…….the first of many markets in Spain and what a treat it was!    Our air bnb host, Manel, suggested that we needed to go here on our first day in Barcelona and because we were so tired from our travels we eagerly complied……..and so glad we did!    Everything you needed was here and so much you didn’t even know you needed was also available.    We ate well for lunch, picked up munchies and wine to enjoy later in the pm, and also a few things to enjoy on the long walk home to our apartment.    We are staying in the Eixample District of Barcelona, which is well connected by subway/bus to the whole city, but because we love to walk the streets in hopes it will keep our pants from tightening up too much, we walk miles daily………..and really enjoy every moment, well most of them!    Barcelona is an amazing city and the weather has been hovering between 15-20 degrees daily and Marilyn is acting as if she has been let out of prison and constantly reminding us of how she’s been locked up in Ottawa for months…….we let her ramble because she obviously needs to let off steam and it has nothing to do with the politics!    The city of Barcelona is very clean, with the exception of dog poop on the street, and it is hard to believe that owners do not pick it up but many do as I see them in action – O’Reilly would be horrified!  The population of Barcelona is around 1.6 million and I am sure they all live in condos/apartments because we have not seen a single family dwelling yet!   Actually that’s not true – we did see one in the heart of the city that was owned by the soccer team and talk about big business!   Anyway, I digress……..Barcelona is a beautiful city and is known as one of the Mediterranean’s busiest ports.    It’s busiest rival is Madrid and more about that later once we get there.  It is also best known for many of the buildings in the Eixample District(where we are staying) that were left by the artistic explosion of Modernisme in the decades around 1900……..more about that later as well after we explore the city, the Picasso Museum, Sagrada Familia and Gaudi………..to name just a few!    But for now I must retire as it’s been an exhausting, yet wonderful, couple of days………check in later and hope all is well.