Day #9 Viking Western Mediterranean Cruise - Sea Day #2 Lisbon to Bordeaux 4/23/16

We got up rather early as we rested after the second Fado show to avoid seasickness. The ocean was fairly calm so we were ready for breakfast and were anxious to attend an enrichment lecture on marine biology presented by Dr. Jay Christofferson, PhD. He is a retired professor from UC Stanislaus and you could tell that he was teaching for a long time as his lecture was organized, humorous, and very informative to people with little background in marine biology. He definitely stimulated me to learn more about this fascinating portion of the earth sciences.

Following Dr. Christofferson's lecture, Gregory Bowden presented a lecture entitled "All About Champagne." Since Earline and I have visited the Domaine Chandon winery inn Napa, California, we were pretty familiar with the process of making a sparkling wine. However, you can always learn something, especially from a wine expert.

The Champagne region of France is in the northeast portion of France. The sparkling wine produced in this region is the only wine that can bear the title of a Champagne. The others must be called sparkling wines.

As with most vineyards in France, the Romans were the first to plant vines in that region. The first wines from that region were a pale, pinkish beverage made from Pinot noir grapes. The people in the Champagne region were jealous of the wine made in the Bordeaux region but their growing conditions were much different and thus their wines had low sugar content and acidity. In addition, the cold winters halted the fermentation process leaving yeast to be activated again in the spring as temperatures warmed.As the yeast was reactivated, carbon dioxide, the byproduct of fermentation would build pressure in the weak french glass bottles, causing them to explode. The bottles that survived were found to have gas bubbles that were considered a fault in the wine making process. Most of the wine makers in this region, including the Benedictine monk, Dom Perigean, were trying to get rid of the bubbles.

The British rather liked the bubbles in the wine and the wealthy and royals wanted wines from Champagne with bubbles. Gradually, the wine makers discovered how to make stronger wine bottles. Madame Cliquot discovered the process of "riddling" that brought the dead yeast to the neck of the bottle by turing the inverted bottles daily and gradually making them more vertical.

Madame Cliquot

One the yeast was brought to the neck of the bottle, the next development was how to get this yeast sediment out of the bottle to make a clearer wine. This was done by freezing the neck of the bottle in iced brine solution to freeze the wine. The cork was removed and the pressure in the bottle would push the plug out. The volume of the plug that was removed was replaced with an equal volume of wine and sugar to adjust sugar content and re-corked.

This is the sugar scale and how Champagnes are named. Doux is the sweetest and not shown on the picture below.

The Champagne cork has a special shape and is held into position by a wire cage called a muselet.  There are always six half turns or three full turns to the wire loop of the muselet. Read about it here: Twists(Click Link)

Trivia: What is the longest Champagne Cork flight?   (Answer)

             How many bubbles (on average) are in a Champaign bottle? (Answer)

Well, enough about Champagne for now. As we finished the lecture and were walking out of the theater, a large pod of Porpoises was spotted off the starboard side of the ship. They continued to follow the ship for a period of time giving an interesting view to the passengers.

At 3:03 pm, the ship turned into the mouth of the Garonne River towards Bordeaux. The ship had to pass under a unique drawbridge before docking in Bordeaux at about 7:30 pm. The had to put the river pilot on the boat via helicopter.

We got of the ship at 9:30 pm for a short walk around the riverfront to view the beautiful buildings lit up at night. Tomorrow will bring us to a guided daylight city tour where we will learn more.

Day #8 Viking Western Mediterranean Cruise-Sea Day #1, Lisbon to Bordeaux 4/22/16

After turning the clocks back one hour as we arrived in Lisbon that is in a different time zone from Gibraltar, we now have to turn our clocks ahead one hour as we round the tip of Spain, heading Northeast towards France. 

Time Zone Change-Spain to Portugal and again Portugal to Spain

Rounding Spain to get to Bordeaux

Earline, being the “foodie” that she is, wanted to attend a cooking show at 11:00 so we went off to see what we could learn. They taught how to make Carrot & Cardamom Cream with Orange & Star Anise Foam; they also demonstrated how to make Saffron Sauce and Black Pepper Sauce. While we did not get to taste them, they were interesting to see prepared and to get tips how to make a white fish stock and a beef stock  and the proper way to cook shallots with clarified butter.

I never realized that if you do not clarify your butter to remove the milk solids, then you cannot saute the shallots to be clear. They will turn brown using regular butter.

