Hello and welcome to trumpettravels. This is the true account of how I toured the world for eleven years playing music and then later in a sales job. I worked as a crew member for almost all the cruise lines and have a great knowledge of the best ports, best restaurants, best things to do (for me, I guess) and how to wisely spend you money on a cruise ship.
For years cruise ships have been going to a sleepy little town on the Western Beach of Mexico called Hualtulco. I've been going there for years and I know the best beach to go to - if you are as adventurous as a crew member. Skip the tour in Hualtulco and shopping in Hualtulco - go to a free beach in Hualtulco!
View Larger Map
If you want to experience authentic Mexico, this is it. For years I had been going to Hualtulco and keeping a great secret to myself. I never told a single crew member or passenger of this secret beach because I never wanted to see anyone else there - and I never did see any other people there!
This beach is for the adventurous and the physically fit. If you are one of those cruisers with the oxygen tank on the back of your Hoveround please take a guided tour provided to you on the ship. There is significant climbing, briars, hills and brush.
The beach is Eastish facing which means in the pm the sun will be behind a hill so the am trips are best. The cruise pier is located right by the "A" on the Google Map provided here. You can see the penninsula of land to the east of the ships.
As you travel into Hualtulco, Mexico, on a ship you will be approaching the dock. As you are headed towards the (on the ship which is in the water, moving towards land) look to your right - there is a big hill with houses that runs parallel to the pier. You will need to get there.
Leaving the ship, you walk down the pier, though the terminal, to the road that runs perpendicular to the pier. Take a RIGHT on this road.
You will walk some distance and zooming in on the google map here you can see where you take the right and walk up the hill, sort of doubling back. Walking ALL the way to the end of the road you will come to some pretty grand estates - people from Mexico city have some beautiful homes there. At the last home at the end of the street there is a fence enclosing the property and you can walk along the fence, down the hill (on the side of the ship). At one point you reach the narrowest section of the penninsula and it will be clear when to take the left to go down to the water. There is a beautiful private beach there and I've never seen another soul there! Very relaxing!
Let me know if you have any questions and I'll try to help any way I can if you're trying to find that beach.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Friday, April 22, 2011
Alone and Homeless in the Med: Part 8
Hello and welcome back to "TrumpetTravels" - my true accounts of my eleven year career working about the Princess, Carnival, Holland America, Cunard, Costa, P&O, Ocean Village and Royal Caribbean Cruise lines (and more cruises, I think!)
I want to continue my "Alone and Homeless in the Med" story. This is part 7 - click here to start from the beginning: Crew Member Abandoned in Europe. It is worth it to start from the beginning and over the next week I hope to put some links in this story so you can read chronilogically while skipping some of the unrelated blog posts in between stories.
My last blog post saw me at Jim Morrison's grave and staying at the Aloha hostel in Paris - a known English speaking youth hostel.
The clock was ticking and I was scheduled to join Royal Caribbean's "Legend of the Seas" for the summer. The join date was only in a few days, but I didn't want to go back to Barcelona. The internet was in its infancy and there was no easy online hotel system set up yet. I looked at a map and saw a somewhat sizable dot called "Tarragona." I booked my train ticket there.
Arriving in Tarragona at around lunch time I went to the "city" center and searched for a hotel. I found one on top of a bar that said "abierto" but no one was there. I went to the downstairs bar (a different business) and asked about the hotel and the owner of the hotel was there.
She made a big deal that it was lunch time and she wasn't working and I couldn't check in. I begged her to help me out which she reluctantly did. The room was adequate - quite small but cozy. It seemed like it was decorated by someone's grandmother 20 years prior.
Later that night I came back from wandering around and when I turned on the light I saw some cockroaches scatter. At that point I was happy to have a bed and just didn't care!
After checking in I roamed around the city and saw the Roman amphitheater, a few nice churches, the usual. I found a beautiful local restaurant on the sea and was starving. I asked for a recommendation or a special and ended up with a huge local seafood feast. I stayed a while in the empty restaurant. Nobody eats dinner at 6pm in Spain!
