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Dockton

Dockton

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Dockton is pretty much in the middle of nowhere. But at the end of the Nineteenth century it was very much somewhere. This speck of a now-residential community lies on Maury Island, itself a speck attached by a thin isthmus to the somewhat larger Vashon Island.

What put Dockton on

Bordeaux at Night

Bordeaux at Night

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It’s not a long walk from our hotel to the Garonne river, but after a day of walking, we decided to make the trip by tram. We got off at Place de la Bourse where we found a young violinist performing a jazzy version of “Killing Me Softly with
Out and About in Bordeaux

Out and About in Bordeaux

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Bordeaux is called the Paris of the South. It’s not as large, of course, and notably lacks a tower or pyramid. But it’s elegant, beautiful, clean and interesting. We will return.

This is going to be one of those “mostly pictures” blog posts because I don’t have

Château LaTour-Martillac

Château LaTour-Martillac

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Have you toured a winery? If so, you’ll see a lot that’s familiar in this post. Winemaking is like many other things – brain surgery, for instance – everyone does the same thing; some just do it better than others.

Château LaTour-Martillac is a small producer run by five brothers

Le Tour de Géants

Le Tour de Géants

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Pau is a small town just north of the Pyrenees often used as either the beginning or the end of a stage of the Tour de France. If you’re a fan of the Tour, you’ll know Pau.

imagine my surprise to discover this monument to Tour winners in

Pigs and Fishes

Pigs and Fishes

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The main reason that we came on this trip, the founding principle if you like, was to visit the Basque Country. We’ve been in and around it for a few days now, but today we headed into the heart.

Before I show you what we found there, let’s

Among the Basque

Among the Basque

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We cruised through Euskal Herria (Basque Country) today. The Basque are an ethnic group that lives in an area that spans France and Spain on the Bay of Biscay at the western end of the Pyrenees.

We stopped in three places: the small fishing village of Getaria, the large and

Bilbao – This and That

Bilbao – This and That

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Excusez-moi, Président Bush, mais vous envahissez le mauvais pays!

France

Tomorrow we return to France. Mary Anne and I love France, but many ‘mericans don’t. Maybe it’s because the French refuse to go along with some of our less-than-well-thought-out plans.

But we showed them! Freedom fries! How’d

Guggenheim – Bilbao

Guggenheim – Bilbao

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Everybody talks about the Guggenheim art museum in Bilbao. Designed by Frank Gehry, the same guy who gave us the Experience Music Project (now MoPop) in Seattle, the Guggenheim has garnered accolades for its design.

In its short lifetime, the museum has joined a rarified list of places that folks

Pamplona

Pamplona

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Bullfighting. Meh.

Look, I get it. Bulls are big, have pointy things on their heads, and can be dangerous if provoked. If you want to show your skill at dancing with death, I suppose annoying a bull makes as much sense as free climbing or Formula 1 racing or whatever.

Zaragoza

Zaragoza

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Zaragoza dates back to 14 BC when it was established by the Romans. There’s little left from that period, but there is a spectacular basilica, a Moorish palace, a Goya museum, and enough general interest material to make a stop worthwhile.

But let’s begin with a quick look

Barcelona Cathedral

Barcelona Cathedral

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There is a claim that this cathedral dates to the fourth century, but I think that’s kind of playing with numbers. The current structure was likely built on the ruins of something earlier, or greatly expanded it. The real action started in the fourteenth century. Practically yesterday.

Rick Steve’

OK, OK, OK

OK, OK, OK

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We decided that we couldn’t leave town without taking another look at this amazing place. 125 years or so since construction began, it’s still going strong. Two new towers are rising (look for their flat tops in the photos). There are eight towers now and a whopping eighteen
Where Ya Going?

Where Ya Going?

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Thanks to road construction, police blockades, and loss of GPS signal, it took forever to escape Andorra. It was worth it to return to lovely Barcelona.

On the Road to Andorra

On the Road to Andorra

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Andorra is a tiny country of about 80,000 souls tucked into the Pyrenees mountains between France and Spain. It has a reputation as a place to live if you want to avoid paying tax, but this may be less true these days. Quite a few professional bike racers call