Six goals!

The trip ended today with a brutally long, cramped train ride back to Barcelona (Laura´s height, combined with her placement in the train car, gave her a view (and smell) of various European armpits for the 100-minute trip.

Once back in the city. however, things improved. We found two of the few stores that are actually open on Sunday -- the gift shop at Gaudi´s La Pedrera and the FC Barcelona megastore at the Estadi Camp Nou. Naturally, I had secured tickets for the Barcelona-Valencia match, and the much maligned hosts bounced back from Wednesday´s season-crushing loss to Manchester United by beating Valencia 6-0. Can´t complain about that.

We went from the Camp Nou to the Plaça d´Espanya just in time to catch the Font Magica, a fountain replete with a light and music show that was one of the money shots of the 1992 Olympics coverage. Very cool.

The night -- and the trip -- concluded with a sandwich and some sangria at Schilling, a bar in the Barri Gotic. Now it´s off to bed and soon, off to the airport. However, once we´re home, more pictures will follow, appeasing the few of you (if any) who have stuck with us all week.

Adeu i bon viatge,
Tim and Laura

Fake paella

After days of pleading, Laura finally got her paella ... but at least it was the Catalan version made with noodles instead of rice -- apparently, paella is not all that big in this part of Spain. Sort of like getting New England clam chowder in Manhattan.

One food that everyone can agree on is gelato, which the Spanish have adopted as their own. We´ve had it at least 3 or 4 times so far.

Day 2 in Girona has included visits to the Jewish history museum (the Jewish Quarter is very well preserved) and the Cinema Museum. Tomorrow, it´s back to Barcelona for the grand finale.

Take care,
Tim and Laura

Technical difficulties

The hotel in Tarragona didn´t have internet access, and the hotel here in Girona is pay-per-click, so entries will be sparse until at least Sunday. But if you enjoy really old buildings -- especially Roman ruins -- then this part of the world is for you.

Tarragona also gave us our first up-close look at the Mediterranean. The sea water is cold, but no colder than Salisbury Beach in late August. Today and tomorrow, we´re in Girona, before the tour of Catalunya concludes Sunday in Barcelona.

Adeu i bon nit,

Tim and Laura

Full speed ahead

The Lonely Planet guide to Barcelona said, "See a show. Any show" at the Palau de la Musica Catalana, yet another marvel of Modernisme architecture. So we went to see Milton Nascimento, a Brazilian bossanova singer, last night. Fatigue, a pre-show glass of cava, and some super-soothing music had both of us close to nodding off during the performance, but we made it through.

As for the Palau itself, it's quite impressive:

Today featured a self-guided tour of the Barri Gotic (Gothic Quarter), including its Cathedral which dates back to the 1200s; a trip to the city's history museum, featuring the excavated Roman ruins of the old city in the basement; lunch bought at the massive Mercat de la Boqueria market and eaten on the docks of Port Vell, and funicular and cable-car rides on Montjuic.

Off to dinner -- more photos to come.

Tim and Laura

Abridged version

Very quickly, since we did the entire Modernisme architecture tour in a day and are thus, totally wiped out.

Antoni Gaudi = cool.

The Rainbow Connection

Call it a good omen or call it coincidence, but for the third time on one of our trips (joining Calgary and Ireland), one of these appeared:

Fira de Barcelona convention center

Those viaducts I promised (and bunnies)

Primera dia: Bunnies for sale

Greetings from (drumroll, please) Barcelona, where Day 1 of the honeymoon is drawing to a close.

Things began with a bit of confusion, as one Iberia Airlines staffer told us that a) we'd be sitting together on the flight to Madrid and b) we'd be taking the same plane to Barcelona, only to get to the gate and find out from another staffer that a) we were not slated to sit together on the flight to Madrid, and b) that we'd be switching planes.

The slightly helpful second staffer (apparently that's about all you can hope for with this airline) changed our seats, however, so we sat together on the seven-hour flight ... which was about one-third full. Passengers had entire four-seat rows to turn into private beds. But the honeymooners have to stay together, so we remained in an upright, locked position (with minimal sleep) until arriving in Madrid.

Sleep deprived and cranky (especially Tim), we arrived in Barcelona at about 10 a.m., and broke the cardinal rule of European travel by immediately taking a nap upon check-in. We might not make a better decision as long as we live.

Three hours later, sufficiently refreshed and infinitely less frazzled, we hit the streets, touring Park Guell, architect Antoni Gaudi's fascinating urban oasis, full of creations that no sane man could conjure -- such as a gingerbread house-styled building; curving, colorful tile benches; and the stone viaducts (below) which I can't quite describe.

We'll get the full Gaudi experience tomorrow, including the Sagrada Familia cathedral.

We later walked down Las Ramblas, a tree-lined boulevard that also serves as Barcelona's prime tourist trap. We must have seen 10 stalls selling a variety of birds, turtles, guinea pigs and bunnies -- the last of which were crammed 5-10 into a small cage. We weren't sure what the market for bunnies is when you're catering to tourists who won't be able to bring the animals into their home countries, but the sheer preponderance of these sketchy establishments suggests that business must be good.

We wound up the evening with a quick stop at the Placa d'Espanya and an excellent dinner at Ca l'Isidre, photos of which will follow (hopefully soon), but it's time to sleep now.

Thanks for a great wedding and take care,

Tim and Laura

Coming soon: The revelation