On the Boat!

We survived Barcelona, or should I say Barcelona survived us. It was a great 3 nights and we hope that we will be lucky enough to return again soon. Angie's favourite thing in Barcelona was Sagrada Familia and Mike's was probably the evenings finding great places to eat along Las Ramblas.

These were some Churros with chocolate we had after our last meal in Barcelona. They were eatable.

Sunday morning we ariived at the port and quickly got on the ship. The embarkation process was flawless and we got on the boat in about 10 minutes. Our room was ready and luggage arrived by noon.

We quickly got comfortable on the ship and had our first beverages. The drink package limit is 15 drinks a day so we had to pace ourselves. Here is a view from our balcony.

As you can see, the sun was trying to shine and we made it to the pool deck for a bit. It was around 16 degrees, so the sunshine made a big difference.

After a nice dinner in the evening, we snuck over the casino, where it seemed that Gord was the only one with any luck. After depleting my bankroll, I moved over to the blackjack table to watch Gord. The guy next to Gord managed to clear out the table when he stood on a soft 6 against the dealers 10. And no, it wasn't Austin Powers.

Yesterday was a sea day as we moved down the Spanish coast to Gibraltar. It was a fairly uneventful day with cool temperatures and smooth seas. Once again, there wasn't much luck too be had in the casino.

Today was Gibraltar and we got off the boat about 8:30.

We took a tour bus for a drive around the rock. Gibraltar is a part of Great Britain and has played an important part in the security of the Mediterranean Ocean for 1300 years. Gibraltar is only about 6 kilometers long and 1.5 kms across. The British gained control in the 1700's did a great job protecting it from invaders. We toured the seige tunnels which were built halfway up the rock and had cannon turrets every 10 yards or so. Here is a picture from one of the turrets looking down on the modern day airport.

One interesting feature of Gibraltar is the number of monkeys running wild. They are protected and fed by the government, as well as get medical care whenever they need it.

The last stop on the tour was a spot where we could take a picture of the famous north side. It is the view that has become famous.

From there, our great bus driver Richard took us back to the ship. We had a nice quick lunch and came back to the room to make this post. We have another sea day tomorrow before we get to Marseille and another excursion.

Stay Tuned!!