Of Yachts and Montserrats

Reunited once again for the weekend, the kings +1 (Tim, joining us from Berlin) decided to venture to Montserrat, a nearby monastery built into the mountainside. While Will was tempted to climb from the bottom to the top, we managed to persuade him that the gondola was a better option.

The monastery in itself was fantastic, with epic carvings looming at every corner. We also got to witness the famous "Black Santa Maria", which the locals thought, until recently, was created that way centuries ago. Turns out it was constant exposure to smoke that turned it black- it still draws many tourists, though. Atop the statue was an amazing crown as well, which Gabe wanted to try on, to see how he looked as a real King of Catalonia. Again, our reasoning got the better of him.

Perhaps the best part of Montserrat, though, is the hiking. Our hiking tour, led by Will of course given his extensive resume, began with a trek through the woods, which led us to a dead end with excellent views of the Monastery. From there we trekked all the way up to the top of the mountain. We were excited to peer over the edge of the ridge and see no one for miles around- however, we were met with the sight of around 50 people shuffling around about 50 feet below us. We had hiked to the place where the funicular lets off. Oh well, at least we earned it.

Sunday we were lucky enough to get tickets to a yacht show in the nearby harbor, courtesy of Gabe's aunt and uncle. It was a very classy affair, or at least it was, until we showed up in our hoodies and sneakers. The disapproving looks from the other guests didn't stop us from enjoying looking at all the yachts we could find. Unfortunately, we were not able to board any of the magnificent boats- apparently they gave tours to "serious customers only," and in our current attire, we were quite the opposite.

We are all also looking forward to this weekend, where we will add a new country to our passports- the Czech Republic. More updates to come after Prague.