Guess who this is.

Spain's greatest living guitarist, Manuel González. Yeah. We're tight now. heh heh (All right... not!)

Now this synchronicity really takes the cake. (There have been so many of them here, I haven't mentioned any because it's gotten to be a bit over-the-top.) I intended to go to the Palau de la Música Catalana see Madeleine Peyroux last night. But the universe has its own ideas about what I should do, sometimes, and this was one of those times. I had just gotten into Barcelona (one hour on bus, then 1/2 hr. on Metro), dropped off the bag and was headed toward La Rambla when someone put a promo card under my nose. My automatic response said "no gracias" and kept walking. But that leetle inner voice said "don't be so hasty, girl!" and I turned back and sheepishly said "mmm, quizás..." and took the card afterall.

Well, I'm reading and walking and my eyes are popping out of my head, I had--just the night before--listened to a CD that Marcel and Karine have here at Can Serrat by this very same artist. I would not have heard of him, otherwise, so of course I thought this must be a divine intervention. And, as it turned out, the tickets at the Palau de la Música were waaaay too pricey for my blood (what? you want to see the stage? oh, that will be extra... lots extra!) so it was a no-brainer. Off to the Basílica Santa Maria del Pi I went, last night, and oh my. Words cannot express. I am still (and will be forevermore) mystified as to how I was one of only 45 or 50 people who got to hear him play in that tiny little (medieval) church. (It was actually in a chapel, adjacent to the church. I don't think many more could have fit in there.) I do have contraband vids, but if you want to see/hear right now, google his name including "guitarist" and a YT vid will be at the top. And in it, he's playing at the Palau! (So I get to see the interior afterall. Sort of.)

It's just icing on the cake that I got a picture with him. Have you ever seen me smile so big? Really, any bigger and I'd have 20 chins instead of only 18!!

The rest of the BCN visit (The Picasso Museum...? Oh geez. I get it now.) And the rest of the two days... will have to wait. I'm wiped out--I'm sure I walked at least 15 miles in those two days. And now that I'm back, I have to finish my gift for Marcel's birthday tomorrow.