We'’re out of it! A summer 14 “MAGICal” Med adventure Day 14/Aug 05 updated 05/05

[dizneeat]

Okay, before I post another update I need to let you know that in exactly 6 months from today we will be travelling again!



Yes, in 6 months from today we will celebrate Tom's 50th by flying to the US and taking another cruise.

Guess, I better start planning this trip soon, so we can share the details with you all. ​

 

[dizneeat]

Day 2, July 24

So much to see, so little time …. Part 6

And even though it had only been about two hours of exploring we were tired again, the heat had gotten the better of us.
So we decided to just slowly walk down











to the bus stop for the sightseeing tour



and take the bus back to our apartment. Once we had made it to the stop we waited for a bus, but it was too full and the next one was only a few minutes behind this one. We finally got on and sat downstairs where there was air conditioning. And while we were driving we remembered the fun little tram that went up to the Tipidabo. We quickly checked our map for operating hours and it was still running, we had a discount voucher, so we hopped off the bus at the Tipidabo stop.
We crossed the street and the tram was right there with quite a line of people to get on.







We got in line, but we were sure we would not make it on this one. And really, 2 families before it would have been our turn they stopped loading people onto the tram and within a few minutes they were on their way.





It about a 10 minute wait for the next tram to arrive and then they slowly loaded it after selling their tickets. We were lucky to find seats inside







and soon we were off and up the hill as well. The tram ride is a fun experience and reminded us of the tram that runs up to the Pöstlingberg in our home town. Once we had made it up there and gotten off tram we crossed the street





for our next means of transport, the funicular.



Again, we got in line, presented another discount voucher and paid for a return trip. Ticket in hand we headed through the turnstiles and went to find a spot in the funicular. Didn’t take long and we slowly moved up the mountain. A few minutes later we had reached the top and got off



and headed outside and were in awe with the view over the city from the platform.




To be continued ..........​

 

[dizneeat]

Day 2, July 24

So much to see, so little time …. Part 7

A few minutes later we had reached the top and got off and headed outside and were in awe with the view over the city from the platform.











Had we gotten there any earlier we surely would have gotten tickets for some of the rides up there,

















but it was already close to 7pm and we still wanted to visit the church on top of the hill.





So after soaking in the view we turned around and headed towards the church. There was a lift up to the top, so we went inside and tried to buy tickets for that. It was a bit tricky as the machine did not like our bank notes and we were running low on coins. Finally the guy operating the lift came over to help us and soon the machine was happy to “eat” our bank notes as well. He then took us to the lift and told us just to ring the bell when we were ready to go down. We got off and walked towards the balcony that ran around the church and looked down and the view was just incredible.















It was breathtaking to see the whole of the city all laid out in front of you. We walked all around the church, admiring the view and taking it all in. I think we spent about 20 minutes up there before we joined another couple on the way down. Then the lift operator explained that today the main church and the way up to the top of one of the towers was already closed, but if we had time to come back during the day, as the view was even more stunning after climbing up the stairs in the tower and the church was wonderful too.





We never made it back this trip, but another trip to Barcelona surely is in our near future, so that is already on our to do list. It was close to 8pm when we arrived at the stop for the funicular again.

To be continued ..........​

 

[dizneeat]

Day 2, July 24

So much to see, so little time …. Part 8

It was close to 8pm when we arrived at the stop for the funicular again.



Another 10 minutes later we got off and since the tram was no longer running we decided to just get a taxi back to our hotel. Problem was that someone had just gotten into the last taxi at the stop. So we decided to wait for a while and see if there were more taxis to come up. It didn’t take long and a taxi arrived, we tried to tell him where we wanted to go, but he just wound not understand, so we told him to just get us to the Placa de Catalunya and off we went. It took us about 10 minutes and we got off right at the corner of our hotel, as he was driving down Rambla de Catalunya anyway. We walked up to our room and chilled with a drink until it dawned on us that we had not had dinner yet. We threw around the idea of walking down to the Ramblas and try to find another small restaurant, but then we were not really up for it. So we just decided to walk round the block and have a look if there were any take away shops. We quickly found one who was selling hot baguette sandwiches and we bought 3 different ones, he heated them up and we walked the few steps to our hotel, but not without another stop at the bakery at the corner. Once back in our room



we laid the table, grabbed some cold drinks out of the fridge and sat down to have a leisurely but late dinner. We decided to share the baguettes









and they were very yummy. There was a



Cheese and Veggies one, a



Ham and Cheese one and a



Dry Cured Ham and Cheese one. And after we had indulged in those goodies it was time to sample the bakery goods. We had a



Catalan sweet flatbread with caramelized sugar and almonds on top and a



Chocolate croissant. Dinner had taken quite some time and after it we stretched out in front of the TV before we knew it was time for bed.

