Holidays at Home

Christmas is something we look forward to all year. Every year, we begin referencing Christmas traditions in January, already looking forward to the next December! Our Spotify Christmas playlists are on nonstop beginning the day after Thanksgiving, and we watch a steady stream of Hallmark movies, complete with their sappy storylines and cheesy music. We love everything about Christmas!

For our first married Christmas, we were not able to go back to the States, as we had just been back for the wedding. Instead, we spent our Christmas break in Germany, where we spent half of our time with our good German friends, and the other half traveling around the other side of the country. ( You can read about that here and here.) This time was really special, and we loved everything about our time in Germany, the land of Christmas markets and holiday spirit. However, we knew that this year we were desperate to be home for Christmas! So thanks to Turkish Air's inexpensive flights, we were booked on the first available flight out of Barcelona as soon as Rachel finished teaching.

Our time in Iowa was full. But we would have it no other way! When our time there is short (which is always), we try to pack in as many people and experiences as possible. Devin's wonderful parents were in Iowa to greet us when we arrived, and we loved spending a few days with them, taking in a showing of The Nutcracker in Dubuque, an ISU basketball game in Des Moines, and taking them to a Grove family favorite - Hickory Park in Ames.

Christmas, although disappointedly not white, was everything we dreamed of it being from afar. Our house was full of bodies and love, the table held a steady flow of delicious food, The Carpenters CD could always be heard, and pajamas were worn all day. Our family tradition is normally to go sledding on Christmas afternoon, but since we could not do that this year, we went caroling at a nearby rehabilitation center. It was another memorable way to spend the afternoon!

The rest of break was a blur, as we hopped from coffee date to dinner date, played many rounds of board games, watched the Bowl games, spent a lot of time at Core Fitness, hit up Iowa City's finest thrift shops, and got our fair share of beverages at the Java House.

We loved every moment of being there, and are so thankful we were able to see both of our families, and many of our closest friends!

Intimided?

Since we couldn't sled, we took a walk instead!

At the Nutcracker.

Christmas time in Provence

The last month has been a whirlwind! Devin returned from a trip to the US, and the next day we left for a long weekend away with friends. Upon returning, we had Rachel's big winter concert at school, holiday parties and events, and before we knew it, we were on a plane to see our families for Christmas! We are now back in our apartment in Barcelona and attempting to catch up and settle in. We have seen some beautiful places and people, so will start by sharing about our time in Provence with you.

The first weekend of December, we rented a car with our good friends and set off for the countryside of Southern France. We had no real agenda for the weekend other than to experience the slow pace of  this dreamy region. After about 4.5 hours of driving, we arrived at our house for the weekend, surrounded by orchards and vineyards, and complete with a fireplace. We knew that if we did nothing but sit by the fireplace for the next three days, we would still be happy.

As we explored the region, we found a lot of small villages, vineyards in their off season, mountains in the distance, and empty fields normally occupied with endless Lavender. We loved the slow pace, the sweet people, and the variety of landscape. We approached each village with no expectations, but simply glimpsed at what they had to offer, and then we were on to the next stop!

We found a wine and cheese tasting at a winery we passed, so we pulled over and sampled a few!

The beautiful village of Gordes, France.

More Christmas market goodies 

The seaside village of Cassis offered breathtaking scenery as we hiked around the Calanques.

Christmas market in Avignon 

After an afternoon in Avignon, we hit the road back to Barcelona, full of Christmas market cheer and a new fondness for Provence.

Nearby Hiking

In early November, we had a hankering for hiking. Our goal this year has been to explore the mountains near us more. We aren't ever sure quite how to get there or where to go, so we tried a couple of group hikes this November. We went on one hike arranged by Meet-up and another one organized by the American Society of Barcelona. We really enjoyed the scenery, as well as meeting people from all over the world (New Zealand, Estonia, Germany, England, the US, etc.), each with a unique story of why and how they are in Barcelona. We are enjoying experiencing more of our own region and spending more of our weekends doing local day trips rather than always leaving the country!

Sibling Weekend

Things have been extremely busy around here, hence the lack of updating. Devin has been gone from Barcelona for about five weeks, and Rachel spent 1 1/2 weeks in the US doing professional development. We have been apart for a long time, but Devin soon returns to Barcelona, and we plan to not do this distance again anytime soon!

Just before we set off for separate work, we had a weekend visit from Sarah and Peter. As we mentioned in a previous post, we love having visitors, because they help us to get out and explore our own city! We have been out of town so many weekends this Fall that we have not spent much time in the city. Sarah and Peter arrived late Friday night, and we spent the next few hours eating pizza on the roof and laughing until our bellies ached.

We had a blast with them - ate amazing food, drank delicious coffee and wine, rode bikes on the beach and ventured into the hidden corners of the city. Here are some pictures of the way we spent our time together!

We had to start the day at the famous Boqueria to get some fresh fruit juices

First Coffee Stop in Placa Real

Love this sunny placa full of palm trees.

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We went to the museum of the original city of Barcelona, which is underneath the current city! Very cool.

Another favorite cafe, this one underground. 

Strolled through an antique market

Catalonians gathering to do a casual traditional dance on Saturday afternoon.

Les Mills was hosting their traveling "Immersive Fitness" on the beach in Barcelona this weekend. Extremely cool!

We Love Les Mills!

Pyrenees

One of the best things about Barcelona is that while it has everything a city offers with amazing architecture, delicious food, and the buzz of culture, it is also easy to escape when you need a break from city life. It is on the water, so that is easy to reach, but it’s also just an arm’s reach away from the mountains. It is at the foot of the Pyrenees range, which is known for it’s hiking, skiing, and beautiful landscape.

We have been wanting to visit the Pyrenees for years, but have always been intimidated by the idea of renting a car and trying to navigate the mountains. Thankfully, our Catalan friends finally said they would show us the ropes, and spend a weekend with us in the mountains!

We left on a Friday evening and drove only two hours. Because it got dark as we were driving, we couldn’t really see where we were driving, but we knew as soon as we got out of the car and felt the crisp air and looked up and saw a clear sky full of stars…we were not in Barcelona anymore!

We stayed at another “casa rural”, in which we got a two bedroom apartment, and a fireplace! We immediately opened the windows to let the cool air in, threw on our sweatshirts, and utilized the fireplace! Although it was mid-October, it was still in the high 70s or low 80s in Barcelona, so we were feeling desperate for some Fall!

Saturday we left for our hike, which was to a peak called Puigmal. Puigmal is among the highest peaks in Catalunya and lies on the border between Spain and France. The hike could be divided into three parts - up, down, and flat. It began with a very steep ascent to the top, which was difficult do to it being very windy and rocky. But we pushed ourselves to get to the summit, where we had our picnic lunch,  peered over into France, and then began the descent. After our knees had had enough decline, we reached the Vall de Nuria. This famous valley was full of families, and busy with activities for children including horse rides, farm animals, a lake, etc. We passed through it to head onto part three of our hike, which wrapped around the mountain, past grazing horses, and back to where we began. 

On Sunday, as we drove back to Barcelona, we stopped by 4 small villages between the Pyrenees and Barcelona. We loved seeing authentic Catalan life and stumbling upon a pumpkin festival and market.

We hope to return to the Pyrenees very soon, as there is much more to explore!