Joy and determination

Visit

There is always a tug-of-war in my mind between economic sense and personal indulgence.  On the one hand it is cheap and, I am told, relatively efficient to use public transport to get to anywhere in Barcelona: there is the train and the metro system, a pay as you ride bike thingie, buses and cleanish streets.  On the other hand there is the car.

            As I did my metric mile in the pool this morning I considered my options.  The logical way to get to my appointment cheaply was bus to the centre, metro and then a short walk.  On the other hand there is the car.

            And frankly by about 850m of swimming, the other hand had won.

            I have a naïf and charming faith in my satnav and I have learned, after some frustrating detours, to use the screen, street signs, and more importantly common sense to get to a destination.  I was confident, as the appointment was in one of the most famous streets in Barcelona that not only could I get there but there would also be parking ‘close at hand.’

            Apart from a slight odd feeling of driving past the turn off to the School on the Hill (not quite as good as if there had been teachers and pupils slaving away inside rather than being on holiday) and one risky choice when nothing in front of me was clearly the right way, I made it to the right place, directly and, mark you, found a parking place opposite.

            The appointment was time specific and efficient and I ended up paying only €3.50 for the short time that I used the space – a price astonishing in its smallness in this part of the world.

            And then drove directly home to a late, very late lunch of excellent tapas in a tried and tested and expensive restaurant near where I used to live.

            Altogether a good day with encouraging results from my appointment.

The poetic test

It is only day two and already I am faltering.  In fact as I look at my watch I see that it is actually day three, and I am now, officially, two poems behind.

            I do have notes and ideas for the one that I should have written yesterday, even though I still consider it early enough for it to be classed as today.

            And so I ought to get on with it and stop this displacement activity writing.  At once.

So I will.