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Friday August 14 - Paris to Barcelona
We rise early to be downstairs by 8 for our van to the airport. Our driver was 10 minutes late and Jacob was already having shpilkes but all was well. We eat our pastries for breakfast in the Orly airport. Very few problems, except that we weren't sure exactly which gate - our boarding passes say 10. We entered the gate area, but there are 10 A through F! Finally, they announce after 30 minutes (and more shpilkes from Jacob) that the gate will be 10A. Our flight to Barcelona is uneventful. We get a magnificent view of the Spanish Mediterranean coast as we come in for our landing in Barcelona. We try to take care of our tax refund now, but alors, we cannot until we leave for the US. (For many purchases you pay tax at the time of purchase, which is then refunded to you when you leave the country. For us, the overall savings was nearly $1000). We head to our hotel - the Royal on La Rambla. La Rambla is the Champs Elysées of Barcelona. Thousands of people walking up and down the median of this boulevard lined with stores, restaurants and hotels. There are street performers everywhere. Most today are mimes in various costumes, some painted from head to toe, with a wide variety of schticks. It's a fascinating street, but we're glad that our hotel rooms don't overlook the street, or we fear none of us would get any sleep! We have a bite in the restaurant La Poma (the Apple) adjacent to our hotel. The paella is excellent - our first in Spain! We then walk around the Gothic Quarter and visit Picasso's museum. Jacob really enjoyed it, but the rest remembered why they were never fans of his work. We pass the Cathedral whose walls date back to Roman times, 4th century b.c.e. We passed an open-air market and bought a belt for Elliot for $10 - and it's leather! Tried to buy sandals for Nancy, but alas, none of them fit. Jacob has had enough walking so we return to the hotel. All the men are in need of washing some clothes. The desk clerk finally understands that Nancy is looking for a self-service Laundromat, and he assures us that we won't find one anywhere around. So the Tide To Go that Nancy bought at wal-mart is about to come in very handy. First, Nancy was washing, rinsing and wringing. Quickly, this becomes too much for one person. I wish we'd taken pictures, but you'll just have to take my word for it: we stood in the bathroom, Nancy washing in the sink, Harvey and Marcus rinsing and wringing in tandem. It was quite a sight to behold! We're ready to think about dinner, and we consult Frommer's and Zagat's, but the first 3 places we call are closed the month of August. Finally, we reach La Dama, featuring Catalan and Mediterranean cuisine. The restaurant is magnificent inside - we think we've arrived at another museum! The elevator is incredible! The dining room is so beautiful inside, the staff very warm. The food was outstanding. The only negative was Jacob starting an argument both at the beginning of the meal (over a dinner roll) and then a terrible, nasty fight at the end of the meal, frankly over nothing at all. But food has been his number one flashpoint the entire trip. Whether it was the table not being good enough at the Eiffel Tower or how many diet cokes (coca light in Europe) the boys drank, or, in this case, that we ordered dessert, there was seemingly something that he would get irrationally angry about. He also thought that the boys ate both pieces of a platter of small finger desserts without asking him if he wanted it first. This was not the case, but that wasn't the point. He got so angry he was red in the face. Perhaps some of this is an anger reaction to not hearing things; or missing Peggy. Who knows? But Nancy's had a few too many glasses of sangria, and she's had enough of his behavior, and she tells Jacob off a bit. We ride back to the hotel (thank goodness we need 2 cabs…) and Jacob takes off to walk down the Rambla. Nancy and Harvey ignored him and went up to the room. Marcus and Elliot chaperoned him, but they all returned safely half an hour later. |
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