Barcelona   October        Sights and Sounds of Barcelona

A little history concerning Barcelona:
The Laietana people were living here when the Romans came and drove them into 
the hills. (The only reminder is a street named after the Laietanas, which runs 
parallel to the Ramblas)  When the Arabs came, they gave the city a character 
that has distinguished the Catalans from other Spaniards to this day.  Then in 
950, the Moors came and you can still see their influence in the city.  Because 
of these influences and the fact that this part of Spain shared a language with 
the French at one point, the city has many different styles of architecture and 
the language that is different from the rest of Spain.

On Oct. 8th, we went with Linda and Don on Glen Farr to Tarragona (town south 
of Barcelona).  We rode our bikes to the Sants Train Station and got on the car 
for bikes.  We got off and seemed to ride up hill the whole day, but the views 
were worth it!!!  We visited the Roman ruins, the Cathedral and of course 
sampled the food.

A Catalan writer said that Barcelona was "The City of Marvels" and it is very 
true!!! 
Geri Allan came to visit us from October 16th to the 22nd to see some of these 
marvels.  Although it rained off and on the whole time she was here, we did get 
a couple of beautiful clear days where we had some great views.  After Geri 
arrived, we went to the Women's Get Together and met some cruisers who just 
came to spend the winter and some cruisers who have been here for three or four 
years.   Then we took a Tourist Bus ride around the city.  After our ride, we 
decided to walk down the Ramblas to see the human statues and the famous market 
before going back to the boat.

 The next day we went to see Casa Mila, Casa Batllo, Casa Morera, Fundacio 
Tapies.  Antoni Gaudi designed most of these apartments.  We were both very 
impressed and learned a great deal about how he brought nature into the design 
of his work for structure and esthetics.  On Saturday, October 18th, we had an 
all day watercolor class with Christina. (I have been taking oil painting 
lessons with Andres for the past several weeks as well, learning about light, 
color and shadows)  On this day we learned about seeing color and light and 
drawing an object through an artist eye. We also had a wonderful four-course 
lunch prepared by Chris's husband John.  Not only was his presentation 
impressive, but the food also tasted fantastic!!  That night we went to see the 
beautiful and musical Magic Fountain and then ate at a Tapas Bar. (Food is 
served with toothpicks and the toothpicks are counted to figure out the bill!!) 
 We walked back to the boat so we wouldn't feel so guilty eating so much food.

Since it looked like rain, there was no bike ride on Sunday so Geri and I went 
to the Chocolate Museum.  There were just about anything and everything made 
out of chocolate including Cathedrals, toys, cartoon characters and models of 
many of Gaudi's works.  We bought some samples to eat on the way and to take 
back to the boat!!!  We visited the Cathedral of Barcelona and then walked down 
Via Laietana.

It was a clear day on Monday so we went to visit the Sagrada Familia, Palau de 
La Musica Catalana and we then went to the top of Tibidabo for a fantastic 
view.  On Tuesday we went on the Cable Car ride, which travels over some of the 
city, and since we were near Poble Espanyol we visited it.  This is a village 
to show the different types of architecture and many of the crafts of the city. 
 We watched glass blowing, structures welded out of metal, pottery making, 
weaving and glassmaking.  We then took a couple of buses to Parc Guell where 
Guell hired his friend Gaudi to build structures on his grounds to show his 
affluence until his money ran out. (not kidding!!)  Then the city took over and 
it is now a public park.

On Wednesday, Geri went back to the states after a very short and busy week.  
I think she saw more in the week than most people see in three!!!  We didn't 
even scratch the surface of what to see in Barcelona, just most of the " must 
sees." 

Barcelona is like any big city where you have good and bad.  So far we have 
experience the good…good people, good food, fantastic sights and good 
transportation.  I seem to be blending in since I often get stopped on the 
street and asked in Spanish for directions or in the grocery store for asking 
about where an item is, which I am no help.  However, when women ask me about 
bus stops, I understand enough to help them.  The bad side of Barcelona is the 
pick pocketing.  One of the cruisers had some friends visit and the couple were 
pick pocketed three times in 30 hours…..they were left with no money, no credit 
cards and no passports.  Another cruiser who has been here for three years, was 
pick pocketed on the train.  They are very accomplished pickpockets here in 
Barcelona having at least three to five people working as a team.  We have a 
list of 12 schemes they seemed to have developed over the years and hope we 
never get to be one of their victims!! 

I guess I should have hoped a little harder.  Yesterday, October 30th, our 
tire was slashed while we were at a light.  We didn't realize it right away.  
We stopped the car out of the way of traffic and Ray and Frieda from Arabelle 
who were with us, helped us change the tire.  The scam is to make the car 
immobile and then when the victims get out of the car to see what is wrong, 
steal all their possessions.  They look for foreign plates (we have UK plates). 
 Since no one was hurt and nothing was taken, we felt lucky except for the cost 
of a new tire!!!

Happy Halloween everyone…..
Adios…..