The following account "journalizes" my SECOND of many Barcelona visits. I sincerely hope you enjoy this first-person account of my 10 in-depth days in Barcelona.

March 6, 2006 - Monday:

Arrived on time at the Sants train station in Barcelona after a somewhat uncomfortable 5.5 hour train ride from Madrid. It was only uncomfortable because I had a rear-facing seat, the first seat in the car, which is also a window seat. This in and of itself isn't bad but this first row in each car faces the rear and faces the second row - so we have to share leg-space. But also there's now tray on the seat back in front of you because there's no seat in front of you! Oh well. I read my Lonely Planet BCN book the whole way.

Found my way to the metro - with little help from the non-existent signage - and bought a 6.65 Euro metro pass good for 10-trips. I used one of them on my route to the Placa Catalunya metro station where I came out into the sun carrying my laptop bag, backpack, and also carrying my wheeled carry-on which made an annoying clack-clack-clack noise running over the individual bricks/pattern on the sidewalk so I carried it most of the way. Found my way to Hostal Residencia Australia and took the nice, old, small elevator up to the 4th floor where I chimed and met Thomas Alonzo. Thomas is half-Australian (father) and half Spanish (mother - Maria, from Oviedo) so he speaks both English, Spanish, and some Catalan. His mother is bilingual too.

I was given the grand tour of the 4 rooms they had at the hostel - 2 of which have "shared facilities". I had a private 5th room which was, as it turned out, Thomas' bedroom. I used the shared facilities too which wasn't too bad but I had to pass through the reception desk area to get there and one time there were people there with bags, etcetera, and it was a little embarrassing - but that only happened once. I could hear conversations clearly from my room in the reception area as well as on the other side of my wall of the owners' living quarters. None of that was bad. The worst was the "obras" taking place throughout the building from about 9am until 7pm. I tried to take a siesta my first day and didn't have any trouble because I was so exhausted. But this first day I didn't very little. I checked in at about 1:30pm, took the tour of the hostel, then walked around this nice Barcelona neighborhood and sat at the terraza of "Bar Estudiantil" on the Placa de la Universitat and had roasted chicken and fried potatoes. It was fine at first, in the sun, but after the sun went behind a tree it was much LESS comfortable - plus I was still a bit sickly feeling. Came back, took a 2.5 to 3 hour nap - MUCH needed. Woke up, dressed, and walked down the Rambla from the top to the bottom and timed it. The 1000 meter walk, started at the bottom of the Placa de Catalunya and ended at about the Christopher Columbus statue.

minutes - reaching:
0000 - Placa de Catalunya
10:00 - Placa Reial
14:45 - End of La Rambla
16:01 - Colom Statue
19:00 - Port Vell del Mar (Rambla de Mar) floating bridge with "wave of lights"
22:00 - Maremagnum restaurants
23:00 - touching water

Here I stopped and took some dusk photos of the harbor and of Montjuic as well as looking back. Hope these turn out well. So I casually looked around here for someplace for dinner but it was only about 7:00pm and these all looked like cheesy tourist places selling seafood. But I thought it too early to eat so I walked very casually back UP La Rambla and took my time this time, kind of looking for places to eat. One place caught my eye, didn't look too expensive, and was unusual. It was called ATTIC Restaurant (Les Rambles, 120 - http://www.angrup.com ) - an upstairs restaurant with glowing red lights at the upstairs windows. I stopped, made a 9:30pm reservation, and then went "home". Got "home", did some internet work, changed my shirt to a long-sleeved one, and went back to the restaurant at about 9:25pm. They sent me upstairs and there I waited with the other Americans and Brits for about 20 minutes until my Table For One was ready. The place was nice and my table sat facing the windows - facing the upper La Rambla - but not AT the window. Still, it was a nice place, nice Barcelona restaurant, nice dishes and everything clean and waiters professionally dressed. I had the veal medallions with hot brie cheese, cheese rolls, fried egg over fried potatoes and bacon plus 2 glasses of white house wine, then Tiramisu pastry for dessert.

March 7, 2006 - Tuesday:

Slept 'til 8am this morning, skipping breakfast for lack of time. At 9:45am I arrived at the tourist Information office at the southeast corner of the Placa de Catalunya and bought a ticket to the city-operated "Gothic Quarter" walking tour for 10am, in English, meeting at the top of the stairs above the underground tourist office. We were 3 persons total in the tour group; me and an older British couple. The tour guide was quite good, a man in his late 20s, and his English was very good. He was rather surprised there were only 3 of us, saying this was the first time so few people attended the tour, usually having 10-20. I felt fortunate. We crossed the street and started the tour at the top of the Gothic Quarter, Barri Gotic, Barrio Gótico and saw many things in the central portion of the Gothic Quarter including The Cathedral - the front of which was nearly totally covered with scaffolding for resurfacing, taking about another year, the guide said. Bummer. This was a real turn-off and, believe it or not, I didn't enter the cathedral during my entire 11 days in Barcelona. We also visited the Placa de Sant Jaume around which the City Hall and Palau de la Generalitat are located and the plaza on which most of the demonstrations take place - to which I was witness one day. Also along the tour we visited the Placa del Rei, an impressive, historical plaza containing the Capilla de Santa Agata and the Palau del Lloctinent as well as the city's historical museum - a tour of which I took later. It's UNDER this plaza, just under surface level, which contains the roman ruins - of which once can tour through the city's Historical Museum entrance. (more on this later)

The guide led us back to the Plaza de Sant Jaume where he left us. I made my way back to the Placa del Rei to go to take some photos and also to see the Archaeological Subsoil of the Roman Ruins, directly below the Placa del Rei via the Barcelona City History Museum ("Museo D'Historia de la Ciutat"). Now it's about 11:00am when I enter the museum. Happily, there was no line. I paid my 4 Euros entry fee and just as I was walking away from the cashier I asked the woman if it was permitted to take photos. NO PHOTOS ALLOWED. ARGH!!!!!! HOW disappointing. Also, she told me, I could NOT take my backpack (average-sized book bag) in with me either and I'd have to leave it in one of the lockers. Rolling my eyes every-so-slightly I chose a locker, put in my bag and camera, and tried to lock the door. It wouldn't lock. I tried another. IT wouldn't lock. Then, a woman next to me who was also fumbling with the lockers pointed out to me a small sign on the inside door of my locker. It read, "1 EURO". WHAT? ARGH. They get you coming, going, and while there. NO photos. Lockers. Entry fee. I almost wanted to turn back and leave but I'd already paid and was only going to be here ONCE and had to see these Roman ruins of Barcelona for myself after hearing only a little about it from "insiders". So I plopped in my 1 Euro coin and took my map and pamphlet with me to the DOWN elevator, taking me about 5 meters below ground. I read that the archaeological subsoil of the Placa del Rei occupies a surface area of 4,000 square meters and dating back to the years 15 to 10 B.C. Inside, I wind around the Roman ruins, reading all the placards and following the directional arrows. This was mainly the industrial area of the Roman "neighborhood" where cloths were dyed, fish was salted, and where things were made. Interesting. About halfway through I encountered a large and surprisingly tame group of elementary school-aged children all listening intently to their teacher/guide. It was nice and cool downstairs, almost needed the jacket which was left in the locker. Okay. Done. But I couldn't take any photos!!?? Why? Because I'd somehow "damage" the stones with the flash? OR to protect the rights of the city's photographers? Hmmmm.. That's disappointing. I can see that this detail might deter many tourists from visiting. To be honest, while the ruins were very interesting, I didn't see many things photo-worthy as mainly there were cut stones in some configuration or other, very little color existed, and the where there was not stone there was dirt. Still. A few photos would've been nice to take to record the event.

