Monday, 23 September 2019. Monday sees us in Tarragona, Spain. We have been told it is a festival day and that it will be crowded.
The port is industrial and a shuttle bus takes 20 minutes to bring us into town where it drops us near the city wall between the ancient Roman town and amphitheatre.
The amphitheatre was built over the change from first to second centuries and seats 15,000. In 259 CE during Emperor Valerian's persecution of the Christians the local bishop and his deacons were burned alive here.
The city wall. It once enclosed the city but currently only half of it remains, marking three sides of a rectangle around the old city and Roman basilica complex.
Just behind the city wall was the Roman circus - think Ben-Hur chariot racing. The ground has all been built over but many of the underground passages and rooms are still there and free to walk around.
Passing through one tunnel brings us to the source of those Roman draughts they used to complain about. In front is the wall of the modern museum of Tarraco - the Roman name for Tarragona.
I wonder what my house will look like in 2000 years...
Underground passage with rooflight - attributed to the exceptionally tall legionary Kevin after the order "Shoulder spears!"
I bet it was easy to lose your way down here in the days before electric lighting!
This led to the modern public conveniences, which again were free to use and spotless. Whilst toilets were segregated, the washing area was common to both sexes.
A statue of a woman, probably a memorial as it was discovered in 1992 in an area that in Roman times had contained several burial areas.
No doubting the role of the coffin. It has an inscription from Valeria Primula whose husband Firmidius Cecilianus was laid to rest in it. He was a consular beneficiary of the Seventh Legion, Gemina Pia Felix.
Having climbed several flights of stairs I am now gasping in ancient Roman Latin and looking down on the curve of tiers that would have held the seating at one end of the circus - the bends are where the worst chariot pile-ups can be enjoyed...
Whilst I'm up here and too knackered to move, let's have a look all round. The museum and conservation shop. A sign says "When you have been exhibited all over the Empire, you need some time to look your best again." Tell me about it...
I've come down two flights and there are still just a few to go before I get back to ground level!
The Romans may not have had the ability to fly anywhere, but they were not afraid of heights!
We leave the Roman remains and are wandering along a street when suddenly a series of explosions can be heard.
"The festival!" I say and we follow the smoke to see if we can find a spot to see the merry-making.
A chap sits on a horse with a huge kettle drum on either side. He's waiting to join the parade at the appropriate spot when his horse sees a rather large relation coming along!
Once he spots his place a bang on the drums soon clears a path for him to join the parade.
Huge papier-mache figures (but with seemingly tiny legs) come down the street at regular intervals.
The Sultan makes an appearance with his Sultana... (are you sure that's right...?)
I'm presuming this is a caricature of a local politician from the past as his face and figure can be seen shortly painted onto a building.
Orcs, goblins, bogey-men! They were good fun, gently swishing their hairy rope ends at random people. The local kids were lapping it up.
The building with a few of the characters we have seen in the parade.
The parade comes to an end. The streets are absolutely filled with people. Knowing we will have a full evening, we head back to the ship to do our packing as tomorrow will see us flying back to England [sob]
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