Day Fourty Five

Friday was the day we’d all been anticipating the whole trip: Salou.

I woke up ready to take on the beach, sun, and Mediterranean. The weather was looking a little ominous, but I didn’t care- I was going to be on that dang sand even if it was raining sideways! The day before Professor Williams had told us we were going to have a surprise, and it turns out the surprise was a theme park trip in the morning before going to the beach. Port Aventura is the park’s name. Ever heard of it? Me neither. The mascots of the park? Woody the Woodpecker, Ernie, Bert, Elmo, and Betty Boop. I love Spain. After breakfast we drove an hour or so out of Barcelona to another costal town near Salou to ride rollercoasters for 4 hours, hoping the clouds would leave, and we could get rid of some of our hilarious tan lines.

Port Aventura was really fun! Since we only had a limited amount of time and I have a feeling it was “take your favorite middle school to the theme park” day, the park was pretty packed, and the lines pretty long. We only rode 3 rides, but it was not in vain! Those three roller coasters were like none I’d ever been on. The first one went faster than… well it was fast. Like crying out the sides of your eyes and drooling fast. Like losing your headband fast. Like your hair looking like you’d just been electrocuted fast. … and kind of like “wow did I really wait 1 ½ hours for that?” fast. Ha it was fun. And people watching in line helped put the “amusement” in amusement park pretty well.

After the fisrt coaster we only had about 2 hours left, so we got some food quickly, and then went to wait in another line. This one was really fun, but I think I might be getting old, seeing as my head felt all out of sorts when we got off. So much flipping and twisting… my brain was joggled. It was about this time that the clouds which had graced us with their presence all day strted giving gifts from the heavens above. Yeah, it was starting to rain and I was not happy. Beach time was so close! With our remaining time in the park we went to one last coaster- Europe’s version of the “white roller coaster” When we got off the rain began to pick up. It rained all the way to Salou. There was not a blue patch of sky in sight, but still seeing the beach was exhillerating, and right when we got to our nearly beachfront hotel, Brittany, Hannah, and I were suited up and headed to the water in about 10 minutes time. The little beach was dark and a literal ghost town. The grey sky, chained and covered beach chairs, and closed ice cream stands all made for a pretty depressing scene, but that did NOT stop us! We threw our stuff down in the sand, whipped off our cover ups, and ran right into the ocean… and don’t worry that I fell right into a pot hole and faceplanted into the ocean not as gracefully as I’d imagined myself running into the Mediterranean, but no matter- it was so great to be in the sea! There was not one soul on the beach, so we took full advantage of our time, doing a little bit of European swimming (heh heh) and watching the rest of our group members slowly file onto the shore. It was warmer in the water than out of it, so we tried to stay hunkered down in the waves as long as possible, not shivering too much. I guess Mother Nature took pity on us, because as fast as the rain and wind had come, it was gone, the sun started shining, and within about 15 minutes time the beach was bumpin’! Suddenly there were all kind laying down towels, taking off tops (it was… great) and diving right into the water. The weather all of a sudden became all kind of beautiful, and life was great! We spent 4 hours out there tanning (or burining) exploring the coast line, and people watching, of course. We could not get enough of the old men in Speedos, confident ladies wearing, well, nothing, and just a good ol’ day on the Mediterranean. I never wanted to leave! It’s a good thing I’m going to the French Riviera next week, because I think I’d cry a little if I knew I didn’t have more time out there getting sand in my scalp!

Dinner was a “buffet” in the restaurant and it was NASTY. The only edible things there were ministrone soup and bread, so I ate as much of that as I could, then washed it all down with at least 6 desserts. Not even lying. It was 9, I hadn’t eaten since peeling an orange at 3, and the arroz con leche was calling my name (along with a host of other little treats) Call me the ravenous caterpillar!

After “dinner” we went back to the beach to walk around and sit in the sand one more time. We’d wanted to get there in time for the sunset, but sadly we encountered a couple of problems: one being the fact that we were in the East, so the sun didn’t set over the water, and we were too late anyways. However, even at night the water was pretty, and we enjoyed laughing and walking (and running) through the tide. Ah I have not had enough time at the ocean in my lifetime.

Back at the hotel I did the best to rid myself of all the sand covering my body, but I am sure I’ve still got it in my hair and left a lot in my bed. (Note to self: never work at as a maid at a beachfront resort) I slept wonderfully thanks to a full day of fun and relaxation. Thanks for cooperating, weather! I’m grateful.