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Gotta Go . . .
We arrived in Barcelona without any travel problems, all luggage accounted for. In the airport we met up with the other Austin travelers. The Hotel Regencia Colon was a delightful little place less than a block from the Barcelona Cathedral in the gothic part of the city. There were also a number of shops and restaurants close to us so we grabbed some breakfast for lunch and went back to the room for a short rest. Feeling more energetic after a snooze we walked around the neighborhood for a while. The cathedral is under renovation and will likely be a fabulous place to see when it is restored. Parts of the old palace of Isabel and Ferdinand stand next to it and you can roam through the old walls. There are gargoyles everywhere that range from humorous to downright frightening along with many that have religious connotations. The interesting factoid of the day concerns the numerous street musicians we saw around the city. Turns out they are all professionals and many have been classically trained. They actually get a license for the spot where they play (next to the cathedral, outside the museum of art, etc). All sorts of music, dance and singing including Spanish guitar, harp, harpsichord, keyboards and more. They were all very good. I set out to find Cathedrals of the Sea, a book by a Spanish author, only to discover it is very difficult to find English language books in the stores. We did find it finally and now I'm toting this tome-sure hope it is a good one! For my reading buddies I learned Shadow of the Wind author, Carlos Ruiz Zafon has a new book out. So far it is in Spanish only and I can tell you just that the title has Angel in it. I'll be watching for the translation of this one for sure. We had a short but very interesting tour of the city with tour guide, Rodrigo. He spoke amazingly good English and along with our fabulous and beautiful driver, Estella, he took us to a few of the lesser known spots along with the famous and fabulous Sagrada Familia. The tour ended at the port where we boarded the Summit and went to eat a snack while waiting for bags to be delivered to our room, then unpacked and headed to the pool for the first libations and entertainment. We're about to head out for dinner and will determine later what the rest of our first day at sea will hold.
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kbig Hola! Oh, it all sounds really wonderful! I meant to send you a Bon Voyage email but I had my dates wrong and as usual was a day late - sigh. I can't wait to hear about the Greece and Italy legs! I'm green with envy!
trublujay Anne & Dwain Looks like the first day was pretty full. The pictures that you posted are wonderful. Exactly WHY could you not get a bite of any of those baked goods? They look delicious. The hospital pictures are really interesting. I would have never pegged those for medical buildings. Loved your commentary and I am very excited about sharing your adventure. I laughed at the day's **factoid**. Glad that you arrived safe and sound and with all your luggage. Were you exhausted at day end? Enjoy your trip and I will be looking for whatever messages you have a chance to leave us poor people who remain at home, working and dreaming of these beautiful days of adventure and serendipity. Thanks for sharing, Trudy Jayne
diamondlil Barcelona....sigh! I love Barcelona! One of my favourite cities. The new Ruiz Zafon book is due out in English next year! Can't wait.