The morning started out lots of fun … for me. We both woke up around 5 am and realized we were pulling into Barcelona. We took a picture, then crawled back into bed. I turned on the tv station that had the cruise info feed. Chris tried to go back to sleep.
As she arose from one of her catnaps, I commented, “Well, it looks like something has happened and we can’t dock in Barcelona. I don’t know where they are sending us.” Without her glasses, I couldn’t see all that sharp. She sat up and tried to make sense out of what we could see out our balcony window. She was hooked. I finally said the requisite, “April Fools.” For some reason she wasn’t that thrilled. Poked me in the ribs. Of course it was with her sore arm. It hurt … her, not me. Inadvertent April Fools double play on her.
Total miles traveled on cruise ship: 5571 nautical miles.
We pretty much flew through the ship security. Spain’s was a little different. Not that it was hard, or even time-consuming. But we had to show our passport and have our photo and fingerprints taken. I guess that means we are officially in Spain’s criminal database.
Our driver arrived about 20 minutes after we gathered our luggage, so that was not a long wait. He was driving a brand new Mercedes Benz limo-type SUV. Gorgeous. Inside we each had a bottle of water waiting. Luxury, for sure. He helped with our luggage and filled us in on some of the areas as we passed through.
We got to the hotel too early to get our room, but the front desk guy upgraded us for free to “a room with a view.” He wasn’t kidding. A beautiful plaza lay beneath us. WOW.
We got our room key and loaded into the elevator. But the elevator wouldn’t operate. Strange. Finally another hotel patron got on and explained that you had to insert your room key to activate it
The room itself was really small. It took us a while to figure
out where to put everything. There was a stocked mini-fridge and a pot to make tea or instant coffee. Even a free heavy glass jar of water. But maybe not free. Overall it felt very luxurious. Tiny, but luxurious.
In the midst of all that plush-ness we had some cheese and peanut butter crackers. No. Not together. Yuk. I had cheese. She had peanut butter. Great lunch.
Next we took a walk. No place in particular to start with. I just wanted to see what our route to the Flamenco place would look like if we walked. Seemed simple enough.
Before we went back to the hotel we had to check out the bullfighting arena next door. Actually, bull fighting has been banned in Barcelona. Animal rights and all that. So what to do with the massive stadium now sitting idle? Sound familiar, Houston? They have turned it into a massive shopping complex. Just like a mall on steroids. There is a food court (Even had a Subway. The 6 inch translates into 15 centimeters). One whole floor (there are at least seven) was a mass of movie theaters. And you could also ride a glass elevator on the outside of the structure all the way to the top … and then get out and walk around. I could definitely see that the astrodome could easily be made to rival this place. All it would take is a couple billion dollars.
Back in the hotel room we both collapsed. Yes. Onto the bed. It was definitely naptime.
Time for another hike when we woke up. We had tickets last night for dinner and a performance by flamenco dancers. We decided to walk over. How hard could it be? Not hard at all … as long as you didn’t mind 3 towering staircases. Don’t get me wrong. The view, especially of the first phase, was breathtaking. We passed the Magical Fountain and the massive man-made waterfall in front of the equally massive edifice that was the Museum of the Arts.
Come to find out, our map app took us all the way around the back side. Basically, we took the scenic route.
The flamenco place was inside an old village that has been turned into a marketplace for tourists. Everything was … quaint. Perfect description.
The actual dance and dinner was definitely worth all those steps. Well, the dancing and guitarists and singers were worth it, anyway. The food just wasn’t that good. Well, except for the chocolate pudding. That was great.
It was also fun to share the experience witt try our friends Lynn and Stephanie. They listened to our horror story about all those steps and our 40 minute hike. Then we listened to the tale of their incredibly hot room (no AC at their hotel). Two comments. 1) Our walk home was much shorter and involved exactly zero steps. 2) They got moved from the Sauna room to the “Cold Room.” You can’t make this stuff up.
Hebrews 12:2 says, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame and has sat down at the right hand of God’s throne.
Father, thank you for helping us up all those steps. I was worried about Chris. Amen.
