Flights to Europe from San Diego are pretty limited, but there are a few options to London, Munich, and another new one to Amsterdam a few days a week. We were pretty excited because this was our first time that we had converted our AMEX points into AVIOS with British Airways and got Business Class aka… lie flat seats. Yippee!
One of Andy’s coworkers (shout out to Courtney!) had taught me the secret last year – and I’m forever in her debt. Let me know if you want to learn more and I can write more about it!
We are pretty excited for this trip because we are visiting a handful of new countries, but most excited because we are finally getting to Greece. I’ve dreamed of visiting Greece since I was young – I guess probably right after I learned about Greek mythology about Mount Olympus and Zeus. (Not to mention I’ve loved tzatziki as long as I’ve known about it).
We finished out the work day at the airport and then hopped on the plane. I’m not going to get used to flying this way… because on the second leg of the trip we were already back in economy, but it was pretty comfortable when we were able to lay flat!
We didn’t end up landing in Barcelona until around 8ish on Thursday evening – we were so excited that once we got to the hotel that they had upgraded our terrace room that was two chairs to a full terrace with like, six chairs and a full patio! It was stunning!
Can you believe the size of this thing?
Andy had to work that evening (Thursday back in California) so we ordered room service. I was dead on my feet – and slipped on my eye mask and was asleep before he even wrapped up his calls.
Accommodation: NH Collection Barcelona Gran Hotel Calderon
Our final full day in Spain began in Montserrat, which was only about an hour drive from our hotel. We had another beautiful sunrise from Sitges, as we started to climb the mountain – we realized rather quickly we were really socked in with the cloud cover.
Montserrat Monastery is located in the Montserrat mountain range near Barcelona, Spain. It is a significant pilgrimage site with a rich history dating back to the 10th century. Originally established as a small chapel, it evolved into a Benedictine monastery and became renowned for housing the Black Madonna, or La Moreneta, a statue believed to date from the 12th century.
The monastery’s construction features Romanesque and Gothic architectural styles. They used local limestone that blends beautifully with the dramatic mountain landscape. Over the centuries, it has undergone several renovations and expansions, which has only made it that much more impressive.
I had received an email a day or two before from Montserrat explaining that there was a special church service that day. Candidly, it wasn’t really clear (likely lost in translation!) what we were supposed to do instead. Andy and Yvonne dropped myself and Jon off while they went to find parking – and I went to ask what the email meant.
Unfortunately, we either had to get in and view the basilica before 9:30 AM or wait until after 12 PM when it reopened. We decided it would be better to try to see as much as possible inside so we didn’t delay our other plans that day.
Once inside the basilica, it was incredible to see how ornate everything was. When I had booked the tickets, we weren’t able to secure a time for the Black Madonna, which is why a lot of people make their way to Montserrat. It was fun to pop around into the different chapels and other areas outside of the basilica.
The cloud cover really made the whole place feel really moody – and I wish we could have seen it with clear skies. However, it was a really cool view with the clouds. Sort of spooky!
We were deciding if we wanted to go into the museum that opened at 10, or if we wanted to do the aerial tram or funicular to explore further. We ran into some accessibility issues, and I was also concerned how much more we could see because of the cloud cover. We ended up making our way down the mountain to begin our wine tasting.
One of the other wineries had recommended a winery to Jon, but unfortunately, Google maps took us to a more residential looking place. A bit disappointed, we made our way over to a winery that Jon and Yvonne had visited on their last trip to Spain, Frexienet.
The visit started with a short video on the history, and then we were able to dive into the tasting. The tasting came with four different cavas, and they were each paired with a different food. Our server was pretty young, and he was going to be heading to Washington soon for school. He was super knowledgable and really gave us a great experience.
The bottle shaped car!
From there, we made our way to Codorníu, another cava house. We had a tour booked at this one – which we were pretty excited about.
Codorníu is one of Spain’s oldest and most prestigious wineries, it was founded in 1551 by the Codorníu family. In the late 19th century, Joseph Codorníu recognized the potential for sparkling wine and adopted the traditional méthode champenoise, establishing Codorníu as a leader in this genre.