After the self-guided tour of the Roman Ruins in the subsoil, I spent the rest of the morning walking around Barrio Gotico, calling Rosa at about 2pm from the Placa de la Vila de Madrid where there are roman sarcophaguses. I'd crossed over Las Ramblas to El Raval, looking semi-desperate for someplace to eat. Remember, I'd skipped breakfast. At 2:34pm I found a couple terrazas in the sun and under some nearly leafless trees on the Placa Vincenc Martorell, 4. I chose a table in the sun at Kasparo cafe - a seemingly bohemian clientèle (plus British, beer-drinking footbalistas). It seems to be Middle Eastern food. I had hummus and toast along with tortilla de patatas and white wine. The first few moments I had pleasant sun and was perfectly comfortable in my light jacket but soon thereafter the sun went behind a tree and I FROZE, feeling sick again. I ate FAST and got out of there for my siesta at Hostal Residencia Australia - with music of the obras outside my window. Surprisingly I didn't have any trouble sleeping and did so until TOO late. Woke up at about 7:30pm and wrote in my journal for a couple of hours. At 9:43pm I went downstairs (the elevator only goes UP) to a place "near" the hostel called Petit Xaice (??), southwest from Placa de Catalunya and not quite into the northernmost part of El Raval. There, I had Merluza (fish), calamares combination dinner for 8.60 Euros. I ate there alone except for a British couple who came in shortly after me. The place was modern, simple, almost USA diner-style restaurant. This is my last night at Hostal Residencia Australia.

March 8, 2006 - Wednesday:

Got up at about 8:30am, showered in the "shared bathroom" with hopes there'd be some warm water left and there was, thank goodness. Yesterday morning I didn't have so much luck. Got dressed and went out for a simple breakfast. Upon returning to the room, semi-late, I worked on my journal until almost noon when I got my things packed up and went to check-out, saying goodbye to Thomas Alonzo and thanking him for his hospitality. Went out the door and down the stairs since the elevator only worked (at that time) in the UP direction. Back to the street. Clackity clack went my roller wheels on the sidewalk to the Plaza de Catalunya and DOWN the famed Las Ramblas to just past the Mercat Boqueria.

I've JUST arrived at the Hostal Marenostrum (website: http://www.HostalMarenostrum.com) whose entrance is JUST off the Ramblas on the Carrer de Sant Pau, JUST past the Joan Miró painting (on Las Ramblas). I enter, go up a flight of stairs (although they own entrance - it's not shared) to the reception area to find a number of youngsters, 20-somethings (or younger), waiting their turn. Wow, this is a busy place! I waited patiently in amongst the vending machines to tell them I had a reservation. I was a little early and the room was just finishing being cleaned so I sat in the cushy armchair until they were finished. About 15 minutes later the cleaning lady came down to tell me the room was ready. I thanked them, turned, took the elevator to the 4th floor and opened my door. Ta-Da! Wow! What a room! Nice and big by hostels standards. But what's that? The shower is IN the room? Hmmm... The toilet/shower combination was in a slight indentation on one wall, tiled floor, with a shower curtain surrounding it all. Odd. But okay. The sink was outside the toilet/shower "area" on another wall next to the bed. The other wall had the balcony! COOOOL!! I IMMEDIATELY opened out and large, double-paned door/windows and stepped out onto the small balcony. NICE! What a view of Las Ramblas. From here I can see Las Ramblas PERFECTLY as well as the Joan Miró paintin and even the building with the dragon and all the parasols. Unfortunately (or fortunately) there are few leaves on the trees lining the boulevard as it's still early in the spring season.

Shortly after "settling in" I called Artur, the 20-year old son of the owner and my contact via email. A few minutes later he arrived at my door to take me on my requested "Grand Tour" of Hostal Marenostrum. He showed me the breakfast room and a few of the other vacant rooms including those which USED to look like mine (i.e. toilet/shower "area") before being renovated. He said mine was slated soon for renovation in the newer, more modern style. Next, he took me up the street to tour the other family hostel, Pension Selecta (web: http://www.PensionSelecta.com) which was not far away, located about a block from Las Ramblas in El Raval. There, he gave me the grand tour of the older pension, taking me upstairs and showing me the reception area (where I met his father, also named Artur), a few rooms, and the original tile floor which will be saved and returned to its place after the upcoming full-blown renovation of the entire building, adding an elevator, reconfiguring and adding bathrooms to the rooms. He told me the pension would be closed for about a year for this renovation but they were anxious for the project to begin.

Artur walked me back to my room and I thanked him for the grandest of grand tours. What a guy! I then grabbed my camera and small backpack and set off for the lower Gothic Quarter, passing by Barcelona's City Hall towards Via Laietana. But before I could reach Via Laietana I saw what appeared to be some old walls and turned right on Carrer del Sots-tinent Navarro. After observing them for a bit I realized it was about 2:30pm - TIME FOR LUNCH! Now another difficult decision. So I walked down the same pedestrian Carrer del Sots-tinent a little further to find a restaurant called El Drapaire - Catalan Cuisine. Okay, sounds good. And the posted 9 Euro Menú de Dia looks good too so I walked in. Nice place! Very rustic but elegant with its painted brick walls and high ceilings. Where where are all the people? I only spied two occupied tables and the waitress directed me to an available double-table. I chose the fideua to start and then the fish as the second course along with white wine. The fideua came and looked good but was a little cold. Tasty though. Soon after finishing the fish came - complete with head and bones. Hot and tasty. For dessert I had crema catalana - which is something I almost always have to order for dessert because I really love it. Good lunch! I'm full, happy, and only spent 9 Euros. Not bad for this fine-looking place.

Now that lunch is done I'm feeling a bit sleepy. Still, the daylight's burning and I've got to make the most of this sun so I walked on to/through the La Ribera neighborhood. Wow. I instantly fell in love with this part of old Barcelona. I walked by the Santa María del Mar Church and then to the Mercat del Born. I'd heard so much about it and wanted to see it for myself. Hmmm.. That's odd. It appears to be closed. Hey, IT IS CLOSED! I circled the fenced-in structure and jumped up as high as I could in order to get a peak inside the vacant market. It was totally gutted down to the dirt. I guess they're renovating it. But then, upon consulting my guidebook, I read that they were renovating it when they'd uncovered some old, roman ruins in the subsoil so now they're going to be studied for an indefinite period of time. So much for the market! The sun's going down slowly so I make my way back through La Ribera to the Gothic Quarter, stopping at little plazas along the way for some photo-ops, back past the Cathedral horribly covered in scaffolding (except for its spire), to the Ramblas and the Mercat Boquería. Now, after all that walking I'm getting a little hungry - not to mention tired - so I stop in to the famed Café de L'Opera for a muffin and a café con leche. This is great! I'm DIRECTLY RIGHT across the street from the Gran Teatre del Liceu - which is IMMEDIATELY next door to the Hostal Marenostrum. From my balcony I could easily toss a stone and hit the righthand wall of the theater. I'm tired. Maybe I'll go for a short nap back at the room.

This evening I can hear the 8 bells from the Iglesia Del Pi from my balcony at Hostal Marenostrum. Here, I'm facing La Rambla's LICEU metro station and also overlooking the famous Cafe de la Opera - where at about 6pm today I had coffee and a muffin on my way back to the hostel after a long day walking around, mainly, La Ribera neighborhood. I was told it was the "Soho" of Barcelona and it was! VERY impressive. LOTS of lively and chic, hip, tiny bars, terraza, and stores. I liked it immediately and MUST go back soon - maybe for dinner tonight! Will remember to leave my camera at home, however.

At about 9:30pm I'm getting hungry again so I go on the usual search for a good Barcelona restaurant. This is tough. I walk allll the way down Las Ramblas to the very bottom, turn left onto the Passeig de Colom, walking, walking, walking along the pedestrian deserted boulevard, back to La Ribera - the Soho of Barcelona. I walk up and back several streets, getting tired of searching for an "appropriate" restaurant, looking high and low. Okay. I'm fed up. I'm hungry and now I'm willing to take anything. Now I'm walking along the Carrer de l'Argentería and spot a place calle Taller de Tapas. It looks like a bar/restaurant combo so I go it. WOW, it's HOT in here! LOTS of people too. I ask for a table and am told there are none available so I ask to be seated at the bar where I order a glass of white whine and then Huevos Estrellas, croquetas, something else (which I can't remember or read on the receipt), and the crema catalan (again?!) for dessert. Good. Fine. All for just under 20 Euros. Done! Good too.

