Barcelona, a trip back to memory lane!

15/08/13 on our way towards Basque country

Just a few weeks before me and Tania were counting down the days for our big trip towards Asia, my TravBuddy got the news she had to go to a management meeting in Barcelona on the 17th of August. Thinking this would be a nice opportunity to see the city as well, she asked me to tag along and of course … I don’t say no to something like that!

Since the 15th of August is a public holiday in our country, I only had to ask one day off from work and the minute I’ve got a positive answer, we could begin to plan the whole thing.

For me this was a nice opportunity to see the city once again. 20 years ago, I visited this place while I was in high school and nowadays I just have a vague remembrance of it all.

I was happy to see that the days went by so very fast since our homecoming of Vietnam, that before even realizing it, I was on my way to Hemiksem.

The plan was to spend the night before our leave towards sunny Spain at Tania’s apartment since I didn’t like the idea of getting up in the middle of the night and drive all sleepy towards the airport.

My alarm clock went off at 6.30 AM and although I was still a little bit drowsy, I managed to get dressed and after a quick breakfast we were on our way towards Brussels.

The good thing about being early on a public holiday is the fact that you have the road almost to yourself and with the very good guidance of Tania, who is an excellent GPS by the way, we managed to arrive at the airport in no-time!

As soon as I found a space to park my car, we just needed to take our bags and then it was off to customs. Since we’ve already had our boarding passes, we could relax and enjoy our traditional cup of coffee at Starbucks.

It was almost 9 AM when we could look up the right gate and in a slow pace we walked towards our designated gate. There were already lots of people waiting in line, but to our surprise, there was no plane in sight. It looked like we weren’t going to leave on time, that’s for sure! 

Luckily for us, we weren’t in such a hurry or in need to get another plane towards a final destination, so for the first time in a while we just relaxed. To be honest, it’s a nice feeling for once, to be without stress and certainly today because we are flying to the sun, what better way to bring a smile on one’s face!

About half an hour later our plane suddenly arrived. We had to wait a few minutes till everyone was out of the plane and then it was our turn. I always assumed they cleaned a plane before the next group of passengers got on board, but obviously not with Vueling. It was loading and unloading so to speak.

It took a while for everyone to get to their seat, but as soon as that was over and done with, we could finally leave or so we thought!?

Since a couple of days, the airport has some maintenance works on one of the runways, so this meant a delay of a few minutes. To me it seemed like we were never going to leave, but as soon as I heard the noise and feel the accelerated speed, I knew that it was our time to leave … finally!

The flight from Brussels to Barcelona was going to take about 1h35 minutes, that’s not such a long time if you consider all the long-haul flights we had the last half year.

While Tania tried to sleep a bit, I decided to look up some points of interest we needed to see while we were in the city.

I don’t remember all that much of my first visit to this city except for the most famous church “La Sagrada Familia” and the most busy street “La Rambla”. That’s not much of course, but keep in mind that I was only 17! My main interest at that time was to do as many sneaky things as possible and I do have found memories of them!

Although we had a delay of more than half an hour, we still managed to be quite on schedule upon arrival. We didn’t have to wait for our bags to arrive because we only had hand luggage and in no-time we found our transportation towards the city centre. This was going to be a piece of cake!

The airport bus dropped us off at the Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, the same street our hotel was in, it seemed we were only minutes away from getting there. While we were walking, we passed upon a small thingy called “Pasteleria Escriba”, which is obviously famous for its chocolate and small pastries. One look at the counter made us feel hungry so we went inside and ordered a ham and cheese toast, after all, we hadn’t eaten a thing besides breakfast this morning and it was already way past 12 AM.

It didn’t take too long for our food to arrive, but to our surprise, it was quite cold and although the bread was toasted, the ham and cheese looked like they came straight out of the cooler. Not the best ham and cheese toast I have eaten, but I was glad to have something in my stomach, so … I didn’t complain all that much.

After our quick lunch, we walked for another hundred meters or so when we suddenly noticed our hotel. It seemed we were closer than we initially thought. Check-in went very smoothly and the people behind the desk where more than friendly. They even gave us information of the local festivities going on. How nice is that!

