June 26 - July 3, 2015 in Barcelona

Six Nights in Barcelona, June 26 – July 3, 2015

After a few days in Michelstadt, Germany we flew to Barcelona and arrived there early in the afternoon. We found our host’s recommended Aerobus from the airport into the center of town. Our apartment was just south of Plaza Catalunya, so we exited the Aerobus there with our rolly bags and made our way out of the south end of the Plaza, down the Port de L’Angel, a large pedestrian shopping street. Our place was on Santa Anna, a quiet smaller pedestrian street across from the pharmacy sign in the photo below. 

I had texted our host Mario and he met us at the apartment’s front door.

Our Barcelona apartment was up four flights of very tight, circular stone stairs, 

but it was modern, light and open. It was one large room with a living space and a low wall separating the bedroom and a door into the bathroom space with a shower. It was small and in a wonderful location. We could walk out and turn left onto Las Ramblas and from there walk all the way down to the port with its somewhat confusing statue of Christopher Columbus.

or we could turn right to de L’Angel and walk two blocks to the Cathedral with its wonderful Cloisters. 

Our first night we walked to the Cathedral 

and into Barri Gotic 

for a reservation I had made via TripAdvisor before we left, at L’Antic Bocoi Del Gotic restaurant. We got there when it opened at 7:30 or 8 pm and we were the first people there. Most people do not eat until at least 9 pm in Barcelona. On this night, it was good to be first because they sat us at the best table at the end of the restaurant at the window with a view of the square below.

We loved Barcelona, named for Barcino whose name graces the square near the Cathedral. 

One of the highlights was the Spanish Guitar concert we saw at Palau Musica. We had booked tickets in advance and found the “Palace of Music” was just a few blocks from our apartment. The interior is wonderfully decorative and the best way to see it was to see a concert.

One of the low lights is that I narrowly avoided being robbed while shopping at one of the markets on Las Ramblas. People had warned us that pick pockets were very aggressive in Barcelona. At one market stall, a man next to us asked a question of a vendor, while his female partner tried to take the wallet out of my purse. Luckily, I felt something and was able to hit my wallet out of her hands and reclaim it. 

We saw many of the Gaudi designed buildings. The first was the Palau Guell, a residence for the Guell family 

with its central worship or concert hall with many small skylights. 

My favorite was the Sagrada Familia cathedral. 

Gaudi designed it around 1880 – 1900, but much of it is only being built now. The stained glass windows, for example were designed and installed since 1999 by a Barcelona based artist.  

We got tickets to go into the Nativity towers. There is an elevator going up and the view of the city is very good. The way down, however, is via a tight spiral stone staircase. Some of the openings as we went down were a bit terrifying, but the views are great.

One of the areas further east from Barri Gotic was El Born. We walked there one morning to see the church Santa Maria del Mar. This is a view of it from another characteristic Barcelona street of stone with apartment buildings and shops on either side and vegetation in pots along the sides or in the balconies. 

There are great restaurants and shops near by. We had tapas for lunch here. 

We walked back to our favorite gelato place near City Hall and the government buildings called Gelaaati! Each flavor was made in the morning and the range of options and intensity of flavors was staggering. We really had to try something every day to get a full sense of the place. 

One of our other favorite ventures was the Joan Miro museum. One of our days in Barcelona, a Swiss friend of mine who lives in Girona came to visit us by train. After she arrived, we all took the “vertical” metro up to the “mountain”, Montjuic. We visited the Joan Miro Museum, which is the largest collection of his works in the world.  

Further up the road from the museum at the National Palace/Museum of Catalan, there is a set of waterfalls down to the street level of Plaza Espana. We loved the view down 

and then the view back up from the bottom. 

From there, we walked back to the Parallel metro stop where we had started and had dinner at a place I had reserved from home, Café Manilla.

It was one of our favorite meals while in Barcelona on our last night there. Onto Paris. 

June 24 - 26, 2015 - Kick-off European Holiday in Michelstadt, Germany

Between having a partner who was willing to be with the boys and a daughter who wanted to travel with me, I had a travel-filled summer. It started with an almost three week trip to Europe with Alle. Sometime in the winter before my daughter turned 16, I remembered my 16^th summer of traveling on my own and suggested she should think about traveling to visit family, see new European haunts, and perhaps travel with a friend. She told me that she would like to travel with me. I do not know whether that is because she likes how good the food is when I am along, she knows we will stay in good places, or she knows that I like to shop while on holiday, but I decided not to question it. I was just happy that my teenager still wanted to travel with me.

