May 17th Barcelona.
It seems each day we get up later. Primary cause is that we act like the Spanish. Late evening dining and late going to sleep. We started our day aground 10 with breakfast in our room. Bread, fish, fruit, OJ etc. We have made room for this in the mini bar fridge. A tiny little instant cup of expresso in the room from the mini bar is 6 Euros so we have passed on this luxury and had our coffee in a small café near the hotel and on our way to the Metro. We have also been making a daily stop at a Starbuck’s – there are plenty of them in Barcelona, and they actually serve the standard Starbuck’s fare and a regular sized cup of latte, etc.
We decided to find the old Jewish quarter today and the oldest Synagogue . We had an address but could not find it on our maps. So we asked the hotel concierge for help. She found the address and printed out a map for us. It seemed wrong but who could argue with the computer. We should have. It took over an hour to use the Metro and some walking to find we were at 2 Malot Street and not 2 Marlot Street. Back on the Metro to the city center we found someone who could help and at least get us in the right area. On some very narrow streets off the main Street of Jaune 1 we weaved for 15 minutes and found what we were looking for. It is now a museum, a very small one. A very nice couple explained what we were seeing. It was used over 1000 years ago. In the 1390’s the Jews were forced to convert or leave. Then in 1492 they all left even the converso’s. In this respect, modern life for Jews in many places has not changed. Today, in Barcelona, we were told that there is a vibrant community of about 5000 Jews with four active synagogues, a Habad day school and many activities. The man we spoke with said that ,at least for now, life is good for the Jews here in Barcelona.
Tired from our long walk in the wrong place, hunting for the synagogue, we needed a break, a rest for our feet and some food. We sat down at one café, but when we tried to order just a few tapas, we were told that we had to order at least 3 per person – way too much for lunch – so we left. We found a wonderful food market – oh to have the fish and meats and cheeses and vegetables like this in Sarasota – simply awesome. There in this very busy market were lots of tapas places; just belly up to the bar, get a beer and point to what we wanted. It was perfect!
We were also in just the place we needed to be – a short walk to the Museo Picasso. For the bargain senior rate of 6 Euros, we had our tickets. We had to check our bags and pay for the locker to put them in. The museum was crowded with hundreds of students and tourists. Here we found a collection of 1000 Picasso works, many from his earliest period. He started off painting portraits and landscapes which were awesome to see. It was also very interesting to see the transition he made from this realism to his cubist period, the art that he is best known for. These works were all part of a private family collection that was donated for this museum. Picasso spent much of his life in Barcelona. The museum is well worth a stop.
We worked our way back to the hotel for a rest. At 10 p.m., we headed for a recommended restaurant in walking distance to our hotel. The restaurant, El Nou Ramonet, located at 5 Carbonell is near the beach but not on it. It is a place for locals and it was very good. We were still in the restaurant at 11:30 p.m. We had an eggplant and pepper salad and paella for two with a very good pitcher of Sangria - $100.00. We walked back along the beach which was well lit and still with people walking there. We had an interesting and very full day. We logged in over 18000 steps which is about 9 miles. Despite all this walking, we are not losing any weight. Can you imagine that?
Synagogue
Synagogue
Synagogue
Synagogue
Synagogue
Tapas lunch
Eggs for sale
Dinner
Day time view from hotel room
Night time view from hotel room
Synagogue
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