Barcelona - the first two days

Day two of Mr. Magoo Does Europe, and it's been pretty awesome so far. But one of these days, I am going to get where I'm going on the first or second try. Maybe even the third. Honestly though, I'm so used to it, I don't even know what I would do if it happened. I walked around Barcelona yesterday, just trying to get my bearings (insert belly laugh), but I did eat some pretty amazing food, like chocolate filled churro (omg), and seafood paella, which I'm not sure how authentic it was, but I liked it; and I got in over 17,000 steps, not bad for getting here around noon and taking a siesta later in the day. Today was my big day, meaning I got up at 7:00 am to take a three country tour that lasted until 7:30 in the evening. For me the focus was getting to Andorra, a tiny country in the Pyrenees surrounded by Spain and France, and in fact, co-ruled by the two countries. First stop was Baga, in Spain, where I had the most delicious chocolate filled pastry that was was not a croissant. Off on the coach towards Ax Les Thermes in France which has thermal spa waters like Bath or Reykjavik. We stopped for lunch and I had goat cheese that was to die for, with a fresh baguette. My Spanish is barely passable, I try not to embarrass myself, but, I am well pleased that my French has withstood the test of time, and my transactions were conducted en francaise, even when I told the sales person "je ne vois pas" because I needed my fricking glasses to read the coinage. Oh, les yeux.

Going up into the Pyrenees was really beautiful (no pictures yet, because I am having technology challenges), and there was still snow at the top of some of the peaks. Our guide was great, giving us plenty of historical background about the areas we were in for some context. The pictures don't necessarily capture how fabulous it was. What is it about mountains that makes our jaws drop, whether it's up in Whistler, B.C., the Smoky Mountains out east, the Rocky Mountains, the Pyrenees?  We were in Andorra, and I wanted something more like a fairy tale, which is not like me, I don't think, but I had some kind of storybook expectations that fell a little short. We spent about an hour in Andorra la Valle, the capital city and it was hotter than hell, 33 Celsius, and I just walked around the city. It is fairly new as far as capitals go, not a lot of old buildings; it is the highest capital in Europe.

I kind of passed out on the way back, which is nothing new. Partly the heat and partly the sway of the bus. Our bus driver handled the twists and turns on the mountains better than some of my bus drivers at home, and I'm not even kidding.

I got back to Hotel Constanza without getting lost (applause) and.  Decided to eat next door; I had some kind of toast with a tomato spread and a caprese salad, topped off with cafe con leche. We'll see if that was a good idea in about an hour when I want to go to sleep.

Tomorrow is my last day in Barcelona, with a tour at Sagrada Familia designed by Gaudi, and hopefully a trip up to the top of the bell tower, and then a walking tour of the Gothic Quarter later in the day. Perhaps some wandering before it's off to Paris and two Phil Collins concerts.