She left the week before I and spent a few days in Scotland with her paternal grandparents in Ayr. She flew to Frankfurt and we met in my mother’s family’s hometown of Michelstadt, Germany. It was so fun to see Luisa, who was our exchange student last year and our whole family there. Everyone was in town and although we were there only few days, we got a chance to see everyone in the immediate Schafer family.

Michelstadt is in the middle of the region to the southeast of Frankfurt known as the Odenwald, which is said to have restorative air and water. 

The small city began in 1100 in Roman times. Most of its buildings were built between 1400 and mid-1600. It has not been affected by any of the world wars and so most of the original buildings and some of it outer wall still stand today. It is in remarkably beautiful shape. Here is the city church and parts of the original city wall. 

Here is the city hall and the city church from the center of the town. 

While we visited, I learned that the city intends to put on a play about my grandfather, Fritz Kredel, written by a German playwright which will be based on the article I wrote about him and his work in the Printing Histories journal a few years ago. It's wonderful that there continues to be such an interest in him and his work in his hometown. 

While in Michelstadt, we ate at the city’s best Konditorei 

and tried Luisa’s favorite ice cream. We ate about two gelatos a day while traveling this summer, so finding the “best” became our trip’s challenge. We could have easily stayed with family and enjoyed Michelstadt and the Odenwald for much more time, but from Michelstadt, we traveled to Barcelona. 

March 12 - 22, 2015 - Disney World and Grand Cayman Island - Spring Break 2015

Four Days in Disney World with Two Five Year Olds

Alle’s Band was going to Disney World for part of Spring Break, so we decided that it was a good excuse to take the boys and meet Alle there. We went there for four days, staying at the Wilderness Lodge and visiting Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. Not being a Disney expert, I wanted to make sure we saw all the right things for the boys. I had the deadlines for reservations in my calendar – booked the lodging in September, the meals in December and our Fast Passes for rides 60 days in advance in January.

It was a busy whirlwind, but the boys seemed to have fun. The things we liked were taking the boat from Wilderness Lodge to Magic Kingdom, seeing the characters at the character meals such as Pooh and friends at Crystal Palace, Belle and the Beast at Be Our Guest, and Mickey and friends at Chef Mickeys, finding some of the more interesting events and rides such as telling a story with Belle, the Safari and shows in Animal Kingdom, and happening upon a parade at Magic Kingdom.

Some of my favorite photos include our first view of the Wilderness Lodge lobby.

A view of Cinderella's castle

A distant view of Rapunzel's tower,

Pooh, wandering around Disney World,

Waiting to get into Beast's castle,

The Beast's Castle and Ballroom

The carved Tree of Life in Animal Kingdom.

Minnie Mouse and friends at Chef Mickey's.

A Week on Grand Cayman Island

After going non-stop for three days at Disney World Alle joined us, we packed up and we all flew to the Cayman Islands. We flew to Grand Cayman and spend a week at a lovely, relaxed condo on Seven Mile Beach. 

Our condo was right on the beach and the boys could walk out our door and run in the sand to the water. Here was our view as we walked to one of these beach chairs. 

The sand was fine and white and stretched forever, or perhaps for seven miles. The water was warm and wonderful shades of blue. Our area was remarkably quiet. We were often the only people on the beach and in the water. There was also a pool that the boys loved to swim in. One of our days, we left the beach and set sail for a few hours on the Jolly Roger pirate ship. 

Our favorite outing was to spend a day on a boat making stops to snorkel, see starfish, and swim with the rays.

The snorkeling was some of the best I've done in turquoise clear, warm water. Even Peter and Ted were able to see the varied and beautiful fish with their kid goggles. We all swam with the rays and fed them. In Stingray Cove, there were over twenty swimming around us. 

Cayman was so relaxed and very sunny - the perfect balance to Disney. We didn't want to return home.

Rebuilding the Studio - September - November 2014

In April 2011, I put together an exciting new design for my glass studio. But as life, scheduling and remodeling go, it took me three years before I actually brought in a contractor to help me with the work. And, just as on schedule, it took another five months before he was actually able to bring his team in to do the work. He thought it would take “just a week” after Labor Day, but we completed the project in early November 2014. When it comes to construction projects, one has to practice the gift of patience.

