Barcelona to Rome

So tonight Ben and I went into the centre of Barcelona for a bit of sightseeing and some dinner. We went to the 'supposed to be, but not quite', 'happening' main street, and were just slightly disappointed at the lack of buzz or people...I guess the crowds of London ruin anyone in terms of what the word 'busy' means. There seemed to be little going on with the exception of one queue reaching out the door of a theatre and winding its way round the street corner. We decided on a relatively cheap place to eat and enjoyed a meal. Now at the end of our meal we were approached, inside the restaurant, by a man selling flashing, highlighter sunglasses. This did not at all strike me as strange, as just at the very moment I had finished my sandwich and smoothie, I though to myself, 'that meal was great, but without some flashing, highlighter sunglasses to finish, it is just not quite complete'! Now one does have to wonder at the reason for this particular choice of sale item, and the particular time of day, (or should I say night), at which the seller decided to make his wares known to the public. Does he often make a purchase just as a couple puts their knives and forks down after a meal, inside a restaurant? Especially a couple who look so little like tourists, with Ben's not-at-all Sweedish looking tan, blue eye's and sun blonded hair. Is it that one, late in the evening, is pondering the next day's beach plans, and is thinking that the best way to accompany their bared Euorpean bodies, is with some flashing, highlighter sunglasses? Well, after all this it is needless to say that these lovely flashing, highlighter sunglasses unfortunately did not make it into my purse, as no matter how hard I tried, I just could not picture myself checking out the sights of Barcelona over the next few days wearing a pair...although I am pretty sure I can convince Ben next time we are approached after a meal, that they are a must have for any Sweedish tourist!.

So it turns out that the street we had actually spent the night wandering up and down was not La Rambla, the main street after-all....hence the lack of business. We did, however finally find the correct street, which was in fact buzzing with atmosphere and full of markets and street performers...very fun! It might be best if we read the street signs before we make judgement in the future I think.

So last night we moved up a class, by flying from Barcelona to Rome. But then when you hear the airline with which we flew, you will realise that Derby was most definitely the one up a class in comparison. Ryanair was the flight company of our choice due to it's ridiculously cheap fares...which we will not complain about. The problem with this airline is that you are only allowed one carry on, per person and that does not mean a mini trolley case, a handbag, and a camera, (as I would take it to mean), it literally means one item...so obviously you are not going to make that item your camera! This also means that any luggage you want to check in has to be paid for on top of your fare...and depending on the weight depends on the price. Now due to the fact we had no bags while in Derby, we had to buy suitcases specifically for our travelling future. And me being the practical one I am, due to the fact we already have decent large suitcases, and large packs at home, I could not justify the purchase of any more. My suggestion therefore was to by a small carry on trolley bag each, (of which we have none), and one large, lightweight bag to check on...aaah...you can see the money we will save already. So emptying our hire car in Barcelona we managed to fit all our possession into the small carry on's and the duffel bag, (sending the rest home in boxes). However we did not account for how much all this one duffel bag would weigh. When we got to the check-in, we realised we were hugely overweight, by two kgs, (at 10 Euro a kg, it is hugely overweight). So being sneaky, as we most definitely are, we layered ourselves up in shirts, boots and jackets, (yes we were aware how completely not suspicious this looked in the 35 degree heat). Then after being sure we had maybe removed two kgs, or close to it, and hoping they would let us away with the rest we put our bag on to be weighed. Now being that I am not the quietest person on the planet, I noticed that for some reason, our few clothes seemed to have dropped the weight by a good 10kgs, and began to announce this loudly to Ben, saying that it can't be right. Under his breath he told me very politely to 'shut-up' as he had purposely placed it on the side and not completely on the scale. His poor stupid wife ruining his cunning plan. This being said, he got away with his sneakiness, only to find out as the suitcase rolled up the escalator that he hadn't needed to be, as we were actually within the correct weight we had paid for.

We are now in Rome, and LOVING it! Italy is actually everything people say it is! Every street you turn down in Rome has some gorgeous church or ancient ruin! We spent the whole day walking through the city towards Vatican city, only to get kicked out once we got there cos my skirt was not of appropriate length, meaning we will have to attempt it all again tomorrow. We awed at the size of the Colloseum, and tried to give ourselves halo's through the hole in the roof at the Pantheon. And to finish a perfect, if tiring, day we sat El Fresco, eating the most divine pasta and pizza!