el Raval

Right on schedule Jose, our taxi driver from yesterday, picked us up at 6 a.m. to take us to the airport, 8 km away.

We quickly went through security and then had to wait for a couple of hours to board as there was a thick fog and the plane was delayed. At 9 a.m., we were off and in a short 2 hours we landed in Barcelona.

We were somewhat confused when we went through the airport to the exit, as there wasn’t an immigration lineup anywhere. Just the exit door to the outside. Then we discovered that because we had had our passports stamped in Portugal, we didn’t need to have it done again. Both countries are part of the 27 countries in the European Union/Schengen Zone.

Exiting, we easily found the Aerobus to Universitat that took us to within 700m of our hotel, the Ronda House Hotel. So easy, comfortable and safe!

We once again lucked out with the Ronda House. It is a very clean and organized hostal/hotel in a great location. We can walk to all the main sights from here as we are just a couple of streets away from the big walking street La Rambla. The metro station is a short block away and there are lots of restaurants close by as well as the big Antoni Market. The marina isn’t far away either.

Our room is a ‘penthouse’ room, very quiet and on the 7th floor of the building overlooking the neighbourhood. In the morning we will get a buffet breakfast and in the evening, we could get a 2 euro glass of wine or a beer at their little bar. The concierge gave us a kettle and mugs to make tea or coffee and told us that the Three Kings/Wise Men Parade was going to take place a block away, at 6 pm. Fun.

We walked to the big indoor market, hoping to eat there but it was closing down In preparation for the Epiphany holiday tomorrow.

So we grabbed a bite to eat in a small restaurant and went to a road on the parade route. The parade ended up starting very late and then it started to pour rain on the hundreds of patient and excited families that came to look out for the three kings. These wise men arrive by boat in the harbour before walking up the street. They bring toys and gifts for the children tomorrow morning if the kids have been good.

Umbrellas came up and everyone got wet. After about 2 hours of waiting, we decided that we would go back to the hotel and watch the parade on T.V. By that time, the crowd was about 20 people deep and even though everyone was in a good mood, it was maybe not the best place to be. And it was cold, 11C.

Anyways, the day was a very good one and we’re happily tired. We should sleep well tonight.Les mer