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There was a lecture on the wines of Bordeaux that was quite revealing.

A Bordeaux wine, sometimes called a Claret wine by the English, is any wine produced in the Bordeaux region of France. This region generally surrounds the Gironne River and the wines change in complexity, the further up the river you travel due to the changes in soil nutrients.  The Bordeaux region is the largest wine growing region in France. They produce over 700 million bottles of wine a year of varying qualities. Eighty-nine percent is red wine with the remainder being sweet Sauternes or rose wines. There are 54 appellations of Bordeaux wine made by 8500 producers.

Bordeaux Wine Region

Wine growing was introduced into the region by the Romans and has continued to current times. In the 12th century, the popularity of Bordeaux wines in England increased dramatically following the marriage of Henry Plantagenet and Eleanor of Aquitaine.^[4] Eleanor was a hot little blonde about 40 years younger than Henry, but she owned the entire western portion of France after her father died. The marriage made the province of Aquitaine part of the Angevin Empire, and thenceforth the wine of Bordeaux was exported to England. The Hundred Years War interrupted the flow of wine to England and following the war, France regained control of the wine growing region.

The swampy region of Medoc was drained by the Dutch who had the skills to do so, and the Medoc region then surpassed the Graves area, as the marshy soil was quite rich in nutrients and produced great wines. Malbec wines were the initial grape varietal gown in Medoc but are now supplanted by the Cabernet Sauvignon grape.  Chateau Lafite Rothschild is located in the Medoc region. (Click Link). Wines from these areas are known as "left bank wines."

The Right Bank is the area to the north of the Dordogne in Bordeaux, rather than to the south of the Garonne (this is the Left Bank) or Entre-deux-Mers (the area between the two rivers). While not nearly as famous or versatile as the Left Bank, the Right Bank is important for two essential appellations that lie within it: St-Émilion and Pomerol. The prominently Merlot-based Right Bank wines can, at the top levels, match or, by some opinions, exceed, Left Bank reds in both quality and price.

Lighter, more smooth styles of red wine are produced on the Right Bank, as opposed to the layered, intense, and complex wines of the Left Bank. While houses such as Pétrus still produce very sophisticated wine, it is of an entirely different style. This is primarily due to the use of Merlot in most Right Bank wines. Cabernet Sauvignon hardly thrives on the Right Bank, and rarely makes up more than a few percent of plantings at Right Bank châteaux. 

From 1875–1892 almost all Bordeaux vineyards were ruined by Phylloxera infestations.^[4] The region's wine industry was rescued by grafting native vines onto pest-resistant American rootstock.

Red Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes. Permitted grapes are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec and rarely Carménère.^[9] Today Carménère is rarely used, with Château Clerc Milon, a fifth growth Bordeaux, being one of the few to still retain Carménère vines.

Typical top-quality Châteaux blends are 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc and 15% Merlot. This is typically referred to as the "Bordeaux Blend." Merlot tends to predominate in Saint-Émilion, Pomerol and the other right bank appellations. These Right Bank blends from top-quality Châteaux are typically 70% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Wineries all over the world aspire to making wines in a Bordeaux style. In 1988, a group of American vintners formed The Meritage Association to identify wines made in this way. Although most Meritage wines come from California, there are members of the Meritage Association in 18 states and five other countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Israel, and Mexico.

Vintage Years in Bordeaux

Does a Vintage Year Matter? (Click)

Following the wine talk, I remained mostly supine for mal du mer (sea sickness) until the second Fado show at 6:30 pm. It was not much different than the first show, so we left after a few numbers and went to dinner. We sampled some of our ruby port after dinner and it was a bit too sweet for Earl and Bonnie, so we retired about 10 PM.

Viking Cruise - Day #7, Lisbon 4/21/16

Lisbon History

Lisbon is strategically located at the mouth of the Tagus River, the longest river on the Iberian peninsula. This natural port developed into a main commerce area between the Mediterranean and Europe and Africa. 

The earliest inhabitants were pre-Celtic people and stone monuments still can be found in the city. Later inhabited by the Celts, it became a trading post for the Phoenicians and Greeks around 800-600 BC. It was followed by serial conquests of the Carthaginians, Romans, Visigoths, and Moors in 714. These Arabians influenced a lot of the architecture of Lisbon during their nearly 450 year occupation. Christian rule was reestablished in 1256 . Portugal as a maritime nation became wealthy through colonization of Asia, Africa, South American and the American Islands. Evidence of the city's wealth can still be seen today in the magnificent structures built then, including the Jerónimos Monastery and the nearby Tower of Belém, each classified a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983.

