Madrid to Barcelona: Day Three

Last night, D and I discovered that our hotel room did not have an alarm clock. Since we have not been using our phones (no cell phone coverage in Spain), we were at a loss as to how to wake ourselves up this morning. Ahhh, yes. Wake-up calls. On a side note, our hotel room in Barcelona also does not have an alarm clock - apparently, waking up is not a concern for Spaniards! Anyway, we managed to get an early start and headed back to the Parque del Buen Retiro for a row boat ride in the little lake near the Palacio de Cristal. D found my rowing 'skills' very amusing - I have never actually rowed a boat before!

My first timing rowing a boat!

The Palacio de Cristal from our row boat.

We started our way back to the hotel to pick up an early lunch and head to the airport for our flight to Barcelona. However, for the second time within a 12 hour period, the police had blockaded entrances to our hotel due to protestors. Last night, protests against the Spanish austerity measures began around 11 pm and continued until at least 3 am (Spanish austerity protests). These protests were right outside our hotel near the Museo del Prado.

Protests against Spanish austerity measures outside the Museo del Prado.

After a fairly uneventful flight, we checked into our hotel on La Rambla and decided to wander down to the Port de Barcelona. La Rambla was packed!! So many restaurants, shops and people, all jammed into one small area. There is a large shopping center in the Port de Barcelona and in order to get to this shopping center, you have to walk on a floating boardwalk. Now imagine this floating boardwalk filled with people shoulder-to-shoulder. 

D imitating a buoy in the Port de Barcelona.

After leaving the Port de Barcelona, D and I wandered up Via Laietana and saw one of the two best surviving remnants of Barcelona's Roman walls, rebuilt in the 3rd and 4th centuries after attacks from Germanic tribes in the north.

Roman wall in Placa de Ramon Berenguer el Gran with the Capella Reial de Santa Agata on top.

For the first time, we actually managed to wait to eat until after 8 pm. Around 10 pm, all the Europeans wandered in to dinner, so there is still plenty of room for improvement in our meal schedule!