Thank You Spain

Rita and I can't believe the Spain odyssey has ended as we were not sure it would ever begin.  We originally booked our trip to start last September but a week before we were to depart Rita fell off her bike and broke her shoulder.  We cancelled the trip (we did not have cancellation insurance and so we lost most of our deposits on our accommodation and train travel as well as all of our flight costs). However, we regrouped as Rita's shoulder mended and decided to revitalize our trip.  We are very happy that we did.  Spain is a wonderfully diverse country.  Not only the different landscapes, cultures and languages but the cities and towns we visited were all impacted by their past in different ways.  This made it a very interesting and varied travel adventure.  The only thing that seemed to remain constant, was the Spanish love affair with cured ham (Jamon).  Their are shops in every city, town and village selling multiple varieties of cured ham from a few Euros to hundreds of Euros a kilo; based on the breed of pig, what it was fed, how long it was aged and where it was stored.  For outsiders it is as confusing as trying to choose a bottle of local wine.  But best off all, it was the people we came across that helped to make the trip so special. They were very open, friendly, happy folks who were willing to help strangers even when they did not understand English.  For us Spain was not a vacation but an education and we loved her for it.  Gracias Espana.