the class is over. I really hope this pays off because it is kicking my butt. I had a regular PT session today and it felt good. It was painful but the kind of pain that makes your muscles work. Too bad I had chinese food, dirt cake, and pizza today. I need to stop slacking with my diet I had the excuse that I was sick and needed some comfort food.

Lessons Learned from our First trip to Europe

One of the things I love most about traveling is planning the trip. I love to do the itinerary and decide how many days I will stay at each place. Europe was perfect to stay for a 6 month trip but we only had 20 days. It was the perfect length for this trip. I was exhausted by day 15 and living out of a shared suitcase can be hard. Most of the people I asked for travel advise said that I should to take it easy while we were in Europe and enjoy the places that we were going instead of rushing to see everything. I wanted to do this; however, how could I waste time if I had never been there? It was impossible to take it easy. I was fascinated to be there and the people that advised me to "take it easy" it was because they lived in Europe. On the other hand, I only had 20 days and my working schedule does not let me get away too often for so long. 

I have been buying multi-City tickets for a long time. I think it does save money when you are planning to visit more than 1 place.  Flying into one City and return from another just makes you buy 1 one-way ticket instead of a roundtrip ticket to return home. Traveling around Europe is very cheap thanks to all of the low-cost European airlines available. We flew easyjet and vueling to travel between France, Italy, and Spain. There are also good travel deals with RyanAir and depending on which county you want to fly you can find good prices flying AirBerlin for Germany, Turkish airways for flights between Turkey and the UK and so on. Be careful with the baggage fees since many of these airlines have a strict policy with bag weight and size.

We looked at train passes but they were very expensive compared to flying. The only inconvenience that I found from flying was that the airports are usually outside the City and many hours of your traveling days will be spent getting to and out of the airport. The security process was relatively quick and painless all over Europe. I will definitely consider buying a rail pass next time at least for some of the itineraries.  The stations are usually centrally located in the City and hopefully the scenery should be a lot nicer. The only train that we took was the EuroStar between London and Paris. It was 2.5 hours versus the 1 hour flight but, if you consider the travel times to and from the airport it does take you a lot more than taking the train.

Trains between France and Italy or Spain are usually overnight rides. If this is the situation, a 2 hour flight plus transfers from the airport would be a lot quicker (and cheaper). However, if you consider spending the night in the train it would save 1 night of hotel it might just be the same.

On my future trips to Europe, I will save 1 day at each destination to "take it easy". This probably means that I will sit at a cafe for a while and people watch or, if the weather is nice go to a nice park and do a picnic. I can't take it slow every day when I'm excited to see a new place. The double deck bus is also a good option because it facilitates getting to the top attractions without getting lost.

On my list of places to visit in Europe are Berlin and most of Germany, Prague, Turkey, Greece & the Greek islands, Switzerland, Austria, Italy (Milan, Florence, Pisa, Tuscany), France (Bordeaux & the French Riviera), and Southern Spain. I would go back to all of the places that we visited if only I had enough vacation days and frequent flyer miles!

For now, our next trip is to Colombia in less than 4 months to get married and to Hawaii for 10 days for our Honeymoon. We are still deciding which island will be our Honeymoon destination but planning is one of my favorite parts of the trip. I will be gone from work for 3 weeks. If I don't get fired for asking for so many days off, our following trip will be to Ecuador to visit my boyfriend's family. He hasn't been there in almost 2 years and if it was me I would be homesick. It does not matter where I go I have the same problem every time I go on vacation is that I come back more tired than when I left. Maybe the vacation I need is an all-inclusive resort with nothing to do but tan and read in a hammock. Maybe in 2012 for now I will be thinking of all the things to do in Hawaii :)

Return to the US

We almost had to stay longer in Spain because of the Volcano ash coming from Iceland had most of Europe's flights canceled. We were worried about getting back to work but, at the same time we wanted to stay and go to a Real Madrid Soccer match day after. We were delayed several hours at the airport because the airport was going to be closed. The gate attendants sent us to get a hotel voucher and we were called back to the gate. Nobody knew if the airport was going to remain open or closed. There was no free wii-fi at the aiport. I payed the 6 euros that they charged to log in for 30 minutes, check the news, and send an email to my family. After waiting hours at the airport for cancellations we were ready to go just to find out that our plane was delayed a few more hours due to mechanical reasons. We were upset, but not surprised that American Airlines has mechanical problems. We met other passengers that had driven or taken trains across Europe to fly from Spain. Spain was one of the few Countries that were not affected by the ash clouds. We had a multi-city ticket that allowed us to fly from the US to London and return from Madrid to the US. If the price of a round trip to London was significant lower at the time that we purchased we would have had to stay in Europe for at least one more week. It does sound like a good excuse to extend a vacation but I was taken non-paid time off at work and, my boyfriend had a new job waiting for him. It would have been a not so good way to stay in Europe longer. 

Needless to say, we lost our connection in Miami, we had to take the next flight to Tampa which was also delayed. They offered us to spend the night in Miami and fly to Tampa in the morning. We decided to wait for our already delayed flight. We finally arrived to Tampa at 2:00 AM when we were originally supposed to be back around 6:00 PM. We were lucky to be back on Sunday since we had to go to work early the next day. I was exhausted the whole day and a few more days after we were back. The jet-lag was not as bad as I expected it to be. It is worse when you fly the opposite time zone because you are not ready for bed. When you return from Europe you will be already 6 hours past your bed time. 