This time I'm feeling good, full, and walk along the pedestrian busy/busier Carrer Ferrán to the hostel. I'm tired. Goodnight.

March 9, 2006 - Thursday:

March 10, 2006 - Friday:

March 11, 2006 - Saturday:

Busy day. I got up at about 8:30am, dressed nearly immediately, and went to the Cafe de L'Opera for churros and cafe con leche one last time and took one more photo inside. After that I through the Mercat Boqueria to take a bunch more photos with its buzzing patrons and sales persons. Then through El Raval, a friend's favorite area. It was quiet and pretty light on foot traffic so I just walked down the Rambla del Raval to the bottom and shot left, back towards the Gothic Quarter where I wound up at the Placa Reial for my first photos there (?). Back to the Hostal Marenostrum to shower, change (or not change, as this was the 6th day in a row I'd worn these jeans and Travel Smith shirt - I did wash the shirt and hang-dry after about 4 days while in Hostal Marenostrum) and was on my second pair of socks/underwear - worn a 2nd consecutive day. So I got dressed and packed, took one last look out over the "obras" of La Rambla below, one last look at the Joan Miro circular "painting" below, one last look from my 4th floor balcony (3rd floor in the USA), and gave Maria a call at Hostal Martina Bailen to alert her of my arrival within 30 minutes. She sounded a bit gruff so I was a little nervous about my arrival. Checked out of Hostal Marenostrum at exactly 11:55am - 5 minutes before checkout and asked the nice, attractive Latina working the counter to see Artur - the son - to say goodbye before leaving but he wasn't around. Slogged down the stairs with my 3 bags (computer, carry-on, and backpack) to the ground-floor entrance and out onto La Rambla, crossed the street heading uphill, to hail a taxi. Of course, on came by almost immediately. I'd considered BRIEFLY to walk the distance to Hostal Martina Bailen but decided against it. Got in the cab, told the driver where I wanted to go (Calle de Bailen, 42) and he asked me if we should go from up top or from down below. Having no idea, I gave him the reigns and told him to make the best choice. I'm always hesitant when saying this because you never know when you'll be "taken for a ride" across the city but I had my map in hand and was following his every turn to the front door, just "west" of the Placa de Tetuan on a "north-south" street. I didn't see a sing at all on the building which made me wonder if I was in the right place but I was. Paid the driver 5 Euros for the 4.40 Euro meter and got out with my stuff to the door and looked at the old-fashioned button panel. Seeing the sign for Hostal Martina up above, it said it was the 1st floor, door #1. Okay, so I did a "down and across" to find the appropriate-yet-unlabeled 1st floor, 1st door button and pushed it with my other fingers crossed. YES! The voice welcomed me, I told her who I was, she buzzed the door but it didn't push open. Asked if it work, I said no, she buzzed again but without it working for me so she came down to open up and escort me up the elevator to the SECOND floor (third in Spain)and wondered by it was labeled down below as the first floor on the panel. The entryway of the building is absolutely gorgeous, very palatial in my mind. María took me on the grandest of grand tours of this grand floor, totally owned by Hostal Martina Bailen. Such beautiful molding work on the ceiling, fireplaces in two rooms (not-for-use-though), big, tall windows, and an air shaft in the middle of the building which was almost as beautiful as the outside building's facade! WOW! I took lots of photos of the rooms as well as the beautifully tiled floors and later the downstairs entryway of the building. My room, a LARGE room facing "east" showed only patios but there was stained glass at the top as well as totally HIGH, possibly higher than cathedral ceilings. While no reformations are in sight, the place was in good shape but still with simple details, some need for paint here and there, possibly more cleaning, but it must be very very difficult to keep such a large space clean. The bathrooms were obviously added later and not one matched the other in the bedrooms. Talked long time with Maria, until maybe 1:30pm, and she, by now, seemed to loosen up a bit and seemed comfortable with me.

Got my stuff together, went to the bathroom, and then got together my plan. I walked NE (actually due-north although it appears to be northeast on all the maps because the maps bottom portion is parallel with the seafront) towards the Sagrada Familia but stopped along the way, at about 2:30pm, for a sandwich and a Schweppes de Naranja at a small bar. Then arriving, took some photos of the constantly-en-obras cathedral by Antonio Gaudi, trying not to include the scaffolding or green covering in my photos. From here I got on the Bus Turistic, still using my 2nd day of my 2-day pass, in order to take me to the Tibidabo stop on the tour where I HOPPED OFF to just miss the jammed-full Tramvia Blau (blue cable car ascending/descending - last surviving cable car in Barcelona) to the Funicular del Tibidabo station. I missed the still-there tram but when I got in line another one came along shortly thereafter. I thought they were supposed to be 15-30 minutes apart as the guide book said. I got on and only paid 2.30 Euros instead of the 3.50 Euros because I got a discount with the Bus Turistic 2-day pass. Luckily I got a seat at the window but with my backing facing uphill on the polished wood interior tram. No matter. So we started UPhill along the Avenida de Tibidabo, passing some nice, old-yet-modernista mansions along the way, then curling up the hill more to the Funicular de Tibidabo. Trip took not quite 10-15 minutes. Everyone filed out and I waited to take one empty-tram-interior photo. Mistake. I went to the funicular station to find a LINE of people waiting to go up - everyone who had just gotten off the Tramvia Blau and probably others from the previous car who didn't get on the funicular the previous time. SO I was last in line and wondered if I'd get up this time on the waiting Funicular - I DID! But first passed through the line and told the ticket booth person that I got a discount because of this Bus Turistic 2-Day pass. I didn't! He said I needed a coupon from a coupon book which they should've given me on the bus. They did give it to me but I didn't realize it was a coupon book - hidden and forgotten in the bottom of my backpack. Anyway, I paid the 3 Euro round trip ticket price instead of the 2 Euros it would've been with the discount. I didn't get a seat on the funicular because they were all taken but because of this I got a standing position in the TOP/FRONT car right in front of the window facing up the hill. Took photos outside and inside of the funicular. About 10-15 minutes later we were at the top of windy Tibidabo. There, I took photos alongside the amusement park from the "mirador" to the city below. Then went back and entered the Temple del Sagrat Cor (free to enter the church and also to ascend to the first lower level). I went in and paid 2 Euros to go to the NEARLY the TOP level where I then went up the outdoor spiral staircase to the NEXT level up AND THEN another inside spiral staircase to the absolute TOP level, just below the Jesus statue. I was just below his toes! There, you can encircle the uppermost part and the walk is narrow and very windy but the view is magnificent. Went back down the internal spiral to the wider, next lower level to the larger deck and took more photos. Then down the external spiral stairs to the next lower level where you can take the elevator down - which stopped on the SECOND floor and we were "invited" by the elevator operator to witness the wedding taking place on this "church one-level above the church below". Saw what there was to see for a couple minutes and took the elevator down to the "ground" level of the lower church where I went outside to walk around that much wider deck. It was worth the 2 Euros to have access to the TOP levels of the church as it's the only way up. Went to the restroom at the funicular station (outside access) before getting in line to go back down - which I did - and simply showed my "round trip" ticket before getting on - this time getting a seat. Got to the bottom, exited, and then saw a lonnnnnnnnnnnng line waiting to get on the just-arriving Tramvia Blau to go back down. I thought, and was right, that I probably wouldn't be able to get on THIS tramvia and would have to wait for the next one so I hitched up my backpack and started down the hill, following the street. And when I reached the bottom that tram STILL hadn't arrived and was nowhere in site so I made a wise choice and walking down was A LOT easier than walking UP to the funicular station as I did the day before. Here, now about 6pm, at the Plaza de John Kennedy, I hailed a cab immediately and went to Gaudí's "La Pedrera" building - which has all the skull/ghost-shaped chimneys. Driver let me out, I paid a total of about 5 Euros I think, and got in the semi-short line to buy tickets to enter. I got to the window, told them I got a discount with my 2-day Bus Turistic pass, and she told me I needed a coupon from the coupon book. WHAT?! Since I still didn't realize I had one (in the bottom of my backpack) she kindly gave me the discounted price (10% off) of the normally 7 Euros price anyway. Got inside, marveled for about 30 seconds at the interior patio, then went straight inside to another line to get the audio guides and headphones which I draped about myself - and never used. Got in line for the elevator since I didn't feel like going up the 6 flights of stairs (actually 7) to the top level (in the attic, actually). Arrived, got out, dark interior with swooping brown brick ceilings, lots of arches, lots of visual and video displays of Gaudi's work, but I passed this all by to get to the roof. When I did, I sadly realized it was JUST past sunset on a clear sky. I must have missed it by 10 minutes or less! THAT'S the best time to see and photograph the tan-color chimney-pot skulls. Still, I rushed around, up and down steps, all around, dodging other tourist, taking as many photos as I could while trying to crop-out the metal fencing and waiting endlessly for people to get out of my photos while having others taken of them while in front of the most picturesque chimneys. I did all this in about 30 minutes or less then went back downstairs, through the attic exhibit, down stairs to the Gaudí apartment where I spent, maybe, 10 minutes, only taking 2 photos of the antique and interesting large apartment. Did he really live throughout this entire floor as it seemed? Wow! Went down the rest of the stairs, behind two lolly-gagging Spanish girls with a stream of other tourist waiting impatiently behind while descending. Returned my audio device, got outside, and now it's about 7:00pm or so.