The next day was the day I was joining the ship. After 10 days I had survived Europe! I left early in the morning but I couldn't join the ship until the afternoon. I started walking north. The train tracks to Barcelona ran parallel to the sea so at any town I could grab the train anywhere along the way.
I just walked along the sidewalk that was near the water glad that I was going to civilization that day. It was difficult to be in these countries not speaking the language and I was still suffering the effects of sleeping in the bushes a little bit.
Around lunch (10:30am since I was up so early) I was tired of walking for a few hours and went and bought a loaf of bread and some meats and cheeses (don't ask me which ones - I just pointed!) I made a big sandwich and wrapped it up. I kept walking North towards Barcelona wanting to eat on the beach. I was walking up a small hill and to my right noticed a little path that went down about a 120 foot cliff to a beach.
As I partly slid down the path I realized the beach was completely empty and gorgeous! I went to find the perfect spot to sleep a little bit and eat my sandwich. As I walked a little bit on the beach I noticed four people - completely nude! I didn't really care and wanted to give them their privacy so I turned around and found a nice spot. Shortly after I arrived I guess I ruined their spot and they clothed and left. For the next few hours I went swimming and ate and slept and enjoyed myself on my private beach.
Finally I realized the clock was ticking and I got dressed, gathered everything up. I went back up the cliff and walked about 15 minutes to a train station bound for Barcelona. I got out and took the subway to the Lladro shop where I had all my luggage and trumpet and everything was in perfect condition.
Boarding the ship with a few hundred dollars less than when I left the Splendour of the Seas I was worn down, tired, probably didn't smell great, too! Those two nights without a hotel were hopefully the worst I'll experience in my life but the trip gave me some amazing photographs and memories that will last me a lifetime.
As I clock in my desk job every day I look around and realize no one I know has really done anything that crazy and I'm grateful for my 10 days I spent Homeless in the Mediterranean.
Thank you, readers for staying tuned to my series of stories entitled "Homeless in the Med." If you missed my other posts you can click on the link at the beginning of this post. Don't forget to "like" me on facebook to share this story with your friends and to follow my future posts. Also, this blog is reader supported so feel free to click on one of the sponsors on my blog. Your support is appreciated!
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Oh, the memories!
As an update to my followers I've been tinkering with facebook trying to get a facebook page going for my blog, mostly to teach myself how to do it. I am somewhat successful in doing it - except I've added two "like" buttons at the end of each post and don't know how to delete them! Oh well, doesn't do any harm.
I will be posting a little more to my blog now that all internet poker has been banned in the US. 'DOH
Monday, March 21, 2011
St Thomas Update from a Reader
Welcome back to trumpettravels - a no-nonsense blog from an ex-crewmember. I loved my ten years at sea but now I have a 9-5 day job. After all the travel it feels good to be home for dinner almost every day!
I reported previously you could take a taxi to the top of Paradise Point in St Thomas. I regret to inform my loyal readers that a reader writes:
"We were in St. Thomas in Feb. I asked the taxi driver to drop us off at the top of PP. I was told they weren't allowed to drop us off there. We were told we had to take the tram ride up. We also had been there (by taxi) a few times so just decided not to go. So PP lost out on all the food and Bushwackers we would have bought. Their loss! Thanks so much for this blog. I'm totally enjoying it."
Thank you, kind reader, for your comments and for supporting the blog. The more interesting comments are great because these places have been my "home" for the past ten years and I really miss them. I'd love to hear more readers comments from their trips to the Islands.
As always, thank you for telling your friends about my blog and for "Sharing" me on facebook. The SHARE button should be there on the right of your screen. You can click that orange button SUBSCRIBE to get automatic updates to the blog as well.
Safe travels out there!
I reported previously you could take a taxi to the top of Paradise Point in St Thomas. I regret to inform my loyal readers that a reader writes:
"We were in St. Thomas in Feb. I asked the taxi driver to drop us off at the top of PP. I was told they weren't allowed to drop us off there. We were told we had to take the tram ride up. We also had been there (by taxi) a few times so just decided not to go. So PP lost out on all the food and Bushwackers we would have bought. Their loss! Thanks so much for this blog. I'm totally enjoying it."