It is so wonderful to have a new studio that it was worth the wait. My old studio work tables were once the kitchen cabinets of the previous owners of our house in Burlingame, California that my daughter’s father and I purchased in 1993. The kitchen cabinets were very fashionable when the McCormicks put them in in the mid- to late-1960’s, but they were a bit outdated 30 years later in the 1990’s. Since they were solid wood, David and I decided they would make great work tables. So, he screwed them back to back, put them on casters, placed doors on them for tops, and I worked happily on them for 20 years. One was my kiln table, one was my central work table and the last was a long work table, which sat against a wall. The rest of my motley studio crew was an old desk one of our neighbors had put out for trash. My 75 jars of powdered glass frit were sitting on the shelves of a large, old bookcase my grandfather had made which is in the next door laundry room. The largest item was my grandfather’s old work desk.  My sheets of glass sat on the floor in six crates from Bullseye Glass and it was getting nearly impossible to tell what colors of glass I had anymore. It was time for a change.

One day in April 2014, while having a morning snack with my friend Darca, she mentioned that she liked working with the contractor who was remodeling her kitchen. I asked her for a recommendation. When I asked her contractor to come over and quote on my studio project, it turned out that the work tables I wanted to construct were very similar to the work tables Matt used in his shop and so it seemed like a good fit. Unfortunately, as the months wore on, it became clear that his team would not have time for the project during the Spring or during the Summer… they started the day after Labor Day. The work tables, drawers and cabinets were custom built based on my design and to accommodate my cases of glass. Here are photos of how the studio looked during and after their work.

East Corner Before

East Corner Glass Cases Going In (and Old Work Table)

Northeast Corner Glass Cases Going In

Northeast Corner Moving In

Frit and Glass Wall Before (with Old Kiln Work Table)

Frit and Glass Wall (with New Kiln Work Tables)

New Work Tables and Drawers In Process

New Tables and Shelving Complete

Moving Back In

Now that it’s starting to snow in Iowa, I will have to share some of this space with our outdoor furniture and a car during the winter months, but it will still be wonderful to continue my current series in this new space. 

August 2 - 12, 2014 - 10 Days in North Carolina

10 Days in North Carolina August 2 – 12, 2014

Before we left for 10 days in North Carolina, the boys and I harvested their carrots. They had planted the seeds in their preschool class in April and we transplanted them to our veggie planter earlier in the summer. The boys pulled them in bunches from the soil. The carrots looked and tasted “like real carrots” and we ate them at dinner; the boys were so pleased and proud.

I also packed up a piece of glass from my new sunset series and delivered it to the Iowa State Fairgrounds, where they were gearing up for the biggest fair in the world, August 7 - 17. Here is my glass that was on display at the Fine Arts exhibition there (more information at www.tbsglass.com). Alle and I also each had a photograph at the Cultural Center of the Fair this year.

Alle arrived from California on the evening of August 1^st and bright and early the next morning, we all left for Norfolk, Virginia. From there, we rented a minivan and drove south for two hours in the pouring rain. The rest of the country was enjoying sunny summer weather, but the Carolina coast was in thunderstorms. Saturday is the turn-over day for rental properties on the Outer Banks, so the other 100,000 families who were renting places for the next week were also on one of three approaches headed east to the tiny strip of islands that holds four lighthouses, highway NC-12, and the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. Here's one of the entry points on a sunnier day.

We finally picked-up our keys (the rental company had happily gone for the day, but left us a bag outside with keys and slightly damp toilet paper for the week), found a small seafood shack to eat dinner of crabs and shrimp, and made our way south to Nags Head, NC, arriving far after bedtime. The Cape Hatteras Seashore is a 70 mile stretch of wind-swept dunes and beach islands which frame the North Carolina mainland. It is beautiful in spite of the tall vacation homes which dot the shore towns and the strip malls which are along the commercial parts of the road. We stayed in a VRBO beach house which was right on the beach.

We were so happy to be on the beach, so the boys could run out our doors and play in the sand and be near the waves. We could see and hear the surf from our windows. Here's our view looking east to the Atlantic. 

Since it was still pouring with rain on our first day at the beach, we drove 40 miles south to visit the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. While we were there a thunderstorm hit, so only Ricardo and Alle made it up the stairs to see the view before it closed due to lightning.  The Cape Hatteras Light is a classic, well-known stripped black and white lighthouse that is used in so many lighthouse images.