To be continued ..........​

 

[heaven2dc]

What an amazing view! The church was absolutely stunning - can only imagine how it looks inside. I noticed a beautiful building that had a winding road leading up to it - looked like it was some grand hotel or manor. Do you know what that was? It's in the picture below of the ferris wheel and plaque. You have traveled to so many amazing beautiful places....the next time you're in U.S. I would love to stow away in one of your suitcases I'll even pay the extra baggage fee!

 

[Acar]

It is so nice to read another of your trip reports. I always enjoy them, so thanks for letting all of us come along on your trip with you.

 

[perfectmatch300]

Okay, before I post another update I need to let you know that in exactly 6 months from today we will be travelling again!



Yes, in 6 months from today we will celebrate Tom's 50th by flying to the US and taking another cruise.

Guess, I better start planning this trip soon, so we can share the details with you all. ​

We should be home then! Maybe we will be able to catch up with you somewhere while you are here.

You went HOW LONG without power in your flat? Wow! Especially with you having to deal with the pressures of starting a new school year!

Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy the Magic as much as you expected. Makes me sad to hear that the "magic" was somewhat lacking on the Disney Magic.

Your pictures were, as usual, absolutely awesome. My favorites were of your trip up to the amusement area - what was that crane thing with an airplane attached anyway? I also loved the views of the city from the church. I can certainly see why you want to go back to Barcelona.

If you check my signature, you will see that we are straying a bit from the Disney Cruise fold ourselves. We had no problems with our Dream B2B earlier this month. We had an awesome time. We just got a great offer from Princess with tons of OBC just for booking so we're cruising again in less than 3 weeks! Our RCI cruise next spring was booked because Disney didn't offer any southern Caribbean itinereries in 2015, and that is where I want to go. The RCI cruise may be changed, though. I have some negotiating to do with our cat sitters regarding the scheduling of "cat camp" time. If that works out the way I'm hoping we will cancel the RCI cruise and book one on Princess whose itinerary I like way better than the RCI cruise we currently have booked. The whole point I'm trying to make here is to not be afraid to branch out and try other cruise lines. While they're not Disney, some of them really are quite good. Knowing you, you will do your research and find the line that's the right fit for you and Tom.

Wait a minute! Edited to say that I just noticed that Tom's birthday cruise is on the Magic! I really hope you have a better onboard experience on her forTom's birthday than you had on the Med cruise you just took!

Nancy

 

[pas130]

Okay, before I post another update I need to let you know that in exactly 6 months from today we will be travelling again!



Yes, in 6 months from today we will celebrate Tom's 50th by flying to the US and taking another cruise.

Guess, I better start planning this trip soon, so we can share the details with you all. ​

Congrats!!!! And YAY for F&G AND a birthday trip for you and your bro!!!!!!!!!!!

Those views were spectacular WOW! I can't believe how high above the Earth it looked, my DH would faint. Lovely virtual Spanish tour Karin!!

 

[jedijill]

Wow, more great places to add to my list of things to see on my next trip to Barcelona!

What a great day!

Jill in CO

 

[dizneeat]

What an amazing view! The church was absolutely stunning - can only imagine how it looks inside. I noticed a beautiful building that had a winding road leading up to it - looked like it was some grand hotel or manor. Do you know what that was? It's in the picture below of the ferris wheel and plaque. You have traveled to so many amazing beautiful places....the next time you're in U.S. I would love to stow away in one of your suitcases I'll even pay the extra baggage fee!

You are so right! The views from up there were stunning. We really really loved it.
Now, that beautiful building definitely is a hotel, the Gran Hotel La Florida.

I know we are lucky, we travel a lot and have seen quite some stunning places - and you are welcome to come along - virtual or in real life.

