Paris on the Outside

We're back in Austin, but we still have adventures to share. Paris is a city filled with an extensive history and incredible sights. These are a few of them.



This is the Panthéon. Originally it was a church, but now it is also a tomb for famous people. Like who, you ask? Like Voltaire. And yes, that is a very candid answer.



Cathedral Notre Dame - made famous by the story of a person who wasn't pleasing to the eye but inside was something special. Think Susan Boyle (at least according to the American press).



The Basilique du Sacre-Coeur provides an incredible view of Paris from the hills of Montmartre.



It seems the Parisians like their fires, or at the very least, their chimneys.



Apparently the Panthéon wasn't enough for Napoleon, so he was buried under this gold dome. I guess someone has his own complex.



The less photographed yet still interesting underside of the Eiffel Tower.



The Eiffel Tower has sparkling lights on it. It's a giant Christmas tree. But they only sparkle for five minutes on the hour. So you have to open your presents up really fast.



The Eiffel Tower is often noted as being one of the shorter modern marvels of the world. But when you see it up close, it is actually much larger then one might expect. This might be because there are no other large buildings near by, but nonetheless it is an impressive structure.



The Louvre is one of the premiere museums in the world, holding a variety of masterpieces in its collections. Formerly a royal palace, someone had the bright idea to put a big glass pyramid in the middle of the courtyard as the main entrance. Fits in like a porcupine at a balloon party.



The Arc de Triomphe is surrounded by a huge roundabout, and has twelve, count them, twelve roads leading into it. Also of note, the roundabout goes counter-clockwise.



Well, that's all for the outdoors. Next time we'll show off some of those masterpieces we saw indoors while in Paris.

The Burniskes Have Landed!

The Rain in Spain

We have arrived safely in Paris, but Spain deserves one more post. And here it is.



We were served these two coffees in Madrid. And we didn't even tell the waiter it was our honeymoon. We're saving that line for the person at check-in when we fly back to Austin. Justin's hoping it will get us an upgrade to first class.



Back in Granada, here is El Alhambra with the original Sierra Nevadas in the background (rather than the ones in California).



Again, El Alhambra. Those of you following along will remember that El Alhambra was originally built by Muslims who ruled over this region during the 1200-1400s, but this photo shows a church in the middle of the structure. The church was added later when Christians regained control of Spain.



Madrid is a beautiful city, but unlike some of the other places we visited, there were relatively few sights to see. It does, however, have several incredible museums, like this one pictured above, which includes many amazing pieces of art. A few of our favorites included pieces by Goya and Raphael. Here, in front of the museum, is a statue of Diego Velazquez, a well-known Spanish painter whose most famous works are displayed inside.



We also visited Madrid's museum of modern art, which houses Picasso's Guernica along with many other works by Spanish artists such as Joan Miro.



And so, with the sun setting on our time in Spain, we head to Paris for the last part of our journey. We look forward to sharing more of our adventures with you!

Off to the City of Lights!

Jessica was extremely disappointed, upon consulting Wikipedia, to discover that Paris is NOT the City of Love, as she has been calling it the entire trip, but rather is the City of Lights. Why, you ask? Well, it's not nearly as romantic as she was hoping. In fact, Paris is known as the City of Lights because of its early adoption of street lighting. How unromantic is that?! Oh, and it's known for being a center of education and ideas.

Well, we're off to provide some much-needed romance to the City of Lights. It's the final stop on our long journey, and we're hoping to make the most of it. We'll share pictures from Paris, as well as our time in Madrid, soon!

Granada and El Alhambra

We've spent the past week in Spain outside of Granada, a city near the southern coast of Spain.



Locals call this rock formation the Friar, our host called it the Monk. What do you see?



The Sierra Nevadas. Or at least part of them. Apparently the mountains provide some rather exhilirating hikes. We chose to enjoy them from a distance.



