I realize this should have been titled Barcelona day 3 but I’m measuring based on cumulative days on vacation rather than days spent in the city of Barcelona.

I slept in a little more today period I ended up waking up at 7:50 a.m. normally I would get up in time to eat breakfast right when it opened. However I feel as though I may be wearing myself out spending too much time seeing too many things each day. So I was happy to have a somewhat restful day.
Unfortunately they only had 3 slices of American bread for toast. and I grabbed all three. I had my usual Cocoa Puffs with milk the term chocolate before the end of breakfast. The milk that they serve in the cereal is warm. I think it’s meant for coffee.

I set Alt to try in vain to find Betlem Church in Barcelona. Either I never could find it or it was closed at that particular time that I knocked on the doors. I ended up at the Barcelona Cathedral which is located on the main Square in Barcelona. One would think they Sagrada Familia is actually the main cathedral in Barcelona however the Sagrada Familia is actually not around any historical sites. It’s off by itself surrounded by American fast food restaurants.

Back to Barcelona Cathedral. There’s a Christmas Market going on in front of the cathedral. Unfortunately the shopkeepers stands blocks my view of getting a decent picture of the cathedral. It happens a lot European squares. If some big event is going on they will usually set up in the Square thereby blocking the view and sometimes overloading it with commercialism. I’ve seen it before in the main Square in Prague where do they set up for World Cup viewing.

There was a man checking for skirt and pants length.  I’m sure it could be an issue when everybody’s wearing short shorts in the summer time but but it was not a big deal. I’m sober and I’m not even sure while he was sitting there checking.

The church had high ceilings and was very ornate much like many other cathedrals in Europe. There are various side rims off from the main sanctuary. These rooms are gated off and have iconography and statues behind the gate. In front of the rooms there is an electronic candle system. 

You can pay a Euro and electronically light a candle. I found this a bit humorous. I know how Catholics are about lighting candles and I’m not sure how a strict Catholic might view this electronic candle with no Flame. Even though it’s probably good for being fire retardant it almost seems like a fast food way of saying your prayers.

I always find myself questioning the elaborate design of cathedrals. But I have to remind myself that during Medieval Times the cathedral was the center of the town and therefore probably should be the best building in town. I wonder if hundreds of years from now will our current contemporary churches survive? Or will our constant need to upgrade send many contemporary churches  to be demolished?

Afterwards I spent some time in the Christmas Market and bought a stuffed pooping log and a very small pooping log made of real wood. Throughout the Christmas Market there was figurines of pooping men. I think there’s a short funny story that goes along with it. Maybe it has something to do with the pooping log. There were other contemporary figurines including Donald Trump, Prince Charles, and the queen among many others. I thought about buying one but figured I’d never be able to display such a rude figurine therefore I opted out.

I want you to round this area Barcelona found my way to the old Roman walls and and the Augustus Temple. Augustus Temple is the remains of a Temple dedicated to Caesar Augustus. It was difficult to find as it was in some narrow alleyways.

I also found my way to the inter Courtyard of a church. I believe was the Barcelona Cathedral but I got myself turned around I didn’t know where I was exactly. The inside had a nativity scene, live geese,  canned chicken. There was a group of preschool-age children all lined up with their designated buddy and about three or four adults watching them. I took Joy and seeing their faces whenever the rooster crowed.

I decided about now it was time to eat lunch and head toward Montjuic. I decided to head toward the parallel Metro stop near my hotel as I knew that some fast food restaurants around there.

I ended up eating at Burger King primarily because they had their Drink Machine sat outside which meant I could get free refills. I got my usual waffle and fries just sat and relaxed done a lot of walking and I knew that Montjuic would mean even more walking.

In order to lighten my load I returned my merchandise to my hotel room nearby.

And then went to the parallel Metro station and called the funicular up to Montjuic. I managed to film the funicular trip with my GoPro camera.

