Paris 2010

3 Octobre (Domingo-Dimanche) - We leave Barcelona for Paris today.  We set the alarm for 08h00 but I was up and ready to go by 07h30.  The owner had called and said she "might" be here before we left at 10h00.  Given her past record, we didn't think it would happen, but lord-have-mercy, she and her husband showed up around 09h00.  To add to the incredible circumstance, she actually gave back the deposit just as she was supposed to do.  Will miracles never cease?

I would like to make one thing clear.  Although we abhorred the apartment with which we were stuck, we loved the city of Barcelona and highly recommend it if you're looking for places to go in Europe.  The food is great (the steaks are far superior to anything you'll get in France), the weather is fantastic, the prices are low, the people (though quite loud) are very friendly and it's easy to get around.  The only down-side would be that you have to be more careful about pickpockets and thieves than elsewhere in Europe, except for Italy.

Even though our plane wasn't due to leave until 14h20, we left for the airport around 10h00.  We had no problem checking in early, though they did rip me big time for my extra bag.  But I was expecting it, so it wasn't a big deal, just inconvenient.  Of course, we had a lot of time to kill, so we stopped at La Caffé di Roma and had a coffe and croissant.  Then we strolled leisurely to the gate to await the plane.

It was supposed to board at 13h45, but by 14h00, there was still no plane at the gate.  Around 14h10, they announced the start of boarding. Imagine our surprise when we had to walk out onto the runway and walk to the plane, a CRJ100, that seats only 50 people.  Even though it was small, it was very nice and we had a very pleasant flight to Orly Ouest, arriving almost forty minutes ahead of schedule.

I was surprised, and quite happy, to find the weather in Paris to be almost as nice as it had been in Barcelona.

We caught a taxi to the apartment, where we were met by Jean-Michel, the representative for the apartment owner, Jean-Luc.  He explained everything very thoroughly and left.  Within a few minutes after his departure, I was online and uploading a ton of pictures and videos.

Around 19h00, we went out to find the local store, a G-20.  We walked around the entire block, but didn't find it.  We were about to walk around the next block when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw the G-20 just a few doors up the street on the next block.  We got several things we needed, and a few we just wanted, and began the return to the apartment.

We put in the code, the door opened and we inserted our inner door key, the door opened.  We took the elevator to the fourth floor (fifth in the US) and walked down to the apartment.  Our key wouldn't fit into the lock.  We thought we were at the wrong door and walked to the other end of the hall.  Same problem.  We thought maybe we were on the wrong floor and tried the third and fifth floors.  No go.  We were at a loss as to what to do, because the concierge was off today and we hadn't put Jean-Michel's number into our phones.

We left the building puzzled as to why everything worked until we got to the apartment, when I remembered something about the entrance to our building.  That was the answer.  We were in the wrong building.  There are two nearly identical buildings with the same entrance codes, the difference is, one is Numéro 12 and the other is Numéro 12bis.  But in the dark of night, you can't see the 'bis'.

Having solved that riddle, we had our first meal at Chez Clément, just around the corner where we had our first-ever experience with the French waiters that you hear so much about.  First, he didn't want to let us in because we didn't have a reservation.  Then, after sensing that we were staying, he took over half an hour to bring us a menu.  I think he was little shocked when I ordered in French from the English menu (we both had escargot {snails}, magret du canard {duck} and a Grand Marnier crêpe).  Whatever the reason, his mood changed perceptively, and even more so when we sent back the picher (pitcher) of house wine and ordered a Saint-Émilion.  We didn't really want to, but we had to admit the food was excellent, especially the duck.

4 Octobre (Lundi) - Our first full day in Paris is not going so well.  Robb has a terrible back pain and some kind of stomache problem.  On top of that, the weather has become as bad as I expected, wet and cold, and there will be no heat in the apartment until 15 Octobre....brrrr.  We left the apartment and walked to Avenue Wagram, where if you turn to the right, you see this sight.  We did turn right, because we wanted to go to the pharmacie.  Robb told the pharmacist his problem and she recommended a medicine.

We walked back to the apartment, but instead going inside, we continued down the street to check out the area a little and to go to the Monoprix just around the corner.  We discovered there are a lot of really great looking restaurants around us, including a nice Thai restaurant and an Italian restaurant just across rue de l'Étoile from the apartment.

We spent a little time in the Monoprix, but Robb was not feeling up to an extended tour, so we walked back home.

We tried to do some laundry, but couldn't get the machine to work.  We called Jean-Michel, who showed up around 19h00 and showed us the secret of making it work.  There is no dryer, so I had to drag out the drying rack and set it up in the living room.

Our second dinner in Paris was tomato soup, cheese and wine, because Robb didn't feel up to going out.

5 Octobre (Mardi) - Robb claims to be feeling better, so we are off to the Grand Palais to see a Monet exhibit.  We walked up to Place Charles de Gaulle - Étoile, found the métro station and went down to get our métro-bus-tram passes.

The last time we did that, it was a very simple process. You just walked up to the window, told the clerk what you wanted, paid your money and walked away with your monthly pass.  Of course, that was way too easy for the French and they had to complicate it.

We walked up to the window, told the clerk what we wanted and he pointed to the Navigo machines.  We went to the machines, went through most of the options and did not see what we needed.  We went back to the clerk.  He very reluctantly came out to help us through a process that we never would have figured out on our own, and we finally got our passes.