The winery is renowned for its stunning modernist building, designed by architect Puig i Cadafalch in 1895, which showcases Catalan modernist architecture. This historical site features beautiful arches and an impressive setting, reflecting the winery’s rich heritage. Over the centuries, Codorníu has continued to stay relevant, which means it is still competitive in the market today!
Codorníu primarily utilizes indigenous grape varieties like Macabeo, Xarel·lo, and Parellada, alongside varieties you might recognize, such as Chardonnay.
No surprises here, we ended up shipping a case home from our Cava tours to enjoy in the future!
After our last tasting, we ended up eating something light at the hotel since we had an early morning flight back home!
Up Next: – Highlights of Spain/Portugal – Closing thoughts and next adventures
The next morning we had an early start and we woke up to a beautiful sunrise. We were on our way to Andorra! If you aren’t familiar with Andorra, it is a micro country in Europe. It is nestled in the Pyrenees between France and Spain. It has beautiful stunning mountain landscapes and during the winter is known for skiing. Tourists flock here for outdoor adventures (both summer and winter!), but also for its duty-free shopping.
We drove about 2.5 hours one-way, through a lot of fog and then it started to rain. We hadn’t planned on spending too much time in Andorra, but the weather didn’t make our trip any easier. (Not to mention, I don’t think any of us even thought about packing an umbrella!)
We decided it was time to stop for an early lunch, but unfortunately for us – the restaurants were either still closed or serving breakfast. The rain made it more difficult to find something that would nourish us. We loaded back up in the car and made our way back to a mall that we saw on our way in.
We aren’t big skiers – and this was definitely the off-season. So we had no choice but to spend our time shopping! I love a good deal – so the fact that Europe generally speaking has cheaper prices on some of the same skincare I buy at home – AND it was duty-free. I ended up walking out with two bags full of skincare for a fraction of the price!
We were all feeling a bit peckish – and we knew we had another 2+ hour drive before getting to the first winery. We were all craving a warm meal that was more filling than breakfast foods. This particular mall, really only had a McDonald’s. So we decided to try it!
I opted to try their crispy chicken sandwich – it was pretty similar to the one in the United States. However, you got two sides. So I went with the tried and true French fries, but also opted in for potato wedges. Andy ordered the sour cream and onion flavored French fries to try something new.
We also decided to do an impulse McFlurry – which was fun. They don’t mix in the toppings the same way they do in the USA – we got the Biscoff cookie flavored one. Yum!
Look at how cute the container is!
As we drove back towards Spain, the rain subsided. We got to see some beautiful blue sky, fluffy clouds, and lots of green grass. Reminded me a bit of Minnesota!
Our next stop was Llopart – another sparkling wine house. Llopart was established in 1887, however, they are able to trace back through their history that they began making wine in the late 1300s!
Jon had scheduled us for a tour, which we were excited for, but we quickly realized it wasn’t accessible for Jon. Roger assured us we would only be gone for 10 minutes, but the second this man opened his mouth I quickly realized that he was a talker. I think we were gone for over 30 minutes, which was a bummer that it wasn’t more inclusive.
Super cool staircase taking us out to the vineyard
It was a pretty cool tour, we briefly got to go out to the vineyard and he was able to point out different ways the vines can grow and be maintained. Once we went back inside, they showed a brief video before the tasting began.
Waiting for the video to begin
From there, we made our way back to our hotel. We briefly had a dip at the beach, before getting cleaned up for dinner. We had reservations at Villa Marina Sitges, which was right on the water.
The beach by our hotel
I might just be one of the pickiest eaters you’ll ever meet, but I was feeling optimistic about this place – after all – they had a rooster as their logo. Unfortunately for me, there was no chicken on the menu. We triple checked that the shrimp didn’t have legs (or eyes) before ordering the shrimp pasta.
The other three all ordered steaks – and these were some of the biggest steaks I’ve ever seen. I watched the women at the table next to us widen their eyes as they saw the influx of meat. 🥩 It was a great dinner and an even better view!
Our hotel had a rooftop, and the night before we had tried to pop up there for a quick photo, but you needed a reservation. It seemed bizarre to me, since all I wanted was a picture. So I had made a reservation, but at this point we were all full and didn’t want to pay for anymore drinks.
So we went… and sat for a few minutes, took our pictures, and then left. It also doubled as a night-club, and old-man Ramert can’t be bothered with loud music. It was a beautiful view!