Our room isn’t all that big, with just twin beds and a small bathroom, but it was clean and for me that’s the most important thing.

Because Tania wasn’t feeling all that well, we decided to have a small siesta of our own. Only a few days back, she was diagnosed with having an immune disease which is treatable, but she still needs to adjust to the medication. For the next couple of months, she has to take things slow, so that is just what we are going to do!

It’s already 3 PM when we wake up again and because of the hot temperatures outside, we quickly change into other clothes and together with a pair of sandals we are good to go and ready to see the city.

We walked all the way towards Catalonia Square and from here it is just a few meters to “La Rambla”, the most busy street of the whole of Barcelona. I remember the place from way back and things haven’t changed one bit. It is still overcrowded and lots of people still try to sell souvenirs and other clutter, the most annoying of them all being some kind of bird whistle which is hidden in once mouth. From the moment we walked on the Rambla all the way till the end of it, you hear that annoying sound and I was more than ready to hit some of the vendors who try to sell that stupid thing. It was just unbelievable and it surely “bruised” my happy atmosphere for a bit!

At the end of the Rambla, we took a rest and had a drink at one of the many terraces. We had a nice view on all the painted artists and I must say I admire their perseverance. I couldn’t do that and especially not with this hot weather!

From here we walked towards the harbor and the shopping mall Maremagnum. This was all new to me and we were even surprised to see the shops open for business because just like in our country, it is a public holiday today. Talking about a stroke of luck!

We had a quick look at a few shops and found something interesting, but not enough to buy already, that’s for the second round!

Once back outside, we noticed the Golden Arches and hey, they are always good for an ice cream especially when you have high temperatures like we do at the moment. While Tania took a seat at the outside terrace, I managed to get us a cold threat as quickly as possible. There were so many people inside and I just hoped that this has something to do with being a public holiday, otherwise I feel sorry for the employees of that place!

We walked further along the water and discovered a few selling markets and not soon after, we even found the beach … with thousands of people on it.

The sun was still shining very brightly, even at this evening hour and from the distance we noticed an interesting construction of something that looked like a fish, so we went further down the boulevard to have a closer look. It was already quite late when we arrived at the “sculpture” and walking all the way back to the city centre was out of the question, so we tried to look for the closest metro station and for a bite to eat as well.

Tania needed to take her medication on time, so we decided to take our chances on a small diner which offered a pasta menu for little money. It looked promising, but as soon as Tania’s lasagna and my cannelloni arrived, we were more than aware, that we were screwed so to speak. If you can say one thing …. it was eatable, but that’s about it!

Still craving for something sweet, we got out at the metro station Jaume I, which was in the middle of the Gothic Quarter or old town of Barcelona and luck was on our side this time because we found a small pastry shop with more than delicious things behind the counter. We gave the “palmier” a try.

This is a puff pastry with sugar on both sides and then put in the oven to bake … yummylicious to say the least. For once we were in luck with the choice of food and I hoped that this would continue throughout our trip.

It was already starting to get real dark now and we slowly found our way from the old town to the Passeig de Colon when all of a sudden Tania receives a phone call from her boss in London, who asked us to join her for dinner. We had to refuse her offer as we already had dinner earlier this evening and as Tania was getting tired (and me as well) after such a long day, we told her we had breakfast with her in the morning.

We walked back towards the hotel in a slow pace and after a refreshing shower, it was time to hit the sack. We were both completely knackered.

16/08/13 a fairy tale capital

Yesterday evening we set our alarm clock at 8 AM just in case we would sleep through the morning, but surprisingly enough that didn’t happen at all. I slept quite all right, but not thanks to the very thin walls of the room. At a given point I even thought it was raining outside, but it was just someone taking a shower in one of the other rooms. Every time that someone walked through the corridors, you had the idea that they walked straight into your room … scary thought actually!

Not yet quite awake by the noise of our alarm clock, me and Tania snoozed for a little while longer. The idea we had to get up to have breakfast with Tania’s boss didn’t sound all that appealing to us, but there is not so much we could do about it, after all, a promise is a promise.