I thought we could walk down the Champs-Elysées to the Grand Palais, so we started our journey.  As we approached LaDurée, I suggested we stop for a snack.  I had a café creme et an pain au chocolate lait noisette (creamy coffee and a bun with chocolate and hazelnuts).  Robb had an chocolat chaud et an meringue glace (hot chocolate and ice cream with meringue and lots of whipped cream).

When we got to the Grand Palais, there were gendarmes and police all over the place, mostly in front of the Petit Palais.  I suppose as a result of the announced "terrorist threat".  But there was no Monet exhibit, even though it's supposed to be there until January.
  

Then we had another very Parisian experience...we tried to get a taxi.  The key word being 'tried', because we did not get one, but while we were waiting in front of the Hôtel Crillon, a 73 bus arrived.  We weren't really sure our passes would work, because the clerk had said something about needing to do something before we could use them, but we had no trouble at all.  As we passed the Louis Vuitton store on les Champs, I noticed a long line of people waiting in line to get into the store.  That makes twice I've seen that now, and I still can't understand why people will stand in line to get into a store.

We decided to go to Fontaine Sully for dinner, and since I had discovered that there is an escalator at the St. Paul station, as well as one at the Charles de Gaulle-Étoile station, we took the métro.  We were kind of hoping they would recognize us from last January.  Quelle surprise!  We walked in and found it quite crowded.  We said 'bonsoir' to Katy, the waitress.  She asked if we wanted to eat and then her eyes got very big and she did the French version of "Oh my God, it's you!", followed by bisous and started explaining that she had a picture of us that she looked at all the time.  We sat down and she brought the menu and a glass of champagne.  Robb ordered the bavette (a steak in a great cheese sauce), I ordered roti de veau (roasted veal).  While we were waiting for our food, Katy brought out her laptop and showed us the picture she mentioned.  It was taken on New Year eve.'

Dinner was as good as we remembered.  Katy asked if we were returning the following night, but we told her we were staying in the 17é this time and would only show up from time to time.  We really love the Fontaine Sully, so we will return.

6 Octobre (Mercredi) -  It is cold and wet again.  Robb is not feeling well again.  We went to another pharmacie on Avenue MacMahon, Robb explained his symptoms and the pharmacist suggested he see a doctor.  Robb asked if he could recommend someone and the guy told him of an office just around the corner.  There were four doctors listed on the door and all four required an appointment.  We copied the names and numbers of three of them (I can't remember why we eliminated one) and returned to the apartment to call.

Did I mention that this apartment has the three-for-one plan (telephone, internet, TV) and the phone has free calling to most of the free world?  As far as I could figure it out, that is not an option in Spain.

On the way back to the apartment, we stopped at the G-20 and bought more soup and some fruit cups.

One of the doctors was listed as an Étiopathe, which it turns out, is only a step above a witch-doctor.  So that eliminated another one.  But then it was too late to call and Robb decided he could just put up with the pain until it goes away.

7 Octobre (Jeudi) - The sun was shining in our window when we awoke, something I sorely missed in the Barcelona Dungeon.

We walked over to Avenue MacMahon, got some money from the ATM at BNP Paribank and then went to yet anotherpharmacie.  The pharmacist here seemed to know just what Robb's problem is and recommended a medicine.  Then, while I was trying to figure out where to get the bus to get us across town, he went back to the apartment to take the first dose of his medicine.

Standing on the corner of Avenue Wagram and Avenue des Ternes at Place des Ternes, I could see all the busses in that area and where they stopped, as well as where they went afterward.  Within ten minutes, the whole thing was crystal clear.

However, when Robb returned and we saw how full the busses were because it was late afternoon, we decided we should should put it off until at least tomorrow. Instead, we wet back to Celio where Robb bought a nice shirt and I bought a shirt to wear to bed at night because it's so cold.  Then we went to Monoprix to get some milk and other stuff.

During our little journey, I managed to get a close-up of the Toyota version of the Smart Car.  It's very close in looks and very nearly the same size, including being a two-seater.  It does seem to have a bit more space in back of the seats, though.

Around 19h00, there was a knock at the door.  It was the pompiers (firemen).  They asked if we were using the gas (the stove is gas and electric). We said 'no', and they left.  A few minutes later, they returned with the concierge.  Apparently, we had misunderstood before, and they were asking if we had a gas stove.  I invited them to come in and have a look.  There was no problem and they left again, but we heard them in the hallway talking for quite a while.

Robb felt up to it, so we crossed the street to Pizza Trionfo.  It was actually warmer outside than in the apartment.  I had Pâtes Bolognaise (Pasta Bolognaise) and Robb had Pâtes Carbonara.  Near the end of our main course, the guy next to us began talking to us.  His name is Jean-Eric. We couldn't seem to make him understand that this was not our first time in Paris and he kept mentioning places to go.  But he was very pleasant and even bought us a digestif (a drink that is supposed to aid in digestion, but is just an excuse to drink more alcohol).  It was a very nice evening and I'm sure we will return many more times.

You can see all the Paris pictures here: Paris 2010

À la prochaine, mes amis. 

Barcelona-End

 27 Septiembre (Lunes) - We awoke full of hope but it was quickly dashed as we found we still had no internet.  Robb called the owner and she, again, promised we would have it by noon, but again it was a broken promise.  Yes, it can be a blessing to be off the internet for awhile, but aside from keeping this journal updated,  I need to be able to get into my bank account to move money around and make sure my bills are being paid.  I also have to be able to upload pictures to Flickr and videos to You Tube and that sometimes takes quite a while, so if I get behind, it can take hours to catch up.  Also, there is no facility for uploading at the internet place.  We walked down to the internet cafe, but every terminal was taken and there was a waiting list. 

