Commentary by Samuel Strait – November 9, 2023 >> > Seems like just a few hours ago I was dealing with the frustrations of > Highway 199, but here I am thousands of miles away in Barcelona, > Spain, with brief stops in Denver, Colorado and Munich, Germany. En > route, I had the privilege of experiencing single use plastic grocery > bags at no cost, drink bottles without CRV deposits, and groceries at > 40% less than the cost of the same products in California. The joys > of living in a rapidly disintegrating state of high crime, sky > rocketing homelessness, over regulation, high taxes (thank you > Measures "R" and "S"), and a Democrat led bunch of Progressive > "crazies" in the State legislature. Not to forget Governor "Hair Gel" > Gavin Newsom, leader of the pack of insuring California goes down in > flames before he leaves office. > > In any event, arrived in Barcelona yesterday bringing with me a bit of > Northern California weather, showers and a 67 degree day. Tucked up in > an eighteenth century apartment building on what is the second floor > where my balcony looks out on a cobble stoned, tree lined street > facing a two hundred year old church. The street scene is mostly > pedestrian not truly getting started until around noon and goes well > into the early morning hours. Cafes and tapas bars mingle in with > regular businesses in this bustling neighborhood. I wandered > down to a nearby central plaza, Placa de Catalunya, for a spot of > cafe sidewalk lunch before venturing further down the world famous > Rambla, dry river bed as it is known locally. It is quite the > architectural wonder with famous buildings on either side all the way > down to the harbor. > > Barcelona is said to be famous for its parks, and I can attest to that > fact as its largest park dwarfs Central Park in New York City. > According to the taxi driver, who brought me from the airport, 12% of > the city is occupied by green spaces. The tree line streets are well > kept with little evidence of the normal troubles of urban homeless. > At least that is something Spain has in common with urban California. > They just seem to hide it better. Otherwise the old part of the City > is a rabbit warren of narrow streets and alleyways that seem to close > in on you from above. The sun made an appearance in the early > afternoon making the return walk an entirely different experience. > > In for the night after a light dinner at a nearby tapas bar. All I > can say, it was delicious. Tomorrow I plan on testing out the > extensive transit system, visit Guell Park, and the Sagrada Familla, a > world famous Spanish church. The Church was started recently by > Gaudi, another famous Barcelona personage, and is not yet completed. > My Spanish Host says it is not to be missed, inside and out. We shall > see. Glad to be here for awhile if the first days adventure is > anything to go by. Till later hopefully with a few photos. >