This is Chomsky. He was our trusty guide on our hike, until we came across anything larger than a moving leaf. At which point he retreated back to the house.



The view from the house, which is why we didn't leave for a week.



Just some of the fountains and gardens at El Alhambra, a fortress and palace for the region's Muslim leaders from the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries.



The palace was filled with intricate carvings and mosaics. The building itself is considered to be one of the most romantic in all of Europe.



Here, the light is filtered through beautifully carved windows overlooking the palace gardens. Looks kind of like a face, doesn't it?



Every room was covered with carvings like these.



Here you can also see an example of the incredible mosaics made out of tile that covered many of the palace walls in intricate geometric patterns.



These flags were flown over the fortress. Look closely and you can see the sun!

So many colors in a flower and I see every one!

Here in Granada, a small town in southern Spain where we've been spending the past few days, the flowers, especially roses, are in full bloom. Here are some photos for your enjoyment! Many of these flowers are in the gardens of the El Alhambra, which we'll include a post about a little bit later.

Finding the Holy Grail

Valencia is the third largest city in Spain, yet it doesn't feel like it. Walking through its streets, Valencia has neither the massive expanse or looming buildings that often characterize a large city. Instead it feels more like a town with few crowds, friendly buildings, and a pace of life that won't stress you out.



For many travelers, a visit to Valencia might be a bit more off the beaten path. Our reasons for coming to Valencia? Well, it is the birthplace of paella and its cathedral contains the Holy Grail. We were pleasantly surprised to discover such a beautiful city, including expansive squares with beautiful fountains.



Paella is a traditional Spanish dish that combines rice with local seafood or meat and vegetables. It is a tasty treat worth sampling. Plus, for those grandparents worried that we aren't eating, we thought this picture might help calm your fears.



Valencia's cathedral was built over a mosque in the thirteenth century, and it contains numerous examples of Gothic art and architecture.



This bizarre find is actually the withered arm of St. Vincent, a Dominican missionary who was born in Valencia in the mid-1300s. We're not sure exactly how he died, or how Valencia's cathedral came to acquire his arm, but nonetheless it is certainly displayed proudly.



Portions of the cathedral have been built and rebuilt at different times over the past several hundred years, and in this picture, you can see two different styles still present today. In addition to the Gothic style, there are also examples of Renaissance, Baroque, and Romanesque influences, indicative of the many different influences throughout history on the region.



Ceilings are often under-appreciated in both beauty and ability as teaching tools. For example, how many lines of reflective symmetry are there? What is the rotational symmetry order of the ceiling? How many ways can you curse Justin's name?



The big attraction of the chapel is the Holy Grail. Indiana Jones was chased by Nazis all over the place looking for this thing and it was here, in a big case with its own room all along.



No, it's not a still shot from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. It's the stained glass located right above the Holy Grail.



And there it is, the chalice believed to be used by Jesus at the Last Supper and the only one recognized by the Vatican (there are two additional chalices believed to be contenders for the title: one in Jerusalem and another in Genoa, Italy). The cup is made of red agate and according to scientists, dates back to the 1st century AD. It is believed that this particular chalice was carried by St. Peter to Rome, where it was then entrusted to the care of popes until it was sent to Spain for safekeeping. Wonder if we scrap the edge a little, we could find some old Jesus skin cells we could use to clone Jesus. Probably not the second coming Christ had in mind...



You go and build a nice little castle wall, and then someone has to come along with their cannons and put a bunch of holes in it. Now ain't that a pain?



Churros are another traditional Spanish food, and a delicious one at that. Churros are a kind of fried dough, like a doughnut, sometimes covered in cinnamon and sugar, although we ate ours with a wonderfully rich, thick chocolate.



Careful, don't look directly into this photo. It might burn your retinas!



In Spain this time of year, the sun doesn't set until 9 pm, and there's still more than a month until the summer solstice. Apparently not even the moon can wait for the sun to set...

More to come on our travels in Spain!