We decided to go for a walk.  We walked down to Borbó and walked to the beach.  Once at the beach, we decided to walk to the Hotel Wilson, passing an interesting sculpture and a lot of naked people, mostly older people but equally men and women. It was very windy and quite cool, even in the sun.

We had a look around the Wilson and then caught the bus back to the Borbó. 

Dinner tonight was at Dunne's Irish Pub, where we could see this view from our table.  Robb had Shepherd's Pie, and I had Irish Stew.  They were both very good, and our waiter, David from England, was exceptionally good.

28 Septiembre (Martes) - Still no internet, so we walked down to the internet place, checked our email and I left a message on OD.  Robb heard from Luc, our Parisian landlord, and things are looking better.  He had earlier informed us that there would be construction going on there during our stay, but it now appears they're putting it off until after we leave.

On the way back to the apartment, Robb stopped and bought a pair of shorts, I bought a litre of milk. 

Around 13h30, we went up and caught the 17 bus uptown to view the Cathedral of Barcelona and then tour the Roman ruins discovered beneath the city.  It was so much more than the tiny thing we saw in Frankfurt.  In spite of its size (4,000 square metres), it was very difficult to find.  If I hadn't been curious about a courtyard, we would probably still be looking for it.  That was further indicated by the near lack of people wandering through.  There is a lot to see and they're still uncovering more each day.  You're not supposed to take photos, but I managed to snap a rendering of the original Barcelona (called Barcino) and a passageway that goes who knows where since the public is not permitted to follow it.  The original city was surrounded by a huge wall with 80 towers that were more for show than protection.  It was so worth the visit.

After our tour, we walked up to get a shot of the Plaza de la Constitution and the administration building just across the square.

On the way back to the apartment, we stopped at the Mercat where we bought some bread and cheese, as well as a couple of other things.

We had planned to walk up to Toc de Mar for dinner, but we passed El Lobito, looked in and decided to eat there.  We asked for the menu, only to discover they don't really have one.  They have two fixed-price meals, and there are no substitutions.  It seemed like they were never going to stop bringing food to the table.  It was one thing after another, until they finally brought the main course, Sea Bass.  Dessert was a great assortment of seasonal fruit.  

29 Septiembre (Miércoles) - We've been seeing these Vaga General S 29 signs all over the place, but until today, had no idea what they meant. The S 29 means Septiembre 29, and the Vaga General means it's a general holiday, which means that everyone is on vacation for that day.  We're not certain if it is just in Barcelona, or if it's the whole country.  But for Barcelona, it meant that almost everything was closed, and the busses were running about once an hour or so.  We spent most of the afteroon sitting on the Borbó watching the people walking about. 

There is a little Italian guy who, I think, is the maintenance man next door.  Every time he sees me, he asks if I'm Italian.  I always say 'no'.  This morning he started trying to guess from which country I came.  After trying several, he finally pointed to the sky, and I said, "yes, from the stars". 

For the past week, and until 4 Octobre, they are celebrating the Festa Major de la Barceloneta.  This morning I heard the marching band and ran outside with my camera.  I managed to get a couple of short videos before they continued on.  

30 Septiembre (Jueves) - We started with a trip to the internet place.  We both checked our email and Robb asked his credit card company to send his card to the apartment in Paris.  Then we caught the 17 bus to the Sant Gervasi stop.  I got a shot of the Rotonda and the hospital next door.  We walked over to where the Tramway Blau is supposed to pick up passengers to get the funicular to Tibidabo, but it wasn't running today.  I overheard a passerby tell some people that to get to Tibidabo today, you have to take the 196 bus.  The funicular is interesting because it is an almost straight-up-the-side-of-the-mountain ride and because the guy who drives it, also sells the tickets.

Once we got to the top, we noticed that it was a lot cooler, and most of the amusements were closed.  But I took a shot of Sant Gervasi, front and back, the Aeroport ride, and the merry-go-round.  There was another interesting building which was called the Rusa.  I also finally got a good shot of the TV Tower and some of the mountain homes.  I also got a video of the view of Barcelona from the mountain top.  It's easy to see we were a lot higher than when we were on Montjuic.  

When we got back to the 17 bus stop, there were a bazillian kids who had just gotten out of school.  Apparently, when school lets out is not the time to be in that neighborhood, because a lot of the parents drive there to pick up their kids and they just park wherever they feel like it and traffic is backed up for blocks, including the busses.  We decided to skip the first bus, and then decided to walk a bit further, before boarding the bus severtal stops later.  

Dinner at La Taverna d'en Pep.  We both had the Filet de boeuf au grill.  It was not the best cut of beef, but it was okay.  The wine, chosen by the waiter/owner, was an excellent red.

1 Octobre (Viernes) - It looked somewhat ominous this morning, but we decided since we only have a couple days left, we would brave the elements.  Happily, it was a really nice day.  

We hopped aboard the 157 bus and rode to Plaça España.  The first thing we noticed was the flags draped across the street, indicating the possibility of some sort of holiday doings, but we saw nothing special until several hours later when we saw the Spanish Air Force planes flying about.

