Hi all! OK, who wouldn't want to combine all those things in one sunny day in Barcelona?? I started my day off with a two hour gourmet walk thru Barcelona put on by the tourist bureau. Dang, I should have done this day one so I could keep going back and frequenting these places. We stopped at 12 different places and got to sample things at most of them. We went to the big open air market (La Boqueria I mentioned on day 1), several chocolate places, an olive oil store, a tea place, a wine store and a cheese place. At the last place we got a free tapas and drink. Not bad. After that I went over to the Catlan Concert Hall (also known as Palau de la Musica Catalana). The building itself both inside and out was gorgeous. Not sure if I mentioned this, but Barcelona is a very independent part of Spain with it's own language (Catalan) and it's own flag. You see many signs hanging saying "Catalunya is NOT Spain!". So this concert hall was a way for the people to perform some of the own music and rituals that weren't always acknowledged by Spain, especially during the reign of the fascist dictator Francisco Franco. So the people of Barcelona are very proud of this building and the performances that go on there. I included a picture of both the inside and outside. After that, I went over and toured the Pablo Picasso Museum. It was very interesting to watch his work change throughout his life and the influences the various world events and other artists had on him. After that, being the chocoholic that I am, and having been teased with chocolate several times during the gourmet tour, I went and toured the Chocolate Museum. Yep, they have one! I didn't realize that Barcelona was the main port that imported chocolate to all of Europe via Christopher Columbus and others bringing cocoa back from the Americas. It then spread from Barcelona to other places throughout Europe where they further refined it and customized it to their tastes (Switzerland, Belgium, etc.) Believe it or not, they had a chocolate figure of the Black Madonna I saw yesterday in Montserrat but it was behind glass so I couldn't eat the orb!! I included a picture of it! After that, I did come home for a short little siesta (of course I had some chocolate at the factory and it made me sleepy!). In the evening I went over to the plaza in front of the cathedral where they were having a festival. This band was playing and all these older people started doing their native dance called the Sardana. They all get in a circle and put their belongings in the middle (both to show family unity and to keep them away from the pick pocketers!) and hold hands and dance around. Very cool. Then these other people start forming this human chain about four layers high with the bottom people probably dying in pain! Again, just a very neat way to experience their culture in a festive atmosphere. Well, today's my last day. I have to come back a day early due to no standby seats being available on Monday. Over the next day or so, I'll send out my final (philosophical) email for this trip! I hope everyone has a safe and happy Memorial Day Weekend!
The Wandering Italian 