by Wesley
Home >> Postcard from N.Y.P.D. and L!
I told you about Andorra, and though the anecdote was a somewhat negative experience, I really did have a good time.
New York was fabulous, as always; it is always the same yet always just as fascinating each time I go. This happens to me with Barcelona as well. The more times I visit certain cities, the more enchanting they become. The first trip is always a rush to see this monument and that landmark and this museum and that famous building. The second is a bit more relaxed, though there is always something you didn’t see the first time. Subsequent visits are for actually living the city, maybe seeing sights, maybe not. Many times they are showing someone you know around. I particularly like this, sharing my favorite spots.
Dublin, too, was a delight. Do go for a long weekend. It is not necessarily a beautiful place but indeed has its charm and I discovered that I do, in fact, like Guinness! The best thing about it, though, was that people were so nice! I hate to use the word nice as it is usually either an understatement or sarcasm. But in this case it is true. People were friendly and helpful and they even SMILED! I’m sorry to say this, and I’m not exactly Mr. Nice Guy myself, but people in Spain are not very nice.
And they’re not so nice in France, either. However, I love both Spain and France to death and in Paris, too, had a nice time seeing my sister and my mother, who were on a group school tour to London, Paris, and a few places in Italy. For an American, this is a big trip! It’s a lot to see in little time but sometimes, because of Europe’s high cost and a lack of vacation time, it’s the best Americans can do to get a little of Europe in their lives! It was strange being in a group of Americans, as it had been a long time since I had been part of one, but it was fun. What I could not get over, though, was dinner at six! I love Paris in the springtime…
Lanzarote was warm and sunny, just as it was supposed to be (except for one day of rain), and the moon-rock landscape was much more pleasant and intriguingly beautiful than I had expected. I enjoyed Cesar Manrique’s contributions to the island as well.
Travelling is my favorite pastime, thus I hope to be able to tell you about lots more. But for now, we have a pause and some time in Donosti, at least until next month!
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Posted on http://www.weeklyletter.com at 2007-04-12 13:00:00 +0200
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“It is not necessarily a beautiful place but indeed has its charm and I discovered that I do, in fact, like Guinness! “
The Irish understand that good things are on the inside. That’s why we drink Guinness. Welcome to the club! You can also drink it with a shot of blackcurrant juice too or mix it with champagne.
Hi from New York. This was home to me for many years and it will always be number 1 in my list of homecomings. I grew up here twice, my siblings grew up here, period, I raised my elder child here for a while. Contrary to what lots of people say, this is an excellent place to grow up and raise kids in, has always been.
I like travelling too, I think is a good way to know other cultures and people.
What do you mean when you say ” people in Spain are not very nice?
I think we are nice people, but we are scared of talking with foreign people.
I think guiness is good but I prefer “Mahou” , ja,ja.
Have a nice day.
‘Guinness’, like ‘accommodation’, is a word that even native English speakers very often spell incorrectly. Remember that it’s double-N and double-S in Guinness and double-C and double-M in accommodation.
Wesley, you’re very lucky to have gone to so many places in only four months, and this doesn’t include your trip to Germany in December. What are your plans for the rest of 2007?
Our Uncle Wesley is jetset. That’s the meaning of the picture.
Hi everybody!
Really, I have never gone out from Spain but I know a lot of villages in our country. I am from Barcelona and I grew up in Madrid, my mother is from Jerez de la Frontera (Cadiz), I am from a few cities, I would like, before knowing other cities, to know my own city, Madrid, a lot of madrileños only visit Madrid when other people come here.
Hi!
I’m just coming from Dublin too… and I had a pint of Guinness. I’d say that you can bite it! I feel as I had been always eating and drinking… and walking too.
I agree: Irish people are nice, although I didn’t get to understand them. Fortunately, they seemed to understand me, at least!
My time in New York was too short, just 3-4 nights, but I’ll be back there as soon as possible, maybe next summer…
Lanzarote? too small for me, but I found it very very special. I think it’s a landscape that you can’t see anywhere else.
My next travel will be to Barcelona, next month, if my budget allows it… I’m really in love with Barna. I even decided to go there to live and work… but I didn’t get it.
If I could I’d travel more and more…
Elena
Hello Wesley!
Thanks for telling us about your trips…I share with you that interest for knowing other places and travelling abroad, knowing other peoples costumes and culture and, of course, their food.
Regards,
Cristina
Thanks for your comments thus far. Indeed, I was lucky to get in so many travels; hopefully I will always be able to say the same (though vacation time and money might put a stop to that).
Firstly, people in Spain are superficially not nice, and even then it varies by region. I am going to generalize; bear in mind that I have met nice people, too, everywhere I have visited. To all my friends in Castilla, La Rioja and Cantabria, you win the prize for the rudest shopkeepers and the least smiles per capita. But Andalucía bubbles with friendliness, I must admit, and I do not find people in Barcelona or Madrid especially hostile. But Anglo-Saxon countries, as “cold” as they may be, are on a basic, anonymous level, much more cordial. And I am not one to think that my country is any more fabulous than any other…
Beer: I still prefer the yellow stuff!
Bon voyage!
...tuning in late Wesley…but I can confirm that reading your stuff (sorry – this choice of word reflects my inability to find a more suitable one!!) has certainly re-kindled my desire to get to the nearest airport! Cesar Manrique’s house was one of the most fascinating homes I’ve ever seen…
Hi!
When I was reading your article I thought for a while it was myself who had written it because I never get tired of going to cities like New York, Paris, Dublin or Barcelona. Everytime you go there, you know you will find something interesting, amazing or just different.
I would include Viena and Madrid in the list. However there are so many cities I still need to visit before closing that list…!! :-)
Regards,
Nuria