Rambling on La Rambla

I've made it to Barcelona, Spain and it is my first visit here. On my previous visits to Spain I had spent time in Madrid and Toledo (and loved both of them) but, except for passing through the airport I had never been in Barcelona. So far is has been a good stay. My presentation at the EDULearn conference was well-received and I have new GM contacts in Russia, China, Austria and Serbia - and reestablished contacts with a Spanish university. The town itself is lovely - La Rambla, the main pedestrian street, runs right down to the ocean, and sitting along La Rambla at a cafe, eating tapas and drinking sangria, is one of life's great pleasures - a real New Orleans feel. I'd love to show you some pictures but, unfortunately, my camera was stolen last night at the Cafe Tomas, a great little working class tapas bar far off the torpurist path. It was a fantastic place and is supppsed to have the best tapas in Barcelona - and is so authentic they don't have sangria - and the waiter was a guy who looks like a character actor from a 1940's Hollywood movie was great - you just said tapas and he would bring you what he thought you should eat. Barcelona is notorious for pickpockets and I just got careless - I'm mad about the camera, but far more heartbroken about the pictures I've lost forever. Included in the pictures was a great visit to the cathedral Gaudi designed, which is just indescribable. So, a mixed bag, but far more good than bad. Oh, and I'm sure that anyone from Barcelona would be horrified by this statement, but I think Madrid has better tapas.