Vamos a La Playa

So now I have just returned from Barcelona, Spain, my last trip of the entire semester (tear!).  But boy, did I save the best for last!

My boyfriend and I arrived in Barcelona Thursday night, and we promptly noticed one thing: the signs were not in Spanish! What the heck!  They were actually in Catalan, a language from this Catalonia region of Spain, which mixes Spanish with a heavy French influence.  Therefore, it was really odd that we couldn’t read any of the signs.  Thankfully, the locals understood Spanish, so we were able to get on just fine.  

This sign demonstrates Barca's multilingual culture: you'll see welcome messages in Spanish, English, Catalan and French.  

At least at our hostel, speaking Spanish was unnecessary, since the workers were friendly and spoke flawless English.  One employee ensured us that even though it was nearly 11 pm, it wasn’t too late for dinner, so we walked about a mile away to an authentic Spanish place.  I talked a little with the waiter in Spanish, particularly asking him what was in a certain dish.  He answered so quickly that I could not understand him, but I didn’t want to seem stupid, so I just thanked him for the explanation and ordered the next dish I saw: paella marinara.  Paella is a traditional Spanish dish normally packed with rice and seafood, but I ordered the marinara kind, so it should just be rice and marinara sauce...right? WRONG.  OH SO WRONG.  Marinara, apparently, means seafood.  So I got the whole enchilada (figure of speech, not actually an enchilada): shrimp and mussels and all.  But the good news is I actually ate it!  It was pretty good, too, although I don’t know when I’ll order it again :)  This anecdote was just another example of how study abroad has made me more open to trying new things!

Not exactly what I had in mind, but I'll roll with it.

Friday, our first real day in Spain, was a doozie!  We woke up quite early and grabbed a fast breakfast, which for me will always be cafe y croissant con chocolate.  We then headed to La Sagrada Familia, a beautiful basilica the work of Antoni Gaudi.  What makes this cathedral so cool, besides its Art Nouveau architecture, is the fact it’s not done yet!  Construction began in 1882 and is expected to continue until the mid 21^st century.  The parts that were done, though, floored me.  The outside of the cathedral consists of three different facades, two of which are complete. The detailed and naturalistic Nativity Facade depicts Jesus’ birth; the harsh and bony Passion Facade shows scenes of Jesus’ death.  Yet the inside of the church is absolutely the most spectacular.  The architecture and light was something I had never seen before.  But don’t take my word for it!  Art critic Rainer Zerbst once said "it is probably impossible to find a church building anything like it in the entire history of art.”  Not too shabby praise, eh?

Too cute to drink.  Just kidding, I downed it in ten seconds.

Outside La Sagrada Familia.

The Passion Facade was my favorite.  This scene in particular shows Pilate's worry and uncertainty as he condemns Jesus to death.

In the words of Gaudi, "The amount of light should be just right-- not too much, not too little-- since having too much or too little light can both cause blindness."

HOLY COW!

We then walked uphill to Park Guell, another Guadi work, which was constructed from 1900-1914.  The park was intended to be another city within Barcelona built only for the elite, where they could live free of smoke and city congestion.  Yet when that idea failed, they made the enclosed area a park.  Lucky us!  The park seemed to go on forever; it was filled with winding paths that led to gorgeous views of the city.  Interestingly enough, it also contained the world’s largest continuous bench, which was totally made of mosaics.

99% sure this was the coolest park I will ever see.

Cheesin'

Later, we headed back to the main part of the city and walked down La Rambla, the large, touristy street.  When we turned a corner we found the Boqueria Market—what a gem!  We got fresh fruit smoothies (I had coconut and raspberry), chicken empanadas and a bowl of fresh tropical fruit.  Fueled by our purchases, we explored a little more, including stopping by Plaza Real, checking out the outside of the Cathedral, seeing the Botanical Gardens and walking through Barcelona’s own Arc de Triumpf.  

I can eat it all, no?

Palm tree loving!

