We took a hiking tour – in Spanish – of the Laguna de Cacique Guatavita, which roughly translates to Guatavita Indian Chief Lake.
Located about 40 miles north of Bogotá, Lake Guatavita is a spectacular lake in the heart of the Colombian mountains. It’s also the birthplace of a legend of El Dorado, the mythical city of gold.
The hike was challenging, taking you over 10,000 feet, and the reward was a breathtaking vista. Es vale la pena!
Bring good hiking shoes and lots of water. You’ll need to get an official tour, which includes the bus from Bogota and a tour in Spanish, and often is paired with a tour of the Salt Cathedral. If you’re over 60, the senior discount is significant.
We spent a day with a private guide exploring some of
Bogota's most iconic destinations, including Monserrate, the Gold Museum, and
the Botero Museum.
First, we rode a funicular to the stunning mountain peak of
Monserrate, which overlooks the sprawling city of Bogota at more than
9,000 feet.
A major pilgrimage site, Monserrate features an outdoor walk
along the Stations of the Cross (Jesus’ journey to his crucifixion) to a
neo-Gothic church called the Sanctuary of the Fallen Lord.
We enjoyed the panoramic views of the city, stopped at the
tourist kiosks to shop, and tried some coca tea before heading back down the
mountain to Bogota and the Gold Museum, which contains the largest collection
of pre-Hispanic goldwork in the world.
We then strolled through the Candelaria neighborhood of
Bogota, including Simon Bolivar Square, and the Botero Museum, a free museum
that features works of art by Fernando Botero, Picasso, Dali, Monet, Renoir, and
others.
We took a tour through GetYourGuide to see all these places,
and the cost was very reasonable, especially for seniors.
We were fortunate to experience sea turtles, on land
and under the sea, in both Kauai and Maui. What a magical experience!
On Kauai, we discovered that green sea turtles, called “honu,”
nap on the sand on Poipu Beach on the south coast every afternoon. At sunset,
scores of them haul themselves up onto the beach to spend the night. We saw at
least 40 there, though darkness obscured our view. The area is cordoned off to prevent humans from getting too close, and a couple of naturalists informed us about the turtles, which were once endangered and have been upgraded to “threatened” status.
On Maui, there’s a similar beach on the Road to Hana that
also attracts sea turtles napping.
And in West Maui, at Black Rock at the north end of
Ka’anapali Beach, you can walk into the water in your snorkel gear and spend an
afternoon floating while watching sea turtles eat. We also say spotted rays and
a huge variety of other fish.
This video is long. The first five minutes are enough to
give you an idea of the experience. But if you really want to immerse yourself
in the sea with the turtles, watch the whole thing!
Messy Suitcase heads to Bogota, Colombia, for a
pre-Christmas interlude. We stayed at the edge of the charming old Candelaria
neighborhood, in an AirBnb with a panoramic view of the city. Because of the
timing of our visit, in December, we were lucky to witness firsthand Colombia’s
Christmas traditions, which transformed Candelaria into a giant street party
complete with candles, music, Christmas lights, vendors, street chalk drawings,
performances, crowds and fireworks.
The Christmas season officially launches for Colombians on
Dec. 7 with the Dia de las Velitas, or Day of the Little Candles.
On this day Colombian families, mostly Catholic, light hundreds of little candles and place
them in the streets in front of their homes, to light the way for the Virgin
Mary to bless them. Then Christmas is celebrated gaily along Carrera Séptima
Septima (Seventh Avenue) for the next two weeks with as Bogotá is transformed
into a festive haven where locals and visitors alike are experience multimedia,
theatrics, shows, music and more.
We visit the main square, bop around town, and then take a
tour of the stunning Chase Sapphire lounge at the airport!
If you’re planning to travel from San Juan International
Airport and need long-term parking for your vehicle, you’ll discover that the lot is incredibly hard to find. Follow
Messy Suitcase as we find the entrance and demonstrate how to get to the
terminal.
Long Term Parking is located adjacent to Terminal E, and has
a capacity for 249 cars. The minimum
stay is 5 days and the minimum cost is $60. There’s also no shuttle to the main
terminal, so be prepared to walk!
We ventured 2 ½ hours south of Bogota to the Salt Cathedral,
the “First Wonder of Colombia.” The Catedral
de Sal de Zipaquirá is an underground Roman Catholic Church built within
the tunnels of a salt mine 660 feet underground inside
a mountain near the city of Zipaquirá,
Colombia.
It’s a huge tourist destination and a popular pilgrimage spot.
