Barcelona and the Cruise
The Tourist Side. Karen kept singing "one short day in the Emerald City," because that's all we had in Barcelona. We had one day, but we certainly packed a lot in. It included the Le Sagrada Familia, the giant unfinished church, which looks like a skyscraper from the future, the Picasso Museum, the Gothic Quarter, an amazing food market, and the Jewish quarter. Another completely alive city; people are out at all hours in packed cafes throughout the city. The stone streets, the small shops, the public transportation all make this city understandably popular with tourists and residents alike. They've kept nearly all the old structures but put modern apartments and stores in them. The downsides are a lot of homeless and a lot of smoking, even more than in Paris or London. Oddly enough, there is very little vaping here. They just smoke straight cigarettes, and we felt like we were back in the seventies. Still, a great city.
Jewish Barca. Of course, Spain is better known than any other country for its expulsion of the Jews. The Golden Age of Spain is still remembered both fondly and harshly, given its end, though Jews were expelled from nearly every country in both Europe and the Middle East. Still, there was a Jewish quarter in Barcelona, and people want to see it. We saw several tours happening while we were looking for its miniscule remains. That includes a part of a synagogue, a few plaques, what used to be the Jewish square, and a few other places where Jewish sites, like mivkeh's used to be housed. The main Jewish communities in Spain were in Gerona, Sevilla, and Toledo, so Barcelona's would pale in comparison anyway. Still, we all like to see what we can about our Jewish roots. Yes, even Jews seem to love dead Jews. We also got to eat dinner at a Kosher restaurant--Maccabi, and got to have Kosher Chicken Paella and Tapas. They weren't amazing, but they were good, and when else would we get to have them?
People. Drinks with Sam Simon, former Bar Mitzvah student and a great human being. Not much more to say. It was a pleasure.
Nothing feels more “vacation-like” than a cruise. We are on the Enchanted Princess, a beautiful 3 year old ship, which at only 2/3 full, feels very uncrowded. Our port stops have included Marseille, France, an absolute disaster with a port strike, requiring a 3 mile walk to get anywhere, Corsica, where Napoleon was born, and Gibraltar, home of the famous rock. Did you know there are apes on the top?
But we love hanging out in the ship itself, going to trivia (we have done well), jogging on the deck, the gym, the shows (great young Motown like group) plus another standard ship musical cast, and eating delicious food constantly. I try to counteract the food by only taking the stairs. Even on non Port days that’s about 15000 steps. The service in this cruise is top notch. The internet connection, even though we paid the premium, is terrible. I am writing this from a cafe on Gibraltar.
Shabbat services on the cruise are always a kick. It’s mostly Israelis, and I volunteered to lead, mostly because I can’t stand the way anyone else does it (either too much English or too much mumbling). The best part is finding out who your fellow Jewish passengers are. We have met a few for drinks since, using the champagne Karen won at the “Yes or No” gameshow. The Israelis on board seem to be calmer about the situation over there than we are, and are more right of center than we are. They seem to think Netanyahu will work it all out, though they are not huge supporters of his either. I think he has unleashed monsters that he can’t control anymore, but we shall see..,
If we can get there, that is. The Tel Aviv airport is closed and on strike. And we don’t know what awaits us with the strikes, the protests, or much worse.
Still, for now, we are appreciating the end of our vacation part of the sabbatical, as you can see.
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