It was almost 9 AM when we left our room, just in time to arrive at the breakfast area. Tania's boss was already up and about and after saying hi, we could finally eat something. During breakfast, which was quite fine for my basic needs, Tania got a 3rd degree interrogation about her illness and I was surprised of all the personal questions. This woman just knows no shame and I am but glad that my boss is somewhat different, although … she has her peculiarities as well!

We were a little bit worried that she was going to join us today, but luckily she had already planned a few hotel visits in the morning and of course there was another meeting for her in the afternoon. Thank you Lord!! We were just so happy to have the entire day all to ourselves.

As soon as our tummies were filled, we said goodbye to her and off we went on our day of sightseeing. Tania really wanted to see Park Guëll and since I vaguely remember being there, I was keen as well.

Walking all the way towards the park was out of the question. It was quite a distance by foot from the city centre all the way to the park and besides, why walk if you can take the subway. It took a bit of speculation which metro station was the best to get out off, since no matter where you got off, there was always a bit of walking involved. We chose for Lesseps and once above ground again, we just needed to follow the other tourists. How easy is that!

We walked a few meters more or less downhill, but once we took the street to the left called Baixada de la glorìa, we came across a steep street. With a little bit of huffing and puffing, we managed to get to the end of the street. Once passed that, it became easier and easier to go up hill. To our surprise they even put an escalator in the middle of the street, must be something they picked up from Hong Kong, whatever is the case, I am glad they put them there in the first place … no complaining here what so ever!

At the end of the street we noticed a metal staircase leading to a park which must be the famous one we were looking for, but no signs what so ever. We got inside, just like all the other tourists and followed some arrows towards a viewing point called “Túro de les tres creus”. From this big pile of stone with 3 crosses on it, we had an amazing view on the city. Being on top of the “calvari”, we saw tiny bits already of Gaudí’s creative mind and to me it looked like we were landed in some kind of fairy tale with a magic forest.

We quickly walked downhill again and although it took a bit of guessing in which direction we should go, within minutes we arrived at the top of the Square of Nature. Like hundreds of other tourists we are drawn to the colorful benches from where you have an equally nice view on the city as well as on the entrance of the park with its “gingerbread” houses.

It looked like we weren’t the only ones trying to look for a nice place to sit and relax for a while, but since time was flying, we needed to move on and in a quick tempo we discovered the Square of Nature a bit more, the columns and colors are all so nice to look at. We even saw an alien at Carob’s viaduct, I quickly took a picture of it to let everyone now that they actually DO walk amongst us!

From here we had a quick glance at the dragon and staircase and just like everyone else, we tried to take a picture of it as good as it gets, but with dozens of people standing in your way, it was a more than difficult task.

It was getting a bit too busy for the both of us and we left the park getting out at the main entrance.

Yesterday, the friendly receptionist of the hotel gave Tania a map with the location of the street festival in the Gràcia area. To us it looked real interesting and now that we are in the neighbourhood, we might as well go and have a look at it.
We were walking about half an hour when we slowly started to get hungry and once we’ve reached the main road, Torrent de l’Olla, near the street festival, we noticed a small square with equally small eateries. We gave one of them a go and tried some of the local “tapas” or small snacks like patatas bravas, croquettes with chicken in it and something fishy or should I say squid-like.

All in all they weren’t too bad and as soon as we had enough rest, we went further down the road hoping to see all the decorated streets. We had to search a bit but in the end we found them. There weren’t so many streets decorated as initially thought, but the once who were, were really a sight for the eye. At a given point we even saw a “sheep factory” and they let you show the process of making a sheep from the beginning to the end. Quite amazing when you happen to know that they all made it from plastic waste. Incredible!

Now that we were in the vicinity of the most famous church of all of Spain, we tried to walk to it as well, but not before we had a quick rest with a nice cold drink. It was nice to relax for a while because my feet were killing me, something I hadn’t experienced for quite some time now.
When we were good to go again, we walked along the Avenue Diagonal and at the corner with the Mallorca street, we took a right. After just a few minutes we arrived at a small park located at the entrance of the church. From the park you had a nice view on the “Sagrada Familia” and although I had some idea of how it looked like, I still was a bit disappointed to see all the towers in scaffolds.