This massive subterranean cathedral is truly spectacular,
with dramatic lighting, sculptures, light shows, Gregorian Chants and choir
music, a mining tour, an underground mall, and even a train. Following the
Stations of the Cross is a fascinating experience. The eerie combination of
otherworldly and touristy is not to be missed!
We paid about $40 for the entry fee, plus the cost for the
tour guide who drove us through the mountains.
“Every direction in
Madrid, there’s something interesting!” – Bob Greenawalt
Madrid is shockingly delightful. We walked all over the city
in what will surely be the first of many visits back to this wonderful Spanish
city. Bob’s f Every direction in Madrid, there’s something interesting!
Bob's favorite
place in Madrid was the Plaza Mayor, a classic European central square with
scores of charming outdoor restaurants and local entertainment. Lisa’s was
gelato scooped to resemble flowers the size of her head!
While strolling around the fascinating streets, shopping,
people-watching, and trying the excellent food, we encountered an unexpected
air parade over our heads. We also visited the Museo de Jamon (Ham Museum), and
Bob ordered up a classic ham sandwich.
We walked through lush, wondrously landscaped Retiro Park,
Madrid’s Central Park, and discovered the Crystal Palace (which is an art
center, and while it was closed for renovation, the views inside were awesome),
enjoyed street music, walked the paths and crossed creeks, and saw a lovely
lake where you can go canoeing.
We also placed a love lock in Plaza Mayor and visited the
Palacio de Vasquez (part of the Reina Sofia ticket, but pretty uninspiring),
Museum of Anthropology (pleasant, even though Bob thought it was the Museum of
Archeology until he noticed the dearth of dinosaurs). We averaged about 7 miles
a day walking around Madrid, and finally tried the clean, modern Metro when our
feet got sore.
Our last breakfast, featuring tortillas Española and churros
with chocolate sauce in an outdoor restaurant near the train station, was a
mouthwatering invitation to return.
P.S. Plaza de la Villa is
just a very old plaza. Learn more.
We took a double decker train from Madrid to Barcelona. What
a fun way to travel! Next time we’ll spring for the upper deck.
Once we got to glorious Barcelona, we walked around las
Ramblas, visited the Mercat (market), and pretty much covered at least 7 miles
of Barcelona on foot, trying to see every tourist site (with help from our
former exchange student, Laia, and her family as our tour guides).
The Museo Reina Sofía is a must-see during any visit to Madrid.
This sprawling museum is Spain’s national museum of 20th-century art collection
features works by Gris, Dali, and Miro. The most famous masterpiece in the museum is
Picasso's 1937 painting Guernica, a
stunning depiction of the ravages of war that dominates an entire room.
TIP: There are a number of times during the week when admission
is free. You’ll find those hours in the Museum Guide (English-language link
below)
The Basilica Sagrada Familia (Holy Family Basilica) in
Barcelona is the most over-the-top cathedral in the world. And it’s still under
construction!
Designed mostly by the inimitable Antonin Gaudi, it is
Seussian on the exterior and equally fascinating inside. The way Gaudi plays
with light with the stained-glass windows boggles the senses with its natural
exuberance. Don’t miss it if you travel to Barcelona! And make sure you go to
the Passion Tower. (Stay through the video to the end and you'll enjoy a
concert in the bell tower.)
We also discovered a couple of hidden museums in the bowels
of the basilica, and even a bust of the architect, Gaudi.
The guided tour with the tower included cost about 40 euros
each, which included an English-language audio tour and a trip up one of the
towers. There are cheaper options available, and we did leave the tour and just
use the audio guide, which was more our style. We spent at least three hours
there.
TIP: Reserve your tickets well in advance of your trip,
because the Basilica is very popular and sells out. And buy them directly from
the cathedral’s website, because other distributors jack up the prices.
No trip to Madrid is complete without a visit to the Palacio
Real, or Royal Palace, a stunning structure that has more than 3,000 rooms,
most of them embellished with gold. Bob’s camera is unusually tilted during
this video, so try not to get dizzy!
Entrance tickets cost 12 euros for Lisa, half price for Bob as
a senior. (There are some advantages!)
It’s hard to describe the beauty. You’ll have to watch to
see!
Everywhere you go in Madrid, you are inundated with
opportunities to see a flamenco show. Various fliers, posters, and websites
describe it as “a world-famous Spanish tradition,” “upbeat,” and “iconic.”
Bob would describe flamenco as “scary as f**king sh*t.”
Maybe it’s because we saw it in a cave. Come watch the show
with us and tell us what you think of flamenco!