In 1755, Lisbon had a huge earthquake that destroyed much of the city from the quake and subsequent fires. In addition, the quake caused a tsunami. With the city and surrounding areas nearly destroyed, the city rebuilding was controlled by Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, 1st Marquis of Pombal. He created main streets that were quite wide and was critisized for their width that are considered narrow by today’s standards.

Napoleon occupied the city in 1807 for four years. Portugal descended into anarchy and there was a war that ended in 1814 and with the new constitution, Brazil was granted independence from Portugal.  Portugal was ruled by King Carlos until he and his successor were assassinated in 1908. An oppressive conservative regime established a dictatorship of the country from 1924 to 1974 until overthrown by a military coup on 25 April 1975. That date is important because the bridge shown below is named for that date. 

25th of April Bridge (Click Link)

Democracy was reestablished and Portugal joined the European Union in 1986 and received massive funding from the EU to rebuild the city. With this funding, Lisbon became the largest container port on the Atlantic Coast. The rebirth of the city continues and tourism is a major contributor to the economy to this day. 

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OUR EXPERIENCE

We arrived in Lisbon about 1 1/2 hours later than expected due to “severe” bow currents, according to the Cruise Director. There was some ship motion during the evening hours that was good while sleeping, but once I awoke, I experienced mild motion sickness and had to return to the supine position. My sister-in-law, Bonnie, also was similarly stricken so we stayed in the cabin until the ship arrived in port and the motion stopped. My wife, Earline never seems to sleep anyway and was bouncing around like a little rubber ball.

Our complimentary bus tour of Lisbon was scheduled for 2 pm so we had to decide what to do until that time. Since there was a delay in arrival of the ship, all the scheduled tours were jammed up at the gangway. We all decided to get off the ship and to take a free shuttle into the center of Lisbon to kill some time. However, as we just missed the shuttle, and no one could tell us when the next shuttle was available, and since the walk to town would take about 1/2 hour, we contracted with a minivan driver who was nearby to take a private 2 hour drive tour. His cost was $20 Euros pp and that seemed reasonable.

The driver was a pleasant man and did drive us to most of the tourist areas. However, traffic was heavy and parking was difficult making our stops short and the time was eaten up quickly. We were returned to the ship in time for a luncheon before boarding the larger tour bus for another 3 hour tour of Lisbon. 

In many ways, this tour was similar to the one we had just taken but the guide was more knowledgable. We did have time to visit another basilica that seemed very similar to the many we have already seen.

Bridge built by company who made the Oakland Bay Bridge- Modeled after the Golden Gate Bridge

Statue similar to the one in Brazil on Copacabana Beach

Statue of Christ in Lisbon (Click Link)

Belem Tower - Tower of St. Vincent

A medieval defensive tower. There was a matching tower across the river that was destroyed with the earthquake.

First airplane to fly from Portugal to Brazil

Jerinimos Monastery

Typical Portuguese Building Tiles- cool in summer, warm in winter

Streets tiled with marble and basalt

We wanted to buy a bottle of port wine from Portugal to sample on the ship, and found a small shop near the basilica that carried many varieties. The wine shop worker educated us a bit on the various types of port and which were young, and which were of good quality. We purchased a bottle of ruby port for 18 Euros.

The tour bus guide purchased custard tarts for each passenger. The recipe has been a secret in the baking family since 1837. They were delicious and there was a long line outside of the shop located next to the basilica.

Back on the ship by 5 pm, we rested before dinner and then attend a Fado show or mournful wailing for 45 minutes. Fado is a musical form of Portugal that tells stories of woeful desires (fate) sung and accompanied by two guitars. One of the guitars is a high pitched instrument and the other plays base lines and chords in a repetitious manner. Curiously, after a number of sad songs, the singer said she was going to sing a happy song. However, it seemed no different than the sad songs to our untrained ears.

Fado (Click Link)
Video Link to History of Fado

Argentine tango and Fado music are quite similar in many respects. I was especially intrigued by the way the Fado songs ended with two chords. Many tangos end in this manner and no doubt have an origin from tango.

Tango Fado Project

Following the show, with ship again in motion and “mal du mer” (seasickness) starting again, we went to bed. The port wine would have to wait for another time.