The sun's down already and I'm not sure which way is which so I set off. Taking one wrong turn I found myself on Paseig de Gracia and coincidentally happened upon a beautifully illuminated Casa Batllo - another Antonio Gaudi building, this one has the skull-shaped balconies and flower-patterned facade. It was illuminated so I took one photo, trying to crop out the scaffolding and green construction shroud at it's righthand border on the adjacent building.

Finally arriving at a trotting pace to the Hostal Martina on Calle Bailen, now almost 8pm, I checked my maps and couldn't find a clear shot to the Liceu Metro station where I'd need to get off to find the Iglesia del Pi where I was attending the Manuel Gonzalez Spanish Guitar concert. But first, bathroom, change shirt, and.... FORGET my camera. Hmph. Went outside, walked a couple blocks before hailing a cab, fearing I'd not make it in time in my confusion with the metro. The woman taxi driver took me through Plaza Catalunya, round Placa de la Universitat and I wondered if we were going in the most direct way. I guess we were. Now down La Rambla, hoards of people now walking along, several of which darting across the across in front of us between crosswalks. Got to near the Liceu metro station - after the driver helped me with my pronunciation - and paid her about 5 Euros with the tip. Now, I still had plenty of time, about 40 minutes until the concert, and now I'm in search of something fast to eat and also some cough drops for my sore throat and to calm my phlegmy cough during the concert. Walked by the church, saw a lonnnng line of people apparently entering for the concert and I was a bit worried. Kept walking in search of something, weaving through the huge crowds of people on this coolish Saturday night. FINALLY found a candy store after walking about 15 minutes which sold small bags of Artesana Lays potato chips (made with olive oil) and also HALLS cough drops. Got out of there, ate the potato chips while walking briskly towards the church and finished them in time to toss the bag into the trash basket in the plaza outside and get into line. Got inside to find only a handful of people in the front 7 or 8 rows/pews. I forged ahead and picked out a single space in the 3rd row/pew which was apparently held by a the British girlfriend of a British boyfriend who went out for a smoke. No matter, she said, we 5 fit comfortably on this 3rd-row left-of-center pew. Now, I had about 20 minutes to wait so I simply looked around, read the program, and went through about 4 HALLS cough drops. Now the concert! Here comes graying and paunched Manuel González in all his self-indulgent glory, ascending the red-carpeted steps to give a few bows and start playing 1.25 hour concert which included known classics as "Mallorca", "Sevilla", and "Recuerdos de la Alhambra". After about 30 minutes there was a break of 10 minutes for Part II where he was accompanied on the synthesizer piano by Antoni-Olaf Sabater who swayed, smiled, made facial expressions, looked off into the ceiling heavens to join body-with-music, and was a real "showman" in my opinion, made me giggle to myself at times. The concert included two encores and during end of the first one, everyone applauding, Rosa called my on my cellphone, my feeling the vibration against my leg. Thank god it wasn't during one of the many silent moments of the concert. I quickly "declined" the call. After the concert, I walked outside and called Rosa from the Plaza del Pí alongide the church.

Now starving and having quite a bit of pain from throat to the stomach as I coughed, I walked a bit through Barrio Gotico and didn't find anything interesting so I headed back towards La Rambla where I truly settled on "La Poma" Italian restaurant. Inside, I ordered a Pizza Margherita with york ham and pineapple along with an Orange Fanta. Being Saturday night, I really would've loved a delicious pepperoni with many beers but I thought it best not to have alcohol tonight, feeling as I did. Got a tapa plate of green olives and also two "bags" of italian breadsticks. Got the pizza. Hmph. THIS is a pizza? The crust was paper thin and hard - which would've been fine - and only the thinnest, barely visible smearing of tomato sauce along with some cheese and the ham and pineapple. Disappointed and really not all that hungry, having hardly eaten all day, I paid the check (11.98 Euros - and the breadsticks were NOT free either, they were added to the check for another 1.50 Euros), and got a cab just at the bottom portion of la Placa de Catalunya to my hostel and got the same question, "From below or from above?". No idea. Got home, walked up the two flights of stairs, relaxed, washed up, and heard a short while later my "neighbors" in the next room beside mine arriving. Sounded like a young couple, all giggly and happy to be home and alone. Well, that was the beginning of my night's unexpected entertainment as you might imagine. But LUCKILY (for whom??) it didn't last too long. One part of me was happy SOMEONE was enjoying themselves this night while I'm here alone, sick, tired, and nothing but a few episodes of "The Andy Griffith Show" on DVD to entertain me (apart from the pre-show entertainment next door, that is) until I went to sleep at about 1:30am.

Shamefully enough, I passed through this entire day without realizing it was the second anniversary of the Train Bombings in Madrid.

March 12, 2006 - Sunday: Got up at about 8:30 and went searching for some breakfast. I walked and walked blocks before finding a convenient store where I bought a coffee from a machine and a cream-filled pastry of some sort. Walking out, turned, walked one block and found an open bar. Hmph! Why couldn't I have found this first? Walked in, sat at the bar, and ordered a café con leche and a danish while chit-chatting with the busy bartender and chinese help-person whom I'd just seen in the convenient store - and he commented on that so we talked about the difference in coffee quality.

Went back to the room at Hostal Martina Bailen and María knocked on my door JUST after taking off my shirt. Putting back on the shirt and opening the door, Maria asked if I wouldn't mind moving to the FRONT, streetside room. She said she had a couple coming in this afternoon and wanted to give them more space and their own private bathroom. I didn't mind, of course, she's been so nice with me. She said that she felt more comfortable asking me to move since we almost seemed like friends by now. Again, no problem. She said the ONLY thing would be that I'd have an EXternal bathroom, a shared one, but that since I was the only single room at that end of the hostel that I'd have it all to myself. So we wheeled my stuff down to the other room and it was/IS magnificent, better than the last room at the back! This room was also large but not as large as the other - but the best part was that it had its own "mirador" - a kind of bay-window-patio, also with cathedral ceilings. JUST beautiful. And the floor tile art was worth several photos too - which I took upon moving. This room has one double bed and one twin bed but I slept in the double bed, of course, so that I could sleep at an angle, giving my long legs more space. Comfortable bed too! I spent the entire morning, until about 2:15pm, working in the sun in the mirador at the table and chairs set there prior to my relocation. It was so nice having the sun on me and the mirador open to the street, letting in the late-morning air. Nice! I was in heaven. The room next to me, to my left, was occupied by a young couple too, maybe German, and they spent some time at the table and chairs on their own personal balcony with stained glass windows. I was told this streetside room had its own private bathroom.

