The road to Barcelona

We spent the night with friends in Montpellier arriving near midnight. (they were incredibly welcoming despite the late hour quickly resuscitating us with cheese and fabulous red wine).
First thing in the morning we all headed for Barcelona Spain. The drive (at 140km per hour) was a bit woolly but was enjoyable regardless. The car thermometer said it was 35 degrees - thank goodness for the air conditioning in our little Opel Corsa that is just barely keeping up with the speed limit and heat. By the way - while rental cars have an advantage over trains (you pay for 1 person rather than all members of the group) the Toll charges on the highway can be up to $75 over 300 kms. This was a big surprise to me.

And so we drove to downtown Barcelona and parked our cars. WHAT AN ADVENTURE! Driving in Barcelona is not for the faint of heart.

Barcelona is beautiful. We quickly located La Rambla street (the main drag and enjoyed the sights and sounds. You wander down the street to the water where there is a massive monument to Christopher Columbus. Its a busy busy place with folks from all over the world. We managed to find a place serving Paella and sangria on the street and pulled up a chair. Spain is no longer an inexpensive place to visit. The prices here are not much different hat London or Paris.