Park Güell

September 18, 2023

Shake Down Ride

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We slept in again! Thank goodness I set an alarm last night. I honestly didn’t think we would need it. Unfortunately I set it for 9 AM, I was so sure that it was unnecessary. I should have set it for a bit earlier. Neither of us remember being so clobbered by jet lag in the past. We were both wide awake about 3 AM again. Tonight I am not closing the room darkening drapes. That should help in the morning.

We started out with several cups of coffee and a couple of pastries we bought last night. Breakfast of champions! Then it was down the spiral steps of death with the bicycles and onto the Barcelona bike lanes. It is an amazing network of cycle lanes. They are also very well used and we were the slow ones as we kept having to navigate. Everyone else knew exactly where they were going. The CN got us right to the park though, with absolutely no drama.

The infrastructure for bikes is amazing.

The arrival in the park was interesting. We had an entry ticket for noon and were right on time. We asked about locking the bikes in the park and it is absolutely not allowed. To be fair, there probably isn’t much call for it from what we could see, as it is on top of a hill. However, we bring what I like to call ‘toy locks’ when we are touring, and neither of us felt comfortable inadequately locking the bikes for what might be hours where they were vulnerable. No problem said the attendants, bikes are allowed in the park, you just can’t ride them. So that is what we did. We saw any number of spots we could have safely locked them in the park near the multiple entrances but it was an absolute no go each time we asked. So we hiked them around the park. Personally, I think we were more of a menace that way than if they provided bike parking, but they either have so few bikes it is a non issue or someone in charge isn’t thinking!

Pretty impressive even at this distance.

It was crazy busy even though they control how many people come in at a time. Once in you can stay as long as you want.

Hike a bike. We didn’t see another soul with a bike.

A much better shot of these cuties. They were after the water.

Then it was down, down and again, always with a bike lane. We stopped for a late lunch at an appealing spot and enjoyed the views from our table.

The CN intentionally routed us past the Sagrada Familia on the way back to the hotel.

After a short rest we headed out on foot and walked and walked. We checked out a restaurant for the return trip, stopped in three bike shops and had delicious tapas in a wonderful pedestrian area. Such fun there. The server gave the wrong bill to previous patrons (our bill we assume) and they paid and left. So he gave us their bill and things definitely worked in our favour. It was odd but our delightful server assured us it was for the best. Probably the easiest way for him to deal with the situation.

We didn’t take a single picture. Then a wonderful walk back to the hotel and the process of slamming and cramming everything in the panniers began. So the slow show begins. We aren’t going very far tomorrow but it will be good to be on the bikes. We are taking the train to Blanes and spending the night in Tossa de Mar

Today's ride: 13 km (8 miles)
Total: 13 km (8 miles)

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