Thank you, kind reader, for your comments and for supporting the blog. The more interesting comments are great because these places have been my "home" for the past ten years and I really miss them. I'd love to hear more readers comments from their trips to the Islands.
As always, thank you for telling your friends about my blog and for "Sharing" me on facebook. The SHARE button should be there on the right of your screen. You can click that orange button SUBSCRIBE to get automatic updates to the blog as well.
Safe travels out there!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Homeless in the Med 7
Hi, Blog Fans,
I want to continue my "Alone and Homeless in the Med" story. This is part 7 - click here to start from the beginning: Crew Member Abandoned in Europe
In my last six posts I was dropped off the ship in Barcelona without a hotel room and there were no vacancies in the city because of F1 racing. You might ask, "Isn't the cruise line required to put you up or send you home?" Well, the answer is, "Yes." They gave me a choice to either fly me home, or put me on my own for 10 days and spend the summer in Europe on a ship. I figured I could easily find a place to stay.
I was wrong! Anyway, I guess "abandoned" is the wrong word since it was entirely voluntary!
Anyway, the morning after being woken up by a transvestite hooker sleeping on a public bench outside I figured it would be best for my safety to find a hotel room somewhere. I went and bought a map of Europe. The size of the city-dots were in relation to the size of the city. I looked at the largest dot far away from Barcelona and decided: I would take a train to Paris. There was no way I would stay in this crazy city on a bench or in the bushes again. I had about a week until the ship I was working on came in. I went to the station and bought my ticket, a "sleeper," and got excited. This train had a bed! The train left in the afternoon, we stopped near Marseilles for a break and then for the first night in three days I had a bed with sheets!
I put all my belongings in the bed against the wall under the covers with me and slept the night away. It is a good thing I did because people in my train car had items stolen from them during the night - but not me.
We pulled into Paris which was beautiful as always. I met an American on the train and hung out with her all day. We went to Luxembourg Gardens and there was a huge map of the world you could walk on. Funny, at the time I hadn't traveled much and this was just the beginning of my ship adventure. I probably wouldn't have believed you that day if you told me I would be around the world a few times in the next few years!
I spoke to the American and some other folks and decided to spend the next few nights at the Aloha hostel. It was a youth hostel that attracted English speakers and after being on my own in Catalonia it sure felt goo to have some beers and normal conversation with some Aussies, Brits, Americans and Canadians.
The story does get pretty boring for awhile. Paris is civilized and I took advantage of the restaurants, wine and museums. I couldn't find any jazz music worth mentioning but the city was beautiful. Towards the end of the trip I was looking forward to getting back to work and making some money. I had a few days left to go and didn't want to risk going to that heck-hole Barcelona. I pulled out my map and saw there was a medium-to-small dot south of Barcelona: Tarragona. Why not? It was about 1-2 hours from Barcelona and had hotels. Towards the end of my ten day adventure I boarded another overnight train to Tarragona, Spain to wait out two nights before going to work on a ship out of Barcelona.
Stay tuned to see how the trip finished out and definately check out how I ended up in this mess with parts 1-6! Bye for now...
I want to continue my "Alone and Homeless in the Med" story. This is part 7 - click here to start from the beginning: Crew Member Abandoned in Europe
In my last six posts I was dropped off the ship in Barcelona without a hotel room and there were no vacancies in the city because of F1 racing. You might ask, "Isn't the cruise line required to put you up or send you home?" Well, the answer is, "Yes." They gave me a choice to either fly me home, or put me on my own for 10 days and spend the summer in Europe on a ship. I figured I could easily find a place to stay.
I was wrong! Anyway, I guess "abandoned" is the wrong word since it was entirely voluntary!
Anyway, the morning after being woken up by a transvestite hooker sleeping on a public bench outside I figured it would be best for my safety to find a hotel room somewhere. I went and bought a map of Europe. The size of the city-dots were in relation to the size of the city. I looked at the largest dot far away from Barcelona and decided: I would take a train to Paris. There was no way I would stay in this crazy city on a bench or in the bushes again. I had about a week until the ship I was working on came in. I went to the station and bought my ticket, a "sleeper," and got excited. This train had a bed! The train left in the afternoon, we stopped near Marseilles for a break and then for the first night in three days I had a bed with sheets!