Okay, I have to admit, they are working for ages at the thing, but it is time to end it now. The many scaffolds and cranes next to the building give it an ugly appearance … but that’s my opinion anyway and to tell you the truth, I was a bit disenchanted. Maybe I romanticized it too much or maybe I have to come back in another 20 years and hopefully it is finished by then … nobody knows of course!

The waiting line to get into the church was immensely long and we couldn’t be bothered to go and have a look, so instead we just took the metro station and got out again at the metro station close to the Passeig Gràcia, where we wanted to go and have a look at Casa Mila and Casa Batlló. It wasn’t hard to search for these famous houses, you just had to follow the many tourists and once you noticed the long waiting line in front of it, you know you were at the right place.

Unlike the Sagrada Familia, these houses were a delight for the eye so to speak, especially the colors of Casa batlló, I could gaze at it forever. We planned of going inside, but the line was so long and it was just too hot to stand in line and wait for more than an hour. We passed a pharmacy a while ago and noticed it was about 39° on the thermometer, that’s bloody hot if you ask me!

Seeing it is so hot, we just opted for another drink and together with a small snack, we rested for a while at one of the Spanish fastfood thingies called Pans & companies, which had a superb apple pie … it was to die for!

It was already getting late and while we slowly walking back to the Old Quarter, we passed a few shops and of course we had to go inside and have a look.

Back in the old town, we had another stroll through the many small streets and after a while we got hungry again.

Yesterday we saw a small restaurant which served paella and today we wanted to give it a try. It didn’t took us too long to find it again and as soon as we were seated and ordered a vegetables paella and some sangria, Tania replied a message to her boss.

Earlier on, she send Tania a message letting us know that she wanted to join us, but since we weren’t really in the mood for that, we ignored the message. Now that we couldn’t ignore it any longer, Tania send a reply and surprise, surprise ... she immediately rang back telling us to order a paella for her as well. It seemed we were going to be a party of three instead of two and I was a bit surprised to see that she arrived in less than half an hour later.

Although we ordered some seafood paella for her, it turned out they forgot to make it, so in the end she had to order something else which was kind of weird because just moments after they brought our food, she still had to wait for hers to arrive. Luckily she didn’t mind one bit and she told us she was happy that she wouldn’t have to have dinner all by herself, which of course is understandable.

Tania and her talked a bit about work and of course there was a lot of small talk amongst the three of us. Still craving for something sweet, we all went for the flan and although it was good, I must say that I have tasted better, but that isn’t the most important thing. In the end we all had a nice dinner and that’s the thing that counts the most.

It was already quite late when we left the restaurant and although me and Tania planned to see the water show at the Montjuic fountain, we weren’t really up for it anymore and instead the three of us just walked back to the hotel.

After showering and putting things ready for the next day it was already way past midnight, so we both called it a night.

17/08/13 all alone with more than hundred animals

Today I had the whole morning and early afternoon to myself because Tania had to go to her management meeting today. I felt so sad for her because while I could go and discover other areas of the city, she had to go to work. On the other hand, if it wasn’t for that meeting, we wouldn’t be here and I must say that I appreciate her sacrifice. I just hoped she has a good time as well, so the day wouldn’t be a complete waste of time.

We set our alarm clock at 8 again because Tania had to be in the reception area at 9 AM. This mend we could sleep in today as well, but it seemed that destiny had chosen a different path for us. We were sound asleep when all of a sudden Tania’s phone went off. All drowsy, she answers the phone only to find out it’s her boss on the other end of the line. She doesn’t understand that we are still asleep and urges Tania to get out of bed. My god, it is only 7.30 AM, what’s wrong with that lady! As soon as Tania ends the conversation, we snooze a little while longer till it is actually time to get up.

Both feeling like a couple of zombies, we got dressed and went on our way towards the breakfast area. Tania still needed to take her medicine and couldn’t do that on an empty stomach, but she was advised by her colleague from the Barcelona office not to eat this morning. She organized everything and it looked like they were going to have some kind of brunch while having the meeting … mixing business with pleasure is always a good thing in my book!

Time flies here in Barcelona and although Tania had a quick bite to eat, it was already time for her to leave. I stayed behind to have a more extensive breakfast, but as soon as I finished my fresh fruit, it was time for me to leave as well. I wanted to go and visit the Barcelona zoo today, so being early is essential, otherwise I wouldn’t be back on time.

