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KIND WORDS FROM PAST VISITORS
----- Original Message ----- From: Des Coop To: Charles K. Williams Sent: Sunday, August 05, 2001 6:23 PM Subject: Re: FAO Charlie re Can Palau  Dear CharlieJust a short note to express my thanks for the help you provided in helping me arrange my recent holiday to the northern Costa Brava. I was initially a little reluctant to commit to a holiday property featuring on a previously unknown ( to me) website. I did not need to worry. The descriptions you provided of Can Palau were very accurate and if anything a little understated. The property was superb and the welcome from Nuria and Henry could not have been better. I found your guide book to be of immense value although it could perhaps do with an update. I look forward to using your services again and please feel free to provide my e-mail address to others as recomendation for Can Palau or indeed your website. Many thanks again Sincerely Des Coop I swear I didn't write this one myself! -----Original Message----- De: Grand, James (California) Para: 'tourism@catalonia.net' Fecha: jueves 10 de febrero de 2000 6:37 Asunto: Thank you Hello Charles, I am sorry it has taken so long to send this message of gratitude for all the assistance you offered and gave to me during my recent stay in Barcelona. I must confess to having some concerns about contracting for an apartment via the Internet with a person whom I had never met or spoken to. My expectations were not only met, they were exceeded. The apartment was terrific. Your suggestions were consistently good and your assistance in planning our excursion to La Costa Brava made the trip a much more memorable experience than it otherwise would have been. You are the genuine article. Please feel free to use me as an online reference. I would happily recommend your services to others without reservation. Thank you again. You just might hear from me soon concerning a summer rental in Sitges. My best, Jim Grand -----Original Message----- De: Robert Ballantyne (U.K.) Para: Charles Williams Fecha: lunes 16 de agosto de 1999 0:30 Asunto: Re: Mas Grau Just a quick note to say that we thought Mas Grau was great - amazing building in a superb position. We really enjoyed our time there. Conxita and her father were very pleasant and helpful - thanks to them. We were sorry to leave and hope to return someday. Yes got the guidebook - found it very useful. regards Rob  -----Original Message-----De: Peter Lisney (Swedish living in Malaysia) Para: over 30 addresses! Fecha: sábado 5 de junio de 1999 11:51 Asunto: A Travel Recommendation (They stayed in three different B&B's) Dear Friends, Hamidah and myself recently travelled around Catalonia (North East Spain) for a few days and we had nothing but an excellent time travelling around the countryside staying in 16th-17th centuary farmhouses in just as old villages, eating local dishes and downing the tinto by the gallon. I really recommend this part of Europe for a short break. We made all our bookings through a Mr Charles Williams. Charles fixes reliable car rental (at much cheaper rates than Avis or Hertz) and books perfect B&B accomodation in small villages. I know Spain rather well but found that we got a lot more out of the trip (hazel free) by using the services and information provided by Mr Charles Williams. Have a peak at his web site http://tourism.catalonia.net Regards, Peter -----Original Message----- De: Helen Hadley Porter (Montana.edu) Para: Charles Williams Fecha: sábado 30 de octubre de 1999 14:25 Asunto: fantastic barcelona lodging - Agullers Street apartment Charlie, We never got the opportunity to get together except a quick chat in your kitchen eating your great leftovers. I guess Barcelona just carried me away. I had the most brilliant trip, in no small part because of the apartment. Just the saying goes, ask for what you want. I asked and I got that great place. The apartment was just perfect, like home, a feeling of openess, of light, and for us, family. After Elle and I rearranged the furniture, it really felt like home to us. When we were packing to leave, she noted that it felt like we had lived there a lifetime and it was so hard to leave it behind. I really would have liked to spend six months there as I felt I only got the barest hint of the city's wonders. The Born is a special neighborhood; I feel privileged to have been able to be part of it and wander those streets. I went to Mass at Santa Maria, an experience I shall not forget. The priest was very articulate in Spanish, the acoustics thunderous, and for a brief moment I even imagined myself Catholic. Luckily the idea passed.... I wish I could always travel as I did to your city. A neighborhood, a funky apt with a great kitchen, my treasured daughter and her fabulous boyfriend, and the magic of a place like Spain. I hope the window got fixed. Apparently all those windows are a bit on the shaky side. I enjoyed flirting with the old man in the glass shop, however, even if I screwed up the measurements. I hope Alan, the physicist by the way, could fix it for us. (He did, thanks Alan.) And thanks again. Please keep in touch. I will be checking your web page just to