By now it's starting to get late and there are things to do OUTSIDE of this beautiful room with its fancy ceiling design moldings. So by 2:30pm I set out TOWARDS the Sagrada Familia. Seemed like a good day to do it being Sunday AND sunny. AND IT WAS! The crowds seemed to be smaller, by guess, than possibly the weekdays. My walk there was a zig-zag of about 5 city-blocks. Arriving, I snapped more photos from outside against the still-cloudless blue sky. By 3:15 or so I finally got in a short line to pay my 8 Euros entry (I don't know where I heard it but I'd heard it was free to enter) and went around the inside base-level accessible areas (about half) and took more photos of the "tree trunk" supports inside. Just beautiful(!) but some of the awe was lessened by all the scaffolding and metal re-bars everywhere. Still, sun was shining through the spaces on the western side and made for nice photos. Rushing to get in another short line to go UP into 2 of the spires via the elevator, I asked the operator in Spanish if one could go up the spires by spiral staircase and she said no - and yet she told some others (in English) that the staircase was "over there" but didn't tell them that they could not ascend, only DEscend the stairs as she told me. Hmmm.. Curious. Well, I wasn't ready to AScend all those steps so I hapilly paid my 2 Euros to go up. Once up, I took more photos but saw the stairs to go UP even further so I inhaled and went up up UP the narrow staircase, getting a little "swirly" on the way, and came out to an internal landing, presumably in one of the tall spire (which all four were, I believe, "bagged" at their tops for preservation or renovation). From here, I shared the space with about 6 other tourists, all of us taking photos of the UNbagged, shorter spires from through the small holes. Nice. Cold and windy up there too, causing my nose to run and eyes water. Didn't want to lose my glasses from waaaay up there so at points I had to push the bridge into my nose to secure them to my face. Went back down some steps to a landing to the outside. More photos. Then crossed a "bridge" from one spire to another, more photos. Then, I didn't really see where to go so I followed some Aussie teenagers down some steps, ASSUMING they knew where they were going. THEY DIDN'T. We met people coming UP the stairs and wedged by them, laughing at our mistake, and getting out onto a landing to let them pass. I found the correct stairs, as did the teens, and I went down ahead of them, stopping along the way to take photos through the holes and also down the deep, deep, deep spiral staircase "hole". Wow. That was something. Got to the bottom. FINALLY! Took some more photos from inside, then outside, then used the restroom and walked around in the "basement" where lots of Antonio Gaudí art, models, and photos of the building of the Sagrada Familia were displayed. Interesting!

Now it's about 5:15pm or so and made my way towards "Casa de Les Punxes" only to snap a few photos from the front while some darker clouds started to come in, shielding the back-lighting from the building - which was good in some way. Didn't know much about this building until later but was in a bit of a hurry to continue on another couple of blocks to the Antonio Gaudi building "La Pedrera, Espai Gaudí" which is the building I'd visited the night before to the rooftop with the ghostly chimneys. I didn't ascend today, just took photos from outside with the descent light as yesterday I was there too late for good light. After these photos I waked down Passeig de Gracia, taking one wrong turn along the way, and back on to see Gaudí's building "Casa Batllo" which has the swooping blue/purple roof and the skull/teeth-shaped balconies and "floral" colored facade. Apparently, according to the guide book, this building is owned by the family with runs the "Chupa Chups" lolipop empire. Here, I dodged oncoming traffic, attempting to get the best vantage point for my photos. Unfortunately, as is the case throughout this trip, leaves on these now-barren trees would've been nicer for the photos but at the same time I could've seen less of these buildings had the trees had leaves. Hmmm... Still, better to have leaves, I think.

Okay. Now I'm quite tired and very hungry, it's about 6:15pm. Just past the McDonald's there's a place which sells packaged sandwiches and salads so I bought a chicken, tomato, cheese, and bacon sandwich and a bottle of water. It was quite good as I sat on a high stool at my high table overlooking Passeig de Gracia and watched the pedestrians filing by. One young couple, maybe 19 years old, was arguing about something. She was very very tall and very very thin, tight jeans, cute, and think she had some lip/eyebrow piercings - which seem to be all the rage here. Her "boyfriend" had a mullet haircut, was shorter than her, thin, and a kind of tough-guy appearance to him. He was trying to calm her and she was crying. Without hearing anything through the window it almost seemed like one of those scenes on a soap opera where the couple argues and one tries to pull away while the other pulls him/her back and goes nose to nose with "hard passion" in their eyes. Then they went to McDonald's to celebrate their apparent reconciliation. Hahaha!

Finished my sandwich and got myself warm, still feeling rather sickly with a sore through and terrible cough. Walked all the way back to Hostal Martina on Calle Bailen, just next to the Placa de Tetuan, constantly looking at the map to be sure I was going in the correct direction. Got upstairs, alone, no one there. Layed down for awhile to rest and fell asleep for maybe an hour. Woke up. Bored. Tired. Watched a few episodes of The Andy Griffith Show on DVD and considered going BACK to the Passeig de Gracia metro stop, a direct shot from the Metro Tetuan just next to me, to go to one of the interesting looking restaurants I saw there earlier today. I looked out my mirador a few times and started seeing people file in to a bar across the street from the hostel. Odd, I thought, a bar being open on a Sunday night but kept that a possibility in case I was too tired to go OUT to dinner. I WAS! At about 9:45pm I got dressed, downstairs, crossed the street, and saw on their "sandwich board" that there was a FC Barcelona soccer match on TV and THAT'S why they were open. They also listed some tapas which looked interesting AND CHEAP so I went in and took the table next to the door, the furthest one from the big screen TV. I asked if I could sit there alone and the female bartender said yes. Wow, the place was smoky. I ordered an Estrella Damm beer in the bottle as that's what everyone else was drinking, and also berberechos, croquetas, and patatas bravas. Hungry, I DRANK the first bottle of beer quickly while observing the crowd watching their beloved team play... ummm... Osuna?? I don't recall now. The food seemed to take forever but finally came after I was almost finishing my second beer. Got about 10 little croquetas, a plate full of fried potatoes with a kind of pink-ish mayonnaise sauce (NOT the red Bravas sauce I'm used to in Madrid), and a LARGE LARGE bowl full of berberechos - served at room temperature or colder. I wondered if they were SUPPOSED to be cold and thought not but who knows here in Catalunya. Watching the game and eating, FC Barcelona scored and everyone shouted and held up their hands in excitation but didn't go absolutely crazy as I've seen others doing. The crowd here was young. I was the certainly the oldest person there at 40 years old, the average being about 26 maybe, until a man of about 55 came in and sat at the bar. He threw off the whole age curve. Had a third Estrella Damm beer and asked for the bill at the bar. Total was about 17 Euros which I thought to be pretty good. Back to the room, strip down and put on my pajamas, taking a nasty olfactory note of my stinky, smoking smelling pants, shirt, and jacket. Blech! I hung them over the chairs in the mirador and closed them off from the rest of the bedroom with the ceiling-to-floor red-velvet curtains. Aaahh.. Clean-smelling again. Watched some more Andy Griffith shows on DVD and went to sleep, wondering if the couple in the room next to me would be performing a late-night matinée for my benefit but no. Not a sound. Maybe the final curtain fell while I was at the bar. I'd looked back through the door of the bar while I was there and could see them both seated on their balcony.

