Three Days in Barcelona - Reflections and Plans

The Rough Side of Life

I had arrived. Six weeks after I had set out from England with a short intermission for my sons wedding. It had been a long trek and apart from three nights in a hostel, I spent the whole time living rough, including the last 5 nights without a sleeping bag.

This guy had made a decent home for himself and even managed a laundry room

I was offered the cost of a hostel in Barcelona by Neil from Madrid, but I didn't see why someone should be paying to get me out of situations I had chosen to be in. It was my test of endurance and mine to overcome. That's not to say I haven't accepted help along the way as the Brachos of Estepona will verify, but that is when there is no other alternative.

The living rough side is an eye opener for myself as homelessness is is an issue close to my heart. There were many homeless in Barcelona and there doesn't seem to be many hide holes for them. I don't know how a homeless person manages to find the will to engage with the day ahead. Creating simple routines is the only way I could do it and I had a certain amount of financial backing to help me through. I would usually be turfed out of any corner I had inhabited by six to seven in the morning and then go for a walk for half an hour before heading to a cafe for ancoffee and a toilet opportunity. Start walking again for a couple of more hours taking advantage of plazza benches just to observe life before heading to the cheapest Internet cafe to spend a couple of hours updating the blog.. Repeat two or three times in the day till mid evening and fill up with alcohol in order to sleep.

Reflections of Spain and the Ride

 The one thing that struck me about Spain during this ride was the immenseness of the land and how diverse it is. I went to Alicante once and said I had been to Spain, but that is like going once to Miami and saying you had been to the States.

The changes not only in scenery and culture, but the different languages even makes this a most extraordinary land. And add to that the country of Portugal sandwiched between Spain and the Atlantic. The one thing that is common throughout all the regions I passed through is the warmth of the people. An instinct and desire to assist, which I had already experienced on my Valencia to Liverpool ride. The language I struggled with, especially in the deep south where I not only had trouble understanding but also being understood. I think that was mainly due to my problems understanding causing a lack of confidence in how I structured my sentences. Even Barcelona threw me and especially the Chiunese bar owners who couldn't decipher my cerbetha, then cerveza then cerveca until a Spanish national translated for me. I was totally confused after three days there and lost all confidence in speaking what little Spanish I knew.

The damge reflects the worse weather I encountered. Galacia and Andalucia

All in all it was one absolutely fantastic experience, although due to being stuck in a couple of places I over-ran my budget by two hundred euros. That will take some clawing back before venturing onwards, but the plan is to continue

The Plan

I was playing with the idea of continuing along the coast of the Mediterranean in the New Year and after seeing the Atlas mountains and Morrocco across the Straits of Gibralta,  I was convinced.

I haven't worked out the mileage and how long it will take me on this little, but immense moped, but I am planning on two week shunts, increasing to three weeks as the weather warms up and a two month stretch in midsummer. All with a three week spell back home in between.

I intend to pick the ride up again at the end of January and do a two week skip to Genoa. I also intend decreasing the rough sleeping to an 'only when necessary'. I will be using camping facilities as well as the occasional hostel in emergencies.

The bike at the moment is parked in a street under lock and key, awaiting my return. I am hoping that safety in numbers will help it survive, as it is parked amongst a row of mopeds and scooters, with the promise from the Barcelona Reds that they would keep an eye on it. I am also scouring the web to have a spare engine at the ready in case anything fatal happens to the one I have. I think I may have found one already, but just waiting for a response from the advertiser.

The focal point of the Mediterranean ride will be for

UNICEF