To my surprise, the whole bunch was still at the reception area and after saying a quick hello and goodbye to all of them, I left the hotel and went to the closest metro station Universidad. I had to get out at Arc de Triomf, which was only 3 stops and I must say that everything went very quickly. As soon as I arrived at my destination, I got pestered by a guy who was begging for money. I rudely said no to him, but he kept hassling me anyway and because of that, I walked out of the metro at the wrong exit. Instead of getting a nice view on the “Arc de triomf”, I was looking at the north train station with a small park next to it, which wasn’t all that bad either, but still!

I quickly walked a few blocks towards this monument and after a couple of minutes I arrived at the Passeig de Lluís Campagnys. Here you had an excellent view on the “arc” and I must say that the boulevard leading to the Parc de la Cuitadella, my final destination of today, wasn’t all that bad either.

Since it was still quite early, there weren’t all that many people up and about except for a few dog owners. I had a rest on one of the benches, just to have a look at the neigbourhood I was in.

The Parc de la Cuitadella is the biggest park of the city and I was eager to stroll around the area, but first there was the zoo. I was looking forward to visiting this place. I always have a special place in my heart for animals, but especially for the apes. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that we share the same ancestors, I don’t know, I just love them!

A few years back I read an old article about an albino gorilla called Snow Flake, who died in November 2003 because of skin cancer and it all happened here in the Barcelona zoo. He was the only white gorilla known in captivity or in the wild even and it goes without saying that he was the most popular animal in the whole zoo. People came from far away to see him in person. At a very young age of not more than 2 years, he was transported from Equatorial Guinea all the way to Spain after being captured while clinging to his mother’s dead body. It is such an awful story when you come to think about it. The word got out that there was a special kind of gorilla and they basically just chased a group of gorillas in the hope to find it and in the end they did, but it mend killing a whole group of beautiful animals in the process. Unfortunately the human race will never know the value of all the beauty that is around us.

Now that I read so much about “Floquet de Neu”, like the people here in Barcelona liked to call him, I wanted to see the place where he grew up and after roughly 35 years of captivity, died as well.

Upon my arrival, I was surprised to see the ticket booths still closed. It seemed I was a bit early, but I couldn’t see the opening hours anywhere. For a moment I was afraid that it wouldn’t open today, but as soon as I saw a couple of busses filled with Spanish tourists, I knew that something was about to happen and it did actually. We only had to wait for a couple of minutes and surprise, surprise, the doors opened automatically.

It seemed that both groups already had their tickets, so I was among the first ones to buy an entrance ticket. Now I just needed to hand it over to one of the staff and I could begin my discovery off all the different species housed inside this domain.

First up were the native and exotic birds and although most of them were kept in cages, it looked like they had lots of space to move around. You could even have a look at the nursery and the kitchen. Since it was still early, all the food trays were still on display and it all looked quite healthy. Next up was the gorilla exhibition and I spend quite some time here. It was nice for once to have the whole room all to yourself and learn a bit more about this amazing animal. As soon as I heard some kids yelling and shouting to their parents, I knew it was time to leave!

But unfortunately this small group seemed to follow me wherever I went. I tried to avoid them, but there was no escape possible … or so I thought. At a given point they were banging so loud on the glass window of the enclosure of the Komodo dragon, that I couldn’t let it pass. I already figured out that they were Italians and I know it was a guess whether or not they spoke English, but I took my chances and told them exactly what I thought of their behavior. Of course they ran to their mummy and daddy, but at least this dragon had some peace and quite again … for a while that is.
From here I just passed a lot of the bigger animals, like the bears, tigers and other exotic wildlife, but now that it was getting hotter and hotter, they did nothing else but look for some shade and sleep. Who could blame them!

I looked up the apes, but for some reason you couldn’t get close to them and they all stayed behind one of the many glass windows. Such a pity, because most of them were filthy and there wasn’t a good opportunity to take pictures.

