Vacation Paradise -Barcelona Day 2

Hola!

It's the end of Day 2 and we spent the day at the famed Las Ramblas. We realize today that our hotel while fab is not where we thought it was .. Perhaps it's closer to the cruise terminal... Did I mention this dream vacation includes a week in the Mediterranean ? Anywho , today was taxi's , euros and shopping . I'm a trooper but our first trip to the bank, my sister and my bestie are able to get cash out the ATM ... But I am not .. I called Citibank befor I left home advised I'd be traveling .. Thank goodness my crew came through for me. I was able exchange my cash later on during the day.



Will call Citibank to find out what the issue is. We spent the day in and out of stores .. Picked up some items and just looked like tourists taking pictures all along Las Ramblas . Yes this is the land of pick pockets .. And everyone was holding their bags tight. Scams are everywhere .. Living in NY. Brooklyn .. Makes one especially cautious anyway.

We stopped and had Tapas .. A must for anyone traveling to Barcelona ..and skipped the beer .. Partly because I really didn't want to ask " pro Favor , donde esta el bano?" We met a couple from wales yesterdwy , who we again ran into today , and a mother and daughter from Austriala and enjoyed the brief chatting that ensued at Starbucks. Of all things they like Oprah so we had a whole conversation about that. Made new twitter friends :) Of course you know I'd find the Starbucks!

Some things I noticed while here.. This is the land of bread and meat.. Lots of pig.. Swine.. Call it what you want but here they call it Jamon. I've had enough if it already. As for the bread.. The Mediterranean custom is olive oil with bread. So you'll find no butter here. I also notice they don't put ketchup out - you must ask for it. Funny the things we take for granted in the states . Bread and water cost here. You must ask before they put in on the table as they do charge for it. Castilian Spanish is not what we speak in ethic neighborhoods back in NYC.. This is a unique dialect sounds like a little French mixed in ..and the taxi driver looked at me crazy when I said the word "mucho." LOL


After a day spent out, we come back to the hotel make our phone calls to the states .. (We are 6 hours ahead of EST and its 2:48am but I'm wide awake) and head to the pool bar which has the most awesome view! Still trying to load pictures from my iPad ...

I also notice there are no duplicate receipts so you have a copy from the hotel so after asking for a copy today, and checking the current bill totals, why was my bill 60,000 euros??? WTH?? I was ready for bed 2 hours ago, but after
Taking my concerns to the font desk, the issue has been resolved and the charges removed. Thankfully. Funny one of the front staff looked scared when we came to question the bill .. Wondering why that is??? Hmmm..

I'm tired ... Tomorrow (or later today as I am behind in writing this) is another day.. Still in Barcelona.

The plan right now is to take a city bus hop on/off tour. Keep reading...


Ciao!