It is not possible to pedal at these hours

I arrive at Plaça Espanya at two, with the Ferrocarrils from the Manresa line, and the tourist, returning from Montserrat, rushes down the escalators. We go out into the street. A blast of hot air. The solar heat is so intense that when you breathe you feel the heat entering your lungs. The image of the square is completely different, because the streets are blocked due to the Tour de France, which will pass by there, on the way to Montjuïc. Two men and a woman, dressed in yellow-volunteer, wait in the very weak and only shade of an awning. They give me a map that says: "Gran Départ Barcelona 2026", with the subtitle, "Everything you need to know to enjoy the 113th edition of the Tour de France 2026". They explain to me that the Tour cyclists are expected to pass around five, and that before that there will be a promotional caravan. Since I arrived early, because the chronicler always follows Kapucinsky's advice, I enter the shopping center with the idea of buying a notebook and a pen and, above all, of obtaining the necessary calories. Oh, air conditioning, I would dedicate an ode to you.