Barcelona - Title courtesy of Freddy Mercury
Monday morning: Our shuttle on the dot of 6.
30. We had a good flight from Izmir to Istanbul. Our bags were able to be checked the whole way to Barcelona which made the journey easier. Both flights were with a Turkish Airways but 1 booked in NZ an 1 in Istanbul so we were hopeful that we could. A lot of walking and waiting. Istanbul airport is huge besides domestic passengers getting a bus from/to the terminal. 4 international flights were a all leaving at the same time as our flight. 10 minutes later another 4 takeoff. I presume in the 10 minute gap 4 flights land. So if your plane misses it slot then you have to patiently wait for a gap! We must have missed our slot as we took off about 20min late. Need to check if take off time is when the plane actually starts to move, as they have so much tarmac to move around on! Simon did a bit of diary writing and Kindle reading.
Flight to Barcelona was good, with a group of Turkish Tupperware sellers on our flight. For some it could have been their first flights! We got stuck behind them at Passport Control. Their tour guide is so lucky! Imagine her tips at the end of the tour - she will have a pantry of Tupperware!
We got a taxi to our hotel which was very central just off the famous La Rambla. The first room we checked into Simon discovered the shower door opened to a very tiny gap that even he would get bits squeezed, squeezing into the shower. We rang downstairs and when the man came up, he could understand our problem as he would also have had an issue squeezing into the shower.
He said he had not struck this problem before! Judging by some of the legs we saw over the next couple of days, Simon was not surprised. The legs that some people (all genders) have are so thin. Room sorted and our complimentary Sangria drunk we headed to the roof bar for another complimentary drink. This time it was bubbles. We washed down with a nice assortment of a Tapas.
Thunder woke us @6.30, which was a bit later and also a bit different to the Call to Prayer, that we had got used to hearing in Turkey. The forecast for the day was rain and a cooler day, a bit like being in Chch. Hotels ask you to think of the environment and keep your towels but it’s very hard to do that when there is no room for them to hang in your room to dry off. We borrowed an umbrella as we head3d out.
As Tuesday was the 1st May it was Labour Day, a Public Holiday so most shops are shut. Zara, H&M, Cartier, Pravda were all closed. No skiing possible. We had a yummy small breakfast at a bakery / cafe on La Rambla on our way to an important travel task - The Hop On Hop Off buses.
We find these a great way to view a city and see where you would to explore on a later loop. There are people we know, no names, oops sorry Rachel, who don’t like them. It must be an age thing. We did the Red route which took about 90 minutes. It went out towards the sea and showed the areas that had been redeveloped when Barcelona had the Olympics in ‘92. It was a very modern looking part of the city but we did not see a lot of activity. When Barcelona had the Olympics in 1992 they renovated a stadium that was first built to hold the Olympics in 1936 but because of the Spanish Civil War, Spain had no money so Berlin held the games in 1936.
As the weather was a bit bleak so there were plenty of seats in the open sided upper level. The roof had been pulled over. Back near La Rambla we had lunch at Hard Rock Cafe a Spanish institution. Simon had a Cauliflower burger! Yes it was tasty. We then tackled the Blue route and stopped at the of the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia ( 3pm). We found out that the earliest tickets available for a viewing were for the 7pm tomorrow night but we could go and visit Gaudi’s Apartment Building La Pedregal at 5pm tonight. So we booked both, hopped back on the Blue Bus finished the route to get back to La Pedregal. We had a half hour wait so of course that meant going to the loo but to do that you had to visit an establishment that had toilets available. Luckily adjoining La Pedregal was the La Pedregal cafe. You can’t just walk in, pee then walk out.
You have to make a purchase so Simon had a beer while Susan queued to use the facilities. La Pedregal is an amazing building. You start on the roof (8 floors up) then walk down into the attic and finish in an apartment before walking down 6 floors. The lower floors are occupied by business or as actual residences and businesses. Finished in 1912 - amazing it seems such a modern and clever design that if built today it would win awards. The roof is full of original chimneys.
Earlier On the Blue Bus we had passed Barcelona FC the home of Messi. No game but plenty of people having a look / tour. We did not get off. There is a game on Sunday but we will miss it as we will be in Porto. (Messi is a bit like Dan Carter is to rugby but much, much more well known). After our day of touring we had some nice Tapas before heading to our hotel. It had been a long day, as we had left the hotel at 10am and returned just before 9pm!
Wednesday - We left at about 9.30 to head to Park Guell which is an amazing Park that Gaudi had started. The bus map / guides did not tell us it was a 1km uphill trek to the Park, not recommended if you have a dodgy knee. You can wander around the gardens for free but to see the Monumental Garden the next admission time was 8pm! We didn’t wait but headed back down to catch the Blue Bus to link to the Red Bus and then link to the Green Bus. The one route we hadn’t done. Today was blue sky and warmer temperatures. As it was a normal working day there was a lot more activity.
Lunch at L’escamarla on one of the Barcelona beaches. Susan tried some lobster. The verdict ok, Kaikoura crayfish is nicer. People bronzing their bodies on the beach but no swimmers. The cold New Brighton eastly was blowing.
Sagrada Familial what an amazing Basilica, it is so much light. We went at 7pm so the sun was shining through the stained glass windows giving so much natural light and colour. All part of Gaudis master plan. One huge open space with an internal upper level around the inside of the building. Needed an extra ticket to go up the tower which Simon was not told about when he bought the tickets the previous day. Simon didn’t ask either. Walked 1.2km taking lots of photos. We will have to buy the book as our photos will not do the Basilica justice. Consecrated by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010. Construction started in 1882 and is due to be finished this century! Construction costs as now funded by donations and visitor payments. The Catholic Church is not contributing a bit like the NZ Rugby Union not contributing to the new stadium in Christchurch. We were back at the hotel at 9.20pm so not quite a 12 hour day!! A little bit tired. Please note this is a comment not a moan. The joys of being a tourist.
Friday morning we bounced out of bed ready to hit the tourist trail again. This morning we were heading up to Montserrat, by Bus tour, aagh I hear some of you say! Tough it’s the way we did it and it is a Ski Trip. We could have got a private tour but hotel has no concierge to suss out options.
The Montserrat was a Benedictine Monastery started in the 900s. The legend says that in 900s. Someone found a black Madonna 90cm wooden that wouldn’t move so left where it is and became an area of religious and built 1100’s. Rebuilt several times Napoleon attacked it in 1811 looking for the Holy Grail. It has had a boys choir since 1300’s. At present 50 choristers live at Montserrat. They sing every day at 1pm. We queued for 40 minutes to see Black Madonna, as there was a service on viewing does not start until midday. When the door opened the queue behind us was huge! They let in 20 to 40 people at a time. For some people this was a very religious pilgrimage as some were stopping and saying a prayer while touching the Black Madonna.
After the tour returned to Barcelona we got SIM cards for our phones (which you need your passport for) and headed for another late lunch. The rain had started again so it was a reasonably quick walk back to the hotel ie no skiing. Tomorrow was to be our last early start with our alarms set for 4.15, as we head to Porto. One was set for am and we discovered the backup one was set for 4.15pm!
Photos to be listed prior to publication!
Elia
2018-05-13
Great Photos! Would love to be there, Spain is on my bucket list :) Enjoy and I'm sure you would have made up for the lack of butter in Turkey LOL Portugal will be the same, they give you fresh butter and a bread roll almost anywhere you eat. Its fresh and so delicious!