A MOVEABLE FEAST IN SEPTEMBER

Prologue

 

          While I watched Mother fetch water from our large water tank, a DC-3 plane flew above us; low enough to stir up excitement in me with its thundering sound. The plane was dropping propaganda leaflets for the upcoming national election. After it flew further away, I told my mother that someday, when I am up on a plane, I would gather the clouds and put them in a box. I was about six years old then.

            "You, silly girl," she said. "It is impossible to catch a cloud."

            I later learned that catching a cloud is truly an impossible dream.

 As I grew older, I began to have "itchy feet," a term my father used for someone who likes to go places.  I discovered that traveling was fun and less impossible than catching a cloud.

            In 2008, Ron and I visited seven European countries in a group tour of the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, France, and the Vatican. In 2010, we wanted to see Spain and Portugal.

I began to check travel brochures, searched the Internet for tours of Spain, and discovered that there was a leisure-tour of Spain that included the neighboring Portugal, offered by a reputable tour company. A twin-country tour sounded perfect. It would expand my knowledge of these two countries. Some of us Filipinos still feel that we have strong ancestral connection with them. Spain dominated the Philippines for four hundred years, as recorded in history books. Spanish influence manifest itself in Filipino names, food, customs, traditions, and language. Ferdinand Magellan who discovered the Philippines was Portuguese. These thoughts prompted me to see these countries for myself.

When Ron and I finally decided to take this tour, I began to search for information on the tourist attractions covered by the tour, thinking that having background information of the places of interest would help me value the trip more. I read travel guidebooks and wrote notes. I also began to refresh my little knowledge of the Spanish language. It has been ages since I took my first class on the language.

With a travel checklist provided by the tour company, Ron and I began to prepare for the trip.

On September 12, 2010, Ron and I began the leisure trip of Spain and Portugal.