Playing in the Snow!

SNOW!

Well, it certainly took its sweet time but the snow finally arrived, later and lighter than I'd hoped. Nonetheless, there was SNOW! It was the second time in my life that I'd actually been able to watch it fall and accumulate, so I of course had to have a snowball fight with my wife (we were celebrating our anniversary that day, too). It was really gorgeous to watch as it fell and we walked through the city to Rittenhouse Square, the flakes reflecting the street lamps and creating a dreamy effect. I would've brought my camera, but in the excitement of the moment, I left it in the apartment. So, you'll all just have to live with the photos that Corey, our lovely host, took of Sarah Adelaide trouncing me at snowball fighting. (I would like to point out in my defense that I grew up in Florida while she grew up in places like South Dakota, where if there's less than a foot of snow on the ground on Independence Day, it's a warm summer.)

Let It Snow

A week into my stay in Philadelphia and things are slowly coming together; there's been some tentative exploration and quite a lot of networking. The city's easy to navigate on foot, particularly near Center City, where everything conforms to a basic grid pattern with a few wayward streets here and there. My biggest challenge thus far has been remembering that the numbered streets run north to south and the named streets are the east-west thoroughfares. (I even had trouble with that last sentence.)

Part of the appeal to living in the northeast, though, has so far not panned out. As a native Floridian, I was looking forward to seeing some snow; but a week on and there's been been no appreciable accumulation of snow. There were some flurries yesterday but alas, it was too warm for the flakes to stick anywhere but the grass in the parks and on top of cars. Better than nothing, I suppose. I'm really crossing my fingers for something big this Saturday as the area's going to have a cold front moving through. We might get a few inches of snow out of it! I'm giddy at the prospect!

Hopefully, I'll have some photos of the City of Brotherly Love decked in white for you after this weekend. In the meantime, please enjoy a few pictures of Philly as seen from the South Street Bridge.

Back in the City Again

Quick update on my languishing blog.  I've made it to Philly with the Mrs. and it's GREAT to be back in a walkable city!  Living in the outer suburbs of Tampa breeds a certain disconnection with life, especially when the only car you have access to most of the time is a 1976 Datsun 280ZX that's on its last legs.  No more do I have to worry about that!  Bonus: There's actual winter here, although no snow.  Hopefully, that will be rectified sometime in the near future, although the ten-day outlook doesn't look promising.  Perhaps the second half of February will see a storm or two.

Montserrat: My Happy Place

View from the bottom of the cable car.

The vistas are simply phenomenal.

Rising majestically between Barcelona and Manresa on the bank of the Llobregat River is Montserrat, a splendid trip for visitors who would like to escape the din of Barcelona for a day.  The park offers myriad hiking trails and amazing vistas of the countryside; some say you can even see the Balearic islands from the peak on a clear day.  Montserrat is also home to an art museum as well as a Benedictine Abbey, making it a popular site for religious pilgrims.  And it's easy to access via public transportation!

The Pyrenees off in the distance

The mountain is said to hold a mystical power and once you get there it's easy to see why.  Sweeping vistas greet visitors, giving them a spectacular view of the surrounding plains and mountains.  For hikers, there are seven hiking routes available that will take you anywhere from 15 minutes to three and a half hours to complete.  Take any of the trails leading up towards the peaks and your hard work will be rewarded with some incredible views of the plains, the Pyrenees or even the Mediterranean.  While you're hiking, keep a lookout for the flora and fauna: On my last trip to the park, I was able to capture photos of some mountain goats peacefully reposing on the rocks.

A family of mountain goats basks in the sun.

For those less inclined to taking inclines, the tiny village that greets visitors from the public transit entrance offers quite a lot of scenery, indoors and out, as well.  The sanctuary is a gorgeous site in and of itself, ornately decorated and beautifully detailed.  Construction of the complex began in the late 15th century and the Basilica was consecrated in 1592.  This is where you will find the Virgin of Montserrat, La Moreneta, one of the mysterious Black Madonnas of Europe.  Many travel to Montserrat just to touch (or kiss) the orb held by the baby Jesus in the statue.  Montserrat is also home to an art museum with several permanent collections that is located a short walk from the cable car/rack rail entrance.  On weekends, you may well find a market for local goods with samples of the various meats and cheeses made and sold in the area.  And, before you take your leave of the park, you simply must stop by the gift shop for a sample pack of the monastery's famous liqueurs.  You can also purchase food and water for a picnic here, but it'll cost you a bit more than the stores in Barcelona.

Sant Joan (pronounced ZHO-ahn) keeps
a lonely vigil.

Getting to Montserrat is relatively painless.  From Barcelona, take the R5 train originating from Plaça Espanya station, which is served by the red L1 and green L3 metro lines.  There are two kinds of combination tickets; the Trans Montserrat package will set you back €23.10 and gets you a round-trip metro ticket, round trip rack rail or cable car ticket, entrance to the audiovisual show and unlimited rides on the funiculars.  For an additional €15, the Tot Montserrat package adds lunch and a tour of the museum.  Personally, I like packing a picnic and eating while hiking, so the Trans Montserrat ticket has held us in good stead, but the €38 package would probably be perfect for those who do not want to stray far from the main complex. The R5 train that leaves Plaça Espanya at 07.36 is the earliest you'll want to take as it arrives at Monistrol de Montserrat (where you connect with the rack rail) in time to catch the first train up at 08.48.  The last train down from Montserrat to the R5 leaves at 20.15 during the summer and on weekends from April to October.

Accommodations are available at Montserrat and for the most part the prices seem reasonable (especially for the apartments).  If you want to see the whole park, staying one or two nights would be the best way to do so in one trip as the mountain is huge and virtually impossible to see in one day.  Montserrat may be a better summer trip than a winter one.  The operating hours are markedly shorter in winter along with the length of daylight; however, crowds are most likely bigger in the summer.  If you go in winter, be prepared for the potential for some VERY cold weather; while it doesn't snow very often, snow has been recorded from November through March and the mornings can be very chilly.  I can't wait to make my next trip up the mountain and I'm sure once you've gone, you'll be anxious to go back as well!

The complex.

HOW TO GET THERE VIA PUBLIC TRANSIT:

From Barcelona, take either the L1 (red) metro or the L3 (green) metro to Plaça Espanya station.  Once at Plaça Espanya, follow the signs to the FGC railway platforms.  There will be signs directing you to the R5 to Manresa, which has two stops servicing Montserrat: Montserrat-Aeri for the cable car and Monistrol de Montserrat for the rack rail.  Tickets can be purchased at automated kiosks in Plaça Espanya station, Plaça Catalunya Tourist Information or the FGC La Molina office in El Triangle, next to Plaça Catalunya.

USEFUL LINKS:

A cable car rises to the monastery.

Cremallera i Funicular--Information about the rack rail and funicular tickets, ticket packages, time tables and the park itself.
Montserrat Reservations--More information on the park as well as a reservation site for the hotel and the apartments.
Aeri de Montserrat--This is the site for the cable car.  It's a beautiful ride to the monastery and quicker than the rack rail, but it's not for the faint of heart.
Abadia de Montserrat--This is the site of the Abbey itself.