Day #5 & #6 - Day at sea and Gibraltar April 19 & 20

Location

Gibralter is a British crown colony located near the tip of Spain, on the Iberian Penninsula. It is close to the Gibralter strait, that is the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea. Gibraltar is only 1 and 7/8 square miles in area and the main attraction is the “rock” and it being a duty free port to trap tourists.

History

The name Gibralter, based in Spanish is derived from Arabic and means “Mountain of Tariq” …Jebel Tariq. This got corrupted into the word Gibraltar. Tariq ibn-Ziyad was a military leader who conquered Spain for the Moors. From around 128,000 to 24,000 B.C., Gibraltar was inhabited by Neanderthals and is thought to be the last place where this group lived. The Carthaginians and Romans worshiped Hercules in shrines on the top of the rock that they called Mons Calpe (hollow mountain) that they regarded as one of the twin pillars of Hercules. There is a mountain in Africa that represents the other pillar.

Pillars of Hercules  (Click Link)

After the collapse of the Roman empire, Gibraltar became part of the Kingdom of Hispania and was ruled by the Muslim Moors in 711 AD.  The Christian Kingdom of Castile annexed it in 1309 but lost it to the Moors in 1333. Spain regained it again in 1462 and it remained under Spanish rule until 1704 when it was captured by Charles the VI of Austria, the Hapsburg contender to the Spanish throne. At the end of that war, Spain ceded the territory to Britain under the treaty of Ultrecht in 1713 that ended the “War of Spanish Succession.”

Gibraltar has been a source of conflict and tension between the United Kingdom and Spain for many centuries. Spain tried to regain control of Gibraltar that was now a British crown colony through military, economic and diplomatic pressures but it remained British. Gibraltar faced 14 sieges in 500 years. There was a Battle of Trafalgar in which the British fleet was superior to the Spanish and French fleets. The French and Spanish under Napolean, invaded Portugal to gain control of the Iberian Penninsula. This lead to the Peninsular War from 1807 to 1814. As in many wars with Napolean, he was not to be trusted and turned on the Spanish who were allies until that time. The war ended when Napolean was defeated in 1814.

The British colony grew and became an important stopping place for ships going to India and the Suez canal via the Mediterranean. A large British naval base was established there by the end of the 19^th century and was the backbone of the economy. The British control of Gibraltar in WWII made it come under attack by the Axis forces but it was a stronghold. After WWII again Spain tried to regain Gibraltar and even closed its borders to the colony in 1969 and 1985 and communication links were severed. The citizens of Gibraltar rejected Spanish claims and wanted to be independent. While still a British crown colony, for the most part, Gibraltar is independent.

The economy is now mostly based on tourism, gambling, financial services, and shipping. It is a hub for internet gambling. It is one of the wealthiest areas in the Economic Union.

Gibraltar is home to about 300 Barbary Macaque monkeys. These monkeys are protected and are thought to have gotten to Gibraltar from Africa. The monkeys in Africa are nearly extinct while those in Gibraltar are thriving. The saying is if the monkeys disappear from Gibraltar, it will revert to Spanish rule. Therefore, there is an incentive to preserve the monkey colony.

Tourist Attractions

St. Michael’s Cave is a network of limestone caves located within the Upper Rock Nature Reserve. There are more than 150 caves found inside of the mountain, but this is the most frequently visited. Within these caves, artifacts of the Neanderthals have been found. In the 19^th century, the caves were used as a venue for events such as picnics, concerts, weddings, etc. 

The caves were used by the Moors militarily and aided their conquest of Hispania in 711 AD. There is a defensive wall of Moorish origin that protected the entrance to the caves until recently. During WWII the caves were outfitted for a military hospital but it was never used for this purpose.  In 1942, an alternate opening in the cave was constructed to aid in airflow and to serve as an emergency exit in case of an air strike. 

While blasting to create the opening, another deeper system of caves was discovered and this is termed the “New St. Michael’s Cave.” This is the cave tour that is generally closed to the public but Viking has permission to have their passengers visit this on an optional excursion.

The St. Michael’s Cave can be reached by foot, cable car or taxi. Tickets include entrance to two other tourist sites, the Moorish Castle and the Great Siege Tunnels. The cost is 10 British pounds that is about $14 USD.

You can buy a cable car ticket for 9.50 pounds (one way) or 12 pounds (return trip). This will allow you only to explore the top of the rock but you cannot visit the caves or tunnels. This costs extra. 

