Snowbirds Tackle Europe

We are very pleased with our boutique hotel, u232 in the upscale Eixample (pronounced eh-sham-plah) area. Breakfast is included in our special Black Friday rate of $100 CAN and is a traditional European breakfast, which means the usual bacon, sausage, eggs, toast, juices, as well as sliced meat, tuna, cheese, salad, yogurt, fruit, unusual vege dishes, champagne and the most delicious pastries. It is more like a Canadian brunch. I woke up at 5 am, which is very odd as this is normally closer to my bedtime, and had to wait until 7 to go for breakfast! John insists seriously that the plumbing fixture next to the toilet is a “short sink” and I haven’t been able to convince him that it is a bidet!

Still feeling sluggish, we opted to explore the neighbourhood on foot. On day 2 we logged in nearly 13,000 steps or 8.6 km, with many rest stops. The highlight of the day was the Gaudi Casas built in the early 1900’s during the Modernista period with some classified as World Heritage sites. The large homes are so unusual that we both agreed that Gaudi must have been on drugs but that he was a gifted architect. We later learned that his inspiration came from nature. His designs were definitely way ahead of his time. We stopped for a light lunch at the Hotel Grandvia and the interior was very impressive as it was all white. A light lunch was served in a room full of comfy sofas, where I actually had a cat nap as we were the only ones there.

Our first impressions of Barcelona:

- It is a lively, exciting city with a population of 3 million. There are lots of people out and about at all times of the day with many international tourists.
- We saw lots of smokers (but fewer than London or Paris) and no obesity.
- The streets are full of cars, taxis and motorcycles/scooters that all drive way too fast.
- Pedestrians do not have right-of-way so we had to tread carefully. Green lights change quickly!
- The main thoroughfares are wide streets with boulevards and are called Gran Vias. The side streets are all one-way streets. In Eixample the streets are on a square grid like in Winnipeg but each corner is diagonal to allow better visibility.
- Good food is available everywhere and tipping is not required. Wine is good and cheap. At the supermarket I bought a mid-priced Spanish wine for $6 and it was very good. I could have bought several others for $3 but only the good stuff for me!
- Our Spanish is far worse than their English skills, although very few spoke English outside of the tourist areas.
- Winter weather has been pleasant with highs of 18 and lows of 12 but it has been quite windy every day. Light jackets have been needed especially in the evening.
- The Metro is very efficient but you have to walk very long distances underground to get to your right train. We rode 5 times for $1.50 each. I tried not to racial profile fellow passengers or think about potential terrorist attacks :(Читать далее