The sky is still cloudy here in Genéve, so I am going to see if I can find the sun in Cataluňa, where reportedly they are facing a serious drought (according to the newspaper, a month ago reservoirs were at less than 30% capacity, and Barcelona and its surroundings were facing very serious water shortages). I will be arriving to Barcelona around 6 pm, will rent a car, and from there will be on the go for the next couple of weeks through Provence in France and Cataluňa in Spain.
Baroom!
Ok, here I am in Barcelona. Oh my God, I can understand everything! Cataluňa is officially bilingual (Spanish and Catalan), but everyone around me speaks Spanish, and all signs are in both Spanish and Catalan, so I can understand it all! No more guessing at nuances, or just going with a “general” understanding of the conversation. I love it!
After renting my car I headed north, toward la Costa Brava, but hit afternoon traffic in Barcelona, so it was not until 8 pm that I got to Blanes, along the coast. The good part is that I had plenty of opportunity to hear the Spaniards complain about everything in the radio (the price of gas, the loss of buying power, the fact that buyers are paying more but farmers are getting less). They do enjoy complaining! The bad news is that most camping places close at 8 pm, and there is none of the “come in and pay in the morning” spirit we are used to. Finally after looking around I found a place that was open, and I managed to pitch my tent.
By the way, all that talk about drought in Cataluňa was all fibs. They have had rain all month (probably due to “global warming”, not!), so everyone is happy and smiling here, except us campers who have to pitch our tents on soggy ground.
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