Phil´s journeys, June and into July

Ok, June flew by. I was hangin around Alcañiz, then I got bored one weekend and went down to Vinaroz and met up with Ruben and Dina, some church/climbing friends. After spending Sunday with them, I headed over to Montanejos, a mythical climbing spot in Spain to check it out. Being alone, mid-week I didn´t climb much, the last day I got in a couple climbs with some climbers I know from Zaragoza who happened to stop by on their way back from a job.

Next was the big, much anticipated trip to France. Maky and I drove up to Gap, France to climb at Ceuse. It was a 9 hour drive, we stayed for ten days, in the dirt parking lot at Ceuse. The climbing spot is that good. It´s a nice parking area though, trees and a cold fountain and a friendly fox. She likes to drop in without warning and she got our loaf of bread one night when Maky turned his back... The climbing spot is known as one of the best sport climbing locations in the world with one of the worst approaches. You have an hour hike up the mountain each day to climb the cliffs at the top. Also the spot is very well bolted (protected), but as you get higher the protection tends to get rather spread out making huge falls almost inevitable, lots of fun!

Back in Spain I had a day to do wash and it was over to Barcelona to meet Rachel at the airport. Rachel had selected Barcelona and Rome for her first trip to Europe and I agreed to tag along. I enjoyed exploring Barcelona more in depth, we were especially impressed with the Sagrada Familia. Also on the list of highlights, were the Palau de musica Catalana, Parc Guell, menu del dias, cafe con leche, and the beach. In the middle of the Barcelona trip, we side-tripped to Montserrat, the serrated mountain which is another mythical climbing spot in Spain and also has a famous monestary. Cataluña´s most holy mountain is what it is...

Leaving Barcelona after 5 nights, we missed our flight to Rome by less than five minutes (you must get there at least 40 minuted before takeoff) so the flight to Rome ended up being later than expected and a bit more expensive... But we had a cheap hostel to make up for it. Rome was noticeably older and dirtier than Barcelona (at least our neighborhood), but the sights were also older and just as impressive. The first day we saw the Trevi fountain, the Spanish steps and enjoyed Italian coffee. The next day it was the vatican: St. Peters and the museums (which include the Sistine Chapel). The following day the Colloseum, the Domitilla catacombs, Palatino hill, getting soaked in a Thunderstorm and the Roman Forum. The last day was little more relaxing exploring some other neighborhoods in Rome and cooking an amazing pasta in the hostel.

Now I´m back in Alcañiz, trying to get rid of my van, and live cheap... I´m heading up to the Pyrenees looking for cooler weather, climbing and someone to buy my van. Sorry but I don´t think this post is going to include pictures.