I put all my belongings in the bed against the wall under the covers with me and slept the night away. It is a good thing I did because people in my train car had items stolen from them during the night - but not me.
We pulled into Paris which was beautiful as always. I met an American on the train and hung out with her all day. We went to Luxembourg Gardens and there was a huge map of the world you could walk on. Funny, at the time I hadn't traveled much and this was just the beginning of my ship adventure. I probably wouldn't have believed you that day if you told me I would be around the world a few times in the next few years!
I spoke to the American and some other folks and decided to spend the next few nights at the Aloha hostel. It was a youth hostel that attracted English speakers and after being on my own in Catalonia it sure felt goo to have some beers and normal conversation with some Aussies, Brits, Americans and Canadians.
The story does get pretty boring for awhile. Paris is civilized and I took advantage of the restaurants, wine and museums. I couldn't find any jazz music worth mentioning but the city was beautiful. Towards the end of the trip I was looking forward to getting back to work and making some money. I had a few days left to go and didn't want to risk going to that heck-hole Barcelona. I pulled out my map and saw there was a medium-to-small dot south of Barcelona: Tarragona. Why not? It was about 1-2 hours from Barcelona and had hotels. Towards the end of my ten day adventure I boarded another overnight train to Tarragona, Spain to wait out two nights before going to work on a ship out of Barcelona.
Stay tuned to see how the trip finished out and definately check out how I ended up in this mess with parts 1-6! Bye for now...
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Homeless in Barcelona: Part 6
Hello, Readers, and thank you for tuning in to trumptettravels - the true accounts of my 11 year adventure on cruise ships as a crew member aboard Royal Caribbean, Princess Cruises, Carnival Cruises, Costa Cruises, Cunard Line, P&O Cruises, Premier Cruises and the Holland America Line. I started this blog in 2010 to share my experiences of working on a cruise for those who want to work on a cruise or for those cruise-a-holics that are curious what goes on behind the smiles and professional attitude you see "front of house" on a ship. I've got a great reception so far with hits from all around the world. Thanks for your interest!
Previously I was writing about how I got stranded in Barcelona, how I nearly got mugged by five Moroccans, how I slept in the bushes and it was only my first day! If you want to start from the beginning, click here: Crew Member Stranded in Europe.
When I last left off I had just narrowly avoided being mugged by 5 sketchy guys from Morocco. At the last moment some British tourists ended up walking down the deserted street I was on. I was homeless in the Med with a wad of cash in my pocket but all hotels were completely booked.
Turning onto the heavily populated street of the Ramblas I rethought my attempts to find a hotel. I had checked everywhere around in the city, tourist kiosks, phone books, cab drivers, anything possible. No hotels were free. I went all the way down to the Christopher Columbus statue (point nearest the water) and realized there was one part I had never been. There is bridge that goes over the water to a place called Maremagnum. I thought is was an area where I might find some peace and quiet and a hotel bed to sleep in. I was wrong.
Maremagnum is a whole complex of bars and nightclubs that starts getting busy around 11pm. As I go tthere and had no place to sleep I hopped from place to place having drinks, chatting up Barcelona's finest and doing a little dancing. I surprisingly had a blast considering I was by myself. I could do whatever I wanted and say whatever came to mind and I didn't know a soul there and more than likely wouldn't return. I guess that's why some people feel so liberated on vacations - no one from the office is there to raise their eyebrows.
Well, the party was coming to a close so I hailed a cab. I had a few drinks and couldn't walk back to the city. PLUS, I knew there were more than 5 Moroccans there and I had a wad of cash on me from the last contract.
I asked the cab about the closest small city or hotels in the area and he kind of laughed since it was one in the morning. There were no hotels free and other towns were too far. Well, with nowhere else to go I headed back to the jazz club where I had been treated so well and found a lovely spot to sleep in the bushes. I hit the small bar next to the jazz club and they were open late for some reason. I had played there the night before and everyone was happy to see me. I knew I had to sleep since I had a rough night sleeping in someone's bushes the night before.
