Greetings. Today has been all about the HEAT
It’s been a late start this morn. We agreed to go to breakfast together so no coffee from the usual gaff. We saw a place on the way home last night which looked fun. It was like a jungle inside. After checking the menu, it looked ok.
Exotica Brunch is three blocks away and is a great start to the day. Lisa orders a Nutella waffle and us three get Avo-toast. Only Liz has read the menu properly and after we’d ordered says she’s surprised that we got the toast with avocado. I did wonder why it was called Avo-toast… Also comes with beetroot hummus and is very good. The toilet in this place is a palace compared to yesterday.
The plan is to go to Sagrada Familia. Back at the hotel today I looked at getting tickets and they pretty much sell out 2 weeks in advance this time of year. Damn. So we’ll go and see the outside, then going to go to Parc Güell, another Gaudi designed place. That has nearly sold out too but I manage to get 4 tickets for 15:30.
Our first bus is the B24 which we get near to the cafe. Our tickets make a buzzer go off and the screen flashes red when we punch them. Doesn’t seem to bother the the bus driver so we stay on and get to Sagrada Familia. Pictures are taken, heat is felt. 10 mins is about all we can bear. We were going to do an obligatory geocache here (nerd alert!) but it’s too busy and hot. The building is impressive from what we see. An emergency plan of head to another Gaudi location, La Pedara – Casa Milá and hole-up in a bar, play some cards until we have to go to Parc Güell.
La Pedara – Casa Milá is not even with taking a picture of. We see an ice cream place and stop for a bit there. Just before that we’d had a ring doorbell go off which we ignored, but check when we were sat down. Some guy who is one sandwich short of a picnic knocked and said he saw a dead bird by the bridge, dead as a dodo, it’s an emergency, and you need to call the RSPCA, thank you. Poor Mia opened the door and the guy repeated his message again. When we see this we Whatsapp her and she confirms the RSPCA have not been alerted. I’ll put a link to the Ring video at the end.
It was a much needed break from the heat, but the plan has evolved to getting to Parc Güell and finding a bar in that area until our time slot. The no. 24 bus is busy and grim. We can’t even see how we’ll get off. Thankfully, a couple of people need to get off at our stop and part the crowd for us.
Then it’s a walk up a hill. There’s stairs, but thank the lord there are escalators next to them. We stop for a breather. The graffiti here suggests an element of lawlessness:
We’re quickly at the entrance of PG and we’re an hour early so ask if we can get in. Access is granted.
The park is very pretty, landscaped in a clever way with some Gaudi architecture thrown in. The heat is getting to us. There are pockets of shade. Liz says this is exactly the sort of thing we shouldn’t be doing on the hottest day, and she’s right. We were caught on the hop a bit with the lack of access to Sagrada Familia. Oh well we’re here now. There’s a little structure built from rocks that look like they’ll fall on your head at any minute so we sit under for the shade – we’ll take the risk. Trust in Gaudi and his builders. The shade and stop is welcome. I look on my map and notice we are right by a geocache (nerd alert!) and Liz finds it super quick, hurrah 😀.
After the rest we try to head for an area that has buildings, maybe even a cafe. Stumble across a guitar man playing Beatles songs and he’s very good. Lisa bungs him €2 plus shrapnel and we march on. We have to go back up to get to the bit with buildings. After that, we are done, let’s get to a bar to work out how to get back. Parc Güell – more like Parc Hell.
There’s a tapas bar just down the hill so we rest up there with chips, olives, and bebidas.
The thought of getting the 24 bus was not appealing, so a different bus, the H6 was there preferred option, with a ride on the air conditioned metro from Alfons X back to our enz. The journey is straightforward, bus not too packed, thanks be to Jesus.
Walking back from Girona station, we buy some drinks for the room. Whenever we return to the hotel the guy on the desk with a big smile says “Welcome Cargills” which is a nice touch. The hotel is decent, if only it had a bar or cafe and had tea facilities. There’s a place next door called The Egg Lab but they serve all kinds of fucked-up shit. Seems popular though. Give me some lactose and I’ve got my own rotten egg lab in my pants. Proper stinky.
We’re out again after a 3.5hr siesta. Mission: Paella & food Lisa likes. Lizzie and I send options and we opt for one nearby – La Taberna de la Ronda. Paella and chicken is ordered and consumed, decent food, Els thought the veg paella could have a bit more oomph but we’re all happy.
After dinner we are heading for cocktails. It takes a while but end up in an oirish bar. Three Pina Coladas and a cosmopolitan please. Barman visibly gulps which is not a good sign. After about 5 mins he calls for a barlady to assist, having just achieved the Cosmo. She does the business and these turn out to be good. Lisa’s only comment is that they could have had crushed ice, not cubes, plus maybe some rim sprinkles.
The walk back is made easier by taking the metro one stop. After reaching the hotel we’ve done another 16.5k steps today, nearly matching Monday’s tally. Lisa’s and my feet are pulsing and a little swollen. We’re so old.
Oh, and here’s a link to Dead Bird Guy: DBG
Cargill Travel Blog 