Yeah for Barcelona

Welcome to Barcelona. The home of more Gaudi orginals than anywhere else in the world!
see all photos »

We arrived into Barcelona in the morning.  I had booked us a hotel based on a Lonely Planet recommendation, and it turned out pretty nice.  The location was the best!  It was in Barri Gothic, a very concentrated neighborhood of tapas, tabernas, and shopping.  The winding streets seemed to twist back on to each other, and it is easy to feel lost.  We were never worried though, because there are so many people around at all hours of the day and night!  This city is alive all the time!

A cathedral without an inside!
see all photos »

We explore the old neighborhood (Ciudad Viejo) and came across the large tree lined avenue of La Rambla.  This street runs from Placa Catalunya down to the coast of the Mediterranean.  It is so full of people most times of the day that it is hard to see your feet as you are carried along with the crowd down the street.  Right now there are tons of Christmas lights and decoration adorning most of the trees and side streets.  There are also street performers every 50 feet on La Rambla.  They are either in a frozen pose as some crazy character, or they are posing as a celebrity impersonator like Ronalhdo, the soccer player for Barcelona.  He even had the fake bad teeth!

Beautiful stained glass windows inside the cathedral.
see all photos »

Our second day in this bustling city led us to a Gaudi masterpiece.  The towers of the greatest unfinished construction site in the world.  The cathedral that Gaudi attempted to build is still in the works, long after his death!  It is amazing though, for a building with no inside yet.  We stood in the long line to get in, and then had to stand for an hour to get the elevator ride up to the top of one of the towers.  Oh My Gosh!  Vertigo!  The openings, winding staircased, and tightness of the spaces was crazy!  Jackie went down on the elevator pretty quickly, and I soon followed after climbing the extra stairs to the tippy top.  I got my picture, and then had to head out.  Will braved the stairs down, and arrived on ground level with very wobbly knees!  We were all happy to be on solid ground after that!

The tip of four of the towers. It was a scary view down for Jackie and I!
see all photos »

We walked to the block of Discordancia where six different architecture styles line the street.  There are some very crazy designs, and we all agreed that Gaudi must have wanted to live in a mushroom because his designs are all so swirly!  We had sushi for lunch!  Yeah for me, and then continued to walk back towards Barri Gotic.

Dinner was excellent at Taller de Tapas where we dined on wine, artichokes, fish, and sausage.  Our waiter was so friendly and knowledgeable that Jackie and I ate there again on her last night in town!

The carvings on the outside of the cathedral were amazing.
see all photos »

On Saturday, Will had to catch a flight to Madrid for his final flight home.  We walked him to the bus and said goodbye.  Then, Jackie and I wandered La Rambla to find a place for lunch.  After full bellies, we walked the coastline towards the 1992 Olympic Village.  It is up in the hills, and the hike was definately heavy.  The views at the top were definately worth it.  We walked through the village to see the stadium, torch, and arena.  They are a little old looking, and it is sad that they dont seemed to be used that much anymore.  We walked back down the hill through the Museum of Modern Art, and caught the Metro back to La Rambla.  We spent Jackies last night wandering through the Barri Gothic again, and had wine and tapas at Taller de Tapas.  She had to get up at 330 am, so we headed to bed early.  Overall, Barcelona has been incredible.  It is a good mix of big city and culture.

We tried chocolate and churros. A drink so think you dipped your churro in it to eat.
see all photos »

I am here two more days, and hope to see the Parc Guell with the longest mosaic tiled park bench designed by who else, Gaudi!  I hope to just relax as well, as I adjust to solo travel again.  Pictures hopefully coming soon!