Marci and Steve Go Back to Europe

This is my ketchup-karma-kuriosities entry. Long and perhaps winding but worth reading to the end I hope. Promises of another WTF contest soon. But first a recounting of our adventures in Barcelona on Thursday-Friday.  We did as we said, woke up refreshed, a quick espresso in the room, some news on TV in English, the BBC, although really who wants to hear about Trump or Boris Johnson, and off we went to walk to the sea, the beach and Barceloneta. Though this is my third and Steve’s second trip to this fun city, neither of us had ever been past the harbor at Port Vell. We quick stopped for an Americana con leche with a seaview and then continued around the bend to the Barcelona boardwalk. Unbeknownst to me, you can walk for miles along the brown sandy/dirt beach, each cove a different playa name with a rock jetty separation. Some beaches are shoobie, with tourists buying large, thin parejos from the African vendors to lay on.  Some beaches are upscale, with rentable lou...

I know that many of you have been awaiting, with baited breath, the return of the WTF contest.   I must admit that there have been very few candidates here in Western Europe. And, I know that the veiwers of this blog are a very knowledgable group, so I have been reluctant to post some things that might be too easy.   To review the rules - The first person to respond, to MY PERSONAL EMAIL ADDRESS (sjs123sjs@gmail.com) with your correct guess wins the prize. IF YOU JUST HIT REPLY, YOUR RESPONSE GOES TO GOOGLE, who doesn’t care what your answer is.... You are limted to one guess, Karen.... So, here goes: Seen in a shop window in Girona, Spain. You need to tell me what it is, and how it is used. First time-stamped correct answer wins a very nice bottle of Spanish Cava.   Thanks for playing.   Steve

On Wednesday another light but lovely last breakfast at L’Hort de Sant Cebria, with a renewed blue and sunny sky, before we bid adios to Jordi and Juan Carlos. We were headed for our last coastal ride, with time for one last beach town stop before hitting the big city, Barcelona  --  but not before Steve spent ten minutes in the parking lot crazy glueing the tailight back only to realize that we had definitely left a piece or two back in that parking lot in Girona. So much for fooling Hertz!  After reading and much debate, I choose Tossa de Mar, mostly at random from the photos of the 11th century walled city literally sitting a walkable ramp up from the beach. Traffic was light, parking was NOT complete, and was right across from the beach.  Though early and not yet really warm, maybe it was 65 or 68 degrees, there were plenty of sunbathers in bikinis lying on rented loungers with umbrellas.  We sat on the beach at a cafe for our coffee stop and ...

.....Especially when the bed and breakfast is so inviting and the weather outside is so NOT.  We awoke to our first rainy day, not gray, not even just light drizzle, but rain that was forecast all day long. At breakfast we asked Jordi for suggestions for a rainy day that really called for cuddling up on a sofa with a big cup of coffee and a good book.  He thought for a second and said ‘Go to Girona, it is so beautiful with chic stores, and it isn’t going to be too rainy’. I asked about parking and he provided clear directions to the free public lot near the cathedral and said ‘It won’t be crowded at all on Tuesday in the rain but if it is, there is a cheap pay lot just on the other side of the roundabout’.  This may be the last time we take Jordi’s well-intentioned advice. We piled on a few layers of tee shirts and sweaters, added a scarf, pulled out our as yet unused raincoats and set out in 57 degree temperature.  The only condition I put on our day wa...

As I had suspected, the buffet breakfast was sumptuous and delicious, though we had time for only one cup of coffee, a bit of cheese and a croissant before we had to head to Portilligat, 45 minutes away on the coast, for our 10:30 timed tickets to Salvador Dali’s house tour. Everyday I love our GPS Hertz wifi hotspot even more as we get to our destinations with not one wrong turn or missing a sign, or more important, argument.  Learning our lesson about parking in Coullierres on Sunday, we pulled into the first lot we saw and walked the extra half a kilometer just to be sure. Following signs and turning down a steep driveway, you arrive at a small beach of fishing boats and a kind of non-descript white house. At your appointed time you are ushered into the house, ten visitors at a time, along with a guide fluent in every language needed. I think I expected the house to look crazy, maybe with furniture dripping over windows or clocks dripping down the wall. But inst...

Today, a long blog, because we finally realized that our car, with its complimentary phone and hotspot wifi, is the best wifi we have. Last night, when the wifi in the house failed us completely, Steve had the bright idea to take my ipad and his camera out to the car to upload the day’s photos and finish the blog. It worked like a charm, faster than any hotel so far. So today, as we head to Spain on the fast toll roads, I can connect and write.  Last night, we were still full of cassoulet (even Steve wanted to skip dinner). We could have relaxed and read books in the lovely salon but Leila had mentioned a little tapas place around the corner for, at least, a glass of wine. The village, Pennautier, is really small, nothing more than a single one-way street running around maybe five small lanes of a total of 125 houses. There was one tiny market, one butcher/charcuterie and one boulangerie, where on a Satuday night at 9pm we could see the baker already at work on Sunday’s baguett...