Day 9

Hola! We are officially on our last leg of the trip in Barcelona, Spain. We left Paris this morning around 10 a.m. for our flight at 12 p.m. Everything went off without a hitch. We even took the metro to Orly airport and found our way just fine. Its bittersweet leaving a place we grew so familiar to in just a short time period. Sure, Paris had its ups and downs but it was a great trip and we learned a lot about the city, ourselves, and each other.

The flight from Paris to Barecelona was about an hour and a half. I finished reading "My Sister's Keeper" which I wouldn't recommend to anyone! What a depressing story and so unbelievable. I was really disappointed in the ending..Anyway, after the flight we stopped for a quick bite to eat near the airport exit. Two chocolate cream filled donuts. It was heaven.
During our trip in Barcelona, we are staying at Hotel SOHO. The location is good because of its proximity to the metro but we are not on the Mediterrean which was a little disappointing. Also, there is construction all around the area so we'll probably be up at the crack of dawn listening to jackhammers. The hotel itself is an intriguing building with modern rooms. We have to use our key to activate all the lights and even have a button to open and close the blinds. Its a step above our last two apartments. We are so happy to be relaxing in Barcelona. We have the air conditioning cranking, have been using all the free tolietries, and have taken full advantage of the front desk for things to do and places to eat. Not to mention the rooftop pool/lounge area! Our neighbors are a family from Madison, WI so maybe we'll get a chance to exchange stories.
I'm not sure if any of you have noticed but Nate didn't fulfill his promise in Amsterdam or Paris of buying me flowers everyday. Now, I'm probably the one to blame because everytime an opportunity arose, I didn't really feel like carrying them around with me. So, upon arriving at the SOHO, Nate surprised me with a bouquet of flowers. The largest arrangement I've ever received. Its so beautiful and we'll be able to enjoy over the last few days of our honeymoon. Take a look at our pictures on smugmug!
After we checked-in, we layed out by the pool for a few hours and relaxed. The pool is really an oversided jacuzzi but the sun was shining and it felt good to be outside and not on our feet touring a museum. We made reservations for dinner at a local restaurant recommended by the front desk - La Fonda del Port Olympic. The restaurant is just south of our hotel on the Meditearrean in a very toursity area. We were a little leary of the location because we've read about overpriced food in areas such as this. But, we were pleasantly surpised. The food was delicious and the service was great too. We orderd the hardshell seafood plate with crab, lobster, snail, shrimp, oyster, and prawn and the vegetarian paella which is an out of this world rice dish that can be made with either veggies, seafood or meat. For dessert, we had ice cream and free cookies offered by La Fonda. Very delicious and by the far the most full we've been on this trip. We're going to try out a new location eat day for paella to see who makes the best!
That about sums up our day. Tomorrow we'll be sleeping in as long as the construction allows and haven't planned anything for the day except maybe some more sunshine.

Good night!

And congrats to Adam Sturtewagen and Laura Taff! They are engaged!