Swept Away HR46 at anchor Second Wind at anchor Northern Exposure at anchor

We stopped in Gerona first, and stayed a second day when it was apparent we would not get a hotel room in Barcelona on the night we had expected to arrive. Gerona is a small city, just beginning to develop its historical and other attractions to draw tourists to its mild climate and Catalan culture.

Catalonia is a self-described country, including the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea, from Barcelona north through the southeastern coast of Spain, and extending through the part of France that borders Spain. Catalans have their own culture and their own language, which resembles a blend between French and Spanish.

Gerona

The original structure of this cathedral was begun in 1038, and only the cloister and part of the tower have survived. While the interior of the cathedral is as beautiful as some of the other outstanding churches we've seen, this one is special, in that it houses a museum of hundreds of religious artifacts.

Narrow streets like this one are all over Gerona's older neighborhoods.

Gerona, like Barcelona and many other old cities, had a thriving Jewish community in the Middle Ages. Some of the city's most prominent and wealthy individuals were Jews. Jews played a large role in Christopher Columbus' journeys to the new world, including assisting by producing charts and navigational devices, and providing funding.

Eventually, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella banned all Jews that were not willing to convert.

 


Barcelona

While we've encountered mimes all over Europe, we were stunned to see so many street performers in Barcelona, in what seemed like every crevice all over town. The performance is usually the same. An actor, dressed as a known character or simply as a witch or some other fictitious character, stands perfectly still. They are often painted from head to toe, and you can mistake them for statues as you enter the walking street. If you put coins in the performer's hat-or-box-or-case, the performer moves to a new pose, usually facing the donor, to allow for a straight-on photograph. Unlike Don Quixote on the near right, the man posing in the box at far right never moved a bit when we wandered by. As we assumed that he sits in the box cross-legged to appear as if he's emerging from underground, we wondered how difficult it would be to maintain the same position for hours on end.

Conversely, we've seen mimes painting their faces and putting their costumes on right on their staked-out places on the walking street.

The Cathedral at Plaça de la Seu, Barcelona

This is among the most joyous informal displays we've ever happened across. At the Cathedral at Plaça de la Seu, a small orchestra began to play what we assumed was Catalan folk music. More and more people threw their shopping bags in the center of a circle and began to dance with their arms raised up. Before long, hundreds of dancers, young and old, were enjoying the afternoon.