I wake up to a room that looks completely foreign, save for the familiar suitcase standing against the wall. The ceiling is low, and the walls are covered in glossy wood. Everything around me looks plush. I am suddenly filled with dread, as if the walls are closing in on me and that at any moment, someone will force his way into the room, drag me out and tell me I don’t belong here. I am Tom Ripley in that Matt Damon film, pretending to be someone I’m not. It takes me a while to shake the feeling off. Then I remember. No, I am not Tom. I…
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Free Screening of Walking the Camino: 6 Ways to Santiago
The past few years have been very kind to me. I’ve set some personal and professional goals which I have somehow accomplished (with a lot of help from family, friends and collaborators, of course). But there’s one dream that remains elusive to me. If you’ve been following this blog, you’d know that I’m talking about the Camino de Santiago. Two years ago, I was very lucky to have navigated the St. James Route aboard the Tren Al Andalus and for this very reason, that journey doesn’t count. I need to do it right. I need to WALK the Camino the way it has been done by pilgrims for more than 1,200…
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PinayTraveller Films: Ria de Arousa, Galicia
My second film! Yay! But a confession. I tried editing this down to 45 seconds BUT I had a hard time choosing which video to edit out and which to keep. So as a compromise, here’s my (less than) two-minute edit. This short travel film features my boat ride along the Ria de Arousa one sunny morning in Galicia, Spain. The ride was part of the Tren Al Andalus itinerary last year. This was shortly before our trip to Cambados so it was such a lovely way to start a wonderful day! And the mussels… they were so fresh and delicious! Enjoy! For more travel shorts, subscribe to my…
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Cambados, Spain: Home of the Albariño
Everything about that day was perfect. Despite being gloomy before breakfast, the sun came out by mid-morning, setting the mood for the day ahead. I was in the company of people whom I was slowly getting to know and appreciate. And we were somewhere in Galicia in Northwest Spain, in a historical district declared a “Cultural Interest Asset” in 2012. A sign board just outside the main shopping street cheerfully greeted us: “La Bienvenida a Cambados, la Capital del Albariño!” Welcome to Cambados, the Capital of Albariño! Cambados is a municipality in Galicia in the province of Pontevedra. It is famous for its Albariño white wine which is a variety of white…
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Marques de Riscal: Where Tradition and Innovation Coexist
I cannot claim to be an expert in architecture. What I am is an enthusiast at best. So I can only describe Frank O. Gehry’s work in these terms: it is simply… mind-blowing. I mean, have you seen the EMP Museum in Seattle? Or the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao? How about the Dancing House in Prague? Needless to say, I am a big fan of his Deconstructive style. And to see a Frank O. Gehry building has always been a dream of mine. So you can just imagine the excitement I felt the morning we drove up to the medieval village of Elciego to see one of Gehry’s titanium masterpieces…
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Camino de Santiago: the Casa Brandariz
Last year, I had the good fortune of exploring Northern Spain, including the beautiful territory of Galicia. I was onboard the luxury train Tren Al Andalus and the journey took me from Zaragoza to A Coruña, right along the St. James or Santiago de Compostela Route. After that wonderful luxury trip, our Galician guide, Manuel, took my travel buddy and I around the Santiago countryside. As you probably know, my lifelong dream is to walk the Camino de Santiago and so, I asked Manuel to show us a couple of hotels that I could possibly stay in should the time come. He said he had one hotel in mind: the Casa Brandariz.…