I figured the bushed were safe and it was a wealthy area - I just needed to find that apartment building and I would be good for the night, or at least a few hours. After about 30 minutes it was getting too late. I didn't think I would ever find the apartment building. It was finny the night before I just stumbled on it and now I realized how perfect the little ledge was, off the main street. I had no clue how to find it, even though I knew I was in the right neighborhood.
I gave up. Exhausted and annoyed, I headed back down towards the city where I hit a very nice wealthy area and found a bench to sit on. I started to think of what I could do and I closed my eyes. My head bobbed down and up and I realized this is where I would sleep. I had my backpack and camera and I didn't know if I would wake up if someone started to rummage through my things.
I took my cash and shoved it down my pants figuring if someone got down there I would know it. Also, I took my Nikon camera and basically used it as a pillow, keeping it as close as possible. And there, on a metal bench in Barcelona, I fell asleep. This was my second night in a row sleeping outside.
Alcohol, fatigue, and the semi-conscious state of being woken up created a thick fog that was difficult to navigate through. I heard something and I knew I should focus, but it didn't mean anything to me. "Que dormis." I heard in a deep man's voice. "Que dormis aquis?" I opened up my eyes and saw what I thought was a very beautiful woman. For some reason it still didn't click to me and I was really trying to figure out what the question was.
As I was looking at this pretty gal again he/she asked the same question, "Que Dormis? Why do you sleep here?" This last one was in English. It was at this point when I realized I was looking at some type of cross dresser or tranny or who knows what. It was still dark out and had no idea what time it was.
My brilliant observation was confirmed when he/she added, "Why don't you come to my apartment to #$%^." I don't know if it was the proposition or the lack of sleep or what, but I sat up and just shouted, "NOoooooo," probably a little too loudly and too freaked out. I guess I was somewhat justified, though.
As he/she strutted her stuff away I jumped up and started walking towrds the town. I didn't know where to go, but I thought my little refuge of a bench next to a major city was now ruined and not safe.
I headed down the hill to Barcelona and just headed towards the Sagrada Familia (church). I remember seeing dawn break on the walk down and wondering what the heck I was doing and how long I could keep this up. I found a solid concrete bench and noticed people starting to open up shops. The bench was cool when I sat down and felt nice since I was a little warm. It didn't heat up because the concrete was so thick. I lay down and fell asleep and didn't wake up until the sun was out and many people were walking about the sidewalks and pathways around the Sagrada Familia. At this point I was on very little sleep and I realized I wouldn't be able to spend 8 more days like this. I diefinately could not be woken up by a tranny hooker ever again in my life so I dedicated the entire day to that mission.
I hope you enjoyed the my posts about my stay in Europe in between cruise ship contracts. I still have more days in the adventure left so "Follow Me" (on the right) and you can click the "SHARE" button on facebook to show your friends, too. As always, this blog is viewer supported. There are far less ads here than on most websites and if one catches your eye feel free to visit my sponsers. Stayed tuned for Part 7!
Previously I was writing about how I got stranded in Barcelona, how I nearly got mugged by five Moroccans, how I slept in the bushes and it was only my first day! If you want to start from the beginning, click here: Crew Member Stranded in Europe.
When I last left off I had just narrowly avoided being mugged by 5 sketchy guys from Morocco. At the last moment some British tourists ended up walking down the deserted street I was on. I was homeless in the Med with a wad of cash in my pocket but all hotels were completely booked.
Turning onto the heavily populated street of the Ramblas I rethought my attempts to find a hotel. I had checked everywhere around in the city, tourist kiosks, phone books, cab drivers, anything possible. No hotels were free. I went all the way down to the Christopher Columbus statue (point nearest the water) and realized there was one part I had never been. There is bridge that goes over the water to a place called Maremagnum. I thought is was an area where I might find some peace and quiet and a hotel bed to sleep in. I was wrong.
