We had one more Venetian activity before we had to leave, and you can guess who planned this one: a trip to the top of the bell tower (campanile) in P. San Marco....it wasn’t me! Fortunately, luck was on my side this time and the only way up was by elevator (phew!). We all enjoyed the views of Venice and lingered up there for quite a while. Here is a shot of a gondola dock from way up high...

After stopping at a pasticceria to pick out some “lunch,” we headed to the airport. Luck left me at this point, because the computers broke down as we were in the check-in line and we ended up standing there for an hour. Don’t worry, though, we weren’t even close to missing our flight, which was also delayed an hour. Eesh! Good thing we had our pastries to keep us busy.

Well, Barcelona was worth the wait. On arriving at our hotel, we received a mysterious free upgrade from a regular room to an amazing suite. We are baffled, but don’t want to ask too many questions lest they realize their extreme error in our favor. We are on the 34th floor and have an amazing view of the marina and shoreline (see above).

We spent the evening walking down to the beach. We didn’t expect the girls would be aching to swim SO badly so we hadn’t changed into bathing suits, but we decided since the rest of the world seems to be topless here no one would mind two little girls trying out the local custom...The beach is beautiful, and the girls ran in and out of the water, alternately covering themselves in sand and rinsing off (neither of us understand why this is fun- seems extremely gritty!) Afterward we had a casual dinner by the hotel pool, which the girls have informed us needs to be our first activity tomorrow. The hotel set up a kids movie (The Incredibles) by the pool at 9pm, offering colored popcorn and pool lounge chairs to help their littlest guests enjoy the flick. Parents could enjoy sangria in the restaurant while still keeping an eye on the little ones. We love Barcelona!

PS. In other news, we are in the midst of a little family crisis as Bun has gone missing in Venice. We know we didn’t take her outside the room, and believe me we turned it upside down, so we are thinking she got caught up in the sheets during a laundry cycle. The hotel sends out their laundry, so hope is small that she will be back, but they are looking for us. Amory is extremely upset, but is being very brave. She is imagining that Bun has escaped from the laundry and is enjoying lettuce and carrot flavored gelato. Riley has sweetly offered to share Quack Quack and Ra-Ra if Bun doesn’t return, and has upped the frequency and intensity of her usual bedtime antics to help make Amory feel better. Wish us luck!