TRAVEL TALES of ranaruby

⏳ June 2026 Editorial Update : On June 10, 2026 — marking exactly one hundred years since Antoni Gaudí’s passing—the structural journey of La Sagrada Família reached its historic climax with the completion and illumination of the towering central cross. While the world celebrates this finished skyline, the true magic lies in the decades of intricate engineering that brought us to this moment. Join me on a journey through the heart of Gaudí’s Barcelona, exploring the structural genius, the vertical forests of stone, and the breathtaking details of the basilica as it evolved into the masterpiece we see completed today.                  👆 The completed tower of Jesus Christ, topping the                                                                 Barcelona skyline...

Barcelona, SPAIN  A fascinating country. An engrossing history. And exotic in every sphere. The thrilling story of the Spanish Armada, the chivalric romances of the errant knight Don Quixote, and the daredevilry of the brave matadors in tackling the bulls continue to fascinate me. The Romans, the romantic Moors who ruled for almost 800 years, the swashbuckling Spaniards who demonstrated their prowess as conquerors, explorers, bullfighters, flamenco dancers, and football players all seemed to be beckoning me to unravel the mysteries of this captivating land. Finally, in 2019, we chalked up our visit to Spain. My travelling companion (my wife) is an ardent learner of Spanish, which proved to be a forte during our journey to Spain. Our adventure in Spain started with Barcelona.  We flew into this city from Frankfurt. Surprisingly, Barcelona's El Prat International Airport (also known as BCN) wore an ordinary look, in unexpected contrast to the jazzy name a...

-the land of Francesinha and Pastel de Nata Lisbon’s Santa Apolonia Train Station is the city’s oldest station. Located in the historic district of Alfama, this simple and stately façade stands close to the bank of the beautiful and serene river Tejo. The station is conveniently connected by public transport from Marques de Pombal, at the heart of Lisbon. From here, the high-speed deluxe trains, adorned with bright colored curtains and carpets inside, take two and a half hours to Porto. Porto’s Campanha station. Porto alias Oporto. Sweet-sounding names for a sweet city. Famous for sweet wine exclusively from the grapes of Duoro Valley. Grapes have been nurtured since the time of Jesus. Like Lisbon, Porto also seems to have been crafted out of the hilly terrains all around. Most of the old parts of both the Portuguese cities have a maze of steep and narrow cobbled streets, narrow roads, and connecting walkways of extremely steep gradients. Like in Lisbon, which is ...