Sat 15 Nov

Another beauty of a day here in BCN - up to about 17 again. Concentrated on the waterfront today, with a 90 minute tour boat ride and some wandering. Went through the aquarium, which is one of the biggest in Europe, but they were not selling any pets or seafood! Took lots of pictures which I will post for Robyn & Chris, just to tease them. There are a lot of very expensive private yachts and sailboats in the water to drool over. Makes the Nanaimo Harbour look like Toys R Us.

For an old city, Barcelona is quite modern and very clean. The architecture is absolutely breathtaking and very well preserved. One very famous landmark is La Sagrada Familia, a huge church designed by Antoni Gaudi that has been under construction since 1883, and will be finished about 2025. Gaudi had a huge influence on Barcelona - his wildly beautiful ornate work is everywhere. Population of Barcelona is over 3 million - and even in mid November there are a lot of tourists.

Our location could not be much better - we are less than 5 minutes to walk to the ocean, and our street - La Rambla - is outstanding for people-watching and entertainment. The center of the street is a 50 foot wide tree-lined pedestrian area with kiosks, cafes and excellent street entertainers. On each side of that, there is vehicle traffic - one lane plus parking, and a sidewalk about 10 ft wide. La Rambla stretches about one km from the waterfront. There is action out there all night long - not only here, but on the maze of tiny side streets. It is such a shame to sleep.

Maureen loves the leather, but has not yet bought anything. Such self-control. These people all dress well, with leather, stylish jeans and well-coordinated accessories. And the North American obesity epidemic has not hit here at all.

Tomorrow we will leave Barcelona with mixed feelings. Two full days is far too short to see the city, but there is one super-excited young woman who will kidnap us for 13 days of cruising, eating and partying. Hope she can keep up with us...