March 13, 2006 - Monday:

Slept soundly until about 8:30am and got dressed to my now smoke-free-smelling clothes from the mirador. Ahhh... Went out the door, turned left and walked through a bunch of kids on the sidewalk who were apparently entering school. Crossed the street and right there there was a bar with lots of tables inside so I went in and asked for a coffee and pastry. Had yet another coffee, paid, and went back to the Hostal Martina. María hadn't arrived for the day yet and the hostel was quiet. Got my shower stuff together, locked my bedroom door behind me, and went to the bathroom to shower - took my good old sweet time, too. When I came out and went back to my room I saw the hostel's office light was on. María was probably here now. Went in and sat at the table on the mirador and worked solidly for about 2 hours until my reminder alarm sounded at 11:30am, 30 minutes to check out. So I got all my stuff together, put away the laptop, and made one last trip to the bathroom befor taking my bags to the reception area of the hostel where I found Maria at her desk, having just rolled herself another cigarette. She chatted for awhile and thanked her for allowing me to test BOTH rooms, on both sides of the floor. The entire floor, the entire building is so elegant and antique, very turn-of-the-century (1900) but very simple and a bit rustic in other ways. I hated to leave this place. Its immenseness, with the beautiful floor tile designs, cathedral ceilings all with swirling molding, thick walls, big, tall old doors with either smoked or colored, stained glass. I particulalry liked having the keys which were both SKELETON keys; one to open the street door and another one to open my bedroom door. The hostel key was a standard, modern key. Skeleton keys! I hadn't seen or used those since I was a small child. I was going to miss María too. She was so nice, so friendly, so casual with me and also very attentive, offering me her own milk for my coffee when I made some from the reception-area room. I felt so at home there and "living" in such antique elegance of which *I'D* never experienced before in a hostel. We shook hands goodbye just as we did when we met, thinking that was probably more appropriate than the two-cheek-kiss for such a meeting. She reminded me to get in touch with her if I'd need something in the future and to come visit when I returned. She then pressed the DOWN button on the elevator, said goodbye, and went back to work inside as the elevator came up to meet me.

Down to the street. It's now about 12:30pm or so. Walking down a block or so I took a cross street, one going towards the Plaza de Catalunya, thinking that was the best direction to hail a taxi. Got one quickly as I felt a faint mist of rain in the air. "Calle de Sepulveda, 187 por favor". And off we went to Pension Casa Goya, just past (west) of the Placa de la Universitat. The standard size door was grey painted steel inset into MUCH larger, older wooden door. I pushed the button on the buzzer panel which simply said, "PENSION" (nothing else, no sign, no name on the buzzer panel). The woman came back I told her I had a reservation. BUZZZZZ. I pushed open the door and saw a man sitting in a small, shielded security room but the door to the stairs was open so I walked in. The man leaned back to look at me through his door and I asked where the Pension was and he told me - next floor up. The staircase was a bit dated and the entire entry and stairs were in need of a good cleaning and/or renovation but I got upstairs to to a brightly illuminated sign, "Pension Casa Goya" over the gray steel door. The door immediately to the left was open and I could see some workers renovating the entire piso. Another buzzer to enter the pension. DING-DONG! I was buzzed in and one of the workers entered with me. All the floor is tiled with alternating black and white tiles. Zoiks! Got to the reception desk, gave my name, they had it all there; 3 nights, double room, complete bathroom. I gave my passport, she made a copy, and gave me the key to room number 104. I asked if Michela de Profio, my contact via email, was around but she was not at the moment. No problem. I'll catch up to her later. Went into my room just around the corner from the reception area and Zoiks! Again, black and white floor tiles as well as white bed comforter and SOFT, fluffy pillow and black blanket and cushions. A white towel perfectly rolled and place on the bed in the center of the black folded blanket. What detail! Looking around, I see peach colored painted walls, what seems like a large, new, high definition TV, a mini-bar, Ikea-looking furniture, ceiling light, "soft light" and black and white photo collage over the bed's headboard, a big bathroom, also all in black and while floor tiles. Bathroom has an elevated toiled, a non-elevated bidet, sink, elevated shower stall with sliding glass door, everything looking so perfectly new, also a hair drier, and over the sink a dental kit, comb, shampoo and shower gel, wrapped bar of soap, and shower cap. Next to the modern, high-water-pressure sink is a wall-mounted hand-soap dispenser. Cool! THIS IS LIVING! I'm REALLY impressed with this room, very HOTEL-LIKE with the details, very modern, very new, and nice details everywhere. Even the doors look brand new and very secure. The only unfortunate thing of the room was that it was an interior building room and so the one window it did have had a view of the narrow air-shaft but the glass in this window is "smoked" and so you're not subjected to see the view there really is out there, plus there are heavy vinyl curtains covering the window to block out light.

After putting away my stuff and semi-unpacking for this fourth and final hostel stay during my 9-days in Barcelona, I prepared my backpack, put on my shoes, and went out into the hostel's reception area, Michela, the owner, greeted me immediately. How nice she was! I must admit I was surprised to find such a young (28 or younger) and attractive owner of this hostel. I commented on her motorcycle helmet she'd put down at the reception desk and she laughed about the lack of car-parking spaces. She took me on a tour of a couple of the vacant rooms in this 6-room pension. She showed me one with a kind of front room with a sleeper sofa and an interior bedroom. Another room was a double-twin room with a flat-screen television mounted on the wall! WOW! What a surprise! What details! She told me they had only been open for about 6 months and were also renovating the rest of the building's floor to add another 6 rooms to the pension. THAT'S what the workers were doing. She said they hoped to be finished in about 4 or 5 months. She must have put a lot of money into this place to make it so modern and hotel-like. It kind of reminded me of Madrid's Hostal Adriano which was had the entire staircase "en obras" for more than a year, looking awful and very dusty, passing through all that mess to find the wonderfully decorated "oasis" of a hostel at the top of the stairs. (FYI: Hostal Adriano's staircase has been finished and new elevator has been installed and now the entire building is a true treasure) I'm sure that when the building's entry and staircase gets a good renovation job it'll all be wonderful. But I don't think these details are up to the owner(s) of Pension Casa Goy as they're not the buildings' only tenants. But the entry and staircase seemed VERY secure and very safe.

After twisting through El Raval for what seemed like a long time, I finally found one place which looked interesting both for the place and also for the menu displayed outside. It was ROISSY, a medieval-themed place at Carrer dels Angels, 6. I'd never

The place was very interesting and there was certainly no waiting for a table as it was empty. I attributed that to the hour - ONLY 10pm Monday night, not a popular time for eating out. There I had the lentejas for starters - for which Rosa got a BIG laugh because, apparently, lentels are ONLY a lunchtime starter and not for dinner. I like them but it is unfortunate that I had them for lunch too but there wasn't anything else that got my attention - or which I recognized on the menu. Next, I ordered a large sepia/calamar/squid filled with 4 meats. It was really good but the squid body was a little thick and chewy. For dessert I ordered the tiramisu - very very good. Also, they brought in a basket 3 small rolls of different varieties. With dinner I ordered a bottle of white wine and drank 3/4 of it which turned out to be too much for me. I chit-chatted with the dyed-blond waitress mainly because I was the only customer there from beginning (10pm) to end (11pm). Got sick late that night and threw up everything - probably drank too much. The next day I told a Spanish friend what I´d had for dinner and she said, "I'm not surpised! You don't order lentils for dinner!!" I thought, "REALLY?"

