14 Oct - we arrived in the morning but didn't rush to get off the ship. In NZ I had plotted a walk around some of the attractions like the Maritime Museum and the Aquarium but when we got to them they were far too expensive so we ditched the plan and just took to our usual style of just wandering about. We found San Lorenzo a black and white Duomo and visited inside, Kent went up into it's tower with views out over the city. Outside we chatted with a couple of guys who told us about a window in the Duomo that a rich man living opposite had paid to have made so that it looked square on from the entry to his business which was slightly forward of the church. It was a well executed illusion, must have cost heaps. We also were told a story about a dog that became friends with the builders and they included him in the small statues on the steps, well hidden but Kent found it.
Ended up in the centre by a lovely big fountain and stumbled upon a small non restaurant looking place that served 'pinsa' we ate that along with Kent getting his usual local beer. The pinsa was delicious, a puffier pizza with cheese, potatoe and beans on it. I tried a toasted cheese sandwich but it was a fail really, they don't put butter on their bread here and that thought included the sandwich so it just didn't work.
Our route back to the docks took us through some tunnels and past an Asian shop where we got a can of beer and a bottle of lychee drink. In the evening we had dinner at the Black Crab but didn't enjoy it. We had been alternating between it and the buffet and find that we much prefer the buffet where the choice of food is wide and varied and you can help yourself as you like and you can see out the large windows. In the Black Crab you come at a certain time to a certain table, they want to serve you wine or water first and it's costly (plus everything has a 15% tax to add) then the choices aren't the most wonderful and you have to wait for it to come to you. We felt much happier in the buffet so kicked the Black Crab to the curb.
We were going to see the show but I didn't feel the best so went back to the cabin. The AB's verses Ireland game was on and the Kiwi and Irish voyagers rolled together like large jellybeans in a tumbler and ended up in one of the top lounges where someone was able to hack the tv and cast the game for all to see. It was apparently an awesome game which very close and well played. Many commisserations were made to the Irish on board when the score put the AB's going through to the final.
I slept the night until 1pm the next day solidly and with panadol to help, to catch the dreaded lurgy on the petri dish is to be expected.
15th Oct BARCELONA - as our time here was short we had booked a tour to make sure we made the most of our time. The ship docked at 3pm which put us a little behind schedule but our guide Julio was great. The bus took us straight in to the Sagrada Familia by Gaudi (architect). WOW what a building! We saw it from the outside and Julio also took us through the inside. He was well versed on all of it's information, we wore earphones and he guided us through all the different amazing parts of the church and then left us to wander through it's museum.
This church is the first one that I have thought of as a real church. No gold here while the locals starve outside, it's all about nature and light, all about him (Gaudi) praising his god for the beauty of the world which he was representing in that amazing building. I will never forget that experience. Gaudi was a wonderful architect, the colours of the windows and the ceilings and height, everything has a meaning. He and his supporters bought a piece of unwanted barren land outside the city and started to build it. It took a long time as money was an issue and came from ordinary people, not the catholic church. Now-a-days it is funded by tourist dollars and is expected to be completed, true to Gaudi's original intent, this century.
We visited two other buildings created by Gaudi, they were very different and very cool also. Back to the ship by 7pm, dinner and bed.
16 Oct another sea day and clocks changed again. We are reading and swapping books with others in our leisure time and also dressing in the evenings so that we feel that we are going out and it's fun. Most evenings we see the show that's on although it's hard for me to stay awake when the lights go down if we've had a full on walking day. On the evening of this sea day we passed through the Straits of Gibralter, it was dark so not much to see.
Next stop Morocco