As soon as a found a bar with drinks, I bought my first bottle of water, but soon many would follow. Boy, it was really hot out here and I decided to look up some shade as well. I relaxed a while at the enclosure of the pigmy hippopotamus. It was paddling in the water and I wished I could go and have a swim as well. It is such a funny animal.

But there were still so many other animals out there to see, that I needed to hurry … the giraffes and elephants were in my opinion housed in too small enclosures but as I was near the end of the trail, I saw an info about the new housing of the elephants which looked entirely different than the small thing they were in today.

It was already way past noon when I got something to eat at the Mexican restaurant. My choice of today was nachos with guacamole. Nothing to fancy, but because of the hot weather I wasn’t all that hungry anywayz … just thirsty.

At 2 PM, I was almost back at the entrance of the zoo again and bought myself an ice cream. It was more than welcome with these temperatures.

Lots of people were still going inside the zoo, but I was still wondering how the park looked like and after I finished my cold treat, it was time for a closer inspection.

I just followed the green arrows and ended up at the Parliament of Catalunya, but there was not so much going on here and I decided to walk a little further down the sand path and to my surprise, I found a big lake in the middle of the park filled with small boats and lots of ducks and geese. They were just everywhere and when I found myself a bench in the shade, I rested for a while and did some people watching.

After a while, I walked further along the lake only to discover a huge waterfall. This was just amazing and I wouldn’t have expected it here in this park. This looked like the place to be, there was an eatery and even a few artists who tried to earn a few bucks by showing their talents. It was nice to look at and I felt a bit sad that Tania had to miss all of this.

Thinking about my TravBuddy, I had a quick glance at the time only to notice that I had to go back to the hotel. We agreed to send a message when either of us was back at the room and as it was almost 3, I slowly walked back to the metro station, only to pass a few cute birds and more artists on my way.

Once back at the room, I send Tania a message and it seemed she was as good as ready with the meeting. She asked me to wait at the room and I guess I needed a siesta because I closed my eyes and oddly enough fell asleep. Maybe the heat had something to do with it. A guess about half an hour later, Tania arrived as well and had lots to talk about. Her meeting turned out quite well except for the tons of work she received and she had eaten so much delicious food, that even I started to get hungry when she summed up all these delicious things. As soon as Tania changed into another set of clothes, we were on our way again towards the Rambla. I found a small bakery halfway and bought myself a sandwich while Tania checked out the latest news on the internet with a cup of coffee.

Once back at this busy street, we decided to do some shopping and souvenir hunting and by the time we had everything we needed it was already pretty late. We wanted to go back to the Old Quarter and moreover to the same restaurant we had dinner yesterday. It was quite a walk and we passed a lot of shops and stores which needed a more closer inspection as well. When we were almost back at the cathedral, we saw a few giant figures (puppets) dancing around and we both got a bit curious. It turned out that there were festivities going on here as well and we saw some folklore dancing.

When it slowly got dark, we walked towards the restaurant and while Tania gave the chicken paella a try, I went for the meat cannelloni. For me the platter with paella was too big and I hoped that this one would be a bit smaller, but once our food arrived, I knew I was wrong. The portion was yet again huge!

We ordered some Sangria as well and this time around it was even better … maybe we are acquiring a taste for it … who knows. Although we had eaten too much, we waited a while and ordered dessert. Yesterday we tried the flan, today we took our chances with the crème Catalan and although it wasn’t too bad, I didn’t had that OMG feeling. Our caramel was even a bit burned, but hey … it’s dessert and sweet, so not a total loss.

Yesterday we didn’t had a chance to go and have a look at the magic fountain water show in Montjuïc, but today we weren’t going to let it pass.

It wasn’t far to the nearest metro station and although we had to change lines, we were at the fountains in no time. But it seemed we weren’t the only ones as well. There was a huge crowd at the premises and we tried to get as close to the fountain as possible.

We were just in time to see the last show at 11.30 PM and it was incredible to say the least. The music was great, the colors were a sight for the eye and the height of the fountain was quite amazing at a given point. After the show we walked all the way up to the national museum of Art, but it was a pity they turned of the lights. There were still a whole bunch of people sitting on the stairs of the museum. Some of them were drunk, but most of them were just listening to the music which one of the artists was playing.