Maremagnum is a whole complex of bars and nightclubs that starts getting busy around 11pm. As I go tthere and had no place to sleep I hopped from place to place having drinks, chatting up Barcelona's finest and doing a little dancing. I surprisingly had a blast considering I was by myself. I could do whatever I wanted and say whatever came to mind and I didn't know a soul there and more than likely wouldn't return. I guess that's why some people feel so liberated on vacations - no one from the office is there to raise their eyebrows.
Well, the party was coming to a close so I hailed a cab. I had a few drinks and couldn't walk back to the city. PLUS, I knew there were more than 5 Moroccans there and I had a wad of cash on me from the last contract.
I asked the cab about the closest small city or hotels in the area and he kind of laughed since it was one in the morning. There were no hotels free and other towns were too far. Well, with nowhere else to go I headed back to the jazz club where I had been treated so well and found a lovely spot to sleep in the bushes. I hit the small bar next to the jazz club and they were open late for some reason. I had played there the night before and everyone was happy to see me. I knew I had to sleep since I had a rough night sleeping in someone's bushes the night before.
I figured the bushed were safe and it was a wealthy area - I just needed to find that apartment building and I would be good for the night, or at least a few hours. After about 30 minutes it was getting too late. I didn't think I would ever find the apartment building. It was finny the night before I just stumbled on it and now I realized how perfect the little ledge was, off the main street. I had no clue how to find it, even though I knew I was in the right neighborhood.
I gave up. Exhausted and annoyed, I headed back down towards the city where I hit a very nice wealthy area and found a bench to sit on. I started to think of what I could do and I closed my eyes. My head bobbed down and up and I realized this is where I would sleep. I had my backpack and camera and I didn't know if I would wake up if someone started to rummage through my things.
I took my cash and shoved it down my pants figuring if someone got down there I would know it. Also, I took my Nikon camera and basically used it as a pillow, keeping it as close as possible. And there, on a metal bench in Barcelona, I fell asleep. This was my second night in a row sleeping outside.
Alcohol, fatigue, and the semi-conscious state of being woken up created a thick fog that was difficult to navigate through. I heard something and I knew I should focus, but it didn't mean anything to me. "Que dormis." I heard in a deep man's voice. "Que dormis aquis?" I opened up my eyes and saw what I thought was a very beautiful woman. For some reason it still didn't click to me and I was really trying to figure out what the question was.
As I was looking at this pretty gal again he/she asked the same question, "Que Dormis? Why do you sleep here?" This last one was in English. It was at this point when I realized I was looking at some type of cross dresser or tranny or who knows what. It was still dark out and had no idea what time it was.
My brilliant observation was confirmed when he/she added, "Why don't you come to my apartment to #$%^." I don't know if it was the proposition or the lack of sleep or what, but I sat up and just shouted, "NOoooooo," probably a little too loudly and too freaked out. I guess I was somewhat justified, though.
As he/she strutted her stuff away I jumped up and started walking towrds the town. I didn't know where to go, but I thought my little refuge of a bench next to a major city was now ruined and not safe.
I headed down the hill to Barcelona and just headed towards the Sagrada Familia (church). I remember seeing dawn break on the walk down and wondering what the heck I was doing and how long I could keep this up. I found a solid concrete bench and noticed people starting to open up shops. The bench was cool when I sat down and felt nice since I was a little warm. It didn't heat up because the concrete was so thick. I lay down and fell asleep and didn't wake up until the sun was out and many people were walking about the sidewalks and pathways around the Sagrada Familia. At this point I was on very little sleep and I realized I wouldn't be able to spend 8 more days like this. I diefinately could not be woken up by a tranny hooker ever again in my life so I dedicated the entire day to that mission.
I hope you enjoyed the my posts about my stay in Europe in between cruise ship contracts. I still have more days in the adventure left so "Follow Me" (on the right) and you can click the "SHARE" button on facebook to show your friends, too. As always, this blog is viewer supported. There are far less ads here than on most websites and if one catches your eye feel free to visit my sponsers. Stayed tuned for Part 7!
Monday, February 21, 2011
Alone and Homeless in the Med: Part 5
Hello, Readers, and thank you for tuning in to trumptettravels - the true accounts of my 11 year adventure on cruise ships as a crew member aboard Royal Caribbean, Princess Cruises, Carnival Cruises, Costa Cruises, Cunard Line, P&O Cruises, Premier Cruises and the Holland America Line.
