5/2: Barcelona Spain
We were anxious to get our "travels" started but sad to leave the comfort of the ship. It was nice to come back to it, sit in the jacuzzi, go to the dining rooms, see people we knew, etc.
Sunday morning, we got off the ship, went through customs (first stamp in passport !) and joined a bunch of people confused on how to get to the city. After a lot of waiting and chit chat w fellow cruisers, we got on a portbus and headed to Las Ramblas. We experienced our first encounter with the metro. Interesting. We got off at the sagrada familia and the view knocked our socks off. (no pic on phone). We got completely lostbut eventually found the Padilla Guesthouse. It is a b&b in a pretty good spot just 5 mins from the s. Familia. Our host was pretty much the only person we encountered with good English.
After shrugging off our backpacks (endured them for 2.5 grueling hours) we immediately took the metro to Placa de Catalunya to get tickets for Montserrat. After we had to go to another station to take the train. When we got to the station, I misread the sign and we missed the Once-hourly!!! Train by 1 minute. I was so exhausted and frustrated i might have cried. I admit nothing. Since we had an hour to kill, we went loooking for food. We saw a bunch of people in a hole in the wall so we went in. No English speakers but A lady ahead of us tried to helped us out and we were able to get some food (pointing is very helpful). Had lunch on the train. Best croquetas we've ever had. We were surprised to find the ride (1hr) to be very scenic.
Exhausted.
Had to take a cable car to the top.
Surprisingly I did not get vertigo.
Gorgeous breathtaking cathedral.
Black virgin.
After we walked around Montserrat a bit more, we headed back to Barcelona and tried to meet up with a friend from the cruise. We went to a cool street with lots of bars and restaurants filled with locals.
Cool church in mid of it all.
We couldn't find him so we set out for some dinner. Found sandwich&friends, didn't seem local but packed with locals. Had to try another hamburguesa. Best hamburger of my life with this smokey mustard and cheese sauce.
We got back to our b&b around 12 just when it started to rain...
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