Barcelona and Transatlantic Cruise 2008 – Day 2 – Barcelona
November 29, 2008
Upon arrival at Barcelona we quickly moved through passport control and customs. I was a bit fearful as we headed (with our 7 large bags – I thought we were moving) to the taxi stand. I had encouraged Suzanne to arrange for transportation to the apartment ahead of time. I was a bit worried about finding a taxi large enough for our luggage. My fears were unwarranted though a there was one minivan amongst the sea of taxis at the Barcelona airport and we quickly commandeered it for our service.
The driver didn’t speak much English but between his broken English and our broken Spanish (he clearly spoke Catalan) we managed to get where we wanted to go across. He punched it into his GPS system and we were off. We called the guy we were renting the apartment from who was already at the apartment waiting for us. About a 25 minute taxi ride (cost about $30 Euros) and we were there.
Carlos was very warm and nice. The apartment was on the fourth floor with no lift. Carlos helped us carry our luggage up the very narrow, circular stairwell. The apartment looked exactly like all the pictures we had seen on the internet – not luxurious but nice. Carlos spent about 30 minutes with us showing us how everything worked and going over a map showing where various items (such as grocery store, restaurants, etc) were located. He was very pleasant and accommodating to us. He listed is apartment for rent in Vacation Rentals by Owner – VRBO (vrbo.com). Thus far, the apartment rental has turned out to be a very pleasant experience and different/better than your standard hotel.
Soon after settling into the apartment we headed out for some sight seeing. Barcelona, like most of Europe, operates on a different schedule than the US. Lunch usually is sometime between 2 and 5 pm while dinner is enjoyed between 8 and 11 pm. Suzanne usually acts as our tour guide as she spends many man months researching the trip.
She had a few issues getting her bearings straight and we ended up seeing a few different things than planned, but items that were still on our list. First stop was the Barcelona Cathedral. It was a very large, old church.
We wandered through the very large Boqueria market. It’s probably the largest farmers market I have seen. There was produce, seafood and meat for sale. The items for sale all looked extremely fresh and very nicely displayed. I would love to shop at a market like that for all my needs.
We also toured the Barcelona City Museum. The highlight of the museum was the Roman ruins that you were able to walk around and see though it got a bit repetitive. We also walked the Ramblas for a while and went to the top of the Christopher Columbus tower for a nice high view of Barcelona. Despite it costing a bit more than I would have liked, it was the highlight of the first day’s tour for me. We walked back to our apartment about 6 pm along the harbor and marina. All in all, we must have walked 4 miles or more – a great way to lessen any jet lag impacts.
For lunch, we had grabbed a bite at one of the local Tapas restaurants. They had a nice selection and it was very enjoyable. Suzanne and I enjoyed a half sized bottle of wine with the Tapas.
For dinner, we wanted to eat at one of the local restaurants and sample the local fare. We were starting to get a bit tired from the long trip and first day activities and were struggling staying awake for the late dinner. Sean grabbed about a 90 nap while Savannah and I went for a walk to scout the local restaurants.
About 7:30 we went and found a nice looking restaurant that served Paella amongst other items. It turns out the restaurant was a Chilean restaurant but the food was very, very good. As a starter, they served us these wonderful little biscuits that you put a pico sauce on. It was one of the best picos that I have ever had and will certainly spend some time trying to recreate.
Suzanne and Savannah both had Paella – Suzanne a seafood one and Savannah a chicken one. Sean had Langoustines in a spicy Chilean sauce while I enjoyed what was termed a very unique Chilean dish – a Veal sirloin steak with fried onions and an over easy egg. It was absolutely delicious. We enjoyed a bottle of Chilean wine with our dinner. For dessert, we all split a Chilean version of Crème Brulee. I still think mine is the best I have ever had. It was a thoroughly enjoyable meal and we had a great time to talking to the staff. We liked working on our Spanish and they enjoyed working on their English. We are contemplating going back again because of the overall enjoyment, but may opt to try other restaurants just to be different.
After dinner, we returned to the apartment and eventually turned in for the night about 10:00 pm.
Summer Vacation in Michigan
July 6, 2008
While Michigan is not known as a summer resort destination, it turned out to be a great destination for our family reunion this summer. One of the best parts of our trip was our home base, my sister-in-law’s/brother-in-law’s place in Shelby Township. The house couldn’t have been a better fit for our group. There was enough room for all the adults to have their own bed rooms. The house couldn’t have been more beautiful or more clean. The basement made for a perfect retreat for the kids to play Rock-band and Halo on the XBox 360.
I mentioned in an earlier article that we spent a day in Frankenmuth, Michigan enjoying a little Christmas decor shopping and chicken dinners. After our fun filled day in Frankenmuth, we enjoyed a day at our home base celebrating my other Sister-in-laws birthday. We had a cook out with a center cut pork loin and a little Bocce Ball on the lawn.
Tuesday we piled into the Minivans and headed to the Thumb Area. After a nice little picnic at a roadside park near Port Austin, we drove down to Caseville to the Bella Vista Resort. We loved the beautiful views of Lake Huron, especially at sunset. We had our second night’s dinner at the Hershel’s Restaurant at the Bella Vista and we were all very pleased with our meals that included fish and chips and prime rib. I also had a first rate massage by their resident massage therapist. I thought she did a better deep tissue massage than I had on my last Celebrity cruise. They also had a very nice heated pool, which the kids loved.
On the down side, the resort had small motel rooms, saggy beds, and out dated decor. These resorts are only open a few months a year, so it really makes sense that they are not kept up as well a year round resorts. Over all we loved our stay at the resort, but would recommend it with the concession that what it lacks in amenities, it makes up in lake front ambiance.
We also enjoyed a little Thumb Area Mini Golf. In Caseville, we all played at the official Putt-Putt course. I like Putt-Putt courses because of the standardized hole play. The edges of all the holes are smooth metal, allowing for predictable banking. The other mini-golf course we played was Sandy Dunes Adventure Golf . This mini golf course was spectacularly landscaped, with some of the most beautiful ever greens I have ever seen. The course was a bit more challenging and inconsistent than the Putt-Putt course. The course had many more hazards and undulations than the earlier course. Plus with brick edging bank shots were highly unpredictable. We had a great time playing our two mini golf mini games.
Back in Shelby Township, we enjoyed a couple more nights at my sister-in-law’s house and with a bit of TV and some more video games in basement. We even set off some Target approved “Fire Works” on July 3rd.
Our flight home from Detroit was not too difficult except for the toddler who screamed during our entire flight from Detroit to Dallas. After a much quieter flight from Dallas to Tucson, we arrived home very well rested.
-
Subscribe via Email
Sign up to receive the latest Mr Papa's World site updates! -
Subscribe via RSS