Euro Bills

Pound Sterling bills

Y El Paseo se Acabo (and the trip is over)

Day 3 in Madrid - Last full day in Europe

On our last full day in Madrid we had our friend take us around the City. We asked her to take us to Juan Valdez Cafe for a good cup of Colombian coffee. I have no idea which way we walked but it was not a short walk. We got to Juan Valdez and it was CLOSED!!!

Our personal tour guide took us on a walking tour of the Serrano and La Castellana neighborhoods and to Plaza Santa Ana. We had lunch at Lateral, a restaurant right across from the Plaza Santa Ana. This is probably one of my favorite restaurants now. The food was delicious and the Sangria too. The service was not great but this was true for ALL of the restaurants in Madrid. They treat you like they are doing you a favor. I believe it is because tipping is not a custom so servers don't have to work hard for their money.

There are always shoes hanging by electric cables - no matter in which City

Love Bocaditos (small bites)

Plaza Santa Ana

After lunch we walked to La Puerta del Sol and took some pictures around. We got in the train to another of Madrid's shopping districts. The problem with walking with a local is that I don't pay as much attention to were we are going. I asked for some shopping time since we were done with the sight-seeing that we had planned. I bought a carry-on bag especially for the "damage" that I was about to make. I had heard that shopping in Madrid was amazing. I ended up just buying the bag and a book!!! The bag was very useful for the following day but I was disappointed. I did not shop for a lot of things that I wanted earlier in the trip because I was afraid that I was going to run out of money or that we wouldn't have room in the bags for it.

Busy taking pictures 

At La Puerta del Sol

One of Madrid's symbols

The plan for the night was to go to a tablao to watch some typical spanish dancers. Flamenco is from the south of Spain but I there are shows everywhere. We took a nap and nobody woke us up!! When we woke up it was already too late for the show. I will have to keep singing the song just at Ceviche. Ceviche is my favorite restaurant in Tampa. They serve tapas, great sangria, and they have live music every night including flamenco.

The other song that I was singing all the time while we were in Spain was "El Toro y La Luna". I sing it all the time not just in Spain. Besides, Gypsy Kings is one of my favorite bands and the sing a version of this song. I added the song just in case anybody else likes it.

While we were in Madrid, most of Norther Europe flights were grounded due to an ash cloud coming from Iceland. If you do not remember the news, a volcano eruption in Iceland produced an ash cloud that moved towards Europe. Spain's airports were not closed but most of Europe's airports were. We went to bed not knowing if the cloud would be moving south. We wanted to stay to watch a Real Madrid soccer match the following day but, unfortunately we were worried about getting back to work. We had an early wake up time for the next day and I was guilty to waste the night but at the same time we needed to go to sleep for the long day ahead of us.

Madrid Day 2: QUE VIVA ESPAÑA!!

We had 2 full days in Madrid but there was a lot to see. We stated our day going to El Parque El Retiro. I was not to convinced to go see a park but after seeing it I know that this is a must see in Madrid. La Puerta de Alcala is right by it as well as El Museo del Prado. It was a nice warm day in Madrid perfect for walking. We decided not to go into any more museums and just enjoy the City. We just walked by El Museo del Prado, towards la Plaza de Cibeles. The street right before the plaza, Paseo del Prado, was full of yellow tulips. It was a beautiful sight. Someone (with a nice camera) asked us to take a picture of him and his family by the tulips. We asked him to do the same for us. I think these are the only 2 decent pictures with the 2 of us in it. Most people that you ask in the street don't take it well.

La Puerta de Alcala

A fountain at Parque el Retiro

Parque El Retiro

Parque El Retiro

Museo del Prado

Coolest trees ever

Museo del Prado

Obelisk by the Paseo del Prado

Tulips

Plaza de Cibeles & Palacio de Cibeles

Banco de Espana

After walking by la Plaza Cibeles, I was distracted and fell. I twisted my ankle and it made it difficult to walk at the same pace.  We kept walking towards la Plaza Colon when I saw a sculpture of one of my favorite artist: Fernando Botero. The Hard rock cafe was also by the plaza Colon. I bought my pins and we had lunch at a nearby place called Cafe y Te. It was not good and I definitely not recommend this place.

Cristobal Colon

Fernando Botero statue

someone got burned for doing that!!

After lunch we stopped by starbucks to have a coffee. We walked towards Plaza Espana where the statue of Don Quijote and Sancho and also the statue of Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. From here we walked to the Templo de Debob. We took a break before walking to the Palacio Real. The palace is so big that was hard to get it in a picture. If I ever return to Madrid I would like to see it inside.

Plaza Espana - Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

Don Quijote & Sancho Pansa

Templo de Debob - Gift from Egypt to Spain

Palacio Real from Debob Temple

Taking a break

Palacio Real

Palacio Real

Catedral de la Almudena

Plaza Villa

We ate at El Museo del Jamon by la Plaza Mayor. We bought some souvenirs and headed back to rest for a while. We stayed home talking we couldn't walk anymore :)

Plaza Mayor

If you read the Venice post a few days ago, I had a song in my head all the time. In Spain I had a song too. Actually 2 songs. One that I love and wanted to hear live, and another one that is just a song about Spain that I've heard all of my life. It is a pasodoble that my parents love to dance and it is always played at the bullfights. I started singing them as a joke but, they are stuck in my head. The bad part is that I kept singing the same line and driving my boyfriend insane. Besides, I do not have a good voice!!! Plus I only know the chorus (minute 0:35). This song is very famous if you have never heard it and are planning a trip to Spain you will hear it.

VIVA ESPAÑA