Once we got to Plaça España, we checked out the monument in the square, and the two buildings on either side of the esplanade leading up to the MNAC (Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya).  I think you can get an idea of how high it is to the museu, but the good news for people like me, is that there are escalators all the way to the top.  The museu used to be a palace and you can can still see some of the grandeur even though it has been modernized.  After free entrance because we're seniors, we toured several sections, finding works by Rodin ad Picasso (from his cubist period) and after several hours, made our way back down to the bus stop.

See all the Plaça España pictures. 

I wanted to see Torre Agbar at night because I had seen pictures of it and it was all lit up and it changed colors ad it was beautiful.  But it wasn't like that tonight.  So we wasted a lot of time riding over there and then riding back.

We had dinner again at Dunne's.  We both had the filet mignon.  It was great.  Robb drank a Heineken's and I had a glass of red wine.  We later switched to cava. 

2 Octobre (Sabado) - Our last full day in Barcelona.  By noon, I had packed everything except the things I need for today and tomorrow.  Of course, with all the buying, we needed another suitcase.  

We took our last bus ride in Barcelona on the number 45 and saw a section of the city we had not see before.

The owner is supposed to show up tonight for the final negotiations.  We're very curious about how that's going to go, since it was her blocking outgoing calls that stopped us from getting on the internet.  It's possible we'll discuss breach of contract.   P.S. She didn't show.

We had planned to have our last dinner at Como, but it was closed, so we walked up to l'arros.  Robb had the tuna and I had the dorade.  Excellent as usual.  While we were eating, a young couple from Ohio sat next to us.  Robb's bus ticket still had about forty rides and is good until 10 Octobre, so we gave it to them.  Then, we had a very nice chat until it was time for us to go for what we thought was our last meeting with the owners, but as I already stated they didn't show and called to say they "couldn't make it".  

You have no idea how happy we will be to see the end of this apartment. 

You can see all the Barcelona pictures here: Barcelona

Hasta la próxima, amigos.

Barcelona-6

20 Septiembre (Lunes) - We hailed a taxi and rode to the police station on Nou de la Rambla, which of course, confuses the hell out of the taxi drivers, most of them want to take us to La Rambla.  The guy we got this morning knew exactly where to go.  It was basically a wasted trip because Robb had forgotten his passport.  But the good news is that if he gets the police report, he'll have no problem getting a new drivers license, so it looks like we'll be going back tomorrow.

After our rather pleasant visit with the Policia, I wanted to walk at least part of the way back because there are a lot of interesting things to see along the route.  For instance the Portal de Santa Madrona.  We were so close to the Torre Jaume I, that we postulated walking over there but decided it would not be a good idea.  We rounded the corner where we were faced with the Aduanas Vieja, the old customs house, and a beautiful building.  Of course, we passed the Columbus columnagain and I took a shot of the bottom.  We left there and finally came to the lobster.

By this time, we had walked almost back to Passeig de Joan de Borbó.  Robb was getting hungry and wanted to make a pit-stop, so we checked out a few restaurants on the back side of the Palau de Mar.  Many of them were quite reasonable, but it seemed like the closer we got to the entrance of the museum, the higher the prices.  We decided to just walk back to the apartment.

We got there just as Susan was packing her bags to go to Mallorca.  We thought about going but decided it wasn't really worth the time and effort since there are still so many things to see here in Barcelona, and Mallorca is mostly just a beach and party place .

For dinner, we went back to Como.  We had a great Argentinian steak.  There was a decent-sized crowd tonight and of course, the beautiful jazz in the background.  

21 Septiembre (Martes) - Robb wanted to go back to the Policia to file his report and get the copy he needs to get his driver license.  We opened the door and it was pouring.  We waited awhile longer, it wasn't coming down quite so hard so we walked up and got the 57 bus to the Policia station. He was given a number and shown to the waiting area.  It was only a short wait and we were seated in front of a young guy who is only working with the police for the summer.  Normally, he is a ski instructor in the Pyrenées, to which he'll return in November.  By the time we left, the sun had decided to join us.

From in front of the Teatre Apolo, we caught the 36 bus back to the Barceloneta and the apartment.

We rested a bit and walked to the mercat to buy a couple of items (OJ, a snack and tea for Robb).  Then we stopped atFogons for a glass of wine and some olives and to enjoy sitting in the square.  We were approached twice by the same guy begging for money.  He was chased away by the manager, but not before getting in a few choice words of his own. 

Dinner at La Taverna.  I had a steak, Robb had a fish....a whole fish.  Then we had a great dessert of peach halves, flan and strawberry sorbet.  Of course, we drank cava. 

22 Septiembre (Miércoles) - After Robb did some laundry, we caught the 17 bus with the intent of finally seeing Casa Mila, or La Pedrera as it's now known.  We weren't exactly certain about where to get off, but as soon as I saw an obvious Gaudi building, we disembarked.  It was indeed, a Gaudi building, but it was Casa Batllò, not Casa Mila.  As I've already stated, I'm not a Gaudi fan.  I appreciate his talent and artistic ability, but his ideas are a little too far out for me.  I think I prefer the style of the building just next door to Casa Batllò.

We were going to catch the 17 back to Plaça Catalunya to go to Celio, but after walking only a block, I realized we were within walking distance, and as it turned out, the 17 doesn't come back that way anyway.  Along our walk, we passed another great looking building, another fountain, a Wallace fountain (you remember them from Paris) and the Teatre Comedia.

We made our way to Celio, passing many great shops.  When we got to Celio, Robb found his perfect light jacket almost immediately.  He made his purchase and we walked over to La Rambla where we got the 59 back to the Barceloneta. 