It is so nice to read aYounother of your trip reports. I always enjoy them, so thanks for letting all of us come along on your trip with you.

Ah, thanks for being such a loyal reader. Tom and I LOVE to share our travels with our DISfriends.

We should be home then! Maybe we will be able to catch up with you somewhere while you are here.

It would be lovely, but let me tell you it will be a tight fit as we only half two half days after the cruise AND it will be easter weekend.
But what about the summer. We are going to spend two whole weeks at WDW then.

You went HOW LONG without power in your flat? Wow! Especially with you having to deal with the pressures of starting a new school year!

It wasn't that bad, as I just invited myself to stay with Tom in the house. But it was pretty stressful as I had to go back and forth across the city as I still had most of my work things at my flat.

Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy the Magic as much as you expected. Makes me sad to hear that the "magic" was somewhat lacking on the Disney Magic.

It was not just the ship, but there were issues with the food and even service lacked. Don't know if it has to do with this having been Europe, but it did not wow us as much as I would have loved it to.

Your pictures were, as usual, absolutely awesome. My favorites were of your trip up to the amusement area - what was that crane thing with an airplane attached anyway? I also loved the views of the city from the church. I can certainly see why you want to go back to Barcelona.

The crane with the plane attached to it is actually a ride. The plane is a replica of the first plane that flew non stop from Barcelona to Madrid (or the other way around) in 1928. It was a bit scary looking.

If you check my signature, you will see that we are straying a bit from the Disney Cruise fold ourselves. We had no problems with our Dream B2B earlier this month. We had an awesome time. We just got a great offer from Princess with tons of OBC just for booking so we're cruising again in less than 3 weeks! Our RCI cruise next spring was booked because Disney didn't offer any southern Caribbean itinereries in 2015, and that is where I want to go. The RCI cruise may be changed, though. I have some negotiating to do with our cat sitters regarding the scheduling of "cat camp" time. If that works out the way I'm hoping we will cancel the RCI cruise and book one on Princess whose itinerary I like way better than the RCI cruise we currently have booked. The whole point I'm trying to make here is to not be afraid to branch out and try other cruise lines. While they're not Disney, some of them really are quite good. Knowing you, you will do your research and find the line that's the right fit for you and Tom.

It was funny that we both were quite amazed that we even considered cruising something else than DCL. And while we won't stray from DCL in the US, I doubt we will be back on the Magic in Europe.
You are so lucky to live so close to the port and be able to pick up these amazing offers. I cannot wait to hear about your experience.

Wait a minute! Edited to say that I just noticed that Tom's birthday cruise is on the Magic! I really hope you have a better onboard experience on her forTom's birthday than you had on the Med cruise you just took!

Nancy

Since I was so sure we would LOVE the Magic I booked Tom's birthday cruise on her. Well, we are still pretty happy to give her another try. Maybe we'll have a better experience. At least I hope for better food. You'll see that we had quite a few disappointments in that department.
AND this cruise sails into Key West. That is something Tom always wanted to do, so it was perfect, as we will sail out of Port Canaveral on his actual birthday.

 

[Linda67]

Karin we did the exact tram/funicular trip when we were last in Barcelona
Your photos have bought back some wonderful memories

 

[LuvEeyore]

Karin,
You have me wanting to take a trip to Barcelona!!

 

[MEK]

Oh Wow! I am so glad you took the trip up to the church! What amazing views at every stop on the way! Just stunning! Definitely not the place for someone with a fear of heights.

Such a stunning city and yet it is just dwarfed by being that high up. What an expansive view. Amazing!

Great afternoon touring. No wonder you forgot about dinner!

 

[Teri1]

Karin your pictures of Barcelona are beautiful.

 

[perfectmatch300]

Karin, we will definitely have to make some plans for the summer! You're right, there probably wouldn't be much time during Tom's birthday trip. I had forgotten when Easter 2015 was, so that would certainly add to the problem.

 

[Flossbolna]

We had read about the kinks on the Magic beforehand, but with all the hype of her having been in dry dock and as good as new we expected more. And the thing is, once I don't like what I see I look for more issues and unfortunately found them. Mr. FB didn't help it much either.

