I said goodbye to Margita for the second time in Spain as she headed out to fly back home to Oregon. My time with her has been so special and I know we will have more adventures together over the months to come. There is time for me to take a walk along the Ramblas down to the Columbus statue and to consider a time gone by when Europeans set their sights on the new world and new frontiers to discover. It's a public holiday and so the train station is very busy as...

A short train journey from Barcelona took us up into the mountains of Montserrat and the wonderful monastery built into the mountainside. We attended the midday choir service provided by the boys choir but was somewhat disappointed that they only sang for eight minutes. I could have listened to them for an hour or so. The monastery here is also home to the black Madonna an so it is a popular religious tourist destination. Two funicular railways took us both down ...

Antonio Gaudi was a great genius whose legacy for the people of Barcelona will be appreciated for centuries to come. The famous Sagrada Familia Cathedral is still being constructed with giant crane dominating the skyline. Gaudi is buried in the crypt after his untimely death in 1924 when he was hit by a tram. The creativity and style using architectural features drawn from the natural living world is simply staggering. A number of other of his buildings are touri...

It was great to meet up with Margita again and to explore the wonderful city of Barcelona, which is the Regional capital of the Catalan people. It is home to the works of so many famous artists including Picasso, Miro, Dali and Gaudi. Together with the 1992 Olympic Stadium, Camp Nou (Barcelona Football Club), the famous Ramblas, marina and waterfront area, the city has something for everybody.