We go to Vic...

Not many people take the train ride out of Barcelona to the city of Vic to see the work of an artist, but boy is Josep Maria Sert worth it. He painted the inside of the baroque cathedral there, and the monochrome paintings done in gold leaf set the perfect mood in that huge space. The picture here comes from a painting that is now in the Museum of Leather in Vic, but it shows off Sert's love of the exotic, with its moors, elephants, and palms. Now imagine that transplanted to a cathedral, telling the story of the Gospel. It works, strangely.

We also got to see an array of Sert paintings that were commissioned for a chateau in France. The Germans occupied the building and there was some¨"damage." So they sent them to Sert to fix them and he simply kept 'em! Way to go Jose! We asked at the tourism office and the woman sucked at her lip, and said, "It is no possible to see them... but I ask." Then she went across the street, asked, then took us on a personal tour of the paintings. It was so sweet of her and really made us feel good about the city. Later we sat and ate a basic meal at an outdoor cafe next to the bustling market, which sold a lot of pedestrian goods. No really pedestrian, like shoes, nothing quaint or anything like that, just necessities.

This other picture is at the Boqueria market off La Rambla in Barcelona. It's a crowded and charming market that has everything from skinned animals, dead hares, to terrific coffee shops. In a city swarming with tourists, we managed to eat breakfast in the company of Catalans.