Magdalene, we LOVED the Wonder. We loved everything about her. And as I explained to Cynthia, I think we had our expectations set very high and this time they failed to meet them on several levels.
Then, on the other hand, we just LOVE the new ships (can't say anything against German craftsmenship )

So you think the Wonder is better than the Magic? Interesting! I read your further comments about service and food and have been wondering from the start whether the title for your trip report isn't a bad sign for things to come...

I absolutely understand that once you start noticing issues you start looking around a bit more. This is absolutely what happened to us with our first stateroom on the WBPC cruise.

Have you told DCL about your disappointment? I think you should let them know, after all you are a loyal customer who gives them repeat business! And they need to know if they are putting out a lesser product in Europe that this is being noticed and makes people search out other alternatives!

And I had to laugh at the German craftsmanship comment!! But, Captain Fabian was very complimentary about Meyer Werft as well, so it seems like they did a good job indeed! I can't wait to check out the new ships myself!

I really liked this summer's itinerary, but you are right, they are repeated about every year.
And whilst TUI is not the cheapest either, I really like what they offer. I looked at a few different itineraries as we had hoped to fit in a cruise in 2016 for half term and I really like what they offer.

It will be a fun experience to cruise on a ship full of Germans!! I am not sure I would want to do that!


Loved your Barcelona update. I remember that we went up on the hill with the amusement park as well. I had totally forgotten about it until I looked at your pictures and they were familiar! But I don't remember taking a tram up there, I guess my uncle drove to the start of the funicular with us... Every new Barcelona update makes me want to book a trip there sooner than later!

 

[dizneeat]

Congrats!!!! And YAY for F&G AND a birthday trip for you and your bro!!!!!!!!!!!

We are both pretty happy with how this all turned out, even though we only have two half days for F&G and it will be Easter weekend.

Those views were spectacular WOW! I can't believe how high above the Earth it looked, my DH would faint. Lovely virtual Spanish tour Karin!!

Thank you! We really enjoyed taking photos of the view. And we just love sharing those with you all!
So, do you say, your DH would not ride the ferris wheel on Tipidabo?

Wow, more great places to add to my list of things to see on my next trip to Barcelona!

What a great day!

Jill in CO

Hope your trip will be sooner rather than later. It is such a beautiful city, well worth visiting.

Karin we did the exact tram/funicular trip when we were last in Barcelona
Your photos have bought back some wonderful memories

Great to know that you have fond memories of Tipidabo too!

Karin,
You have me wanting to take a trip to Barcelona!!

Looks like I am doing something right here.

 

[dizneeat]

Oh Wow! I am so glad you took the trip up to the church! What amazing views at every stop on the way! Just stunning! Definitely not the place for someone with a fear of heights.

We were really happy that we went up there too! We had really been struggling, as it was so hot that day. But the view was the best reward.

Such a stunning city and yet it is just dwarfed by being that high up. What an expansive view. Amazing!

Great afternoon touring. No wonder you forgot about dinner!

Forgetting dinner showed just how exciting those sights were - we RARLY forget dinner.

Karin your pictures of Barcelona are beautiful.

Thank you, Teresa!

Karin, we will definitely have to make some plans for the summer! You're right, there probably wouldn't be much time during Tom's birthday trip. I had forgotten when Easter 2015 was, so that would certainly add to the problem.

Summer would be perfect for us too! We will have two full weeks in Orlando, even though we are throwing around the idea of visiting "the dark side" for a few days.

So you think the Wonder is better than the Magic? Interesting! I read your further comments about service and food and have been wondering from the start whether the title for your trip report isn't a bad sign for things to come...

We sailed on her three times and we never had any problems. I am still referring to her as "my first love, the wonderful Disney Wonder".

Well, if we heard one sentence more than we wanted to, it was "We're out of it."

I absolutely understand that once you start noticing issues you start looking around a bit more. This is absolutely what happened to us with our first stateroom on the WBPC cruise.

I just could not get into the swing of things, with noticing things all over the ship. Somehow it did not wow me as much as the other ships did.
You just did the right thing and let them know right away. We really did not make much of an effort, as we knew the ship was sold out so there was not much they could have done.

Have you told DCL about your disappointment? I think you should let them know, after all you are a loyal customer who gives them repeat business! And they need to know if they are putting out a lesser product in Europe that this is being noticed and makes people search out other alternatives!

