Kathryn and Kevin were off the ship at 7am – to catch a late morning flight back to the U.S. Soeren and Ari’s flight to Hamburg wasn’t till the evening, so were able to get off the ship a little more leisurely. We enjoyed a final breakfast with them and said goodbye again. As their flight was not until later, they used a service at the cruise terminal where they turned in their luggage, to be transferred to the airport, to be picked up later in the day. For those wanting to spend time touring, without dragging bags, this is a great option.

Soeren, Ari and Marshall went to ride the Barcelona arial tram and then Marshall walked 8 miles back to the port. Cathy, Peter and Sharon were not planning to get off the ship, though we were still required to pass through immigration. The process was pretty smooth, exiting the ship by gangplank to the terminal, presenting our passports to authorities, then reentering the ship via the same gangplank. It took about 25 minutes, start to finish. Cathy settled into her new cabin next to us and we both did a good soak in the hot tub.

This was a “turn-around’ day for the ship’s crew. Approximately 3000 passengers were debarking, and 3300 were embarking. The luggage was taken off, the new luggage brought on. The room stewards have to clean the empty rooms, and tidy the occupied rooms, all before noon. Food supplies are being restocked and the restaurants preparing for lots of new hungry passengers. It’s organized mayhem and we’re always impressed with how hard everyone is working and how great their attitudes remain.

Also, fuel was loaded onto the ship. In the case of the Star Princess, liquid nitrogen gas was bunkered on the starboard side, which meant no one could be out on balconies or open spaces while it was happening. Surprisingly, it took 9 hours and delayed our departure from Barcelona by 1.5 hours. We hope they filled up the tank enough to get us across the Atlantic!

Tomorrow: Palma, Mallorca