We have considered that this journey unfolds in distinct “chapters”. Puerto Rico was first, the Atlantic crossing second and now Barcelona.

It should have come as no surprise that the excellence of the Viking Cruise staff would extend to marshaling the timely departure of 900 passengers and their luggage. No chaos, not even organized chaos, just organized. We were off the vessel at 9am, our suitcase in the hands of the shipping agent to the USA, and in a taxi to our B&B within 15 minutes. 20 minutes later we were being given a tour of our room and facilities at Barcelona B&B.

This is a wonderfully quaint place brimming with Old World charm. Our hosts, Telma and Kiku who is recently back from walking the Camino, graciously gave us early access to our room and a quick rundown of recommended sites and dining.

After we settled in we walked a few blocks to the Sagrada Familia. We have been curious to see what construction progress has been made since 2013. The first of the next pictures is from 2013, the rest from today. The optimists believe it will be completed in 2025. I won’t be holding my breath… construction began over 135 years ago in 1882!

We spent a good hour walking the perimeter and marveling at this unconventional Basilica. Tomorrow we are scheduled to tour the interior and ascend one of the completed towers.

We then walked to and down Las Ramblas, a pedestrian parkway and major shopping/tourist venue. This was the site of a tragic act of terrorism in August 2017 where a van ploughing through people, killing 13 and injuring 130 others. There is an obvious police presence today that may be in reaction to the August incident or because of the political unrest over the Catalonia secessionist movement.

Our afternoon wandering took us to the Cathedral where we were surprised to meet Mart and Jean, Canadian friends from our Atlantic passage.

One shortcoming of the efficient discharge of passengers this morning was the lack of opportunity to say proper goodbyes to the friends we had made during the crossing. We hope to reconnect with a number of these good folk in the future, but for today we are grateful for the chance meeting that allowed is to share a cafe and reflections on the journey with our Canadian friends. BTW, the cafe served Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer as one of its honored import beverages. I like Pabst but I’m sticking with Estrella Damm.

After a proper and heartfelt farewell to Mart and Jean we attended a late Mass at the Cathedral and adjourned to one of Telma’s recommended restaurants for dinner. The evening meal in Spain is enjoyed much later than in the States. The restaurant was filled to capacity with no end in sight at 9pm. Our meal was excellent and reasonably priced. It consisted of a huge salad of fresh vegetables, cheeses, and cold meats. The main courses were sausage and beans, roast chicken with sides, and sliced baguette drizzled with olive oil and spices. Beer, wine, and the local version of Limoncello completed the feast, leaving our billfolds only 35 euros lighter (about $42.00)… not bad for the center of the second largest city in Spain.

Tomorrow evening we will join one of our AFS “children” and her family for dinner by the sea. Neus was an exchange student in Excelsior Springs Missouri in the mid 1990’s. We have kept in touch over the years and are excited to see her once again in her native city. Until tomorrow…

Peace Everyone! Pete

What an exceptional place to dedicate our final cruise day! Valencia is a city of 800,000, founded by the Romans in the Second Century BCE. It started as a Roman Colony for retired soldiers thus the origins of its Latin name, a place for the valorous. This is the 3rd largest city in Spain after Madrid and Barcelona, and the 5th busiest cargo seaport in Europe and busiest on the Mediterranean.

Although this is our first visit to the city it is certainly our intention not to be the last. It is an incredibly beautiful, clean, and modern place that has done a marvelous job of merging the old city with the new. Until the mid-19th Century the old city was surrounded by a 4 kilometer long fortress wall and massive gated entrances. We saw 2 of the 12 gates, one standing nearly 100 feet tall and pockmarked by shells from Napoleon Bonaparte’s canons in the early 1,800’s.

The wall was removed in the 1,850’s to make room for urban expansion. Nevertheless, the old city retains its character in ancient buildings, narrow streets, and wonderful plazas. The new city that surrounds it has ultramodern architecture a first rate subway system and every attraction that cities many times its size offer.

Our luck was evident today as the weather was superb and it was the provincial holiday of the feast os St. Vincent, there patron saint. Most businesses were closed, but the streets were full of citizens decked out in their classic festive attire.

We visited the Cathedral Metropolitan, secured yet another set of sellos for our Pilgrim’s Credentials, and then ascended the incredibly steep and narrow spiral staircase to the top of its bell tower, nearly 200 feet high. I am totally blown away that Christine tackled this, given her historic avoidance of heights and confined spaces! This church is the site of the beautiful Chapel of the Holy Grail.

The afternoon was capped with a meal of tapas, Paella Valencia (rice with chicken, rabbit, and vegetables), all washed down with a cold Estrella Galicia… the worlds best beer (because it was the one in my hand!}. Christine chose her favorite, vino tinto (red wine). In the course of dining we were joined by cruise friends Mary and Gary, who have the neighboring stateroom and hail from the southwest side of Chicago, not far from where I grew up. We plan on visiting them the next time we are in the area. We will join them again this evening for our last shipboard dinner.

Peace Everyone! Pete

It is near midnight and we are ghosting through the Straits of Gibraltar. The lights of vessels passing in all directions is dazzling, and no wonder as the straights that separate Europe from Africa are only 8 miles wide. This is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world. We can make out a dim outline of the iconic “Rock” as it towers 1,400 feet above the shore and its 30,000 inhabitants. It is not an island, being connected by land to Spain. It is a British protectorate, a matter of friction with Spain, but it’s citizens have twice in referendum rejected leaving the Commonwealth.

Our day was spent in Cadiz, Spain. As we walked through the old city, Christine remarked to me, “You’re really happy!”. I suddenly realized that a kind of joy was radiating from within and its source was a sense of “homecoming”. We spent nearly 2 months in Spain in 2013 creating precious memories and friendships.

Cadiz in one of the oldest cities in Western Europe, having been founded by the Phoenicians in 1,100 BCE. The city consists of 3 islands, and is linked to land by a narrow isthmus. This has been the home of Spain’s Navy for centuries and is the port from where its fleet sailed to a disastrous defeat by the British at Trafalgar in 1805. This was the port of departure for Columbus on his second and subsequent voyages to the New World. The old city bristles with nearly 150 watch towers that provided the inhabitants with continuous vigilance for seagoing friend and foe. Today it is also host to one of the US Navy’s largest Mediterranean bases.

We toured the old city and were especially taken with the Cadiz Cathedral and remarkable subterranean crypt. We secured sellos (stamps) on our Camino credentials, the clerk immediately recognizing our status as Perigrinos. We enjoyed typical treats of cafe-con-leche, chocolate’ with churros, and assorted tapas washed down with excellent beer.

We further enjoyed visiting vendors in the market which included a butcher and a man using a converted bicycle to sharpen knives. Another treat was a street Flamenco dancer who wowed the crowd.

Tomorrow is our last at sea day before Valencia and disembarkation at Barcelona.

Peace Everyone. Pete