Touring the Loire Valley, France

The Loire Valley of central France is groovealicious. It’s Disney World on steroids for adults. The French would cringe equating a major piece of their national heritage with the garish capitalism of America, but the overload of architectural and artistic beauty, tastes for the palate and sense of history is a playground for the soul. Wait! I’m not French and full of Euros and endless vacation time. Take a Xanax; a week for two in the Loire Valley, minus the airfare to get to France, can be done for under $1,200. Don’t be put off by France; once you leave Paris and the big/capital city syndrome, the French are incredibly helpful and polite. A clichd smile and a hello are usually all it takes to meet people.

General Survival in the Loire Valley

1. THE PLAN

What did we do before the Internet? You can plan your trip, book and manage reservations and score ridiculous bargains, even at the height of the summer tourist season. Do research. Google is the source of life for a reason. One of the best places to start is http://www.monum.fr/prehome/pr ehome.dml. The agency maintains public monuments in France. Next, get to France. Don’t fly directly to Paris; look at other airports. With some imagination and the concept that that there are other airlines outside of America (you can get to Gdansk, Poland on Scandinavian Air Systems-SAS for next to nothing http://www.flysas.com/Default. aspx?vst=true&epslanguage=EN) , you can fly cheaper to another European city and then move around Europe, and France, cheaply by air. A week is not enough time to figure out trains, so screw them. Ryanair will shock you if you book early http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN /. The rumors that sometimes you can get airfare for a penny are true. You can fly to the center of the Loire Valley at Tours, or to Nantes in Brittany, which is close. Once there, you will need a car. With a bit of Internet surfing, you can book a car for under $200 for the week. Two drawbacks are that gas is hyper expensive and it’s scary to drive in France. The roundabouts will shake you to the core. Being aggressive helps, and having the sheer luxury to move when you want provides many more opportunities to see things off the beaten path. Get the insurance and a decent map! TOTAL FOR RENTAL CAR AND GAS: $350

2. THE FOOD AND HOTELS

You can spend a fortune, or you can see how bohemian you are. Even the worst food in France rules. The hypermarkets in France are temples because the French love food and shopping.

Travel destinations: Sevilla, Spain

Twenty four hours and a couple of bus changes after leaving my home town, I stepped out into hot Sevilla, eyes almost shut through tiredness and the brightness of the sun. I could fully enjoy the Northern African smells with its hot sand, the palm trees and melting macadam. Situated in the southern part of Spain, Sevilla is said to be the hottest city in Europe with temperatures sometimes reaching 59 degrees Celsius, but as it was only early May I didn’t suffer such extreme heat; the weather was beautiful.

I discovered the city three years ago when visiting my brother, who lived there at the time. I was fortunate to be there during the Feria’ (Sevilla’s fair) when people wear traditional clothes and dance all night in family tents built next to each other, for a whole week. The city is quite extensive. Its streets and parks are filled with south European trees and varieties of exotic plants. Between one and five o’clock in the afternoon, shops close as it becomes too hot to continue working, and during that time many workers go and rest in the precious shade of the trees.

Old castles and majestic pieces of architecture are commonplace. The two most famous ones are: “Plaza de Espana” and the “Alcazar”. The Plaza is a huge half-circle bounded by numerous buildings and a moat that is crossed by many beautiful bridges, and in the center is a large fountain. In the buildings’ shade, improvised bands play Flamenco followed by on-the-spot dancers and small crowds of people clapping their hands in rhythm. The Alcazar palace, which took over 500 years to build, is a Moorish/Renaissance blend of architecture and is surrounded by majestic Andalusian gardens. The sense of history, together with the quietness of the gardens, makes a visit to the castle a wonderful experience and the view of the surrounding countryside should not be missed.

Orange trees dot the streets of Sevilla but don’t be tempted, their fruits cannot be eaten. One just needs to pick up one of those orange from any tree, press on the skin strongly while approaching a lighter’s flame and all of a sudden, a bigger flame appears due to the orange skin’s juice.

At night, the narrow paved streets and the Flamenco bars fill with international students, adding to the city’s charm. There are tapas bars at every corner offering a diverse choice of food at very low cost, and it is easy to start up a conversation with a local while holding a beer and eating tapas. International travelers are always welcome; although a basic knowledge of Spanish is desirable, as it will show the traveler’s good will, English is in common use, Sevilla being a very international city.

But time goes by, like in every place where life is sweet; and I am close from taking a bus ride back. I sit at a bar, with my brother, overlooking at the “Tore del Oro”-the defensive watchtower and defensive barrier on the river- and drinking a last “tinto de verano”-a mix of red wine and lemonade with lots of ice. The sun wears its beautiful orange dress and we talk about the city. I explain how I enjoyed my stay, he tells me how hard it is to find a job down south and that he is thinking of going up north, in the mountains where employment is better. Pamplona, another city, another spanish trip to come. The sun goes down and disappears, the bus drives away from Sevilla and I fall asleep, wishing I didn’t have to go.