Our house was near the Bodie Island Lighthouse, which is slightly shorter than Hatteras, but also black and white for daytime visibility. The Bodie Light warned ships coming down the eastern coast from the north that they were near Hatteras.

Hatteras marks where two ocean currents meet and form large sand bars or diamond shoals 15 miles out to sea. As a result it is the location of around 600 shipwrecks. When ships saw the Bodie Light, they knew to head out to sea to avoid Hatteras. Here are a few photos from my climb to the top of Bodie a few days later.

North of us was the Wright Brothers’ Memorial, which we visited twice. Our first visit there was late in the afternoon. Since the national park service there closed right at 5 pm, we only had time to see the museum. The museum has a replica of the Wright Brother glider and their first plane. In addition, the track and route of the Wright Brothers’ first flight in the field at Kill Devil Hills is marked out. Here is a modern plane landing at the airstrip in view of the marker of the first flight of the Wright Brothers.

and there is also a playground model of the plane that kids can climb on.

All in all, it is an interactive memorial and the boys were fascinated to learn about the early efforts, process and accomplishment.

Close to Kitty Hawk is the East Coast’s largest sand dune, Jockey Ridge. Being from Michigan and knowing the sand dunes on the west coasts of the Great Lakes, I wondered what the big deal was. But, the dune area was long, had trails and a nice walking space, and the views were great.

We climbed up to see the hang gliders and all of the kites. The boys loved running around in the sand.

The week at the beach was relaxing and fun. I would have happily stayed another week.

From Nags Head, we drove west 450 miles and eight hours to Asheville. We crossed all of North Carolina, from the beach, through the wet lands and areas called Alligator River. We saw farm lands growing tobacco, cotton and soybean and drove into the mountains and smoky Blue Ridge hills. We were traveling to Asheville to join the Board, management and spouse meetings for Ricardo’s bank. We arrived there at the end of a long day, ate dinner at a wonderful organic café called Sunny Point Café in West Asheville, and then drove to the Biltmore Estate to check in at the Inn.

It wasn’t until the next morning that we awoke to see our view of the Blue Ridge hills from the Inn at the Biltmore.

We drove to the Blue Ridge Parkway, only driving on it for a few miles, but still enjoying the serenity of not seeing anything commercial and driving at 45 miles an hour in park-like surroundings.

We love the Folk Art Center and shop near Asheville on the parkway. While there, I strongly hinted that one of the art pieces would be great for my birthday.

Before the meetings started, we also toured some of Asheville’s galleries. The Blue Spiral used to be in our price range, but only a few pieces were on this visit. We also looked at the Haen, Bellagio and Minerva galleries. These have all become more upscale as well. Twenty five of us from the meetings visited a few of the studios in the River Arts area to see the ceramics, painting, weaving and other artwork there – a great group of people to wander around and have lunch with as always.

It was fun to have a chance to visit the River Arts artist studio area to see the artists at work and get a sense for how they approach their work.

The Biltmore Estate required a whole day on its own. The house can be seen on a self-guided tour with audio and by asking questions of the docents in every room. It takes hours to see the whole house, including the kitchens and food storage downstairs. One forgets how complex it was to store food in the days before refrigeration and how difficult it was to cook with imperfect ovens and stoves. The Vanderbilts changed clothes four or more times a day to be dressed appropriately for their activities. All of the clothing was washed by hand in the basement rooms. It was an incredible set-up.

Since we were asked not to take photos inside, here's the view out the main floor veranda. 

George Vanderbilt designed the house with architect Richard Morris Hunt in the 1890s. The outside gardens were designed by landscape architect Frederick Law Olmstead (the same designer as NYC’s Central Park). The project was said to be the pinnacle of their careers. Olmstead also designed the roads around the estate and the approach to the house and his goal was to have a visual surprise around every bend.

Vanderbilt collected artwork and design ideas from many visits to Europe, so each room is unique, filled with interesting artwork and decorated on a grand scale. The gardens are also inspiring and need another hour or two to tour.

We got caught in a thunderstorm and cut our visit short.

We had another lovely evening at the Biltmore with old time folk music at the Winery Barns on our last night. As we flew from Asheville to Atlanta and back to Des Moines the next morning, Ted had a minor meltdown stating that we HAD to go back. He wanted to visit North Carolina again, perhaps tomorrow.