We were having such a great time when all of a sudden Doom happened. Tania wanted to give some pocket money to the artist playing, when all of a sudden she noticed that her small wallet was gone. In the beginning I thought she had misplaced it, but after a few minutes it was as clear as a whistle it got stolen. Tania felt so bad about the whole thing, but there wasn’t much she could do about it. The money was gone and whoever took it, we both hoped that he/she would choke in it. I just can’t believe those people, but I am glad they just took the money and nothing more. Nowadays you hear so many weird things about people killing other people for a handful of money, so better the money than something worse.

Because we didn’t want to go back with the metro towards the hotel, we just walked the whole distance and in a way it was good we had this walk, because now we had the chance to contemplate a bit about what just happened.

We arrived back at the hotel about 1 AM and after a nice hot bath, it was more than time to hit the sack again. I was totally knackered and I wasn’t the only one, but for once luck was on our side … tomorrow (or need I say today) we could sleep late and there was no-one to bug us either!

18/08/13 quick visit to the Jew Mountain

The joy of being on holiday is to be able to sleep in as long as you possible want. In our case it was as true as it can be, but still … we wanted to see something of the city as well, so we decided to set our alarm clock at 9 AM, but if I have to be honest, it was already way past that time when we arrived at the breakfast table.

It was going to be a relaxing day today and after having an extended breakfast, we slowly walked back to our room, packed our stuff and got to the reception area to check out. Our flight wasn’t until 6.30 PM, so we had enough time to still see a bit of the city. Because neither me or Tania had ever been up the hill “Montjuïc”, this was going to be our plan of the day.

We took the metro Universidad all the way to the metro station Paral-lel and from here it was a quick walk underground to the funicular de Montjuïc. This little tram took the both of us, as well as many other tourists to the foot of the Parc de Montjuïc.

Once outside, there was the choice of walking all the way up or take the cable car to the castle. You didn’t have to say that twice to us and we took option number 2. Before we could go and buy a ticket, we first had to let a picture taken of us two, but I don’t understand for the love of God who buys such a picture … anyway, as soon as we have our tickets, we can go up. There are a bunch of loud kids near us and because we weren’t really in the mood to share a cable car with them, we quickly jumped into one with an elderly British couple inside … much better and quieter too!

The view from inside the cabin on the city of Barcelona is quite spectacular and we tried to take a few pictures, but sadly enough our ride was over within minutes.

If you come to think of it, it saved us about a few hours of walking. As soon as we stepped outside the cable car, the sun was already burning merciless on our heads. Once again a few sellers were selling their usual stuff and I tried on one of the hats, but unfortunately enough they were too big or my head is just way too small, it is just the way you look at it.

Not too much interested in the rest of the things they brought along with, we focused our attention at the entrance of the castle. Although to me, you can’t really call it a castle, because it used to be a fortified fortress and till this day, you notice all the aspects of it … especially when you look at all the canons.

From the top of the castle you have a really nice view on the harbor and industrial area of the city and we even saw a few cruise ships which were anchored for the day.

We had a walk on the top of the castle, but the sun was still burning on our skin and I needed a bit of shade and since Tania was a bit thirsty, we looked up a small terrace on the outer part of the fortress. Tania was craving for some Horchata, a kind of almond drink and I went for a slush with lemon. It is the first time ever that I drank such a thing.

It is icy cold and more than once I got a “brain freeze” so to speak, but hey it was COLD, so I wasn't complaining, the taste after all wasn’t all that bad either.

After having relaxed for quite a while, it was time to go back to the city centre again. We could have gone back with the cable car, but to us it looked more fun to walk back and after all, walking downhill is much easer than going up!

Walking downhill was one thing, finding signposts was something entirely different. It seemed that not many people take the walk downhill, but hey … we managed. As long as the sea was on our right hand side, we were good to go.

The walk wasn’t that exhaustive and at a given time we even came across a playground. Using the slide is one way of getting down in a jiffy and at the same time it is fun as well. Yes, I know, at times I behave like a kid ... can't help it, that's just me!!

As the sun was still burning on our heads, I was glad that at times we had some trees along the way, which provided excellent coverage for the sun high in the sky.

