Pre-riding day (May 22) hanging out in Barcelona & picking up the bikes

         

We spent a day walking around Barcelona, picking up the bikes, going out for dinner, and walking some more until the wee hours.
Our accommodations were the Feel At Home Plaza Apartments

Poor Uncle Jerry, he got to Barcelona 18 hours ahead of me and had to wait around for me.

Here's one of those better places










Plaça d'Espanya










This made us a little nervous about parking bikes on the sidewalk. Turns out the area was marked no-parking. Don't park where they tell you not to!


The tiny elevators inside the buildings can barely fit a suitcase.
So, here's their interesting way of delivering furniture to upper apartments.
















Here's were Barcelona is on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. And here's the Sea!







The next morning



Jerry found a bike for Matt.


Breakfast at Joan's


Then we attempt to make the Cardo and Nolan helmet communicators talk to each other... Fail :-(
So we go out for a walk to find IMTBike


And drink some of that Spanish fresh squeezed orange juice.

with some spinach quiche for lunch.



Here's Chris hanging out in front of IMTBike sitting on one of the ubiquitous fabric bags of construction debris everywhere in Barcelona.





Motos are parked on the sidewalk everywhere in Barcelona. This is a lovely city for motorcycles.







Bikes as far as the eye can see


Jerry's thinking the Indian Scout looks so cool.





IMTBike has an inventory of ~200 BMW motorcycles
This one is Jerry's F800GT, nearly new with only 900 km.


Chris's R1250GS, nearly new with only 1700 km.
So pretty and clean! What will they look like after we put 3000+ km on them?


Let's take them out for a spin across town to see Park Güell,
and have a passing stranger take our picture.















Those are our bikes parked down there.








Dinner at Patagonia Beef & Wine menu is in Russian(!)



How does this guy have room for desert?
We got a little bit lost on the way back to the hotel. Ended up walking for another couple of hours. Lots of good exercise which was to become a theme of the trip.


at 11:38pm, but...
you're never lost with Google Maps, and an Internet connection, and a charged battery, and a good cigar...


Palau de Congressos de Catalunya at 1:04am, almost back...


Sala VIP del Palau de Congressos

Eyes closed by 2:00am... dreaming about the trip tomorrow...
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