Toight we had dinner at l'arròs.  We both had the paella with chicken, artichokes ad mushrooms.  Very good.  For dessert, Robb had a tartelette and I had cheesecake with raspberry sauce. 

23 Septiembre (Jueves) - We've been without an internet connection since Wednesday night, and the owner's mother just died, so we don't know when we'll be back online. 

Last night, I asked our waiter if he knew which bus to take to get to Torre Agbar.  I already knew the 7 bus went past it, but in order to get the seven, we would have to take the 17 across town.  I washoping there was something a little closer.  He didn't have any idea, but asked his manager, who said we should take the 36, which we could catch locally.

Today, we walked up and got on the 36, but I could tell almost immediately, that it was going in the wrong direction.  That was confirmed when Robb asked the driver.  But not all was lost because the 36, once it turned, headed in the right direction, and in fact, passed within a few blocks of the torre.  But the driver told Robb he would drop us off at the best place to get the number 7 which would go right past the torre.  So, we got off the 36 and picked up the 7 just across the street.

We rode the 7 to within a couple blocks of the torre and got off, which was a happy accident, because we discovered a huge shopping center, Glories.  The first thing we saw was PC City.  Then we noticed a Pull and Bear, as well as another Springfield.  There was a huge Burger King in one of the other buildings (each having at least three levels) that comprised the shopping complex.

We left there and resumed walking towards Torre Agbar.  We came to a bus stop ad thought we might ride the 7 to Casa Mila, but even when we were the first to reach the stop, by the time the bus arrived, there were a dozen or more people waiting.  We decided to bite the bullet and get a taxi.

After returning to the apartment, Robb decided he needed some Pepcid and I figured as long as we were going to a farmacia, I might as well get some codeine tablets which you can easily purchase over-the-counter with no prescription, 

We were lucky enough to have dinner on the Borbó, at Toc de Mar, during the Fiesta de Barcelona, which will last from Thursday (Jueves) through Sunday (Domingo).  Sadly, we were a little late to experience all the festivities, but fortunately, we have three more days in which to enjoy it.  

24 Septiembre (Viernes) - We were determined to see La Pedrera, so we took the long way around by getting the 36 bus across town to pick up the tram.  We rode the tram to the end and back, where we picked up the 7 bus to the Casa Mila.  The funny thing was, there was a neat building just across the street and I was totally distracted by that and we missed our stop.  We had to walk back several blocks.  Unfortunately, I had my camera set on video and instead of getting pictures of all the cool stuff I saw, I got tiny little videos.  So I guess we're going to have to make the trip again, which is okay because I wanted to go to Tibidabo anyway.

After checking out Casa Mila, we caught the 17 bus and rode to the end of the line, where we saw what we think is the funicular to Tibidabo.  Both the tram ride and the bus ride, showed us sections of the city we had not seen before in our travels.

We were gettig ready to go to dinner when Susan called.  She had returned from Mallorca.  We waited for her and then went to dinner again at l'arros.  

25 Septiembre (Sabado) - A very strange day.  The owner finally called to say that someone from the internet company would be out today, but they didn't give her a time, so we began our wait.  In the meantime, Susan (who will be going back to Frankfurt on Sunday) was out all day doing things she needed to get done.  One of those was to get more money, but when she put her card into the ATM, it ate it.  She left to find an internet cafe around five-ish.

The internet guy showed up around 18h30, as we had just about given up hope of him showing up at all today.  He spent quite a while checking it out and then informed us that it would be Monday morning around 09h00 before we would be back online.  Robb said from his conversation with his office, that it sounded like the owner had not paid her bill.  We shall see how that works out.

We were both hungry from having sat around the place all day without eating, and went to dinner a little earlier than usual.  We went to Ca La Montse where we had patates bravas and mejilleines mariere. 

We were barely finished our café, when we heard the fireworks....again.  We saw several hundred people literally running to get to the beach in time to watch.  Within a few minutes, we were among the throng.  We didn't go all the way to the beach, but we got close enough to get some nice video of the  show.     

26 Septiembre (Domingo) - Susan and Robb were up long before me.  They were supposed to be going to the New Orleans Coffee Shop, but when I got there, it was closed.  On a hunch, I walked around to the other side of the Mercat and found them at one of the cafés there.  Susan went back to the apartment to pack, Robb and I sat at the café a while longer, then we also returned. 

We had decided to catch the 17 bus back to Casa Mila so I could redo the pictures I had screwed up the other day.  We did.  The thing about the 17 is that it doesn't come back down Passeig de Gràcia, it goes a different route.  If you want to return on the 17, you have to either walk down to Plaça Catalunya, or catch the 17 and ride it to the end, which is not such a bad option because you get to see a lot of the city that most tourists will never experience.  

I got a few pictures of the houses and apartments on the hills at the edge of the city, as well as a quick shot of the Rotonda, a sculpture that looks deer-like and a not-so-great shot of a small gas station.  

On the way back to the Barceloneta, we got off to check on whether or not Dunne's Irish Pub will be open on Monday.  It will, and we will have dinner there tomorrow night.  We actually got off a couple stops too early, but walking to the pub, we discovered the Roman ruins of Barcelona. We will try to go there tomorrow, also.  Just outside the ruins (though they don't look that ruined to me) was a statue of Ramon Berengyer.  

We got back to the apartment around five.  Susan had finished her packing and had prepared a little appreciation snack for us which included a bottle of cava....of course.

