Our second time to the Big Island we stayed for New Years in a big mansion on Kona, although our designated area was just a part of it with the pool, we were given access to the rest of it, which turned out to be great for New Year’s Eve. The dry side of the island had some of our favorite beaches with turtles and amazing sunsets. We had fun enjoying that entire side of the island in a convertible.
After my daughter flew back to New York we moved on to Sitges, the other city we visited in Catalonia, Spain this trip. Of course we went primarily for the bear event which was commencing that weekend, but we really were only there the weekend before the event started. Still, it was a great crowd in an amazing location. The weather wasn’t super hot, but warm enough to get into the calm, clean sea. Once again we really scored with an Airbnb, despite it being a five flight walk up. We had terraces with ocean views on both sides of the two story apartment and plenty of amenities and comfort to make meals for ourselves, although we did partake in lots of savory delights in restaurants also. To our amazement, with the very international crowd, we met New Zealanders, Australians, Germans and even dozensof San Franciscans there, but I don’t recall seeing one person I knew from New York, strangely.
Shando asked me what country we were when we woke up in Barcelona, as we had changed location quite a few times in two and a half weeks. We had heard so many languages during this trip. Spain is a gem of a place (and yes, I do mean Catalonia, which has a very special place in my heart). We made some impressionable memories during our visit with a particularly spacious and inexpensive Airbnb, where we got to have two cats remain with us, which made us miss our dogs even more.
This was Alex’s fourth time to Barcelona with me, and of course I grew up in Toerella de Montgri, part of Catalonia closer to the French border, when my dad was stationed in Estartit the 1970’s.
Alex had gone into Sagrada Familia the last time she was in Barcelona and said she could see the progress made since then and was thrilled to get a chance with her last minute plans to join us to get in within a reasonable amount of time. There are only eleven more years left until this structure will be completed, which isn’t a lot when you consider it got started in the 19th Century.
This was the first time for me to actually go inside the basilica, so I’m really glad we had made reservations for a walking tour with a guide during our relatively short stay in the city of Barcelona this year. Unfortunately the battery in my headset ran out during the tour, so I had to stand uncomfortably close to the woman who was giving the tour, but I explained why in Spanish, which I think she appreciated. Pictures of course cannot demonstrate the way the light is used to tell stories in this place. The acoustics of the choir must be amazing, but unfortunately all we heard was a lot of construction taking place on a regular weekday.
Pictured with me in one picture is my friend Hugo and his Valenciano partner, Agustin. They were instrumental in making sure we went into the cathedral and some other parts of the oldest part of Barcelona that I had also never seen before.