reminisce. Our next big trip is to Indonesia's Nusa Tengarra and Borneo in the spring. Know any funky places in Bali on a surf beach? Sincerely, Helen -----Original Message----- De: Kwa, BooTion (Hong Kong) Para: 'tourism@catalonia.net' Fecha: martes 31 de agosto de 1999 6:26 Asunto: Thanks for Mas Grau Just a short note to say that we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Mas Grau in>July. The owners were charming and the property was wonderful, albeit a little large for us. Still, it was nice to be away from the crowds and to have the little village below with its excellent restaurant. We plan to come back next year, and would like to look for a similar type farmhouse--though one smaller and thus easier to keep clean. Many thanks for your help. We'll look up your website later to try to book something much further in advance than we actually managed to do this year. Cheers, Tion Kwa  -----Original Message-----De: orla maguire (Ireland) Para: tourism@catalonia.net Fecha: martes 28 de septiembre de 1999 12:06 Asunto: thanks for Lledo Apartment in Barcelona Charlie Sorry I haven't been able to write sooner, but I had lots of work to do when I got home. This is just a quick note to say many thanks for all your help. We had an absolutely wonderful time, and its all thanks to you and Isabel. I am trying to get a letter to Isabel to thank her personally, but if you see her could you let her know that the apartment was fantastic and that we really appreciate everything that she did for us. Once again thank you for all your help. orla -----Original Message----- De: Zubair Chaudhry at University of Chicago Para: Charles Williams Fecha: miércoles 6 de enero de 1999 15:34 Asunto: RE: Thanks for Gutenberg Greetings Charles, We arrived back in the states over the weekend - just before the worst blizzard in 20 years hit Chicago (if we had come any later, we would not have been able to land). The temperature is well below zero, and we are missing the fanstastic walks we had in Barcelona. What a whirlwind our trip was! From the many places we saw to the number of pick-pocket attempts we escaped unscathed from! The Gutenberg was fantastic - giving us an opportunity to buy fresh food on the market and then prepare it ourselves. As always, thanks for all your help. Sincerely, - Zubair Chaudhry and Sadia Khan -----Original Message----- De: Lisa Cox of New York Para: Charles Williams Fecha: viernes 21 de mayo de 1999 2:39 Asunto: Thank you (Gutenberg, Cal Rajoler, Car rental Dear Charlie, Before the memory of a wonderful week in Catalunya fades any more, I would like to let you know how much we appreciate your kind help in putting together our trip. Cal Rajoler was a perfect place for the eight of us, and the Gutenberg would make a great base for a longer stay in Barcelona. All the folks we met--Josep, Pedro and his friend from EasyLink whose name I forget, and in fact people throughout Catalunya--were friendly and helpful. Your guidebook, too, was invaluable, though I never seem to cover quite as much territory as I expect. A few reactions to Catalunya. . . We live on a small farm in Vermont, and the Pla d'Estany is very reminiscent of some of the more beautiful areas around here (although the Green Mountains are certainly not the Pyrenees!). Vermonters are very conscious of who belongs and who doesn't, and it takes many generations before one can be considered a Vermonter. (Famous story: a couple from New York move to Vermont and mention to the farmer next door that they are pleased that their children will now be Vermonters. The farmer begs to differ, telling them, "If your cat had kittens in the oven, you wouldn't call them biscuits, would you?") We were all quite struck by the similar sense of place that Catalonians have, except that the time scale is so utterly different. It is humbling, indeed, to think of one's people's roots going back over a thousand years. Again, that sense of historical continuity was strikingly different from what I have felt in Greece, where I lived for a year. In Greece the antiquities seemed to be on the other side of a great temporal chasm. While there is little that is quite so old in Catalunya--and a site like Empuries does have that feeling of foreignness--it is very moving to visit Ripoll and Sant Joan and other small towns and to feel the connectedness with the medieval heritage. Thanks again for your help in making our trip such a rich experience. Lisa  -----Original Message-----De: Dr. Gerry McBride of Newcastle Para: Charles Williams Fecha: miércoles 8 de septiembre de 1999 22:30 Asunto: Re: el Saüc, B&B at Can Portell, and rent-a-car Dear Charlie, We have had an excellent holiday. El Sauc was basic, commodious, as you described, and suited our needs perfectly. Hans and Can Portell were perfect - an excellent introduction to the Pyrenios and Pre-Pyrenios. Easylink, likewise came "up with the goods" - if a little laid-back - still this is the country that invented the concept of "Manyana" (interestingly, in Irish, we do not have a word that conveys that same degree of urgency !!). Thanks , once again for your patience in replying to my e.mails - your willingness to (conversationally) reply was the element that made me