After the snack, we walked her up to Passeig de Joan de Borbó where she caught a taxi to the airport.   

We returned to the apartment and hung out till dinner time, which was a little earlier because I wanted to video the fireworks.  It was quite cool and very windy.  After sitting on the beach until after 22h00, we determined that there probably weren't going to be any fireworks because of the wind, and started back to the apartment.  Suddenly, we heard the boom and saw the fireworks.  They had faked us out and the fireworks were happening at the marina.  We said the hell with it and went home. 

You can see all the Barcelona pictures here: Barcelona

Hasta la próxima, amigos. 

Barcelona-5

17 Septiembre (Viernes) - We walked over to the Palau de Mar to get the 19 bus to the Picasso Museum.  According to the bus route map, the bus is supposed to stop right in front of the place, but we saw nothing to indicate there was a bus stop.  I thought we could just wait until the bus showed up, but then the rain began falling.  It was already cold, so we just said the hell with it and returned to the apartment.  Hopefully, the weather will clear up later.

So much for that theory.  Not only did it not clear up, it actually got worse.

We were sitting in the apartment watching rac105, the local version of MTV which plays mostly videos in English, when we heard really loud drums.  I looked out the door but could see nothing.  Robb and I grabbed our umbrellas and walked down to the corner.  There in the alley between Chito's and Como, was a group of about seven or eight young boys playing drums in the rain.  They had drawn quite crowd.

We were just about to have dinner in the apartment when the rain let up a little and we made our way down to Como.  There were only two people there and they were just drinking.  We were warmly greeted by the waitress, a young girl from Italy who only spoke rudimentary Spanish.  We ordered a white wine and she brought one from Penedés.  We were wondering if it was made by Torres under a different name because it cost less.  Whatever, it was good.  We both chose the €19.90 menu. My first course was Ensalada de Queso de Craba, which was a green salad with cheese, sunflower seeds and toast.  Robb had fried mozzarella.  Our second course was Pollo al Curry (curried chicken).  The third course, dessert, was a chocolate mousse with ice cream.  Everything was absolutely delicious.  There is no doubt we WILL return.

By the time we left, the rain had stopped.  We're hoping for a nice day tomorrow, but they are predicting another day like today.

18 Septiembre (Sábado) - It was another cloudy, cool day, but at least it was dry.

We once again tried to find the bus stop for the 19 near the Palau de Mar.  We once again failed.  We took a taxi to the Picasso Museum where we met Susan.  I'm not a big fan of Picasso, but the buildings in which the museum is housed are fantastic.  Of course, the public isn't allowed to wander about, so we didn't get to see the really neat stuff.  We checked out his early period when he was an actual painter, then Robb and I went down to the museum restaurant for a snack and some cava.  Susan went through the whole collection.

It did rain while we were in the museum, but had stopped by the time we left. 

Afterward, I was determined to find a 19 bus stop and did.  Susan went back to her hotel to get her stuff and will be moving back in with us.  We had to wait a good while for the 19 to arrive and discovered it doesn't go anywhere near what the route map indicates.  Así es la vida. 

Susan went to some kind of dance show with people she met in her travels about the city.  Robb and I went to dinner atSegons Mercat.  I ordered three things from the tapas menu, Robb had a salad.  Luckily for me, they only brought two of the things I ordered because I could not even eat all of that.   We did, however, manage to each consume four glasses of cava.  When we were nearly finished, a group of six Americans entered. Good grief, they were so loud.  My major complaint about the Spanish has been that they are so loud.  What a noise would have been created if a group of Spaniards had joined the Americans.  And just to make things unbearable, throw in a group of Italians.  That would be enough noise to level the building. 

19 Septiembre (Domingo) - I started my day by walkig up to the alimentacio and buying a liter of milk.  Have I ever mentioned how much I love the milk in Europe?  It's so much creamier and richer tasting.

Another observation.  Elsewhere in the world, when two dogs meet they give each other a little 'sniff' and move on.  I Spain, when two dogs meet, they want to kill each other.

Robb and I hopped aboard the 59 bus to Plaça Cataluya where we hopped aboard the 55 bus and rode to the Funicular of Montjuic.  We paid our fare and rode up to the castle.  It's a great ride from which you can see the whole of Barcelona and the Mediterranean Sea spread out before you. Including a view of the Barceloneta where we're staying.  After getting to the top, it's still a pretty good walk and it's all uphill.  The castle isn't really much to see, and is actually kind of small as castles go, so it's basically the views (which you already got on the funicular).  There is one view that you can only get once inside the castle.  It's what I assume were the baths.  But if you're not the curious type, you most definitely will miss it, because first you have to enter what appears to be a display featuring pictures depicting the various periods in the history of the castle.  But if you walk to the end of the display and happen to glance to the left, you will see a tiny little passageway which leads to another tiny passageway at the end of which is a glass partion that permits you to look down into the pool.  One thing I really liked was the poster for the prediction of the Barcelona population in 2020.  

But the weather was great and I would say it's absolutely worth the trip.

On the way home, we stopped, got a gelato and listened to a South America band,Los Andes.  I liked their music and bought a CD.  

Before we left for the castle, Susan, Robb and I had made a tentative plan to have a picnic dinner at the Magic Fountain in the evening, so after we got back to the apartment, we rested for a couple of hours and then set out.  

