Barcelona - day 2 (Nov. 5)

On our second day in Barcelona, we took an organized bus tour with the other Escapee members that had come to Barcelona three days early before the cruise began.  Our first stop was the La Sagrada Familia.

“Gaudi’s most famous building is a work of unbridled ambition.  He dedicated 4 decades of his life to it, and though the architect left behind no detailed plans, he expected that the cathedral – the world’s largest if completed – would take several generations to finish.  Gaudi envisioned 12 spires (one for each of the Apostles), a massive dome over the apse, and four additional, higher spires, as well as one central bell tower, representing the Virgin Mary.  Portals in the dramatic Nativity facade represent Faith, Hope, and Charity.”  We were unable to go inside as the Pope was arriving the next day to consecrate the cathedral.  We were lucky to get as close as we did because most of the surrounding streets were closed off in preparation shortly after we had walked around.  The size and detail of this cathedral is hard to comprehend without actually seeing it.

We then headed out of the city and up a 4000’ mountain to the Basilica of Montserrat.  Many people make a pilgrimage to this monastery to view the Black Virgin. 

 

We returned to the hotel around 3:00, freshened up, and headed out for a walk with the mission of finding El Palau de la Musica Catalana.  As happened the day before, we got lost!  According to the map, the music hall was only a few blocks away from the hotel.  Did I mention before that it is almost impossible to find a street sign in Barcelona?  Ack!!

After wandering for two hours, we accidentally found the building, but by then it was closed.  We headed back to the hotel, but that took another two hours.  It was only thanks to a young woman in a red cross outfit that we eventually found our way home.  She did not speak English, but thankfully we followed her hand signals and after another four blocks finally came upon La Rambla, the street the hotel was located on.  We certainly did a lot of walking in Barcelona, and much of it was while we were lost.  :(

 

Today was day number 2 of 6 on our route to Nassau, and I spent much of the day just relaxing.  Staff on the ship have said we are nearing the middle of nowhere, so television and internet may go out for a couple of days.  We’ll see what happens.  On a side note, there hasn’t been a day yet that I haven’t tried stepping on the non-existent foot pedal to flush the toilet!  :)  After spending 4 1/2 years living in a motorhome, it’s a hard habit to give up.

 

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

A Mediterranean Love Story

When I left you last, we had arrived in Barcelona, after a sleepless night of travel.  As I told you, we waited to go to bed until nightfall in Barcelona.  Since that was several hours away, we decided to take a little walk to see the sites that we could.  That little walk turned into a five mile traipse around town. 
After relaxing for a few minutes in our room at the Hotel Continental Palacete, we headed down La Rambla Market Street.  This famous street is in the middle of old Barcelona, and the hotel, which has been in existence since 1826, was located on La Rambla.
There is a tree lined walkway between the two lanes of the road, and all sorts of vendors sell their wares.  Many outdoor cafes are located along the way, and a few statues. 
There are many Human Statues/Performers along the way that can take you by surprise.  They are as still as statues until someone drops a coin into the container in front of them.  When that happens, the chosen one will burst into animation.  It is incredible how frozen they can remain.  It’s a little shocking the first time this happens, if like me, you don’t know they are live people.  :)  I liked the golden statue the most (could it be because of the feathers?)
I’m having trouble posting so will try to divide this into two parts.

La Rambla terminates at the Port of Barcelona if you walk far enough, and we did.  :)

In 1892, this statue commemorating Columbus’ discovery of America was erected at the edge of the bay.  Columbus looks out across the Mediterranean, and points his finger in the wrong direction toward America.  :)

One of the first things that Pam and I noticed about this city is the tiny old streets, and the lack of street signs.  I guess everyone knows where they are going here.  We, however, did not.
As we tried to find a certain cathedral, the streets got skinnier and skinnier.  We ran into several dead ends, and it seemed like we were going around in circles for quite some time.  Some people might say we were lost, but we choose to think of it as being on a slightly stressful adventure.  The first thing we were told about by the guide on our way to the hotel was to watch out for pickpockets, so that was on my mind as our path became more convoluted and dark.  :(  We were able to eventually find our way out of the maze, and after four hours, made it back to the hotel.

As we stopped for lunch yesterday, at an outside cafe, you just had to look around to notice that love was in the air on the shores of the Mediterranean.
Couples all over were kissing and nuzzling each other.  :)
                       But only one couple had the audacity to “go all the way!” in public.

Today, we made it to the Voyager of the Seas, and have embarked from Barcelona and are on our way to Cartagena, Spain.  It will take me a few posts to catch up with where we are now, so please stay tuned.

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy 

I think I’m almost ready

Tomorrow is the blast off for the much awaited cruise.  I’ve packed the suitcases and have them in the car trunk.  All that’s left for the morning is packing up the computer, and putting my meds and stuff in the carry on bag.