March 14, 2006 - Tuesday:

Got up very late and not feeling too good. Skipped breakfast for the time being. Took the metro from UNIVERSITAT metro station to the Estacio Sants Metro/Train station to buy my return ticket to Madrid for Thursday, 16th of March. It's now about 11:45am. I got in line to buy my ticket when the ticket window attendant told me I was in the regional train line and that I'd have to go to the end of the station for the non-regional trains. Okay. NO problem. There it is! Easy! I got behind the only woman in line and waited a moment. She finally turned with a smile and regretfully told me that I had to take a number. ARGH! I found the ticket machine, pressed a button, and it spit out my numbered ticket. WOW! I had something like 50 numbers to wait from the current number displayed on the electronic sign. Plus, the ticket said something like, "Estimated time of service: 1 hour 15 minutes. ARGH!! I sat down with the other travelers waiting their turn and made a call home. After a few minutes I decided to get something to eat so I went to the café for some coffee and churros for my delayed breakfasts. NOW I'm hungry. After finishing, I casually make my way back to the waiting area for my turn to come - I still have 35 minutes of estimated time before my number's called. Hmmmm... On my way back I notice a bunch of stand-up computers towards the center of the station. What are these? It turns out these are automated ticket-sales computers. Cool! So, with my credit card I chose and bought my return ticket in a matter of minutes. VOILA! DONE! I'm OUTA HERE! Wish I'd known about these upon arriving. Oh well. This time I bought a ticket in the "CLASS PREFERENTE" to compare it with the "CLASS TURISTA" ticket with which I came to Barcelona. This "Class Preferente" ticket costs 97.40 Euros. Hope it's worth it. (Read more about my "Preferente" train-ride experience on the last day of this journal, Thursday, March 14th, 2006) Back on the metro from Sants Estacio, changing to the red line at CATALUNYA to URQUINAONA where I change again to the yellow line to BARCELONETA.

Got out of the metro BARCELONETA METRO station and stepped into the pleasant sun and not-as-pleasant cool and windy air to walk the Barceloneta under the sun. It's quite nice! I walked along the "Passeig de Joan de Borbo Comte de Barcelona" along dozens of terrazas and restaurants facing the sailboat-filled Por Vell. While walking in the sun-yet-cool-breeze, I'm looking over of the "Menú del Dia" signs at the front of each restaurant. Every time I stop I'm approached by an anxious waiter asking, in English, "Lunch sir?" or "Today we're serving...." or "We have paella". Taking note of the many options I keep walking and stop at a bench to consult my guide book in case any of these places are listed as recommended - they're not! hehehe... Walking a little more I look down a street to my left where I see a plaza. It's Placa de la Barceloneta so I take some photos, thinking this would be so much nicer looking if the trees had leaves. Back to the Passeig de Joan de Borbó Comte de Barcelona to continue to the tip of the Barceloneta. It's quite nice, thinking this place must really be something on a Saturday night or any evening in the summer. I reach the tip and THERE'S THE BEACH! Palm trees and jacket-wearing beach-combers are everywhere. I assume these are tourist just happy to be on a sandy beach in the sun - even if it is rather chilly for me, but then I'm still sick and maybe I'm not properly assessing the climate. Still, many of the fully-clothed people walking the beach suggest they're in agreement with me. The beach is REALLY nice, fine sand, gently sloping to the water's edge, palm trees, and sailboats in the water.

Turning the "tip" of the Barceloneta, I decide to zig-zag my way BACK towards the mainland, taking each parallel street to the end, walking one block, then back the next parallel street to its end. I'm still looking for a place to eat while enjoying this relatively quiet neighborhood, very few people and even fewer cars - but it could be because it's the lunch hour AND because many people are at work. This IS a Tuesday afternoon afterall. Most of the buildings are in need of some paint, repairs, and/or renovation but I like it just the same. Not sure how it'd be a night, however. I strongly considered one GALICIAN restaurant for lunch on the BACKside of the Barceloneta, facing the beach, but consider it a "conflict" to be Barcelona eating Galician food. Kind of looking for one of the few mid-priced/budget dining places listed in guide book. One of the very budget-but-good-food places I find has a long line of people outside. I wait for awhile and someone is taking menu requests IN the line. Hmmm.. Nope. Let's continue on. No real luck so I continue "switching back" along the streets of the Barceloneta until I reach the Placa de la Barceloneta and then back to the Marina side where the street is lined with terrazas. I go back to the one which looked interesting. It's the Cerveceria Restaurante El Dique at Passeig de Joan de Borbo, 25 - about 2 blocks from the Placa de la Barceloneta. It's not on the reviewed/recommended list but it looks pretty good to me. I pass the terraza and the waiter asks where I'd like to sit. I say, "INSIDE!", so she sits me at one of the few remaining tables facing the Port Vell marina. Perfect. For 9.98 Euros I had the Menú del Día of pasta for the first course, sepia (squid) for the second course, and pudding for dessert, all this with bread and a white wine. I'm full and tired but there's more to do on this day and no time to return for a nap. This is my second to last day in Barcelona.

BACK to the mainland! I pass by the BARCELONETA metro station again and continue on to the Placa del Palau, turning right and walk along the Avenguda del Marqués de l'Argentera to the front of the "mostly disused" Estació de Franca train station. WOW! This old train station is really something! It's enormous! Very beautiful turn-of-the-19th-century structure reminding me somewhat of New York City's Grand Central Station. I stepped in to see the trains on their crescent moon-shaped rails all under cover of a transparent ceiling.

The sun's getting lower so there's no time to waste. I continue on to western edge of the Parc de la Ciutadella where I enter, just below the late 19th century former Mercat del Born - which is closed and where entire medieval streets have been unearthed according to my guidebook. The Parc de la Ciutadella is immense and also undergoing rather extensive-looking renovations so there's machinery, workmen, piles of dirt and dusty walkways. Unfortunate. But I make my way through the park in the direction towards the Passeig Lluis Companys and the now-visible Arc de Triomf. Just before and just at the end of the park I turn right on Passeig de Pujades and then turn into the park once again to visit the "Cascada" ("waterfall") monument, built in 1881 by Josep Fontsere and with help from a young Antonio Gaudí. I've seen this before, in 1997 during a Semana Santa, and the fountains were flowing freely. Not today. Guess it's not the season yet. Still, it's all impressive and a beautiful day to see it. I took a number of photos and walked back towards the Arc de Triomf. The Arc de Triomf, built in the late 1880s as part of The Universal Exhibition, is an impressive brick structure in Islamic style of at the end of the Passeig de Lluis Conpanys. You can see this arch from quite a distance and makes for good photos what with the pedestrian boulevard lined with palm trees and 19th century lamp posts. The Arc de Triomf is located just before the ARC DE TRIOMF metro station. The sun's low now and giving the arch's brown brick a nice glow - great for photos.

How it's about 5:30pm and I'm tired! So I take the red line metro from ARC DE TRIOMF station directly to the UNIVERSITAT metro station, same red line, 3-stops away. I get "home" to the nearby Pensión Casa Goya and go upstairs, drop my stuff, and drop myself onto the bed and turn on the TV. Snoooooze. Time for a short nap. This happens all the time. I sleep TOO late and then when 9pm comes I feel so lazy to go out for dinner. But, I've got to do it.

At about 9:30pm I dress and drag my exhausted corpse to someplace for dinner, someplace nearby and fast - PLEASE! I go towards El Raval, very close to Pensión Casa Goya, but never make it. On Carrer Pelai, 12, I see again (one I've passed many times) what seemed to be an old, German-style bar/restaurant. German food here in Barcelona? Hmmm. I'm conflicted. But it looks like a decent place, very casual, and the front doors are open to the cold, outside air. People are sitting at the large, wooden bar and others at wooden tables and chairs. I walk in along the wooden floor. I see large beer steins and chubby, molded caricatures holding large beer mugs and wearing wide smiles. Ooooookay. I ask the waiter where I should sit and he gives me the, "wherever", so I take a small table next to the window. The place is quite large, high ceilings, lots of wood paneling and wood everything. But something else is a bit out of the ordinary. I see every person working here is of Asian origin. "Not that there's anything wrong with that", but it seems odd here, in Barcelona, in a German-style restaurant. Okay. No problem. I order a beer - probably should consider my cold - and it comes in one of those tall half-liter glass mugs with a handle and the beer's brand (Spaten) embossed on the front. Looking over the menu now I see they mainly only have tapas so, fine. I also see large banners all around the restaurant boasting of their low prices like, "GAMBAS AL AJILLO for only 3.95 Euros!" and "PATATAS BRAVAS FOR ONLY 2.95!!!". I'm sold. So I order some patatas bravas, chipirones, gambas al ajillo, and they also bring pan con tomate. These are all some of my favorite things. I can't wait! But when everything came I was a bit disappointed with most of the food items. Hmmm... First, the patatas bravas came. I think these were the best things on my order. They were fine and covered with the Catalan-style bravas sauce which looks (and somewhat tastes) like a creamy Thousand Island salad dressing but only slightly spicier, kind of a pink-ish color, but it's good. The gambas al ajillo - about which I consider myself a near-expert because I order it so often - is this tinnnnnny ceramic dish filled with tiny farm-raised shrimps. They WERE tasty but they were also TINY and definitely a one-person menu-item. I also LOVVVVE chipirones, the small deep fried squids. These here were smaller than I'm used to seeing, VERY chewy, and OVER-fried. Not good. The toasted bread was cold and the tomato sauce was so thing it was barely visible. Time for another beer - which I ordered but only drank half. I was stuffed with not-so-good-food but it was cheap. Not sure I like that trade-off. Here's the order and prices:

