July 19^th, 2012

Day 61: Barcelona, Spain

After a late night, we took the liberty of sleeping in as long as we could- which was only until about 10:30/11ish because our terrace doors/windows were open to allow for a breeze and the city was hustling and bustling by that time! We each got ready, packed Stephen’s bag for the day and were off!

We wanted to visit some of the most famous things Barcelona has to offer and our first stop was Las Ramblas. Las Ramblas is a shopping street with a large mall in the center where there are vendors, souvenir shops, food, drinks, street performers and more. We had fun walking down the center and taking it all in. Off to one of the sides we saw the entrance to a food market that we couldn’t resist going into. Little did we know it would turn into an hour long affair of us getting lost, eating, getting lost some more and then eating again!

Plaza before Las Ramblas

Baby chicks for sale on Las Ramblas!

Our first stop, the typical Americans that we are, was ‘Dunkin Coffee’- aka Dunkin D’s. I’m not sure why it wasn’t called Dunkin Donuts like the ones in Berlin were; maybe some kind of franchise rule in Spain. Regardless, I got an iced coffee and Stephen got a Coolata before we started our trek into the labrynth that awaited us.

We entered the market and were immediately greeted by several differnet things: every color under the rainbow in fruit stands, fresh selections of nuts, candied fruits and sweets, large fish on beds of ice staring blankly ahead with their mouths (full of teeth, I might add) gaping, and the wonderful smells of fresh crepes, falafel, omelettes and more. This was heaven. We spent some time just getting lost inside of the market, deciding what we wanted to grab for some lunch (a very difficult task).

We ended up buying a paper cone full of fresh chorizo to snack on while we wandered. And what a good idea it was- my arteries may disagree, but my taste buds and stomach were definitely happy. Cuando en Espana! Each of us finally  made a decision on what we wanted- Stephen got a plate of fresh battered cod and chips and I settled on a falafel from a kosher stand. We tried to stand in line for the falafel several times, but surrounded by people yelling in Catalan and intimidated by the uncertainty of how to pronounce ‘tomato’ properly when I was about to order, we did a few circles to come back to the stand when the rush had died down. I also grabbed a cup of fresh mango juice- literally just pure, fresh mango puree- it was heavenly. It reminded me of the mangos I eat whenever I’m down in Ft. Lauderdale visiting my Uncle!

We sat in a shady spot on Las Ramblas to finish up our lunch and then waddled our way to the beach (wayyyy too much food in our stomachs). On our way, we saw some seriously impressive street performers. By performers I mean the ones that paint themselves and dress up like statues to take photos with tourists. Let me tell you though, these guys were serious about their costumes and I would give them first place out of any of the other guys we’ve seen cross Europe.

We got to the beach and stayed for about 2 hours or so, again, making sure to apply and reapply sunscreen regularly. The water was gorgeous, yet again, and since this was our second visit, even the guys walking along the beach selling drinks (with constant calls of “mojito, mojito, mojitooooo” with a Steven Tyler-esque inflection at the end and ‘beer, cerveza, water, Coca Cola, friaaaaaa”) weren’t annoying anymore.

After we left the beach we made our way to the metro to head to the train station. We needed to grab our tickets for Madrid tomorrow! The trains run fairly often between the two cities so we weren’t worried, but getting to the train station and taking a number that was 150 people away from the current one being served was certainly dishearteneing. About halfway through our wait though, some strangers gave us a number about 40 less than our original, which was very nice of them!  Booking our tickets took no time at all and soon we were back on the metro an en route to Park Guell.

Park Guell is a must see in Barcelona if anyone reading this is planning to go. When I say it was incredible, I mean that it is incredible to the point of there not being a word that means incredibly incredible in the English language to describe it. I don’t know much about Gaudi’s work, but this park seems to sum up his attitude and approach to artistic expression. It is set high on a hill in Barcelona, offering stunning views of the city out to the ocean. There are mosaics everywhere- in the signs that say ‘Park Guell,’ in the large lizard statues that serve as decorative fountains, in the steps leading up to the Alice in Wonderland-type houses and towers, on the benches, in the railings- everywhere. Absolutely everywhere.  And the mosaics are exploding with colors, patterns and designs that catch your eye and seem to take on a new shape every time you look at them. I was inspired to try to do my own mosaic projects when I get home, for sure!

We spent some time in the park, admiring the views, experiencing the wildlife (cats in the woods, salamanders stalking their dinner, rainbow colored parrots procreating in the palm trees), and just relaxing and appreciating where we were and how lucky we were to be there.

On the way back from Park Guell, we stopped in a grocery store to get some water and found boxes (1 liter) of Sangria for 89 cents. So, as is typical for this pair, we bought 4. We got back to our hostel, opened a box of sangria, got a few things in order and then prepared to head back out to go to La Sagrada Familia, another one of Gaudi’s masterpieces!

We got there a bit before 12 and spent about 20 minutes just standing and staring at the building. Gaudi designed it and only saw a small portion of it completed before he died in the early 1900's. Its a church dedicated to the holy family and will probably be under construction until 2026. It was huge, assymetrial, so incredibly detailed and absolutely baffling all together. There was so much detail in every person that was carved in the building. So much though that went into the design of the ‘steeples’ and their significance. It was absolutely breathtaking to see the design that Gaudi had masterminded.

The lights on the building went out as the clock struck midnight, coincidentally, as Stephen’s finger tapped the camera logo to take  a photo of me. Attempt at a photo in front of Sagrada Familia fail. But funny, nonetheless.

Too little, too late!

On our way home we stopped for some pizza, realizing that we hadn’t eaten dinner yet and probably should before we went to sleep. We got a Hawaiian pizza to go with our sangria and started to head home! We tried to get directions from the people at the pizza shop but their directions included taking the metro, which was closed. After talking to few people on the street, we figured out how to get home by bus and were on our way!

Pizzaaaa

We got back a bit before 2 and went to sleep so we’d be ready to travel!

Favorite part of the day: I really enjoyed Las Ramblas/the market this morning. I would love to have that market as my main shopping spot if I lived in Barcelona! I also really enjoyed speaking in Spanish with a bunch of the locals today. Whether it was ordering food, asking for directions or just saying hello, it’s fun to speak in Spanish and I enjoy practicing. Time to find someway to do that when I get home!