The Final Chapter

On 19 May,  Henry, Monica, Sandra and Gooby boarded a plane destined for Spain taking Mary's ashes with them.

Mary had always wanted to share her love of Spain with her children and as we decided that it would be nice to spread her ashes in Spain, the family traveled as a unit to Madrid and then on to Barcelona.

In Madrid we experienced the Prado and the Reina Sofia and got the chance to explore many of the other sites such as the royal palace, the plaza mayor, el retiro and many of the fountains and plazas. After spending four days in Madrid we took the AVE to Barcelona where we spent the next four days.

Upon arriving in Barcelona we settled into our hotel. Then we walked to the harbor in order to make a decision where to scatter Mary's ashes.  The day was clear with scattered clouds and the harbor and beaches were crowded with people.  We decided that it would be inappropriate to scatter ashes with many people around and that it would be better to return in the morning and scatter the ashes in private with few people around.

Barcelona is feeling the effects of a prolonged drought - severe enough that they have turned off the fountains to conserve water.  They have also brought in two tankers of water.

The next day we were greeted by rain and wind.  I had planned to enter the water to disperse the ashes, but the water appeared too rough and we considered our options.

We went to the beach called  Port Olympico to access the situation.

Even though  it was raining, we felt we could spread the ashes from the far end of the jetty separating the beach from the storm drain as the waves were not as strong at the tip of the jetty.  We said a few words, some out loud and some silently and poured the ashes into the sea.  I feel that the back surge of the waves should carry Mary's ashes away from the beach.

Barcelona was a place that Mary enjoyed even tough we had some bad experiences there. After scattering the ashes we went to the Cathedral in the Gothic quarter and toured the cloisters and the roman ruins under the Museum of the City. We became very familiar with many of the back streets of Barcelona as well as Madrid.  On subsequent days, we were able to visit the important Gaudi landmarks and the Picasso Museum. 

I think that Monica, Sandra and Gooby were impressed with what they saw and I think Mary would be happy knowing what they had the chance to experience a little bit of Spain.  This trip has served as an experience to wet the appetite for more cultural experiencesin the future.