prepared to trust your contacts and give my Visa number to complete strangers in a far off country (albeit, ,just another street in the "Global Village") ! We have given your Web site and e.mail address to or friends and we hope to make use of your "wares" in future - not next year as we're off to the Antipodes. I hope this note finds you well and in good health, Adeu, Gerry McBride. -----Original Message----- De: JULIANA QUINTERO MOLINA (Colombians working for Ericson) Para: ckwilliams@nexo.es Fecha: lunes 25 de enero de 1999 16:21 Asunto: saludos desde Colombia Hola Charles: Mil gracias por su recomendación del Citadines en Barcelona, nos pareció un excelente sitio, por su comodidad de los apartamentos y su cercania a todo. Nos fue de maravilla , fueron unos dias muy gratos. Reciba un cordial saludo y agradeciendo su colaboración !!! Felíz 1.999 !!! Juliana y Roberto -----Original Message----- De: Dagfinn Nygaard (Norway) Para: Charles Williams Fecha: miércoles 4 de agosto de 1999 19:37 Asunto: Grateful for Mas Grau Charles! We had a marvellous stay at Mas Grau, it was indeed a nice place to stay! Great house, bedrooms, living rooms and all + nice restaurant(s) next door (almost), decent distance to sea and everything else, what more could you ask than for nice weather and that is safe thing in Spain - when it not rains on the plain. We also all appreciated the warm welcom of Conxitha and "Papa" - we found them both very nice. Conxitha asked her to visit, but you know 2 weeks passes too fast. We also had hoped to say a proper good bye to Papa, but left early in the morning and did not get around to do that. Would you give them both our best regards? I was also sorry not meet you, when you came by. Thanks for the loan of your guide book, I trust that Papa has returned that to you. At some point of time, we will return Dagfinn N. PS; I have recommended the place, and a few have asked for www site and I will pass it on, so may be you will hear from them  -----Original Message-----De: David Knapp (U.K) Para: 'Charles Williams' Fecha: jueves 2 de septiembre de 1999 15:59 Asunto: Recent Holiday Sola de Baix Charles Its just over two weeks since we came back from our holiday in Solŕ de Baix near Olot. I have been meaning to write to you since then but work etc. has not allowed me the time. However, better late than never. We were delighted with the house, it was just as you described and we were not disappointed. The whole region was peaceful and we were never short of places to visit. We did let Elizabeth know how happy we had been, but next time you see/speak to her please let her know we have been in touch with you. We experienced a lot whilst we were there - including a vist to the hospital in Olot (I tore a muscle in my leg - playing on the children's play ground - too old!!) and there I got quicker and better treatment than here in the UK! Keep up the good work, I am sure we will be back in touch again. Regards David Knapp ps. just a long shot but do you know of any houses that would take 12 (6 adults and 6 children) over this new year that is still available! -----Original Message----- De: Kenji Sunagawa (Japan) Para: Charles Williams Fecha: jueves 9 de septiembre de 1999 14:36 Asunto: Re: Barcelona and el Saüc Dear Charlie, ...As I said, I was perfectly satisfied at El Sauc and liked people who are working at the apartment. My wife and I were truly impressed by the people at restaurants, museums, supermarkets, Tibidabo park, and zoo and in the train. They are working very hard with passion and pride. I truly admire those people and Spanish culture that those attitude. Again, if I visit Barcelona again, I am perfectly happy to stay at El Sauc. And hopefully, the air conditioner will be fixed by that time. Then I can save a water bill. Thanks a lot. Kenji  -----Original Message-----De: Spiegler, Howard N. and Jayne Cohen of New York (her cookbook published by Scribner) Para: 'Charles Williams' Fecha: martes 14 de septiembre de 1999 0:28 Asunto: Mas Grau Sorry I haven't written sooner but things were a bit hectic after we got back. I just wanted to let you know that Mas Grau was wonderful as was Conxita. It was the nicest house we have ever rented anywhere in the world! The area was terrific, especially Girona and one of the small beaches you recommended on the Costa Brava. Your guidebook is extremely detailed and was very helpful. My wife studied it more carefully than I and has a few comments that I will pass on soon. ... thanks for everything. I've already started recommending you to friends. And I hope we will back in Catalonia very soon. Howard Spiegler and Jayne Cohen Andrew Parker, a young neurosurgeon from London who rented the Agullers apartment over his honeymoon with wife Naomi, said of Barcelona: 
"... well it's like Paris but without the attitude!"
... and there are dozens more emails from all over the world. Should I add more? Some are quite long and detailed about what visitors most enjoyed about Catalonia. I guess I will add more letters if I receive requests to do so. As is, I don't know if anyone is going to read these letters... Please let me know if you find them useful. Charlie
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