Spain

September 11-13Barcelona


Our cruise came to an end in Barcelona, and we decided to spend a few days there.

We docked in the morning and rushed to the hotel to drop our things off before a scooter tour I had scheduled. This tour was a great idea because it allowed us to see all the major sites in a small amount of time while having fun riding scooters. I definitely recommend it.


There was Gaudi (and Gaudi-like) architecture everywhere! On our scooter tour we saw the Sagrada Familia  church (which is still under construction) and also Parc Guell. This was by far the best park I have ever been to. If I lived in Barcelona, I would spend a lot of time there.

La Sagrada Familia

The other side of La Sagrada Familia. It designed after Gaudi's death and has a slightly different style. The church still has a few more years until it is completed.

Sitting at the entrance to Parc Guell while on the scooter tour

The view from the entrance. You can see 2 Gaudi buildings (L and R) and the Mediterranean Sea.

Details from the park. I loved the massive columns with intricate mosaic decor.

We also rode our scooters by a bull fighting arena. As of next year, bull fighting is no longer allowed in the Catalan region (includes Barcelona). Other areas of Spain continue to allow the sport.

We also enjoyed walking along La Rambla (the main tourist street there). There are "statues" about every 30 feet and a lot of caricature artists. A very touristy street.

Curt bought a sweet Barcelona jersey while we were there

The entrance of La Boqueria is also off La Rambla. It is a large, fresh, open market. We enjoyed several snacks and just looking at things. They make a beautiful presentation (in general).

They had fresh made juices that were incredible. We got kiwi-coconut. It was fresh and creamy. SO good!

This is why I wrote "in general" previously. Sorry if you are faint at heart, but this is how all the butcher shops are in La Boqueria

At the bottom of La Rambla you find The famous Columbus Monument.

As the Spanish funded Columbus' voyages, they celebrate Columbus Day on October 12th (in the states I think it is generally the 2nd Monday of October). One cool note: Our port in Vigo was about 20 km from where Columbus landed in 1493.

One of the best parts of Barcelona was the food. We went to several tapas restaurants. A tapas restaurant is a restaurant that serves small plates (basically a menu of all appetizers). We would generally order 5 plates for the 2 of us. Our favorite was probably Patatas Bravas. This was made up of fried potato wedges with 2 sauces (one spicy tomato sauce and the other basically a garlic-mayonnaise). I also loved a rice one I ordered: Arros negre, or black rice. It is actually rice cooked in squid ink. Thinking that I ate squid ink makes my stomach squirm a little...but it was actually really tasty. I must say I am glad I learned the color came from the squid ink after! It made my mouth black (thus the photo)

We like to send postcards to people when we are out and about. It is always fun to see what the mailboxes are like in other places. They were red boxes in Amsterdam and yellow towers in Barcelona. Different from the blue boxes we are used to looking for.

Catching the train to the airport. 

We sometimes felt like we were part of The Amazing Race. I think we'd do well.

And now it is back to our HOME and normal life. Yes. We have a HOME for the first time since July 2nd! HOORAY!