It's a long story...no seriously. It's a LONG story...

Barcelona, Spain

October 2011

 I woke up around 8, Mary had already woken up and was halfway through getting ready. My foot was still hurting and it wasn't like we got a lot of sleep that night since we got to the hostel really early in the morning. I think we only slept for 6 hours. Either way, I decided I was going to limp around for the day. We found a pamphlet about a free walking tour around the "Old City" of Barcelona. Jeff, Mary and I booked it to Plaza Reial where the tour people would meet. Because of construction it took us a while before we got to the metro. Writing this very much in retrospect, I can say I do appreciate the greater amounts of metro stops there are in Paris, though I still think that Barcelona has one of the best metros that I've been on. The cleanliness and modernness really stack up some points. Anyways, back to the tour. Jeff, Mary and I and another handful of people were led by this very lively, middle-aged Spanish man to explore the Gothic Quarter, the old Jewish Quarter and some government buildings, churches, etc. The history in Barcelona is so rich and fascinating and it was great learning it from an energetic and charming tour guide, who at the end offered tips and recommendations for places to eat at, since by the end it was lunch time, and the three of use were quite ready to have our first Spanish meal.

Plaza Reial

We walked to a resto called "El Foro"; it was a beautiful and sunny day by the way. After we were seated and given our menus, we were crestfallen to see that everything was in Catalan! The local language of Catalunia in Spain. It took us nearly 10 mins to semi-decipher the menu, but when we began to order, rather hesitantly, the waiter quite politely took my menu and flipped it over to the Spanish side. We were all really, really embarraased by this and laughed at ourselves. We re-evaluated and corrected our orders. I had a green broccoli soup which was creamy and tastey! Afterwards I ate black pasta that had shrip and mussels which was delicious! Lastly for dinner (yes, we hadn't even had the main course yet!) I had the Spanish version of duck a l'orange; and since lunch is the biggest meal like in France, we also had dessert. Sadly I made a poor selection and basically got chocolate pudding. I don't remember what Mary got, but I remember it was fabulous!
After flagging down the waiter to finally bring the check (which took abnormally long), we went to find the beach! We wandered for a while but soon started heading the right way. At one point we could see the Marina and Mary and I got really, really excited! I cried out "I CAN SEE THE BEACH!" and this Indian man with his son next to me said calmly "I see it too..." We spoke as we all made out way and he was a tourist too (go figure) and used to live in WINNIPEG! Score one for me and the Peg! HA!
After getting half wet in the Mediterranean Ocean (well...Mary and I did, Jeff barely got his toes wet, lol) that was when we went looking for a convenient store to purchase some necessities, like shavers for Jeff, and shampoo for those of us whose original bottles were thrown out by security at the airport in Beauvais. While at this convenience store, a Polish woman who spoke English (who was also clearly a tourist), came to me and asked about some laundry detergent. Guess what? She used to live in Winnipeg too!!! 2 Points!
 We didn't really know how we got to the convenience store, and didn't really know how to get back to where we were on the beach, where we knew there was a place to eat called "Las Migas" which we hoped to reach for supper. Before trying to find Las Migas, we visited Plaza Catulunya which was gorgeous with many fountains and surrounded by a more modern Barcelona.

As we passed the Museum of Catelunia, my foot was hurting really, really, really bad and it felt easier and better to run, so I did. I ran for a good 150m then stopped so Jeff and Mary could catch up. Once they were within 30 ft or so from me, I began to limp slowly forward along the Marina. It was night time and there weren't many lights in this area. 5 mins passed by when I finally got fed up with Jeff and Mary for not catching up yet. I turn around and with horror couldn't see them anywhere, not even at the corner of the Museum where the Marina began. I hobbled back and forth not understanding how in the world we got separated. Of course I forgot that I had turned my phone off because the battery was almost dead, so I couldn't receive Jeff's calls. I was near tears and played all kinds of scenarios in my head when finally, on my 2nd hobble back to the Museum I saw them. They had been just as scared as I was and as soon as we were close to each other we threw our arms around each other and didn't let go for a while, overcome with relief and promising each other to never, ever let something like that again.

Near where I got lost.

By the time we got to Las Migas, it was closed, as most things were by that time. We passed many restaurants on our way to a metro stop, but we never went in any of them. One plate of lobster at one of them cost a mere 97 euros...We hopped on the metro back to our hostel. Near it we found a diner that was open and serving tapas. I ordered meatballs and it was cheap in every respect.After our assez-filling dinner we got back to the hostel to discover that 3 of our roommates in our 8-bed room were French. Moreover, one girl named Cloé Pierzo was studying in Beauvais! Of all places!!! We chatted for a while then they went out, while we were physically and mentally drained. It must have been around midnight that we all got tucked in and fell asleep.

- Fin-