Graduate School With a European Twist: 2016

EuroVan Summer 2016 - First Leg

11:36 AM

Granada, Spain - - - - - - -> Rennes, France (June 11 - 19)

Day 1

Saturday - June 11

The trip started out with a visit to the emergency room, so that I could get some antibiotics for my strep throat (Not a good place to start). While I waited to be seen, Courtnee finished packing up the van and cleaning out our Granada apartment. We finally got on the road in the early afternoon, which turned our 4 hour drive into a 6 hour drive (Very hot, miserable first day on the road with no A/C in the van, traffic, a couple wrong turns, and my strep throat). As we drove through the beautiful cool mountains just south of Segovia we decided it was a good time to stop and found a perfect place to park. We enjoyed some spaghetti at a picnic table and went to bed.

Day 2

Sunday - June 12

We awoke to a parking lot full of cows and ate some cold cereal next to the river. Drove 15 minutes down the road and enjoyed a morning walk through the Royal Palace of La Granja of San Ildefonso. Drove to Segovia and walked through the old town. Church in Segovia. Lunch under Cathedral and Alcazar of Segovia. Drove to Santander. Walked around park and beaches north of city. Chinese food near city beach. Drove around looking for parking. Eventually we found a perfect spot on rocky beach were we enjoyed the sunset with an old man and his angry goose.

Day 3

Monday - June 13

Rainy day. Woke up and drove up the coast toward San Sebastian. Stopped to see Castro Urdiales and the Cathedral Santa Maria de la Asuncion. Because of the rain we decided not to stop in Bilbao and instead found a cave where we could do some climbing, even in the bad weather. We had a good time, but Courtnee was afraid of going very far into the cave. Then we drove further up at the coast. Stopped and enjoyed the view several times before we found a good place to park the van for the night. We parked in a vacant lot next to the beach with several other campers and a guy riding his bike from Germany on el Camino de Santiago (The Way of Saint James). Courtnee made fajitas and we played games in the van before going to bed.

Day 4

Tuesday - June 14

In the morning we hiked down to the water, chased crabs, and enjoyed the beautiful views. We explored the little city of Getaria with its castle and escalators. We drove the rest of the way to San Sebastian enjoyed the amazing beach there till early afternoon when the clouds rolled in. Then we hiked up to the van, put clothes on and walked around for a while in search of a good meal. After dinner we drove up on top of a hill west of the city and found a perfect spot on the side of the road overlooking the water to sleep.

Day 5

Wednesday - June 15

We woke up to an amazing view. Drove toward France and stopped for breakfast on another hill with a stunning view of the sea. We hiked through wet green fields of horses down to a unique climbing area with short difficult climbing walls where we spent the morning. After we wound our way into France. Bought French SIM cards for our phones and splurged by paying to stay at a camping area where we enjoyed our first real(non beach) showers of the trip. After getting cleaned up and eating a big dinner, we went exploring near our camping area and enjoyed a breath-taking sunset as a storm rolled in. Courtnee also nearly went into the cold violent water after slipping down the mossy smooth rock as she was searching for a great picture

Day 6

Thursday - June 16

We awoke and took advantage of the showers a second time before exploring the beautiful towns of Biarritz and Bayonne. We tried our first France galettes and crepes and were very impressed. Courtnee also bought some chocolate from a famous chocolate maker in Bayonne and her life was forever changed. We drove through miles of beautiful green fields. We ate dinner and watch the sunset at a very windy beach overlook, where someone tried to break into the van and broke the two locks on the passenger side doors. Frustrated we found a dark street to park the van and we went to bed.

Day 7

Friday - June 17

The day began with a quick rainy visit to Bordeaux. We walked around town and enjoyed the beautiful architecture and parks. is when we started seeing the famous singing Irish fans everywhere for the Euros (think world cup of Europe).