.The long awaited day had arrived! We were on the plane to Barcelona to embark on a cruise of the Mediterranean. Princess booked our flights from Jacksonville,FL to Philadelphia and then nonstop to Barcelona on US AIR. We arrived in Barcelona at 8:30 am ( along with our luggage ) :) and we were met by Princess and taken to the Grand Hotel Central. We were in our room by 10:00 AM and took a long nap. The Hotel is in a very old building but is super modern with asian influence and a lot of high tech room gadgets. The lights only work when you leave your card key in a special wall slot. There are electric blackout shades. The room is small but the beds are comfortable. We had no view. We looked over an alley that's very narrow where people hang clothes out the window. For 12 days our weather and seas were a 10! I don't think we will ever be this lucky again. The temps were between 65 and 80 throughout the cruise and made sightseeing comfortable.

Sightseeing Barcelona was easy on the Bus Touristica. For 20 euros each, we could get on and off wherever we wanted all day and night. We visited the Sagrada Famillia, the most popular tourist sight and saw the unfinished church that the architect Gaudi designed. It is being completed with donated funds. It is so intricate in detail. Gaudi was trying to symbolize every book of the Bible. His architecture is all over Barcelona. We stopped at the Museum of Art which is high on a mountain overlooking the city. Spectacular views. The museum itself is very impressive. We ate dinner in a marina in the harbor called La Gavina.

The next morning, April 30, we were picked up by Princess and taken to the pier. Check-in was easy with no lines. We were onboard and in our cabin by 12:00. We had the whole day ahead of us as the ship would not depart until 10:00 PM. Once on board, we unpacked our small suitcases and went to lunch in the Horizon Court. Food choices were well done and tasty. Then we started exploring the ship. We love the ship! It is beautiful and much bigger than the Coral Princess which we were on last year on a Panama Canal cruise. By the time we got back to the cabin, our luggage was in the room and we unpacked. Read more