This adventure includes a new thing for us ... a 10-day Mediterranean cruise from Barcelona to Barcelona, a busy itinerary with only one day of cruising at sea and nine port stops. Monsieur Honey or Señor Honey depending on which country we are in is celebrating a special birthday this year so we decided to give cruising a try.
We added an extra day on the front and tail end of the cruise in Barcelona, Spain so we could do a little exploring in this amazing city. Plus we have a two weeks stay in Ceret, France at the same apartment we have rented the past two years. We then have a week in the Lot valley to visit with friends made on previous trips.
We flew with Air France Toronto - Paris -Barcelona approximately 6,830 kilometres, arriving ahead of time in Barcelona on September 7th mid morning. We were very fortunate that the staff at our quirky, boutique hotel near La Rambla was able to check us in and we grabbed a much needed quick nap after the long "Hurry up and wait day of travelling". Once refreshed we headed out to do some wandering of the surroundings.
We strolled La Rambla ( a wonderful pedestrian street ) along with 100s or should I say 1000s of others, and down the many narrow side streets.
Our little taste of Barcelona only wetted our appetite to see more.
Mirador de Colom
Do you think it was laundry day?
It was time for some refreshments and we found a busy square "Placa Reial" totally surrounded by cafes and restaurants on each side, palm trees and a beautiful fountain in the centre.
We were fortunate to be seated at a sunny, front row table perfect for watching all the activity in the square including the entertainment by the acrobats, singers and musicians plus the usual people watching.
At the next table were two "British" speaking couples who to our amazement were from South Shields, England ... Graeme's home town!
We had a fun time with our new acquaintances who were also going on a cruise the next day but on a different ship.
Our night turned out to be later than we expected ... we stopped for a quick bite of tapas on the way back to our hotel and then it was lights out for a good night's sleep.
Tomorrow morning ( September 8th) we will explore a bit more before heading to the port for our embarkation at 1 o'clock.
We hope to see you all again!