We walked up to the metro station at Plaça de Pau Vila, caught the Line 4 to Urguinaona, where we got the Line 1 to Plaça España.  When you get up to the surface, the National Museum of Art of Catalunya (a worthwhile destination in its own right) is directly in front of you up the hill.  Near the bottom of the hill, is the Magic Fountain of Montjuic, our destination.  

There are always a bazillion people at the Magic Fountain, but it's worth the trouble.  We somehow managed to find a spot on the wall, set out our picnic regalia and enjoyed the show.  I've seen many videos of the Magic Fountain but they cannot possibly show the majesty of this fantastic fountain.  Each show is different and you would have to spend the night there to see all of them, so people were constantly coming and going.  We could see a lot of them looking at us and thinking to themselves that they, too, should have thought of having a picnic.  Or maybe it was the cava we were drinking.We sat through several shows, our favorite being the one that featured the music of Rodrigo.  

When we decided to leave, Robb discovered his wallet was missing.  He and Susan think he was robbed, but I believe he just lost it.  We all trudged to the Police station which was an exercise in futility because they told us to come back tomorrow.  Needless to say, poor Robb is in a state of shock.

You can see all the Barcelona pictures here: Barcelona

Hasta la próxima, amigos.  

Barcelona-4

13 Septiembre (Lunes) -The workers showed up around 10h00 and everyone for several blocks around knew they were here.

Robb and Susan took his jeans to the alteration place around 11h00.  When they came back, we walked up to a pharmacia, but they didn't have the medicine Susan wanted. While Susan and I were in the farmacia, Robb was checking out a jewelry store.  He was leaning over looking at something when a fat woman bumped into him.  He felt her looking for his wallet, which was not in his pocket.  He shoved his elbow into her and called her a whore (in Spanish) and she took off.

We caught the 59 bus to Plaça Catalunya, but when we got to the place where we wanted to get off, the bus kept going for several blocks. Fortunately for Robb and Susan, we got off right in front of Alt Heidelberg.  We went in, had a beer, then they decided they were hungry, so we went back, got a table and they ordered their lunch.  Robb had some kind of anchovy sandwich, Susan had what was basically a salad on bread.  I had an order of French fries.

We walked down to FNAC by way of Plaça Catalunya, where I got a couple shots of the fountains and some of the statues. In FNAC, Robb and I bought Logitech headsets with microphones because we thought we were going to be able to use Google's new phone system.  Unluckily for us, it isn't available in Europe yet.

After, we walked over to the Hard Rock Cafe.  Robb bought a T-shirt and I bought a guitar pin for my niece.  We came out and saw a guy playing a didgeridoo to a recorded disco-rock beat.  He was really very good and Robb bought one of his CDs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWnzlEWqU7c&feature=player_embedded

We walked over to get the bus and I got us on the wrong one.  But we had a nice ride, got some nice pictures and we finally got on the correct bus.

FANTASTIC!  INCREDIBLE!  MAGNIFIQUE!  I had already put the new calling equipment away, but decided what-have-I-got-to-lose and tried to call my sister in Delaware.  So-of-a-gun, it was ringing.  But no answer.  I tried my nephew.  No answer.  I was about to give it up when when I figured, what the hey, and called his cell number.  It rang three times and his wife answered.  We chatted for awhile, bringing each other up to date.  I couldn't believe it!  I actually, called someone in the US on my laptop.  And the connection was crystal clear.  And best of all....FREE!  Look out Skype.  Watch your back cell phone rip-offs.  Just to be sure it wasn't a fluke, I let Susan call her friend in California.  Same result; three or four rings, the party answers and the call is crystal clear and FREE!  But cannot make European calls....yet.

It was getting late (after 21h30) so we all trekked to Can Ganassa for dinner, but it was closed.  We walked the two blocks to Passeig de Joan de Borbó and walked along eliminating the available possibilities until we came to Toc de Mar.  We wanted to sit outside, but there were no empty tables, so we sat inside and the waiter promised to call us when a table opened outside.  We ordered the wine, olives and some kind of sauce that Susan knew about which we put on the warm bread they waiter brought.  All of it was great.  We had almost finished our first glass of wine, when the waiter took us out to our table. There was a guy and girl at the next table, smoking away.  They were from England.  Thankfully, they left in a few minutes and were replaced by a couple of pretty girls from Slovakia who spoke excellent English.  We ordered the rest of our dinner....octopus, cod croquettes, mussels and salad.

14 Septiembre (Martes) - Up early at 07h30.  Susan had set up a tour of the Torres winery for whom she worked a few years ago.  The car they sent to pick us up arrived about a half hour early.  Neither Susan nor Robb was ready.

The ride was a great experience in its own right and we saw a lot of the Spanish countryside between Barcelona and Vilafranca del Penedés, including a cemetary built on the side of a hill.  It was huge and I'm sure if we had stopped for a look, it would have rivaled Père Lachaise in beauty.  I haven't driven on a European highway in a very long time and was surprised when Carlos, our driver, went through the toll station by using what in Florida we call a "Speed Pass".  We started somewhat slowly, but it wasn't long before Carlos was doig well over a hundred+ kilometers per hour.

The Torres winery is famous enough to be listed on the road signs (Bodegues Torres) we passed long before we were actually close to it.  We figured we were getting near when we saw the Torres Visites sign.  We passed a stone marker at which Carlos stopped and made a point of having us look at it.  I'm still not sure why.

We were greeted inside the very modern visitor center by Alberto, who would be our guide for the day and someone with whom Susan had worked.

