Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Barcelona reflections under the stars

Sometimes it gets windy here...
My big purchase one day, for 4.77E. The wine was 1.79E and it's pretty good.
Shopping cart secured parking lot inside the local grocery store....
The place where I got my pedicure....
You would be forgiven for thinking this store sold ferrets.... those are toilet seats in the window.
This is a doodle I did today in a cafe, ended up giving it to my waiter who was admiring it - so snapped a pic first...
I am sitting outside under the stars with my laptop blogging. It's 10pm and quite lovely, the sky is still fading so I can see blue, but the stars are starting to twinkle. When I see the Big Dipper here it makes me realize the world isn't so large afterall...

So, 2 more nights in Barcelona, and just one more full day. So what have I been doing? Not scrambling around seeing as many final things as I can. Nope. I'm chillin'. I came to the realization the other day that there is still so much I want to see here that I am going to come back, most likely in January. So that took any pressure off. And I've been taking advantage of the relaxed mood I have been in, to sleep, to doodle and to read. And journal. And just be. It turns out that I had a whole lot more decompressing to do that I thought, but I have been trusting my inner voice and just going with the flow.

Barcelona really is a great setting off point for a long journey, as it is so relaxed here. I would consider starting off a future Europe trip here too.

But, with time ticking down, I realize there are lots of reflections and memories that I want to capture before I move on, as once I do, I am sure they will slip away. I'll actually have a good collection of assorted bits to look back on this trip: this blog, my journals (both in notebooks that I always carry with me and often write in cafes - and some stuff written electronically), emails I've sent people, letters, and even postcards. And doodles. And loads of pics. There hasn't been a day so far when I haven't taken at least one pic.

So, I expect I'll do a few blog posts in the next couple of days...

Some random reflections:

  • When you go into an inside ATM here, there is a little lever that you can put across the door so no one else can get in - that's just SO smart!
  • I missed a good one today: Jess and Sean (my flatmates) were down at the beach today beside a couple that were seriously making out, as in "oh wow!" - went on for hours... aside of the interlude where the girl clipped the guy's toenails (an all out pedicure) before they got back to it
  • They also had a good story of a couple all out making out on the bus: girl straddling the guy's lap.... things are kinda relaxed here...
  • I was surprised how many people here have asked me for a light... who smokes and doesn't carry a lighter? It's rare to be asked this at home... finally figured out they were all guys, maybe it's a way to chat up the women?
  • I'm surprised at the number of little bars that don't have soap in their bathrooms... the health department here isn't doing a great job on swine flu prevention - and I haven't seen a hand sanitizer station here anywhere
  • Was woken up at 3am one night by explosions - I couldn't see anything, but the next day Mabel told me that it was fireworks a couple of streets over... at 3am on a weekday night? lol
  • It's midnight and there is the loudest scrapy clanging garbage truck doing it's pickup

More later...

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