Barcelona is BIG. The cruise docked early and allowed us off right at 7 a.m. Well, they delayed slightly while they stood around trying to figure out whether we were supposed to get off ramp A or ramp B. It was barely light when we got off and the blue buses that go from the port to the Columbus statue were not yet running (had to ask a policeman). So, we took a taxi directly to the train station so that we could catch a train to Montserrat. The taxi was not expensive and he ran the meter (about 10 euros for three of us–direct to the train station drop-off of our choice.)

There was someone at the ticket machine to help us purchase the correct ticket (Always a nice feature when train stations are aware a ship is coming in and have someone around to offer assistance!) We learned that using a credit card would result in a slightly higher fee so we used cash. We had a little trouble locating the correct track, but kept asking and people kept pointing!

The train ride itself was nothing particularly special. We missed getting off at our correct stop. We wanted to get off, but the doors didn’t open. We did not know we had to press a button to have the doors open–apparently not too many people get off at the first Montserrat stop–the one with the cable car ride up the mountain (as opposed to the train ride up the mountain at the next stop.) The ticket we had purchased was not interchangeable so we had to catch a very short train back to the first stop and then walk a short distance to the cable car station to the get cable car.

The cable car ride was very nice–good views of the river, the mountains, the works. On the way up, we could see the “stations of the cross” — spots along a mountain trail where various monuments had been set up. Oooh, how I wish we could have hiked that trail, but with mom’s bum knee, we settled for touring the church and then taking another mountain train all the way to the peak. There were more trails up there. Dad and I hiked a sort distance along one of them to check out the overview. Again–we would have liked to have hiked, but in this case, we decided it make more sense to head back to Barcelona to see some of the city.

We regretted that decision later. Barcelona is much like any big European city. Yes, there are things to see; lots of shopping along Las Ramblas–lots of people and generic, overpriced tourist goods. We struggled to find anything worth buying. We went to the famous Barcelona market, but it was almost entirely food items–uncooked and for those staying with a stove/kitchen. It too was crowded and not exactly a pleasant stroll. I had hoped to buy some Spanish olive oil and some of the famous sheep’s cheese (like a Romano). I didn’t see the olive oil. The cheese was more expensive than the imported Spanish cheese I can buy in my local grocery–by a large enough dollar amount, that I passed.

We scurried about to see one or two churches from the outside and then caught a taxi back to the ship. We all agreed that staying at Montserrat for a few extra hours would have been better. If you go to Barcelona and you’ve already seen your fill of monuments/churches, take a tour to Montserrat–or head north. I understand a couple of hours north of Barcelona there are some wonderful coastal towns and coastline. More research is required of course–if you’re on a cruise, you only have so many hours, so you’ll want to make sure that you can get to and from wherever you go in enough time to enjoy yourself. I heartily recommend Montserrat. It was easy to get to by train, cheap (about 20 euros round trip per person and it included the entire train ride–cable car–and peak train.) It was very nice to be outdoors and Montserrat is quite beautiful.