April 13 - Time to Cruise - Barcelona here I come!

 It's time to sail again.  I've been home for not quite three months and I feel the need to go bob around the ocean.  This morning I'm on my way to Barcelona to board the Seabourn Ovation for one month.  This is a shorter cruise than the most recent ones I've taken and I hope it won't fly by too quickly. (I know it will though!)  I'll be sailing around a lot of the western Mediterranean.  With only a couple of exceptions I've been to nearly all the ports.  There are only three sea days out of thirty, but that's okay with me.  They are lovely places and I plan to do a lot of chilling out most days.  My friend Hilary will be on for part of the cruise and she too has been to this part of the world often.  We've decided our plan of action will be to shop a little and then find a café and have some wine and watch people.  That's one of our favorite pastimes.

It is a little bittersweet because the last time I really sailed in this part of the world was with Al.  A lot of wonderful memories will be stirred up.  I'm spending one night in Barcelona and I purposely didn't pick the hotel we always stayed at, the Hotel 1898, because I would be missing him.  Instead I'm going to be at the Hotel Arts right down on the waterfront.   My journey today takes me from Richmond to Dulles and then onward to Barcelona.  I'll get there Monday morning and I'll no doubt be pooped.  After all these years I still can't sleep on a plane no matter what I try.  Fortunately, there are plenty of movies to watch and my iPad is loaded with books.

So, let the journey begin.  I'll try to write everyday but I'm not always that good.