The funicular drops you off right at the Teleferic, which is very similar to the Opryland Skyride.  I paid 12 Euro for the round trip meaning I needed to get back by 6 p.m. which was the last ride out on the Skyride. I took several rushed videos and photos.

The funicular ride drops you off at Barcelona Castle. Now this is not a Castle in Walt Disney World sense. It’s more of a fort. It was used to defend Barcelona before Modern Warfare. While standing in line I met a nice British couple from Bristol England. We spoke about Trump and I tried not to get to political without offending my International friend.

The fort or Castle offered some great views of the city including the port of Barcelona. I could see ocean containers and steamships in the harbor. In the fort there is a History Museum of the fort.  I learned about Lluis Companys, the only democratically elected leader in Europe who was executed.

After the 4th I decided I should probably try to see the rest of Montjuic, so I headed toward the art museum and Olympic Stadium. The only problem was I didn’t know where I was going because I had no Wi-Fi access and was going based on a Google map. This didn’t give me the fastest way of getting to the attractions. I’m sure I wasted some time trying to figure out how to get to these places.

I stopped by the Olympic Stadium. You work all Barcelona hosted the Olympic Games in 1992. This was the Olympic Games that had the debut of the Dream Team. As I got closer to the stadium I can hear the soundtrack of crowds cheering in an announcer giving a play-by-play of Olympic coverage followed by some music. It was on repeat. I entered the stadium where I could see the field and walk around briefly. Only a small section was available for me to see as the rest of the stadium was roped off. It looked like there was some soccer practice going on there along with some track and field events for wheelchair people.

I stopped by a sporting goods store within the stadium figuring they would have have a decent selection soccer shirts. However whilst all the shirts low quality iron on numbers which would crack at the first washing. It can be very difficult in Europe to find a decent souvenir that won’t fall apart on you whenever you get back home and put it in the wash for the first time. Tomorrow will be my goal to try and find one of these shirts.

Near the stadium I found a Wi-Fi signal and a bus stop. I figured I could use this to my advantage should I be in Dire Straits when I needed to get back to the Sky Ride by 6.

next I walked to the Barcelona Art Museum. It was a very ornate building with a domed center. I paid the ticket price and Breeze through the exhibits knowing that I had about 90 minutes to see the museum and not run late for the last Sky ride out. There were some Renaissance, baroque, and contemporary exhibits. I did find a painting from El Greco who has always fascinated me. Also found a free Wi-Fi signal within the Art Exhibit. I used it to talk about stocks with a friend in the US. Also had a 3.50 euro can of Sprite from the museum Cafe. I’m sure I paid too much but I was thirsty.

On my way out I saw the son to access the roof which I took advantage of. During my European trips are always try to go to the top of churches  and other buildings in order to get a good view of the city. I took several pictures and made a video. There were two teenaged or twenty something girls doing selfies walking my way to the rear of the building facing the ocean. They were concerned about getting a photograph just right with their cell phone. Knowing that I had about a 30-minute walk ahead of me and it was already 5 I decided to forgo seeing the back part of the building and start making my way back.

Surprisingly enough Google Maps recommended that I walk back rather than trying to take public transport. I had some difficulty trying to get back the pathways weren’t exactly clear and my phone was running low on battery. My exercise app on my phone said that I had made a new personal record since I had downloaded with all this walking.

I made it back to the sky ride with 15 minutes to spare. I use my GoPro to make some videos on the way back from the sky ride and the funicular.

P I ate a Subway on the way back getting a meatball sub. The Subway Sandwich Artist was very friendly and showed me how to get a free cookie by filling out a survey. I tipped him 1 euro. He said that he had family in Connecticut. I smiled and offered him a mucho gracias on the way out.

Tomorrow will be my last day in Barcelona. I still have a few items to check out before catching the train at 7:20 p.m. to  Madrid. I will arrive pretty late and will need to probably find a place to eat and my hotel. I’m looking forward to seeing Madrid and having a more luxurious hotel room. I’m staying in an Ibis hotel in Madrid.