We were about half an hour away from the top when we arrived at a small park and from here we ended up in another small area where one could buy some cold drinks. The view of the city from up here was really amazing, but that wasn’t the only thing that attracted our attention as well.

It seemed that a lot of sellers with their typical counterfeit materials like Gucci bags, Louis Vuitton wallets as well as Ray Ban glasses had come to this place to sell their goods, but as soon as the police arrived, they rushed with their blankets and goods inside to the bushes and hide. It was quite a cat and mouse game, the running back and forth between both parties and we, tourists, were looking at it with a big smile on our faces. It looked more and more like an episode of some kind of reality show.

After a while we left the place and walked further downhill. From time to time we had a rest and I guess we didn’t walked longer than about an hour when we were back at the harbor and just minutes away from the Columbus pillar.

Not having so much free time on our hands anymore, we walked over the bridge towards Maremagnum for the very last time.
Yesterday we noticed the food chain Fresc Co and we wanted to give this a try. This basically is an all you can eat buffet and I vaguely remembered visiting such a restaurant a couple of years ago in Madrid and it wasn’t too bad.

While we were in the vicinity, Tania still wanted to have one last look at the Desigual shop as well and half an hour later she walked out of that place owning a stunning green dress.

Now the only thing left for us, was to have a bite to eat, but as we arrived at the restaurant, we noticed a waiting line of a few hundred meters long. What the heck was going on here???

We were a bit in debate what to do, but in the end we decided to wait as well and just gave the place a try. As soon as we entered, the joint we had to take our starter with us and paid for the buffet. Although it was more than crowded, we found a place to sit and after our starter, which wasn’t such a big success, food wise that is, we still had some time to have a few snacks as well as a dessert. I must say that I remember the food being better the first time around, but that is always the danger of trying something … at least we left the mall with a full stomach, our main goal in the first place.

As soon as we crossed the bridge again, we walked all the way to the Rambla to take the metro station and came above ground again at the metro station Universidad. It didn’t took us too long to get our bags and with the friendly directions of the girl behind the reception, we found the bus stop for the airport bus in no-time.

We had to wait a couple of minutes, but once we saw that big blue bus, we knew we were as good as in the airport already. The bus was completely filled, but we managed to find a few seats at the back. After one last stop at the Plaza Espanya, we drove in one straight line to the airport.

Upon our arrival, we hurried to the toilets to chance our clothes and when we were almost ready, we heard some loud music coming from the hallway. Something was definitely going on here … but what???

We were a bit too curious, so we had a closer look and noticed a few dancers making some kind of promotion for a new perfume. Some guys who had a bachelor holiday made use of the situation and with their silly acts and movements, they managed to put a smile on all our faces. Lets just say, it was quite funny to look at. They even put the groom to be in a penguin suit, poor guy!

There was still a bit of time left to have one last cup of coffee and as soon as we knew which gate was ours, we went on our way towards it. This time around we hadn’t had to wait long, it was just the opposite really, because they were already boarding the plane when we arrived.

As soon as we found our seats, we noticed the group of bachelors coming in our direction and we were the lucky ones to have them in front of us. Although they made a drunk appearance, they were actually quite quiet. Some of them even had red eyes and as soon as we were airborne, they fell asleep.

I tried to keep myself busy by looking at my pictures, but that didn’t take to long, so I decided to do the same like the guys in front of me and I just closed my eyes for a while.

We arrived in Brussels quicker than imagined, the landing on the other hand was entirely different. I guess the problems with the runway wasn’t solved yet, so we circled a few times around the area. It was already starting to get dark when we landed and as soon as we went through the "nothing to declare" area, we walked to the car park. In no-time we were out of there and with my trusty GPS a.k.a. Tania, we were on our way again towards Hemiksem, where we arrived about half an hour later.

After saying goodnight to my TravBuddy, I drove home while it was getting darker and darker, but together with some great music, the time went by very fast and before I knew it, I was in my hometown again.

I was completely knackered, but managed to have a quick shower before going to bed. It was already way past 1.30 AM when I closed my eyes and tomorrow (or should I say today) another working day awaited me. It’s a pity that holidays pass by so quickly, but than again … there is always the next one to look forward to!