In my last posts I described how I ended up stranded in Barcelona (of my own will.) If you want to start from the beginning, click here: Crew Member Blog.
I left the restaurant and Barcelona was beginning to come to life at night. With the sun going down I started to have visions of laundered pressed bed sheets and a fluffy bathrobe. I had spent the last night sleeping in the bushes and my back was sore. I was probably due for a shower, too, but I figured, "Hey, it's Europe - I'll fit right in!"
Roaming down the back streets of the old town in Barcelona I passed the gothic cathedral, many quanit restaurants and shops, and many hotels. With 2-3 hotels per block I figured I would have much better luck tonight than last night. Door after door I went into the hotels (with "no vacancy" on the door) and pleaded for any tyoe of room. I would've slept in the boiler room if that is all they had, but I was turned away at every hotel. As I walked deeper and deeper into the old town the cacophony of the Ramblas faded into a thin herd of tourists and eventually only one or two couples walking on the cobbled streets. I saw a hotel down a dark street and no "No Vacancy" sign on it.
Thinking in was in luck I headed down the street, walked inside and was told there were no rooms. I asked if the concierge could help me and told him all of my problems. He made a few phone calls and apologetically explained to me all about the F1 racing and how the hotels were completely full. At that point a mild panic was setting in and I started to contemplate the Four Seasons or luxury hotels and blowing all my money on one nice night's sleep.
With the clerk unable to help me, I grabbed my backpack and my Nikon N60 (35mm) and left the hotel. I distinctly remember leaving that hotel because it was quiet. REALLY quiet. and as I turned left, away form the Ramblas and into the more quiet section of the old town, I passed 5 Moroccans who were talking with each other leaning against a car. I could tell they pretended not to look up or notice me which I thought was unusual. For me, when anyone passes me at night I look up to see what kind of a person they are. For them, I could tell they were specifically ignoring my passing. With the Moroccans at my back I starting walking deeper into dark neighborhoods looking for a hotel. I noticed the five guys talking behind me stopped. I isn't hard to imagine what I heard next: the click clack of ten shoes on cobblestones. I knew I was being followed.
What happened next happened in all of five seconds, but to me it felt like five minutes of slow motion. It is funny when you are in danger, real danger, how the world seems to slow down and almost stop. I took note of what I had on my person. My camera, my last pay check (in cash of course), and some clothes in a tooth brush. Racking my brain to come up with a weapon I was unable to.
Scanning the sidewalks and buildings I looked for a restaurant, shop, or a rock or weapon on the ground that I could defend myself with. The gang had chosen a good spot - nothing was available. I imagined even a lead pipe, a powerful weapon, against 5 thieves with knives and realized without a gun I was in trouble.
Faking a fly was bothing me I swatted at my head once and then again, turning my head slightly the second time. Yup, they were following me. They say flee a knife and charge a gun. I was approaching a small perpendicular street and was on the edge of running for my life. Acting like I was going straight and to the the right I was going to open the throttle and run as fast as I could to the left.
Funny how all of these details happened in about five seconds and still to this day they are crystal clear. The street on the left was approaching and just as I was about to make a break for it a group of six British men round the corner, arm in arm laughing and clinking beer bottles. I immediately turn and do a 180, falling in step with my new blokes. I just start walking with them and just as I am about to pass the five Moroccans I look up to see all five of them walking straight ahead, but turning their heads and staring directly at me. They looked like lions who just had their meal taken from them. Not one was smiling.
I walked for a bit with the Brits back to the Ramblas and still was out of luck. It was still relatively early and I didn't have a place to sleep. Alone in Barcelona at night with every single hotel room completely booked - again! The most dangerous part of the night had just passed, but you won't believe where I end up sleeping and who gives me a wake up call! If you'd like to know, "follow me" on Google or subsribe to my RSS Feed. If you enjoyed this post, don't forget to push the "like" button or post a link so your friends can follow me, too. As always, the blog is user supported by my readers clicking on sponsers posted in the blog. It is free to do and helps support this blog.
