Blogs from Vilanova i la Geltrú, Catalonia, Spain, Europe

Beautiful sunny day in Vilanova to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. A little cooler with a nice breeze. Following a relaxing breakfast we took a nice walk (about 15 minutes) down to the beach of Vilanova. Our first stop before we parked ourselves on the sandy beach was to enjoy a cold mojito under the breezy shade of the overhead pergola with sail shades on the beach. Made our way to two nice lounge chairs and an umbrella not wanting to get sunburned. Perfect! We enjoyed swimming in the Mediterranean Sea as it was warm and our water was nice and shallow with a sand bar part way out into the waves. Ideal. Wayne and I dipped in and out of the water several times and enjoyed every moment. A few topless ladies gave Wayne a ... read more

Our time with Ivan was over, so we moved a short distance north of Calafell to our new lodgings at The Gatell Hotel in Vilanova. Our sweet host Ivan kindly drove us right to the door with our bags as he works in Vilanova. This worked out perfectly for us. A nice little hotel with a pretty bar and restaurant in the lobby area. Our ladies at the front desk are very helpful and Sweet. Rooms are simple but clean and we are blessed with A/C and overhead ceiling fans. We settled in and took a breather (quick nap) and then off to explore the area. Off to the Rambla Principal - pedestrians only Main Street with many shops and open air cafes. This is where the action is. Lots to see and do. Our weather ... read more

We met Mark for lunch at the Cafe de les Arts on the seafront. He was quiet and in-between car appointments and delivery appointments. He didn't stay long and I would suspect really didn't want to be there. I have been battling a upper-repertory cold and congestion and was rather dull myself. Larry Cusack held up such of the talk. When the sun moved behind the palm tree and Mark took his leave to get his delivery, it got cool, so we finished out coffee con leech and then headed out into the sun to the beach. The weather was perfect in the direct sun, and we walked south from the center of town on the water and the back to town thought a higher-end apartment area which is south of the town center. We have ... read more

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Day #2 I'm flighting Jet Lag and an airborne-acquired sinus condition but was able to go out for coffee and found the grocery store late this afternoon. It's just around the corner and less than a 3 minute walk. Sweet! Larry and I walked from the Mediterranean about 2 miles inland down the main shopping street of this surprising Spanish town of 66,000. Watching the ebb and flow of people in the street was very interesting. We were in a coffee shop at 4:30 and by the time we walked back at 5:00 the street filled up with people going home from work and children getting out of the schools. Our limited Spanish came in handy in the grocery store when trying to distinguish products and ingredients. I though we did fairly well and now we ... read more