ADIOS BARCELONA AND MADRID IS WAITING FOR ME ....

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Heading out for breakfast this morning, the huge pale moon was still high in the sky and the watery sun was up there too. Here at 8.30am, there are still lingering shadows and the night is not dark until about 8.30pm - so different to Western Australia.

The morning was clear of rain, and my day was spent wandering around the streets, stopping wherever the whim took me and I ended up down on the waterfront of Port Vell and Barceloneta Beach. It's an interesting area, with a lot of maritime history, but for me there were too many people wandering around. The small cafe/bars back from the beach were full and those ritzy kiosks on the beach were standing room only.

By afternoon, the rain had returned and was still pouring down when I decided I wasn't spending another evening in the hostel. My new umbrella was very useful as I went out onto the wet streets, looking for somewhere to have a meal and a nightcap. After a longer walk than usual, there wasn't much open, eventually, through the rain, there was a lighted doorway ahead of me. At night, I normally don't go into a bar where there are no women, but the two waiters watching the cricket looked harmless. So I sat at the bar - this is what the locals do even the women. The food was good, with interesting conversation about Australia which most young Spanish people always seem interested in. When the rain had stopped, I wandered through the rain-washed streets back to my bed.

Early morning and I needed to be at Sants Estacio for the AVE high speed train up to Madrid. My small case and I went out to find a taxi on the dark street. My luck was in because a young woman with the same ideas was standing at the traffic lights trying to flag one down. As she was also standing behind one of the huge recycling bins and the street was one way, they didn't see her until they were past her. She said 'yes' when I asked her if she wanted to share one with me to the station. I moved us further along the street from behind the big bins and a taxi stopped for us immediately. Breakfast was train-station fare, but here in Spain, it's way better than in Australia and I always have a book to keep me company.

Monday, 1st October. 2012

The 3 hour journey up here to Madrid was smooth and the bustling crowd at Atocha station don't seem to change. Passing the huge indoor garden prompted me to come back here once settled in and spend some time in it. I also want to re-visit The Monument to the Victims of the terrorist attack in the underground of the Atocha station. It is a very poignant reminder that peace anywhere on this earth is a very fragile thing.

The hotel/hostal I am in for the next week is a comfortable family-run one so more on this and whatever I re/discover during my time here in Madrid in my next blog.

Hope you are all well at home.

Lots of love to all of my family and friends,

from your wandering Ibu

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