I really wanted to, but when we got back from the cruise we were only home for 3 nights before we headed to Paris and then I fell ill and then things started to happen around the house. I guess I will write to them eventually but have just not gotten around to it. And I actually wanted to get some time to go by "to calm down".

And I had to laugh at the German craftsmanship comment!! But, Captain Fabian was very complimentary about Meyer Werft as well, so it seems like they did a good job indeed! I can't wait to check out the new ships myself!

They did a GREAT job! The new ships are just beautiful and things actually work on them.

It will be a fun experience to cruise on a ship full of Germans!! I am not sure I would want to do that!

As long as there are not too many sea days, I think we will be able to cope and if we can't we can still pretend to only speak English

Loved your Barcelona update. I remember that we went up on the hill with the amusement park as well. I had totally forgotten about it until I looked at your pictures and they were familiar! But I don't remember taking a tram up there, I guess my uncle drove to the start of the funicular with us... Every new Barcelona update makes me want to book a trip there sooner than later!

Well, it looks like I am doing something right with those updates of Barcelona if I make so many people want to go back there.
And when you get back, please, try the little tram. It was so fun to ride up to the funicular in it.

 

[dizneeat]

Day 3, July 25

Finding Biarritz 1881 …. Part 1

When we woke up and took a peek out the window we knew that we would not have such an awesome day today weatherwise. The skies were grey and it looked a lot like rain, so we decided to head back to bed and rest a little more.
Around 8am we got up, showered and headed down the bakery for some breakfast. It was not raining at the moment but it did not look very promising either. So with breakfast in hand



we headed back to our room to start our last full day in Barcelona in style. Tom made some coffee and we had a look at our breakfast goodies. We had bought a





Tuna sandwich, which was filled with lots of tuna, tomatoes, cucumber and lettuce. Once that was gone we opened the



Chili flake crusted pie. It was filled with tuna as well and pretty spicy and we were both happy that our fridge was well stocked with Diet Coke to cool our mouths down. Next we went for the





Sesame sprinkled pie and guess what, it was filled with tuna as well. This time it was just moderately spiced, and tasted really good. Tom had some chips once we were finished and then we tried the sweet treat we had gotten, a





Cream Cheese filled Danish. It was really good, flaky crust and slightly sweetened cream cheese in the middle. Yum.
Around 10am we decided to just try and hope for the best and head down to the Place de Catalunya and get on a sightseeing bus. When we arrived there and climbed on the bus it was still very cloudy and looked like rain, so we changed our seats a few times until we settled for some seats at the very rear of the bus where there was some kind of cloth roofing.



We were off and it did not take long until it started to drizzle and we were both happy with our decision to sit at the back. But even though we were dry for the moment you could feel that it was much colder than the day before. We started along the same route as we had done the day before, driving throught he Gothic quarter,









then over to the harbour











and finally out to the World Trade Center and up Montjuic from where the view would have been awesome would it not have been raining hard now.



The bus had filled up, they had closed the roof of the whole bus and even the really wet seats had found someone to sit it. We drove past the Olympic stadium







and stopped at the Poble Espanyol, where we actually had wanted to get off. It is kind of a little village that shows all the different provinces in former times. But right as we approached it all heavens opened up and we all stayed on the bus. We passed the stadium of the Barcelona football club and then finally made it to Avinguda Diagonal.





It had finally stopped raining by now and we were finishing our loop. Funny thing was when we went right past the Novotel Barcelona City where we would stay after the cruise. Beautiful high rise hotel and it gave us something to look forward to. Towards the end of the trip we went past La Pedrera, another one of Antoni Gaudi’s buildings and the Casa Batllo again.
When we arrived at the Placa de Catalunya we got off the bus and since it was already going on 2pm we decided to find somewhere to have lunch. It started to drizzle again and so we both agreed that the restaurant inside the Corte des Ingles would come in handy. We went up to the top floor, headed for the restaurant and were seated immediately.

To be continued ..........​

 

[franandaj]

The city looks so beautiful, but it does not appear to be very Handicapped Accessible. One of the reasons that we love to visit Disney, there is no problem with stairs and long distances that aren't flat. Hopefully we'll get Fran in better shape so that she can climb stairs.