 

I tried to do my boarding pass this evening, but ran into two problems.  First, I can’t print boarding passes at home because it will end up being an International flight and they need to check my documents in person.  Second, the d#$%! printer, once again, only printed the first four lines, and then quit.  Ack!  I at least wanted to print a receipt for my luggage check in.  :(

 

This morning was taken up exchanging the jumbo underwear for something more suitable, and getting a back up battery and memory card for the camera in Beaumont.  I don’t want to run out of power or space for picture taking!  :)  As I tried to get a last minute load of laundry done this afternoon, I was sucked into another Environmental Education meeting.  (I thought they’d be done by the time I returned from Beaumont.)

 

No pics tonight, and I don’t know when I’ll post next.  Tomorrow will be a long day with a final result of ending up in Barcelona, Spain, on Thursday morning.  I’m excited and almost feeling ready for this adventure!  Thanks for all of your encouraging words!  :)

 

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

Yellow fever?

Even though the sun was shining when I got up today, I decided to spend the day at the rig.  That was a good decision, as it turned out, because my intestinal fortitude wasn’t up to snuff.  :(  (I know, TMI!)  So, I spent most of my time today on the computer. 

One of the things I did was download the Guest Ticket Booklet for my upcoming repositioning cruise from Barcelona, Spain, to Galveston, Texas.  That little booklet was 26 pages long!  I haven’t read all of it yet, but as it was printing, I noticed something about immunizations.  They suggested possibly getting a yellow fever shot.  I know I’ve never had one of those.  I remember having a small pox vaccination before I went to college that was very unpleasant, but yellow fever?  I’ve never been on a cruise before or gone to Europe.  Does anyone know if this is a real danger?  I asked the person setting everything up for the cruise, but her only comment was to check with my physician.  My doctor is in Minnesota, I’m stuck in Boise, and will be heading for Texas soon, I hope.  What a dilemma. 
Get a load of the problems with this rig that has been here for about a week.  It left today, but with the front looking the same.  Kind of makes me glad I’m just waiting for levelers!  I don’t know what it is they fixed, but it sure wasn’t cosmetic surgery.  :)

I’ve been spending quite a bit of time lately mulling over my future plans.  Everything’s taken care of for this winter, but what about next summer?  I’ve been volunteering pretty solidly since I hit the road in 2006, but this summer outside of Yellowstone made me appreciate the fact that I am retired!  I’ve also felt a tug inside to become better acquainted with my five grandchildren.  They’re all under the age of five, but growing up, I remember how important my grandmothers were to me.  They were both gone by the time I was 12, but I still cherish their memory.  So, I’ve just about decided to purchase a site at the Woodhaven Lakes RV Resort in Sublette, Il.  That would put me fairly close to all of them during the summers, and within two hours of my sister and brothers.  I’ve been offered a pretty sweet deal on a site thanks to my daughter Robyn’s in-laws.  So I spent this afternoon surfing the web about what there is to see and do in Northwest Illinois.  I’m thinking this could be a good plan for me, and if it doesn’t work out, I can always sell the site and move on.  :)
I’m not sure this plant or bug will be around tomorrow, as the forecast is for a frost tonight.  I just hope I get out of here before that white stuff starts falling down out of the skies!  :)

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

Woohoo! I can't believe I did it...

Remember a few days ago when I said I was day dreaming about taking a cruise?  Well, this morning when I got up, it was pouring rain outside which eliminated my plans to do a bird survey.  So, instead I gave the Peterson Travel Services a call about the Escapees Transatlantic Repositioning Cruise HOP.  After talking for quite a while with Dorothy Peterson, I bit the bullet and made reservations!  I really can't believe I did that.  ;)

Traveling solo, as I do, I had to pay almost the same price for the cruise as two people traveling together.  That kind of bites, but maybe I can find a traveling companion.  My cabin on the ship will have two twin beds and I chose to get a birth with a balcony (on the outside of the ship).  They were the most expensive, but I decided if I was going to do this, I was going all the way!  Actually, it's a good thing I called today as there were very few cabins left. 

What an exciting year this is going to be!  Yellowstone, Oregon, and a cruise!  Now I've got seven months to figure out the logistics of how I"ll do this.  I don't know anything about cruises....like what to bring along, how many suitcases and what kind of clothes should I pack, what to do with Emma for three weeks,  where to store the RV, etc., etc., etc....  I have some ideas, but I'm open to any suggestions anyone has.

The travel service also made the airline flight out of Houston for me.  I'll leave on November 3rd for Barcelona.  That's a few days before we embark, so I've expressed my interest in a three day pre-cruise tour of Barcelona.  I've not only never been on a cruise, but I've never been to Europe.  Again, any and all suggestions will be appreciated.

I guess by the end of the year, I'll be able to call myself a world traveler.  :)  Wow! 

I can't say that anything else that went on today is as exciting as this decision for me.  So, Pam, Kurt, Wynetta, Dan, Jack, Andy, Robyn, Dianna; any of you up to joining me?

Thanks for stopping by....talk to you later,  Judy