Christmas Festivities – Spanish Style (guest post)

The following is a guest post from Martin of the S&M Motel.  Thank-you Martin!  This is also the first guest post on DreamBigLiveBoldly.com.  If you’d like to be a guest contributor, please contact me. ——————– We are temporary inhabitants of the S&M Motel and I have so enjoyed the blogs from Continue Reading

Chez Diane

We eat most of our meals at Chez Diane, the restaurant in the S&M Motel.  It serves an excellent variety of delicious local specialities and old favourites made with fresh ingredients.  Always close at hand, it offers European flavours and homemade charm. And the service is excellent. STARTERS Cauliflower Soup Continue Reading

Impressions of Europe

Here are some common items that we’ve noticed about the 10 European countries we’ve been to. There is an obvious sense of history here. Public buildings and churches can be hundreds or even a thousand years old. Families often trace their roots for hundreds of years and may live in Continue Reading

Traveling by RV in Europe

We’ve been roving across Europe for over 3 months now and have learned a fair bit about traveling in Europe by RV. Here are some of things we’ve been experiencing. Terminology Our vehicle (affectionately known as the S&M Motel) is a self-contained recreational vehicle (RV) known in England as a Continue Reading

The Best and Worst Kinds of Tourism

The Best Getting off the tourist track. Often this only requires a few steps, but finding the right ones can be difficult. Eating what the local people eat, street food, what is fresh, or what is recommended by your server. Free coat checks in museums. Free wi-fi at McDonald’s. Morning Continue Reading

Impressions of Spain

The central part of the Iberian Peninsula, where Spain is situated, is a large, open, wind-swept plain dotted with small hills. It looks like Nevada in the old Westerns. Between the major cities like Madrid, located in the center of the country, there is a lot of open space between Continue Reading

Sobrino De Botin

Sobrino De Botin was established in 1725 making it the oldest restaurant in Madrid. Indeed, it is listed by the Guinness Book of World Records as the oldest, continuously operating eatery in the world. It is said that the famous Spanish artist Francisco de Goya (1746-1828) worked there while trying Continue Reading

Le Marseillaise

Le Marseillaise is the national anthem of France. It was named after the city of Marseille, which sits on the southern coast of France on the Mediterranean, and which has never been the capital city. I wondered how this came about. Le Marseillaise was written and composed by Claude Joseph Continue Reading