andorra-ble

my bus ride into andorra was largely uneventful. this was disappointing as i was really looking forward to a nice 'andorra' stamp in the old passport. and i was so determined.. too bad.

at any rate i made it to andorra, which, incidentally, i have theorized is the hardest country to get to in europe. though i should double-check lichtenstein. i met my friend kathy (a prior lyon resident) after some brief confusion of which mcdonalds we were at. we stopped to catch up at a nice little park (the only park) with blooming flowers, a concrete-lined stream, and a nice view of the mountains all around. kathy said having the mountains constantly surrounding you can be a bit overwhelming. after a nice chat we crossed the river into the 'old town' - which consists of approximately two streets. we went into a building, took an elevator up and ended up outside higher up on the hill, it was odd. here we enjoyed a very windy break with delicious cheesecake and i met her friend robert. he is a fulbright scholar and has been in andorra for a year and a half which means he knows pretty much everyone.

robert turned out to be a wonderful tour guide since, as it turns out, he's studying to be a tour guide. the three of us walked all over the city (yes, there are cities. more than one, even) which consists mostly of stores and giant glass spa. we went up the glass tower to see a view of dusk setting in over andorra la vella.

it's hard to describe andorra. kathy asked me if it was different than i thought it would be. it was certainly very commercial (it's a tax haven). i'm not sure what i was expecting though i was surprised that it did feel like a distinct country. this probably has a lot to do with the prominence of catalan (as the only country that has it as its national language). i asked robert how he would characterize andorra. he said greed. greed and portuguese.

the following day robert convinced kathy and myself to go on a hike up one of andorra's many mountains. apparently they had attempted it before but only made it part of the way up before turning back. robert made it known that he was determined to make it all the way up this time. i was hopeful but also ill-prepared in my traction-less french tennis shoes. we started out with high spirits and lots of energy. this was buoyed with frequent breaks and giant bar of delicious honey and almond chocolate. things were going well until we hit the giant mound of ice. or, specifically, the mountain path that was covered in ice and snow. it was a struggle, something like one step forward two slides back. after falling several times and getting some choice bruises it became clear to kathy and myself that we were not going to make it up the mountain. robert seemed disappointed (his pep talks were of no use) but it was just not happening. and if going up was dangerous, going down was absolutely treacherous. i think i slid and fell more than i actually walked. somehow we made it all the way down.

we decided instead to try what we dubbed the 'country lane'. with this we had much more success. no ice or snow - i have never been so glad to see mud. we had a nice view of the other mountain and from the top we could see the chain of mountains that surround the city. it was very 'sound of music'; we were mere miles from the spanish border. at the end of the day we rewarded ourselves with some nice cold drinks at a cafe in town. i had an horchata!

all in all i think my time in andorra was well-spent. there aren't many times you can say you've seen most of a country in two days.