Carolina's Notes
Today we had a few hours to kill before boarding the ship so we walked over to Casa Batllo, a famous Gothic home in Barcelona built by Gaudi. The house is incredible; it's a mixture of an acid trip, a dream, and pure genius. After this we made our way over to the cruise ship. I give them very high marks for the boarding process which was quick and efficient; qualities I hold near and dear to my heart.
The ship is expansive and has something for everyone; there is an awesome array of restaurants, activities, pool, and pretty much anything else you could think of including a chapel and casinos. Now the hilarious part of the ship is that it is completely and totally decorated in Hawaiian. This ship used to sail around Hawaii and every single floor is fully decorated with HUGE Hawaiian murals, there is an Aloha bar, the rooms are pink and teal with Hawaiian landscapes decorating the wall. Dinner was at the steak house and was delicious. As usual when I cruise, I ordered and ate completely the dessert sampler and ice cream. Following the wonderful dinner, we went to a show that I will spend years trying to erase from my memory. We arrived late from dinner so we had to take seats in a row that effectively trapped us for the duration of the "magic show". It was worse than a high school talent show. It was like watching a gay Italian man play with glow in the dark balls that were not strategically placed and therefore not in any way magical. Painful. Luckily that will be his only performance aboard this ship. After the show, John and Sue headed for the casino and we went to bed. Isn't that supposed to be the other way around? We had a wonderful nights sleep and are ready for Monte Carlo.
Sarah:
Day 2 – Barcelona/Departure on the Norwegian Jade
Today started rather early considering the amount of sleep I got the previous two nights. Can you believe the party was still going at 6:00 AM on the streets of Barcelona and by 7:00 and until 11ish there was nothing? Believe it.
We started out with breakfast at our hotel, which was by far one the better hotel breakfasts I have ever had. We then planned on heading to Gaudi House for a tour. Let me just say this he is by far one of new my favorite architects. This house was the most gorgeous, thought out house. It had a “sea” and “flowing” field to it. There was tile, stained glass, wood, you name it, and he incorporated it. Zoe even enjoyed it and listened to the device they give you. She even had her own!
We then leisurely strolled the streets back to the hotel to prepare for our cab ride to the ship. During that stroll Zoe got her first Flamenco dress. I am going to make it a point to get her something from each country she visits.
We got back to the hotel, checked out and got in the cab to the ship, which was not terribly far away. Check in was smooth and a lot quicker than the last time we took a cruise and we were on the ship and in our rooms with no issues before 3:00 PM.
Once we got our stuff Zoe insisted we go to the pool, which has a slide. We played there for a while, came back and then napped. The rest of the family went to an Italian restaurant and we opted to just to play it by ear. We ended up in one of the open restaurants with tables that didn’t charge a surcharge. Dinner was decent; Zoe acted like a 2 year old who has been traveling across the country since Friday. Such is life. We signed her up for the Kids Club when we boarded so she had seen it and it was all she could think about. Needless to say we decided to test it out at 9:40 PM last night for a little while. She had slept until almost 7 so it was fine. She had a ball and made new friends. We picked her up around 10:30 when they closed and came back and went to sleep. Tomorrow Monte Carlo, Monaco!
John;s Notes
Our short stay in Barcelona ended with a random cab driver, who adored Zoe. She gave her candy, a kiss, and a hug. It was a fitting departure from a great city. Next up was our first afternoon on the cruise ship.
For those who have never been on a cruise I firmly believe it takes the first night to get over the awe and size of the ship, it is massive. But just as impressive as the size of the ship is he beauty of the Mediterranean Sea. I have had the pleasure of growing up on one the most precious bodies of water, the Chesapeake Bay, but the deep blue color and the calmness of the Mediterranean is really awesome. I could stare at it for hours, in fact I told Zoe that the I saw Ariel the mermaid. She’s still looking.
Other than that not much more to report other than Zoe and I have mastered the large tube slide at the pool and I have seen more Euro mullets than expected.
Zoe:
Goodbye Barcelona!
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