**#9 ✈️ **Off to Tarragona, Spain: A Screaming Kid, a Broken Robot, and a Señor’s Wild Ride”

🧳 Barcelona? Nah, I’m Good. Today’s plan: leave Helsinki at 17:05, arrive in Barcelona at 20:05 (with checked luggage), then catch a direct bus to Tarragona! Barcelona? Been there twice already — crowds are insane, prices are wild, and let’s be real… the Sagrada Família still isn’t finished, right? So yeah, skipping it. My real worry: flight delays. The last bus to Tarragona leaves at 23:10. Technically, I’ve built in some buffer time — but you know how it goes: “Where’s the bus terminal?” “Why isn’t my luggage coming out?” etc. My imagination’s in overdrive.

🥂 Lounge Life… or So I Thought Checked out of my hotel and headed straight for the airport. Destination: business class lounge. Expectations: high! And the space? Stunning. White tones, wood details — total Finnish design vibes. Beautiful and elegant! But the food? Rye bread: Ruisleipä：(jaw workout variety😂) + avocado dip, Couscous salad, pasta salad, plain tomato soup, sugary-looking donuts… Honestly, pretty minimal compared to the amazing onboard meals I had earlier. Maybe I got spoiled?

That said — The sparkling wine was a winner! Organic, even!

And the coffee from the fancy machine? Best part. Even George Clooney would’ve been impressed (lol).

🛫 Tiny Gate, Then the Unexpected… Got to the gate and thought, “Wow, tiny! No chairs?” But then remembered — this is within Schengen, kinda like a domestic flight. Plane was set up 3 seats per row, with the middle seats blocked for biz class. Nice enough. Then came the announcement. “Due to storms or strong winds in Germany, there’ll be a delay. First an hour… maybe two…” Devastation. I was bracing for an airport sleepover when suddenly — boom! The plane started moving. Some mysterious runway loops, and then takeoff! In the end, just a one-hour delay. Total save. Even laughed about it with this nerdy-looking guy next to me. Like, “What was that!?”

🍽️ In-flight Meal FTW Finnair, even on a short within-Schengen flight , you do food right. Even with budget-style service, this biz class meal was chef’s kiss. Creamy herb chicken with mashed potatoes — wait, there were peas in there? Yes, and it was perfection. Smooth mash, subtle pea flavor, bright green color… a total win. Starter looked like sardines in a stylish little arrangement. Suddenly the lounge food felt like a joke.

Wine? Started with sparkling, as always. Wanted to try a white afterward, but… The guys in front of me were having a full-on booze party, and I got shy and skipped the second round (lol).

🧳 Where’s My Luggage!? Landed in Barcelona. Thanks to Schengen, no passport check — straight to baggage claim! …except the carousel stopped moving. Cue panic: “I’m gonna miss my bus!!” Eventually, it kicked back into life and I grabbed my bag. Ran, asked, yelled — whatever it took to find the Tarragona bus stop!

🚌 Ticket Trouble and a Surprise Hero A kind guy pointed me to an earlier bus — score! But then… problem. The QR code on my phone screenshot wouldn’t scan. The young, cool (and cigarette-smoking) driver launched into rapid Spanish: “¡Descargar! @#￥％＊。。。？？？” I’m guessing: “You need to download it — no QR, no ride!” Panicking, sweaty, digging through Google Drive… no luck. Nearly in tears when — An older, chill driver stepped in. Looked at my email and basically said: “@#￥＆！OK OK” = “This email’s fine, hop on!” I squealed, hugged him, he laughed. Even the young driver smiled awkwardly. Gracias, Señor Amigo!!

👶 Crying Kids & Laughing Locals The bus? Packed. Plus babies. And yelling toddlers. It was past 10PM, but Spain was still buzzing. Around 11:15PM, we finally arrived in Tarragona. As I got off, the young driver grinned and said, “Hey, you happy now? Don’t stress! Adiós~” It weirdly hit me right in the feels.

🗺️ Lost Again — Classic Me Only 2 minutes walk to the apartment. So why was I power-walking the wrong way? The farther I walked, the farther the pin got on Google Maps. Turned back, retraced my steps, still couldn’t find building #8. Called the host, who only spoke Spanish. “¡Ocho! ¡Ocho!” Wait — Ocho! That’s 8! (Thank you, Ocho-diet workout memories.) Then came my real lifesaver: a local lady out walking her two tiny dogs. She helped me search, and together we finally found #8! We both shouted “¡Ochoooo!” and cracked up. Even the dogs wagged their tails. Pure joy.

🏠 Final Challenge: The Stairs Buzzed the intercom, got in the building… and remembered: In Europe, ground floor = 0, so the 5th floor = 6th. No elevator in sight. I started sprinting up the stairs like a madwoman. Somewhere above, a woman called out, but I was too focused. At the top: the host — total Spanish mom energy — greeted me with a warm smile. I used Google Translate to thank her for waiting. Cozy little room, fresh sheets, cute decor. Exactly what my tired body needed.

💬 Bonus Story: Am I a Robot? Next day, I chatted with the host. She burst out laughing, saying she watched me from upstairs last night — Running in circles outside, skipping the elevator, flying up the stairs. “You looked like a broken wind-up doll! No wonder Google Maps couldn’t keep up!” Mortifying… but also kinda sweet.

🌙 Safe and Sound in Tarragona! So, yeah — I made it! Now time to explore this memory-filled town once again. Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for the next update ✨