Here is a video link to a Gibraltar tour.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACKJ51Jmpvw

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OUR EXPERIENCE

After leaving Barcelona in the late afternoon of April 18th, we had a full sea day on April 19th before our arrival in Gibraltar for a short stay. The ocean was fairly rough and both Bonnie and I had some mild sea sickness. The shows are unfortunately in the bow of the ship where the motion is intensified, but by and large we made it through the evening at sea.

The enrichment lectures are quite good and included a series on whales and one on the history of Lord Admiral Nelson who decimated the combined fleets of Spain and France who were preparing to invade England. Unfortunately, Nelson was killed in that battle but is remembered as one of England's heroes.

We arrived in the morning of April 20th with rain. The complimentary tour was scheduled for 10 am but it did not include transport to the top of Gibraltar. Since that was something I wanted to accomplish, Earline and I set off on foot at 9 am to find the cable car despite the inclement weather. Earl and Bonnie elected to take the ship tour.

We found the cable car and took the first ride to the top. This first trip starts at 9:30 am. Once at the top, with intermittent rain, we explored the top and walked down to Saint Michael's Cave but elected not to go in as time was short and we have seen many caves. The ship was scheduled to leave at 1:30 pm and guests were required to be back at 1 pm.

Gibraltar from Ship

Where does one drive a 720 hp vehicle with a top speed of 230 mph on a 1.7 square mile country?

Pagani (Click)

Fancy Pagani Automobile

Earline wary of monkey

View from the top

Monkey jumped into cable car

Royal Gibraltar Regiment

We walked back through town (Main Street), saw the cemetery from the Battle of Trafalgar, and then walked along the old fortification wall before returning to the ship.

Two passengers apparently did not make it back to the ship as there were multiple announcements looking for two women. The ship left and I assume they found their way to Lisbon, the next stop.

Day #4 Barcelona and Ship Departure 4/18

This starts our second day on the Viking Sky, but we have not yet left the port in Barcelona. Departure is scheduled for about 5 pm. In the meantime, Viking provides a free bus/walking tour of Barcelona that leaves at 10 am.

After a great night’s sleep in the king-sized beds in the stateroom, we had a full breakfast and boarded the bus for our city tour. The bus tour took us by the beaches which were man-made for the Olympics in 1992. They showed us the houses made for the olympic athletes and the golden fish sculpture at the beach made by  Frank Gehry. 

Golden Fish Sculpture by Frank Gehry

The bus ride gave a pretty good overview of much of the city through which we already walked and ended with a walking tour of the cathedral that we had not yet found.

The cathedral, from the Latin word "cathedra" meaning seat, requires a Bishop in residence and a blessing from the Pope. A basilica is blessed by the Pope but there is no Bishop. 

Black Madonna and Child raises interesting questions

Modern day candle lighting - battery operated pseudo flames.

Following the walking tour, we returned to the ship for a brief time and then we all walked around the beach front until time to return to the ship for departure. The beach front has some amazingly large private yachts and sailboats and it seems to be a site for selling souvenirs to the tourists. There are numerous places for eating and drinking but not much else of interest. At the terminus of the street called La Rambla, there is a large monument of Christopher Columbus on top of a pedestal pointing to the New World. He is also pointing to where our ship is docked so we wouldn’t get lost. :)

The ship departs for Gibraltar with a sea day tomorrow (Monday 4/19). 

Barcelona Day #3 (Check in on the ship) Sun 4/17

Today is the day we move to the Viking Star where we will stay one additional day in Barcelona before setting sail for Gibraltar tomorrow evening. We needed to have our luggage packed and placed inside our hotel room door by 8 am and then we needed to wait until 10:30 am for bus transfer to the ship.

After another great breakfast at the Renaissance Hotel, we decided to take another walk around a different area near the hotel to observe the architecture and locale. We walked down Consell de Cent, turned right on Posseig de Saint Joan and again another right turn down Casp until we met Pau Claris that took us back to the hotel.


Within that small square, you see many interesting classic architectural styles. Notice on the map that the blocks are more octagonal in shape than rectangular. This was planned in this manner during early planning of the city. The rounded corners (chamfered) were a way of bringing more light into the areas for health purposes. It also allows more parking of cars and motorcycles on the corners. The crosswalks are never straight across the corners. The original buildings were only four stories high starting above the ground level that was not counted as living space. That was more for horses, etc. Later, there were higher buildings but generally not more than 7 stories high until the development of scattered high rise buildings.

