We’re back from our day trip to Barcelona. Up very early (for us), lots of walking and metro- ing (love it, very easy to navigate) and of course the bus tour. Lots of pictures and coffee and green tea (very, very good green tea here).

 

(Picture of Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia, doesn’t do justice to it but I love those colourful toppings!)

So we set off this morning to visit Barcelona, letting go of the stories we heard and looking forward to what the day might bring. We got a taxi to Girona station and thanks to our waitress last night we knew the trains were regular and we just turned up. It was easy-peasy! Everyone, everyone speaks English and soon we were on a train speeding south. And the train kept us informed of each stop and the speed we were doing in Spanish, Catalan and English.

(I’m mortified to be getting my picture taken in front of the commuters. – For my Mum – picture of me!)

In Barcelona, got off too soon though and couldn’t find a metro station. But doesn’t a taxi round the corner as we were wondering what to do. So we start with Gaudi’s cathedral.

Amazing Gaudi! Beautiful cathedral, it’s like he was playing. Very playful, fun, happy-making. Huge queues to go inside (we didn’t). This was Gaudi’s dream and it’s still going on, it’s not completed yet, but thanks to anonymous donations it does continue. All church spires point us in the direction of heaven, of the big picture, of the bigger reason, of the more to life – Gaudi’s does this in spades. He knew it would not be finished before his death and it didn’t bother him.

 

(My coffee – verification printed on the cup – 100% Natural!)

Was delighted with all the response about how wonderful Spain and her people are, because we searched for the robbers and thieves and found nothing… bike safe…. computers safe. A case of the rumours of trouble in Spain have been widely exaggerated! Thank you Damien, Viv, Grahame and Naomi for balancing the scales. And we can add our own voices after today.

 

But what’s it all about?…. People tend to want to tell you bad things that might happen to you along your journey. We all do it. Why? To give fair warning? Or we think it will be of help? To teach? To provide information? I don’t  know.. Maybe we don’t realise that it hypnotises the other person with “bad stuff that could happen” fairy dust. When you get hypnotised with “bad stuff that could happen” fairy dust it does some serious messing with your thinking. Those lovely thoughts of freedom and adventure slip away while you think of danger and fear and evil people around. Before long you could be compromising your freedom and adventure.

 

(Barcelona has the largest per capita number of moped owners of any European city. Even the police ride them!)

The weird thing is that “bad stuff” can happen any time, anywhere, with or without forward warning from others, it might be more useful to be in a position to deal with it when it does happen rather than worry about it before it happens. Or to try to stop it happening, or to rush to tell others about it.

Very tired, going to the mountains tomorrow.

Be well, Mairead.