Postings from Germany: Family Adventure 2016 - Spain

Wow. That was fun!

Many months ago, Lee and family booked a Med cruise from Barcelona to Athens. Then somebody said, Wouldn't it be fun for all of us to meet up in Barcelona? And I shook my head. Are you kidding? That will never happen, I said to myself. But the seed was planted and it grew and grew and grew. And they did it. It happened. Wild.

So, BARCELONA

Werner and I arrived Thursday, since that's the day cheapo RyanAir flies from Bremen to Barcelona. We checked in to the Hotel Reding where the cruisers had already booked. It was a good location: at the top of the Las Ramblas, near a subway station, not far from assorted food places.

We scouted the transportation from the airport and prepared for the Friday arrivals: Michelle&Co at 8am, Lee&Co at noon. Not a hitch! We love public transport here. If you can drag your suitcase, you can take the subway and tram to where you're going. So we did. These guys (and kids!) are all troupers.

We needed sustenance before the tour. Food! Flautas! We can put these babies away! Missing, however, was the butter on the bread. On the other hand, there was plenty of fat in the meat.

Eleven people in tow, our first stop was Sagrada Familia. This is Gaudi's masterpiece, begun about 100 years ago and still unfinished. Nervous Nellie that I am, we arrived too early for our admission slot and had to walk around a bit and find a gelato and take a picture or two.

What an amazing place. You love it or hate it or have mixed feelings. It dominates the skyline, it is outside of all architectural norms, but it is captivating.

We each took our own pace and then met for the view from the tower - but not our tower! Our elevator was out of service, so we had to wait (again) to get up to the top and enjoy the view of Barcelona. (What glamorous kids!)

Then down, down, down the narrow spiral staircase. It is beautiful, but not so easy to navigate.

We found dinner at a nearby place - something for everyone, tasty and so reasonable! Nancy, Crissy's mom, opted for a hamburger and early bed. Wise choice.

Flamenco was next on the agenda. The performers were great, and loud! The lone guy in the line up had a serious man-bun. Did that originate in Catalanya?? There was lots of clapping and stomping and singing, but all the Americans were of course running on fumes and the little kids were past done - they slept through most of it, noise, lights and all. Then the walk back to the hotel and collapse.

Saturday morning we went up to Montjuic on the cable car, though finding the connection with the Funicular was tricky and we were saved by a very nice local who apologized for his poor English. Are you kidding? If I could only speak Spanish... Hayden of course stood in the very front, fascinated with the train workings. Up top, Hunter asked about the birds we saw. They're seagulls we said - and he went on a riff about them. But then he said "segels." Segels? What's that? Well, it's seagulls, but fast, he said. You talk too slow! It sounds just the same! No, not even, we countered! But he insisted it sounded just the same! No, I don't think so, but it was worth a laugh!

Montjuic is a castle/fort overlooking the city and the harbor, built about 1750. It looks peaceful now, and there are acres of park and recreation space surrounding it, but it has seen some awful battles.