Quilting B: Day 1 - Barcelona

Sunday, September 11, 2016

Day 1 - Barcelona

So this is the trip I gave myself as a retirement gift. A 12 day cruise of the Mediterranean. We arrived in Barcelona the day before the cruise left. I flew from Detroit to JFK and then 2 hours later flew from JFK to Barcelona. We arrived at 5:30 am on 8/17 in Barcelona.

Part of the pre-cruise package was transportation from the airport to the hotel and then in the morning from the hotel to the ship. Craftours threw in a bus excursion of Barcelona to help us get over our jet lag. And because our rooms wouldn't be ready until 3 pm.

Barcelona would well be worth another visit some time. Lots of interesting architecture. All the wrought iron balconies reminded me a lot of Paris.

We drove through lots of the city, but a lot didn't soak in because by then I had been up 20+ hours. We went up to an old fortified part of the city that gave us a great view. I liked some of the items they added to decorate the paving in this area. Here are some photos.

The views of Barcelona. A bit hazy, probably because it was almost 100 degrees.

View toward the port.

After my roommate for the cruise arrived from Germany we went out and walked around a bit. Deborah and I were matched up through the tour company. Months ago we began exchanging emails to see if we would be compatible. She was an absolute delight to have as a companion on this trip.

The Barcelonans do a lot of strolling, especially after it cools off. I realized that my fitbit couldn't be changed to European time and my phone couldn't be changed either, so I needed a watch in order to be sure I would be back to the ship on time from any excursions I went on. So Deb and I took a stroll, past the Bassilica a block from the hotel and around to the next street where we found lots of shopping opportunities.