25th Anniversary Trip - Day 3

Day 3.  

Today is our tour to the Montserrat Monastery.   We get up at 7 am and head down to sub level -1 for breakfast.  Another decent meal in the Ikea like dinning area of the hotel.   Then we head out to the meeting place for our tour bus.  We are green 3 and along with about 40 other passengers we board the coach for the hour long ride to the mountain.  Along the way, our guide regales us with stories and interesting “curiosities” of the Barcelona and Catalonia people and sights.    

The road up the mountain is a treacherous narrow winding road bordering on a cliff. How she can navigate this road in a 50 foot long bus, I don’t know!  When we get there the temperature has dropped from the oppressive 30 degrees to a more comfortable 24, and there is a nice breeze!  We get a short orientation and cultural review from our guide, then its some private time to explore.  

We walk into the church as a mass is going on.  Standing quietly in the back I notice a stern looking security like guy walking toward me.  It’s my hat!  Not allowed apparently. We then decide to take the trek to the Cross of St. Michael.  A 20 minute hike up the steep hill and out onto a peninsula with fantastic view of the valley and the monastery. 

Later, we line up to see the Black Madonna.  But our time is slipping away.  We wait in the line for 20 minutes, but it is not moving, and we have to get back to the bus soon.  Sadly, we have to skip the Black Madonna.  Oh, well, we will just have to come back one day!  We decide to get our free liquor drink.  A sample of four liquor’s similar to Bailey’s. Not bad, but we are rushed and have to quickly to the meeting point. Back on the bus, we take the long ride back to Barcelona.

We stop at Starbucks (yes, they are everywhere) for a refresher and a search for a place for a late lunch.  We source out a hidden gem in the Gothic area.  Ca L Andreu.   A small, hidden place with funky colors and soft Jazz playing.  We are the only two in the place, and it feels family owned, indeed the owner sits at the front table, and the wife cooks the meals. We have a seafood soup to share, essentially a paella dish with noodles instead of rice.  Very good.  At the end, the waiter brings us a liquor that he says is good for digestion…it is like drinking Sambuca flavored tequila! A short siesta is warranted. Back at the hotel.  

Then it is time to meet the LaPorte’s and wander the Gothic area.   We find them and sit down for a group dinner, and account of the Iceland Trip. 

After dinner, we are all tired and say goodnight. Wishing them well on their remaining days as we get ready for or cruise tomorrow!

25th Anniversary Trip - Day 2

Day 2. 

We were up at 7 am, quick shower and down to the lower levels for breakfast.   The hotel has complimentary breakfast at level -1. A full spread of food buffet style. Nice and fresh, we take our time and get our fill.   Back to the sunscreen room and get ready for our day of tourism.   After a few moments of panic looking for my glasses (we were on the window sill!), We are off to the Plaza de Catalunya.  It  is a large square in central Barcelona  that is generally considered to be both its city center  and the place where the old city meets new.   We are off on the Hop-on / Hop-off bus tour.   A double decker open roof guided tour of Barcelona. 

There are two lines, we take the green line first, saving the red line for later.   It carries us through old Barcelona with some interesting facts and some advertisements of course.   The trip is nice, as we navigate through the narrow streets and get the feel for the town.   The whole circuit is about 2 hours or so, and the heat is not too bad yet.   We get back to our starting point and head back to the hotel for some sunscreen.   Feeling good, we decide to take the red line bus right away.   It is about noon, so we jump on the bus, with the idea of ​​heading to the market stop for lunch.   The market is on the roadway, which is essentially a mile long tourist trap.   Lots of trinket stores and sidewalk cafes.   







The air is getting hot, and there is no breeze.   Somehow, we walk past the market and all the way back to where we gotten on the bus!   Back to the way we came, we found the market as we started to melt.   A busy place, similar to Granville Island.   We get lucky, as we are walking around, the lady calls out to have us look at their menu.   We get two seats at their busy counter, and order some fresh seafood salad and pan fried Cuttle fish.  





 Not bad, and the mugs of Sangria and beer were nice too!

Back to the bus, in the sweltering heat! We should have taken the siesta!   Both of us took turns nodding off during the tour!   2 hours later, we are back at the hotel for recovery from the dry heat.   Dinner time, we find a nice little tapas restaurant next to the old opera house on a narrow side street. The atmosphere is lively, and the food is tasty.   We sit at the bar, and watch the barkeep make sangria after sangria.   Seems to be the favourite  drink here!

Tomorrow we are off to Montserrat!

25th Anniverssary Trip - Day 1

Start our trip at YVR @ 9am.

Nexus was not open yet! 10 am ... what the heck? Oh well, there was not much of a line. The usual security check and swab, then off to the Premium Lounge for some greasy bacon, and surprisingly good scambed eggs!

It is going to be a long day of plane hopping and airport sitting until we get to Barcelona! Up at 6 am and organized to get going. Always a mad scamble, despite being as organized as possible. We woke up the teenage taxi service, and wisked off the airport at the crack of 9 am. 

We wait for boarding! Our plane is the new Dreamliner. It is huge and modern. However, 9 hours on any plane, is too much!

Decided to watch a few movies to pass the time ... .John Wick 2, Kong, Get Out and Beauty and the Beast. Probably should have slept! 

The Frankfurt airport is huge, confusing and pretty sparse. After getting off the plane, we start to look for our connecting flight. No where to be found. All we know, is it at gate A in terminal 1, and it takes 30 minutes to walk to gate A! Off we go. After a few turns and flights of stairs, we have to go through customs again. This time it was a bit different. A full pat down, front and back, plus a search of the carry on. Racial profiling? Hey, I'm Scottish!

We found a small cafe (no lounges on this side of the airport). We got a fizzy drink and a beer. About halfway through the beer, we realize, it's only 8 in the morning here in Frankfurt! That explains a few of the funny looks we got.

The flight to Barcelona was only 90 minutes, which I successfully slept through! At the Barcelona Airport, we gather our bags and head off to find our driver. He's waiting for us with a whiteboard with our names. Feeling important until we see dozens of other drivers with whiteboards waiting for their passengers!

The hotel is nice (despite our room not being ready). We get a suggestion from the concierge on where to eat. A small deli, called Alfonso's Cafe. A couple of local beers, the pork steak and blackened octopus made a nice afternoon snack. Back to the room for a quick siesta, then down to the waterfront to meet Maedel's for dinner!

Google maps said it was a 37 minute walk to the restaurant, and it was a nice night, so off we went. On the way, we thought a trip through the park would be nice (Parc de la Ciutadella). Stopped for selfie in front of the Waterfall Monument. We walked through the Parliament Buildings, along with a protest or two. We realised there is no way out at the bottom, due to security. So hike back to the entrance, and now we have to hurry to dinner!

Dinner is at an open style restaurant down at the pier. The Maedel's made reservation, having eaten there before. Imagine, travelling 8,200 km to have dinner with family! The Fonda del Port Olimpic. We order some beers and seafood and get some fun recounts of Maedel's travels. After dinner the waiter brings a nice after meal "digestive" drink. Basically a mix of cinnamon whiskey and sambuca. We have a few shots, what the heck! After a good meal and fun family discussion, we decide to catch a cab back to the hotel. Too much to walk after a busy day! Tomorrow, Hop on / Hop off bus tour to see the city!