Patatas Bravas: 2.95
Chipirones: 3.90
Gambas al Ajillo: 3.95
Pan con Tomate: 0.95
2 - 0.5L Spaten Beer: 7.00
TOTAL with I.V.A.: 20.06
Tip: VERY little

I left at about 10:32pm and made my way back to the Pensión Casa Goya with a heavy head and an even heavier stomach. Blah. I don't feel well... again. Get "home", lay down on the very comfortable double bed, and turn on the laptop for a couple episodes of "The Andy Griffith Show" on DVD before going to sleep.

March 15, 2006 - Wednesday:

Got up LATE. Again. Showered, dressed, and left the Pension Casa Goya at a very late 11am or so and got on the metro at Placa de la Universitat towards Placa de Catalunya where I EXPECTED to simply change metro trains going north to Gracia, my destination for the day. The guide books says it was once a separate village north of Eixample, and then in the 19th century an industrial district famous for its Republican and liberal ideas and was incorporated into the city of Barcelona in 1897. It also says that in th e1960s and 70s it became a kind of fashionable place among radical and bohemian types. I got to Placa de Catalunya and had a real time finding the exchange for the blue line L7, direction Tibidabo. I did find the L7 but it wasn't blue, it was brown. Hmmm.. First indication. Also, it seemed that I had to LEAVE the Placa de Catalunya station in order to get to that metro. I went back, retraced my steps, sure enough. I have to leave go get there. Hmmm.. So I did. And then I had to re-run my metro pass through once agin to get to the L7 train. It was there waiting, seemingly ONLY going one direction. It was one of two (or three) others which seemed to be going. Hmm.. this train looks a little different inside. Sat down, and we started now. On the way I found that a kind of "sign" next to it, like two squiggly lines wrapped together. I think this is NOT your standard metro train and that's why I had to leave the metro and pay again to get on this one. I got off at the Gracia station but found out later that I could've gotten off at the Fontana or Diagonal station on the standard metro. Mmmm.. Well. Live and learn. Got out of the station, found the first cafeteria for breakfast and went inside for a coffee with mild and chocolate croissant. Looked over my Lonely Planet guide book and upon finishing I went then to the restroom. Then to the main street which was Via Agusta. Hmmm.. Finding it on my map I found my next destination, an earlier house (1888) design by Antonio Gaudí called Casa Vicenc located on Carrer de les Carolines, 22, west of Grácia's main street, Carrer Gran de Grácia - took lots of photos and only saw a few other tourists there doing the same. The time is just after noon. The gate was just opened for some reason so I stepped open to snap more from the inside. Continuing on down, I went to the Placa de la Libertat where they have the Mercat de la Libertat. The outside's rusted, swirling wrought iron under a terracotta roof. I took some photos inside. Found a nice, small, palm-tree square which was on my map but not listed with a name. Sat to rest and called my significant other, now, about 12:00pm. Next, walked down Carrer Gran de Gracia, just past the Fontana metro station (where I should've arrived - hmph!) and took a left, going northeast on Carrer d'Asturies to the Placa del Diamant - which was totally surrounded in fencing for renovation. Blech! Continuing on in the same direction, 2 blocks more, arriving at the much nicer "Placa de la Virreina" where I took more photos - a church at one end, some trees, and public water fountain with faces. I took some photos here of a particularly nice-looking mirador/balcony and also some looking down the hill through the narrow, tree-lined pedestrian boulevard of Carrer de Torrijos. I just walked in this direction for 3 blocks and turned right on Carrer de Terol and found the "Placa de la Revolucion de 1868" (which now I can't remember) and on down to the "famed" (?) Placa del Sol - a cement floored plaza with a few trees on the perimeter and a kind of sun dial on one side. The guide books says this is one of Gracia's liveliest plazas but not on this cool, still-winter day in mid-March. I took photos of both the plaza and also the sundial and one particularly interesting green building. Crossing down another street then back up, continuing on the undulating, downward pitch, switching back after the end of every new street intersection, crossing over Carrer Gran de Gracia where I take a couple photos of some nice-looking street lamps. A little later, I find Placa de la Llibertat where there's the Mercat de la Llibertat. I go in and take more photos inside and out. Back to Carrer Gran de Gracia and take a number of photos of a beautiful, unusual, rounded mirador which looks almost like a missile. It's on the corner of Travessera de Gracia and the busy Carrer Gran de Gracia. Continuing on Travessera de Gracia I encounter Mercat de l'Abaceria Central where I go in and take a few more photos. This market seems a bit more modern but still busy.

Now it's about 1:45pm and I'm hungry. I hadn't seen many Barcelona restaurants so far to my great surprise and thought it might be a bit difficult finding places to eat here. I'd heard so many great stories about the variety of interesting restaurants from people although the guidebook listed a surprising few. Just past the Mercat de l'Abaceria Central and to the left on Carrer de Ciudad Real, 3, I saw some workers going into "Bar Xasomo (2003)" a bar which had a sandwich board outside listing their Menú del Dia for 7 Euros. WOW! 7 Euros! The menu looked good too so I walked in and got an immediate greeting from the owner/bartender. Asked if I could sit at this table of four, he told me better to take a smaller table for 1 in case a group of four came in. Fair enough. Took a small table and the owners wife came along shortly thereafter to take my order. I ordered the Spaghetti's a la carbonera for the first course and then the roasted breast of chicken for the second along with the house white wine. When I sat down I was maybe the 5th person there but by the time I left it was almost full. The spaghetti with white sauce was really good as was the chicken with its parsley sprinkles baked on. Good. All the while I was taking notes on my experience which the owner took notice. I couldn't help but think that he was thinking that I was someone - I mean SOMEONE, maybe writing a book on restaurants or "Best Places to Eat in Barcelona", asking me frequently if everything was okay - something I noticed he did not do with the others. I'd ordered the "flan de la casa" from the woman and when she brought it I asked if it was really "de la casa" and she said it was, that she made it herself - as she cooked all the food. She seemed interested that I'd ask. The white wine of the house (which I noticed again that it was called "Vino de la Casa" and not "vino de la mesa" - and it was also served cold in reusable bottle with a cork, holding about 3-glasses or so) was pretty good and I poured one glass for the first course and another for the second course. When paying my check I reminded her that I had the menu PLUS I had an EXTRA glass of wine. I noticed she told her husband this at the bar and, as has happened to me in the past, there was a strange exchange among them, and she came back saying there was no charge for the extra glass. Hmmm.. Is that because I could've drank the ENTIRE carafe of wine for no extra charge or was it because the THOUGHT I was 'someone'?? My ego says the latter but the reality may well be the former. When she brought my change I thanked her and asked her the location of the restrooms. Uh-oh. A tell-tale sign of a restaurant critic, no? Hmmm..maybe not. hehhee.. So I went, went, then returned, thanking them for lunch and giving them a "Well Done!". He asked if I liked it, seemingly very concerned, I said yes and gave him the thumbs up. When I left the establishment I took a photo of the entry. It was an "unassuming" place inside, very very simple, clearly catering to the local, working-class clientèle and often these places have the best deals for good, honest food by friendly people and this place did not disappoint.

Now ba