We were ushered into a small movie theater in which we watched a fifteen minute movie about the history of the company.  Then we went into another room that simply blew my mind.  We were standing on one side of the room while a film was shown on the other wall.  And the the most amazing show began.  We could smell the rain.  We could smell the grapes as they were picked.  We could smell the wine in the various stages of its development.  It was just amazing.

After that great show, we boarded a tour train and rode through the vineyards.  Alberto and we got off the train while it, and the other visitors, continued on their way.  We walked and walked while Alberto kept up a running dialogue about what we were seeing and how it fit into the process of making wine.  We saw, and tasted, grapes that were just picked, beingdumped into a machine that separated the grapes from the leaves and stems.  We saw huge storage tanks that were turnedautomatically to rid the wine of sediment.  We saw tanks that could hold 500, 000 liters of wine.

We walked through a museum in which they had a vintage Renault as well as wine casks and jugs from Italy and Greece that were over two thousand years old.

On the way to the wine tasting, we passed a fig tree on which the fruit was just getting ripe and I had my first "I picked it off the tree myself" fresh fig.  I thought I knew how figs taste, but this was unbelievably better.

Then we went to the company owned restaurant where we tasted ten very good wines, the last one of which sells for $190 per bottle.

After that, we walked around the corner to the dining room.  Susan was almost in tears when she saw they had put her name at the top of the day's menu.  The first course was two kinds of bread with olive oil and the end of the expensive bottle of wine.  The second course was a green salad with tuna, we were served a white wine.  The main course was sirloin with a fantastic morille sauce and a very nice red wine.  Then, of course, the cheese with red wine.  Dessert (of which I did not get a picture) is difficult to describe.  Imagine a créme brulée.  Now partially freeze it so that only the center is frozen. Served with a red wine.  The dinner table after the meal was loaded with glasses, some not quite empty.

During the course of the meal, we were greeted by several members of the Torres family, including the current head of the family, Don Miguel, the picture was taken by one of the kitchen staff.

Our tour ran over the normal time length and after receiving some parting gifts (wine of course), we said our goodbyes and hit the road back to Barcelona.  Carlos drove us through the town of Vilafranca del Penedés instead of retracing our morning route.

Here are all the Torres photos.

We returned to the apartment very happy campers, but totally exhausted,  We all slept for awhile.

15 Septiembre (Miércoles) - Robb and Susan were up bright and early.  They went out to get coffee and a croissant.  I barely had my eyes open, but while they were gone, I got up, took a shower and did all the usual morning stuff.  I had just thrown on a pair of shorts when I heard a commotion right outside the window, so I had a look.  It was the city street cleaners.

Robb and Susan were gone longer than I expected because after their breakfast, they went shopping.  Robb came back to the apartment, while Susan went on to a museum.  After Robb tried on his new shorts, we walked up to the Palau de Mar and the Museu d'História de Catalunya.  The entrance fee is €4 for the permanent collection, or €5 if you want to see the special show.  We paid the extra €1 for Robb, I got in for free because I'm a senior.

It was a great exhibit, but the permanent show is really the star of the museum.  It starts at the very beginning ofCatalunya and takes you right through to today.  Some highlights were fortress models, ships with oars, a cannon, a castle, the King's tent when they were in the field, and a primitive dwelling.  I also liked the vintage Seat 600, one of the first cars produced in Europe in the sixties.  After the tour, we went up to the fourth floor restaurant for a 'quick snack', where we got a great view of the marina at Port Vell.

Things got a little crazy when we all lost sight of each other.  Somehow Robb got the idea that Susan and I had left, and he walked back to the apartment.  We spent quite a while looking for him before I finally got through to him on the phone.

Around 18h00, we walked down to the New Orleans Tea and Coffee shop.  We chose a seat on the terrace and had a coffee. We sat there for an hour or so just enjoying the beautiful weather, the beautiful atmosphere and the beautiful people.

16 Septiembre (Jueves) - The dust in the apartment was bothering Susan and keeping her up most of the night, which of course, meant that we were kept up most of the night.  Last night, she called a hotel, gathered some of her things, then she and Robb walked up to the Borbó where she got a taxi.  She is supposed to come back today to pick up the rest of her stuff.

My observation about the stink we smell quite often in the Barceloneta turned out to be wrong.  We were in another section of the city and the smell assaulted us there also.

Robb and I walked up, caught the 59 bus to Plaça Catalunya, crossed through the plaza where we got a good look at Catalana Occident, the Russian-like building next to it and El Corte Ingles, the major Spanish department store.
  

We entered the store, looked around a bit and then, because it was about 14h00, went up to the ninth floor restaurant from which I got several nice shots, including this one of the plaza.  For lunch, Robb ordered prawns and I ordered a lentil salad. We drank Torres Viña Sol, a very nice white wine.

Susan called while we were out and suggested we meet at her hotel to see a flamenco show, but of course, by the time we answered, she had moved to another hotel and no longer wanted to go to the show.

We met her at her new hotel, the Rialto near city hall and went to dinner at a place just a door or two down the street.  It was a good meal.  They both had monkfish and I had braised oxtail. We drank Cava, of course.

Robb and I got a taxi.  We had only gone a few blocks when I realized the guy was going in the wrong direction.  He didn't have a clue where he was going and ended up charging us twice as much as the ride should have cost.  We reluctantly paid him and realized our opinion of Barcelona taxi drivers has forever changed.  How very sad.

You can see all the Barcelona pictures here: Barcelona

Hasta la próxima, amigos.