City Planning of Barcelona

As a guide to the way the streets run, you need to know that the Avenguda Parallel runs North to South and is parallel to the earth meridian line. Another large street called Avenguda Diagonal also runs roughly North to South. The remainder of the city streets run from the mountains to the sea in a latticed pattern.

Once we boarded the bus that was supposed to take 1/2 hour to get to the ship, we found ourselves on a journey to the unknown. We left the port and went up a mountain towards the Olympic stadium and passed the soccer stadium that holds about 110,000 people. It is the largest soccer stadium in Europe. There was a soccer game scheduled and people were already lining up 5 hours early to get in.  Almost every seat is occupied for every game.

Camp Nou

Just as we were wondering where the ship was docked, they announced that the bus was supposed to delay as there were too many guests in the embarkation area. Instead of making us wait in line, they gave us a city tour by bus. It was pretty nice.

Once we arrived at the Viking dock, we only had a short wait while they checked our cruise documents and passports and gave us our identification card they we are to use when entering or leaving the ship or purchasing things that are extra. Our room was ready and after dropping off what we were carrying, we were ready for a meal in the buffet. After all, it was probably three hours since breakfast. :)

Earl and Bonnie left to explore the soccer stadium while Earline and I stayed for a rest. I didn't want to walk a great deal on my foot ulcer.

The rest of the day was spent exploring the ship, eating a wonderful dinner and seeing a show in the theater before crashing for the evening. So far, Viking has exceeded our expectations.

Barcelona - Day #2

Day #2 started with a great breakfast at the Renaissance Hotel. It was then off to the Mercal de la Bocaria, a food market of magnificent proportions. Just the displays are an art form, in and of themselves. To get there, we had to learn to ride the subway system. We purchased a 2-day unlimited ride ticket and were please to find that there was a stop an the Mercal. Below are some of the sights you will see. It is best to see this place early in the day.

Entrance to Mercal de la Bocaria

Iberian Ham

Iberian hams are very unique to the Iberian Peninsula and the method of curing them has been done for a 1000 years. Special Iberian pigs that are black, are fed a diet of acorns to produce a unique amount of fat and meat with antioxidants. The meat is cured in salt and the winter air for two years. It sell for about $170 Euros per kilogram.

Merluza Fish


Saffron


Snacks that are healthy


Rooster Combs - What do you do with them? Make Synvisc to inject in the joints?


Yummy - Tripe


No part left uneaten


You can eat in the market too.

Following this experience, we took the L5 subway line to the Familia Sagrada basilica. This basilica has been in the process of being built for over 150 years. It was designed by the architect Antoni Gaudi. Gaudi was born in 1852 and was a sickly child. His mother spent a lot of time with him and took him for many nature walks that later affected his style of architecture. The Familia Sagrada incorporates many facets from nature in its design and is a UNESCO world heritage site. This is definitely a tourist site not to be missed despite the cost of $18 euros per person for a self-guided tour. You will never see another basilica such as this.

Its is very crowded on weekends, and despite our arriving a 11 am, the earliest admission we could purchase was for 3:15 p.m. If you have a short time schedule, it might be best to purchase a tour from an established company so that you can jump the lines and not be delayed. You can also save some money by purchasing tickets online.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sagrada_Fam%C3%ADlia

A Subirachs' square - What is the meaning of the number 33?It is the age of Jesus Christ at the time of crucifixion.

Following the Familia Sagrada experience, we returned to the hotel for a quick nap and then we departed the hotel to find some dinner. We were attempting to eat at a restaurant called “The Four Cats - El Quatro Gato” but the earliest time we could get was 10 pm. This restaurant was a favorite of Pablo Picaso. We settled for a restaurant near our hotel on Pau Claris, called Restaurant Marinero. This turned out to be a great find as the food was exceptional. Even the wine was reasonably priced at 12.50 Euros for a bottle of excellent temparinillo wine.

With tummies full and after walking 8 miles, we returned to the hotel. Tomorrow morning by 8 am we must put our luggage near our door for collection and transport to the cruise ship. We will be transported at 11:30 am to the ship and then have the day to do more exploration of Barcelona. We plan to use our unlimited metro tickets to ride the bus to various areas to see what is out there. My right foot has developed a blister so I must be more sensible in my walking. :(