Before we knew it, we headed back to the hostel to clean up a bit before our night out on the town.  It began at the Plaza Espana, where we watched a Magic Fountain show, quite similar to what you can see at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.  We then headed to what now is a mall (it used to be an old bullfighting arena) to grab a Catalan dinner.  Guys, this was SO exciting, because after I had some small talk with the waitress (in Spanish, of course), she even asked me if I wanted a Spanish or an English menu!  It was such a compliment :) Alas, I took the English menu, and subsequently I enjoyed a CHICKEN dish.  Now that's what I'm talking about.  We concluded the night by heading back to Plaza Real and seeing a Flamenco show in an intimate Spanish club.  The dancing was so cool and passionate; I just loved it!  We ended the night by strolling up and down the plazas and grabbing some churros con nutella, which were of course sensational but gone way too soon.

Saturday we also wanted an equally jam-packed day, so once again we rose and indulged in cafe y un croissant con chocolate.  We then headed back towards the Plaza Espana area of town, about 20 minutes south of our hostel.  There we walked to the Olympic Stadium, which was built when Barcelona hosted the 1992 Summer Olympics.  While we were in the area, we checked out the Montjuic Castle, which offered beautiful views of the city.  I enjoyed the castle because it was unlike others we had seen before; it was much more open and simple.  It’s very Barcelona to be against the grain like that, and I like that :)

Inside the Olympic Park... I wanted to run on that track SO badly!

The view from the Montjuic Castle.

We then headed to the boardwalk and strolled along the beach.  We even got to soak in some sun rays on some random beach chairs until a man came up and demanded 6 Euro from us.  It was just SO relaxing...I felt like I was on a vacation!  On the way back to our hostel, we stopped in the Botanical Gardens one more time, where we came across people rowing in a beautiful manmade lake.  So of course we did it too, and I enjoyed a beautiful 30-minute boat ride, a la Little Mermaid in the “Kiss the Girl” scene.  

The beach! Oh, how we've missed you!

Rowing like a champion today

The grateful passenger:)

When it ended, we walked back home through a beautiful organic market, but we unfortunately we could not stop to shop because we had to prep for tonight’s activity: a trip to Camp Nou (Europe’s largest football stadium, which seats nearly 100,000) to watch Barcelona Football Club take on Levante.  I’m not a football fan per se, but calling my boyfriend one would be an understatement.  He was PSYCHED.  We’re talking kid before Christmas, teen before getting a license psyched.  Still, I did have the time of my life.  We had amazing seats (originally 134 Euro a pop!) and only paid 120E total for them.  My boyfriend helped explain all the rules to me, and we even bought a scarf to get truly into the spirit.  It was so fun to how into it the crowd got.  Getting home after the game was kind of an epic, considering Barcelona’s metro system is nowhere near as efficient as London’s Tube.  However, we did eventually make it back to the city, so we stopped for tapas and a drink before calling it a night.

At the market.  I wasn't sure if this man was going to pickpocket me or not, so I did not take the abrazo, but it's a super sweet gesture.

Awwww yeah it's futból time!

The next morning we departed early and headed out to the airport.  By 2 pm we were back in London, and although I was happy to touch down, I was so sad about leaving Barca.  I do not regret one thing we did there— I felt we were extremely efficient and saw a TON.  However, I do feel like there are things I still wanted to do.  I cannot wait to return again someday.  This was certainly my favorite trip and I recommend it wholeheartedly.  The city always felt safe (after all, people stay awake until 5 am here!) and everything seemed cheap compared to London.  On top of that, it is a walkable city—and who doesn’t like to stroll around in the gorgeous sunshine? Sigh.  Just what a spectacular, spectacular way to end my international travels here in Europe.   I will miss you Barca, but be ready because I’ll be back. 

Cheers,
C

PS...Let me also wholeheartedly recommend the Barcelona Central Garden Hostel if you ever go.  It was located in a central part of the city (right by Plaza Catalunya) and was extremely nice, including fans and TVs in the bedrooms and recently renovated bathroom facilities.  Coming from a wannabe hostel expert, this place was the Bomb Diggity.