Day 2: Barcelona Continued and Boarding the Crusie Ship

We started our second day by exploring Catalunya Plaza, the city center.  It is a square with a water fountain and lots of open space where people gathered.

a structure at one corner of the plaza

view of the square

closer view of the square and fountain

From the square we headed down a nearby street called La Rambla.  It was a bustling street with lots of people and street vendors, which reminded me a little bit of 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica.  We walked down La Rambla the night before as well and there were hundreds of people dressed up in Halloween costumes walking around.

After exploring the areas around our hotel, we decided to head down to the waterfront to board the cruise ship.  The subway was our choice of transportation because we wanted to explore the waterfront since we only drove by on the sightseeing bus the day before. 

subway map: Catalunya to Drassanes (2 stops)

Columbus Monument

World Trade Center

aquarium

cool looking metal artwork/design at the entrance into the World Trade Center

After taking in the area around Port Vell, we found a shuttle bus that would take us directly to the cruise terminal for only 2 euros per person.  Our ship, the Norwegian Gem, was parked at Terminal A .  The ship is HUGE with 14 decks, 11 restaurants, a theater, a casino, a rock climbing wall, pools, and much much more.  We really enjoyed having a balcony room; the private balcony is a great amenity.  It allowed us to look out at the ports every morning before leaving our room.

front view of the cruise ship

all aboard

view of the room from the door

view of the room from the balcony

     
bathroom: toilet (left), sink area (center), shower (right)

out on the balcony with Barcelona and another cruise ship in the background

After settling into our room, we particpated in the US Coast Guard mandatory life boat drill.  Then we headed to the pool deck for the Sailway BBQ and Celebration.  We enjoyed some BBQ chicken and pork and were entertained by the live music.  At 7pm, the ship disembarked from the port and we were off!  It is always fun to watch the ship set sail. 

The first show of the week was Andy Buenger – The Power of Music.  He had an awesome show where he played different instruments, such as the marimba, vibraphone, panpipes, steel guitar, drums, saxophone, and trumpet.  He was a fabulous musician and a great entertainer.  Buenger’s show was one of our favorites out of all the shows we watched that week.  After the show, we felt like enjoying some dessert so we headed to the Magenta dining room.  I ordered a souffle and Hubby ordered an apricot cake.  The souffle was to die for and I could have eaten 10 more but I kept control.

apricot cake

souffle

The second day of our honeymoon ended again with delicious dessert.  Stay tuned for Day 3: At Sea.