No trip to Lisbon is complete without a ride on iconic Tram
28, an old-fashioned tram that takes you through the city’s most famous
neighborhoods in a vehicle so narrow it almost brushes the historic buildings.
The classic yellow trams retain original 1930s features like
brass dials and polished wood interiors. It squeezes in and out of unimaginably
narrow alleys.
It’s a great introduction to the city, and a unique
experience no one should miss!
Bob bops around Lisbon, noticing lots of tiled architecture,
inviting plazas, historic statues, interesting shops (including sardines, an
apparent Lisbon delicacy!), colorful pottery, the obligatory cathedral or two, hilltop
vistas with strolling musicians, an art museum, and more.
Bob took a bus tour to Sintra, a UNESCO World Heritage site north
of Lisbon, Portugal, that hosts the National Palace and many other magnificent 19th
and 20th century royal residences in the Romantic style. Come along and find
out what is special about this charming coastal town.
Sintra is a pioneer work of European romanticism, bringing
together incredible botanical richness and a diversity of monuments and
buildings from a long period of history. Bob’s favorite was a deep, winding stone
well called the Quinta de Regaleira.
Lisbon’s lovely Tagus River beckoned, so of course Bob hopped
on a boat! He was a little underwhelmed.
It was a fine tour, nothing spectacular. Bob enjoyed a relaxing
couple of hours seeing Lisbon's main monuments, such as the 25th of April
Bridge, Praça do Comércio, and the Tower of Belém, among many others. The one-and-a-half-hour
round-trip tour cost 26 euros, or about $28 US. You can also choose to go just
one way for less.
We don’t recommend it if your time in Lisbon is short.
Want to feel like you’re rich and famous? Come with us on
Part 3 of our tour of a Mexican mega-resort, the luxurious Vidanta Nayarit on
the west coast of Mexico.
We’ll tour more of enormous Vidanta, including La Cantina, Gong, and
other restaurants; the Grand Bliss; the Mayan Palace; walking on the boardwalk pathways
that connect the resort; the Plaza marketplace that carries everything you need
(groceries, bakery, froyo, flip flops, sunglasses), and everything you don't (
gourmet chocolate, jewelry); the Sanctuario entertainment hub; and many other
parts of this breathtaking resort.
Want to see what you missed? Part 1 took
us from arrival at Puerto Vallarta Airport, through transit to the resort, and
the check-in experience.
In Part 2, we took an early morning tour of Vidanta’s Grand
Mayan Hotel and beyond, including breakfast, restaurants, beach, pools, fitness
center, a lazy river, and the sky dream gondola. Soak up the lifestyle of the
rich and famous!
Thanks for joining us on this three-part
tour of this Mexican mega-resort!
When we bought a fractional ownership at Vidanta Resort in
Mexico, we had no idea the world of luxury we would soon encounter. We’re a middle-class family, not accustomed to the perks of the super-rich that we find at Vidanta. If you’re like
us, you’ll enjoy taking me take a three-part tour of this Mexican
mega-resort, and spend a few minutes feeling like one of the rich and famous.
In this Part 2 of our Mexican
Mega-Resort Experience series on the Messy Suitcase travel channel, we’ll take an early
morning tour of Vidanta’s Grand Mayan Hotel and beyond, including breakfast,
restaurants, beach, pools, fitness center, a lazy river, and the sky dream
gondola. Soak up the lifestyle of the rich and famous!
Part 1 took us from arrival at Puerto
Vallarta Airport, through transit to the resort, and the check-in experience.
Part 3 – coming soon! – will feature a tour of more of the enormous Vidanta,
including La Cantina, Gong, and other restaurants; the Grand Bliss; the Mayan
Palace; walking on the boardwalk pathways that connect the resort; the Plaza
marketplace that carries everything you need (groceries, bakery, froyo, flip
flops, sunglasses), and everything you don't ( gourmet chocolate, jewelry); the
Sanctuario entertainment hub; and many other parts of this breathtaking resort.
It’s Messy Suitcase’s first visit to Portugal, and Bob is
traveling alone! He plans to spend a few days in Lisbon courtesy of a layover
opportunity through TAP Air Portugal.
Because his flight landed at 530 AM, Bob stowed his luggage
in Lisbon through an app called Bounce so he could explore the city before he
checked into his Airbnb. He discovered amazing tilework in the cobblestones, plazas,
parks, the Marques de Pombal statue, Avenida Libertad, and a lot of truly
brilliant architecture.
Of course, he hopped onto the Hop On Hop Off Bus and gave us
his impressions from the top of the HOHO. He got on the first one of the day,
and found it to be a great way to get oriented to the city despite jetlag.
