3-More Barcelona

Hello Friends,

We were beginning to feel like old regulars on the airport bus. Today only Lowell was allowed in the baggage area, since it was technically his missing luggage. So I sat in the waiting room, trying to calm my nerves by reading Tolstoy (don't ask me why, it's just what I'd brought along). At last Lowell appeared, WITH a baggage cart containing our yellow panniers. Yipee!!!! I sobbed from relief.

But we had no time to lose. First, we collected the bike boxes and other panniers from left luggage, and then spent our usual time, a little under two hours, assembling the tandem. All went well, and even the missing derailleur screw was still in the bottom of the bike box (whew!). We divided up the gear into the four panniers, not a problem when we haven't bought any food. But why, oh why, did I pack 3 1/2 pounds of multi-vitamins! It was then time to tie the tent, air mattresses, and spare tires on the back rack. So where were the two new bungee cords? Oh rats. We spent precious time looking through everything, to no avail. They must have fallen off the dining room table at home in Youngstown. We remember checking them off the list, but nothing about where they might be. Double rats! Then Lowell had a bright idea--use our laundry line to tie everything on the back. It worked! And off we rode away from the airport at last.

It was already 3 p.m., and I suppose it bordered on foolish for us to ride toward Barcelona at that time of day without a detailed map. We took one dead-end route in the process of trying to avoid the motorway (airports are notorious for having only high-speed access roads), but we eventually ended up on the big road, legally, after we saw other cyclists using it. At least we made great time. After a while the road signs directed us off the motorway, and we found ourselves near the port. A security guard wouldn't let us travel that way, but he wrote out excellent instructions for getting us into the city and to the Columbus statue. Voila--it worked like a charm!

So we passed by beautiful Barcelona. The seaside commjunities beyond the city were not much easier to navigate. We mostly followed the traffic and the signs toward the towns we were aiming for. Just about the time we were running out of energy, there it was, Camping Masnou. We'd made it to our first stop! Those of you who don't camp, or bike for that matter, will just have to take it on faith that we felt SO good to be in our own tent and sleeping bags that night. To us, it's just like home. With the Mediterranean Sea just outside, and Spain and France out there for us to explore, we could now honestly say, "Life is good."

Adios. Ellen & Lowell