In my last posts I described how I ended up stranded in Barcelona (of my own will.) If you want to start from the beginning, click here: Crew Member Blog.
I left the restaurant and Barcelona was beginning to come to life at night. With the sun going down I started to have visions of laundered pressed bed sheets and a fluffy bathrobe. I had spent the last night sleeping in the bushes and my back was sore. I was probably due for a shower, too, but I figured, "Hey, it's Europe - I'll fit right in!"
Roaming down the back streets of the old town in Barcelona I passed the gothic cathedral, many quanit restaurants and shops, and many hotels. With 2-3 hotels per block I figured I would have much better luck tonight than last night. Door after door I went into the hotels (with "no vacancy" on the door) and pleaded for any tyoe of room. I would've slept in the boiler room if that is all they had, but I was turned away at every hotel. As I walked deeper and deeper into the old town the cacophony of the Ramblas faded into a thin herd of tourists and eventually only one or two couples walking on the cobbled streets. I saw a hotel down a dark street and no "No Vacancy" sign on it.
Thinking in was in luck I headed down the street, walked inside and was told there were no rooms. I asked if the concierge could help me and told him all of my problems. He made a few phone calls and apologetically explained to me all about the F1 racing and how the hotels were completely full. At that point a mild panic was setting in and I started to contemplate the Four Seasons or luxury hotels and blowing all my money on one nice night's sleep.
With the clerk unable to help me, I grabbed my backpack and my Nikon N60 (35mm) and left the hotel. I distinctly remember leaving that hotel because it was quiet. REALLY quiet. and as I turned left, away form the Ramblas and into the more quiet section of the old town, I passed 5 Moroccans who were talking with each other leaning against a car. I could tell they pretended not to look up or notice me which I thought was unusual. For me, when anyone passes me at night I look up to see what kind of a person they are. For them, I could tell they were specifically ignoring my passing. With the Moroccans at my back I starting walking deeper into dark neighborhoods looking for a hotel. I noticed the five guys talking behind me stopped. I isn't hard to imagine what I heard next: the click clack of ten shoes on cobblestones. I knew I was being followed.
What happened next happened in all of five seconds, but to me it felt like five minutes of slow motion. It is funny when you are in danger, real danger, how the world seems to slow down and almost stop. I took note of what I had on my person. My camera, my last pay check (in cash of course), and some clothes in a tooth brush. Racking my brain to come up with a weapon I was unable to.
Scanning the sidewalks and buildings I looked for a restaurant, shop, or a rock or weapon on the ground that I could defend myself with. The gang had chosen a good spot - nothing was available. I imagined even a lead pipe, a powerful weapon, against 5 thieves with knives and realized without a gun I was in trouble.
Faking a fly was bothing me I swatted at my head once and then again, turning my head slightly the second time. Yup, they were following me. They say flee a knife and charge a gun. I was approaching a small perpendicular street and was on the edge of running for my life. Acting like I was going straight and to the the right I was going to open the throttle and run as fast as I could to the left.
Funny how all of these details happened in about five seconds and still to this day they are crystal clear. The street on the left was approaching and just as I was about to make a break for it a group of six British men round the corner, arm in arm laughing and clinking beer bottles. I immediately turn and do a 180, falling in step with my new blokes. I just start walking with them and just as I am about to pass the five Moroccans I look up to see all five of them walking straight ahead, but turning their heads and staring directly at me. They looked like lions who just had their meal taken from them. Not one was smiling.
I walked for a bit with the Brits back to the Ramblas and still was out of luck. It was still relatively early and I didn't have a place to sleep. Alone in Barcelona at night with every single hotel room completely booked - again! The most dangerous part of the night had just passed, but you won't believe where I end up sleeping and who gives me a wake up call! If you'd like to know, "follow me" on Google or subsribe to my RSS Feed. If you enjoyed this post, don't forget to push the "like" button or post a link so your friends can follow me, too. As always, the blog is user supported by my readers clicking on sponsers posted in the blog. It is free to do and helps support this blog.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)