Barcelona
Unser 4. Urlaubstag
The translation follows ASAP
The last day of holiday is started. The traveling bag was already packed and turned off after the breakfast in the luggage room of the hotel. Today are to be still visited a few objects of interest, which we had planned as "spare".
With the blue line it goes to the Poble Espanyol. This "village" is an accumulation of typical houses from all Spanish provinces. It was established to the world exhibition here 1929 in Barcelona on the Mont Juíc.
From here we continued to drive, past at the most diverse garden plants up to the port. There we stepped out and are into that Barri Gòtic, the oldest part of Barcelona. The roots of this quarter are back into the Roman time. To the largest part pedestrian precinct, the "wanderer" finds here plentifully small restaurants and business.
After the visit of a small local we had still plentifully time up to the departure of the bus and we did what the citicens do, we walked to Las Ramblas, sat down into a road restaurant, drank a Sangria and watched the passing by people.
These two attracted our special interest.
It is interesting, in which kinds one tries here, to get the money from the tourists, is it with music, shears cuts or like this man, into his ape costume who frightened notionless tourists and expects for the joke a little money from the guests in the road restaurants.
For us it became then also time to move slowly to the hotel since the departure of the bus direction airport was soon.
Arrived in the hotel we experienced that the departure time war shifted for a half hour, well well, so we relaxed a little bit. From co-travellers, which took part in the trip to the monastery Montserrat, we experience that there was a delay with the bus too.
Finally the bus arrived, Alfredo was not to be seen, but there is a guide from the Spanish partner travel agency on board. In the discussion with him he asks us for Alfredo. The Spaniard means only, he is in this business already for years, but as humans as Alfredo it is now the first time that he meets.
At the airport arrived, large confusion. Our flight is not anywhere indicated. After some irritations it seems to be like that that we must check in at the Counter of Austrian Airlines. Being located in the queue I tell the story about of our "experiences" in Egypt with delays of the Lauda Air. The first rumors emerge that the Lauda is cancelled and we are to fly with the AUA at 22:50 o'clock instead of around 21:20. Everything is disconcerted, because at the Counter one explains us that the machine would fly off punctually at 21:20 o'clock. Exactly that is indicated also on our boarding cards.
Suddenly also Alfredo is there. Trousers and Jacket look dirty, as if he lived the 4 days under any bridge. Alfredo assures to inquire. His following information, the flier goes punctually encounters skepticism. That the flight is not anywhere indicated, he explains thereby that sometimes an error happens, he experienced that already frequently, amusingly, I as frequent traveller never. The plane will departure certainly punctual says Alfredo, he spoke with that boss of the two ladies at the Counter, which would not lie to him.
Thus into the indicated departure hall and waited for a miracle. The departure time comes closer and from a plane of the Lauda Air is nothing to be seen. Also the indicating panels do not indicate a such flight. I look at the parking fliers but there is nothing with the Lauda Air Logo.
The time of departure is there and no flier. I make myself on the way, in order to look for the local agent for AUA, and really, I become successful. Already at the first sight I must laugh nearly loud, seems to be a brother of Islam (see our Egypt vacation). Completely surprised he explains to me the fact that he cannot understand that we are not yet informed, the Lauda Air machine has delay and at 22:00 o'clock will take off. I give him the advice to spread this information in the departure hall. He makes him on the way we go into one to that airport restaurants immediately, in order to have at least dinner.
As I expected it, at 22:00 o'clock no flier direction Vienna, we have to wait for the regular AUA machine at around 22:50.
When we finally enter the Airbus A340, it is very clear why we must fly with this machine. Without our travel-group the machine would have flown back with 20 or 30 passengers. There one nevertheless left the Lauda Air in Vienna for economic reasons and transferred us. That would be surely understandable, if one would communicate it to the passengers in time, but with such information politics one does not create oneself satisfied customers.
Oh, Alfredo reached then also the flier, loaded with 3 cardboard Freixenet, he is entering into the flier also still obstructed, because it was not so easy with its handicaped leg to bring the cardboards the stairs upto the flier.
All in all, was a successful vacation, even if we had as usual annoyance with the Lauda Air, but I had already expected that, when Tanja arrived with the booking. My advice to travelers with Lauda Air, do not count on on-time departure performance, the word is located nowhere in the programme of Lauda Air.
© Ulrich Hoffmann 2003
)
After the visit of a small local we had still plentifully time up to the departure of the bus and we did what the citicens do, we walked to Las Ramblas, sat down into a road restaurant, drank a Sangria and watched the passing by people.)
It is interesting, in which kinds one tries here, to get the money from the tourists, is it with music, shears cuts or like this man, into his ape costume who frightened notionless tourists and expects for the joke a little money from the guests in the road restaurants.