Morocco
Mady – We went to Tangier, Morocco by taking a ferry from Spain. In Morocco, I loved the beautiful architecture and the buildings that had walls made of tiles and arches. I loved that at night, while doing homeschooling, we sat out in the cold on the terrace and drank warm, soothing, mint tea.
I loved going to the markets where everyone was trying to sell you something. Shopping in different countries is pretty cool.
Jade: The beach was amazing, and the sand was so soft, it was slightly white but we had to be careful because there were bits of glass that were either sharp or sea glass. We rolled up our pants and took a dip, it was COLD!!!!!!! But we ended up going in anyway.
We went CAMEL RIDING in Morocco, Africa!!!!
We got on just like a horse only the camels were lying down so it was easier. After you climbed on, they would get up front legs first, and then the back, so you would have to hold on or you fall backwards. Then they would get down the opposite way, front legs first, then the back. Again, you would have to hold on only you would fall forwards.
Malaga, Spain
Mady: After Morocco, we went back to Spain. On my dad’s 49 birthday, we went in a carriage ride and saw the city from a slow but steady perspective. At the same time learning Spanish (because the driver didn’t speak English).
Barcelona, SPAIN
Mady: We took a fast train from Malaga to Barcelona, Spain. As we travelled to the north of Spain we saw olive trees and almond trees, and at one point it snowed.
We stayed in Barcelona for 10 days, it has a Gothic part, there are a lot of churches, shops, and street performers. Barcelona also loves their team, and their Messi, and many people speak Catalan.
In Barcelona, we went to this ‘house of bones’, it was fantastic. Gaudi is a Spanish architect who designed unique and different buildings. The house of bones was colourful – the unique look is breath-taking and inspiring. But we had to walk 10k that day so in the end we were drained.
In Barcelona, some people speak Spanish and there is a group of people who also speak Catalan. It is different from Spanish and they are trying to make the region an independent country. While visiting Barcelona, there was a protest to free the Catalan leaders who were arrested last year. We got in the middle of it, then saw it from above on T.V., it was so big. We heard there was about 700 000 people there. It is quite an experience to see what is going on in other countries.
Jade: we went to a Science museum where there were fossils and experiments. The fun part was when we watched a 3D movie in a Planetarium about the ‘Dream about Flying’.
Mady: We went to an art gallery about Pablo Picasso and his art as he grew up. It didn’t just show his pieces but also his sketches and drawings and how the paintings grew.
Mady: We walked to my mom’s old apartment where she lived for a year when she was 16 as a transfer student to Spain. My mom said she could find her way around Barcelona by telling if she was climbing up or down because the city is between the mountains and the sea.
Jade: We took a tram and cable car up the mountain which was beautiful because you could see all the red-roofed buildings. At the top was the Montjuic castle and museum. The castle was also used during world war 1, 2 and the civil war. They used that place for imprisonment and torture and execution but now it is a museum.
We also saw the olympic stadium where the olympics actually took place in 1992. My mom wanted to see it because she was there when they were just starting to build it. Pretty cool, am I right?
Jade: On our last night we saw a ‘Magic Fountain’ it was one of my favourite things. The fountain was full of lights and had music.
Mady & Jade: Our mom did a scavenger hunt and we had to go looking for things in the city. We saw some different art like that of Joan Miro – he doesn’t want to see art exactly as it is – like a flower instead of petals and a stem he would draw it in loops and different shapes and colours – in the end whatever you see it as, it is!
We went to a market and got 10 Euros and could spend it on whatever we wanted. We got to see the things they were selling which were different than Canada, like here it was paella and meat.
Next Stop: Southern France & the French Riviera