LENS-ARTISTS CHALLENGE #172 – A Day of My Week

Amy leads.

Sunday 24 October. It’s a travel day, one of the ‘slower’ days on my visit to Spain. Twelve touristas we, on a 40-seat bus. Perfect.

We are on the way from Valencia to Barcelona, with stops in between. First up is Peníscola, very sun-washed Mediterranean, less of a mass tourist destination, more localized we are told. As the photos portray, a lot of people still like it. Wikipedia informs us the fortified seaport was variously Iberian (6th c. B.C.), Phoenician, Greek, and Carthaginian, the present castle being built by the Knights of Templar between 1294 and 1307. It was the home of Avignon Pope (antipope) Benedict XIII from 1415 until his death in 1423. His statue appears in the corner of one photo. Another pic has a freighter or cargo ship distantly off the port bow of a sailboat. Can you spot either? Click a photo, or the lower right arrow, to enlarge and explore.

As the last previous picture shows, we are on the road again. The motorways in Spain are in very good condition. Smooth sailing all the way.

Our journey continues to the Cistercian monastery of Poblet Abbey, otherwise the Royal Abbey of Santa Maria de Poblet (Catalan: Reial Monestir de Santa Maria de Poblet). (Thank you Wiki.) It’s quiet, as it should be I suppose. I liked the artistic iron railing, though it could be new. Numerous kings and queens of Aragon are buried here, but not Henry VIII’s highly esteemed Catherine/Katherine of Aragon. At least she kept her head on her shoulders.

Barcelona at last. Our room is in the old part of the hotel, with an aging staircase and a cage elevator, but the room and bath are very updated, as have been all our accommodations on the trip. After a brief walk on La Rambla (pedestrian boulevard represented here by the green-lighted building), it is dinner at the hotel lobby bar with a delicious pizza. There are a lot of pizza places in Barcelona. It appears to be very popular.

With a day of travels behind us I am ready for bed. Good night!

Stay well, stay safe, stay weird, stay wonderful, should it suit you.