The Rain in Spain Falls Mainly on the Plain

Gaudi's "La Segrada Familia" (Holy Family)


We are in Barcelona! We arrived yesterday after a short flight from Dublin with Rynair, where they are overly strict with baggage and they have a smoking section of the plane. How bizarre. After getting off the plane I got to practice my Spanish because the ticket machine was broken and we had to ask multiple people how to pay for the bus and where to find the correct one to get to our hostel. At first glance I knew that I would love Barcelona. The streets are clean and the sky is blue. The weather is wonderful and the buildings are spectacular. There are palm trees on every street. To top it off we paid for a room for two people, and we were just going to stick it out, but they ended up placing us in a room that sleeps four so we all get our own beds! Granted, I miss snuggling with Jared, but it is better than having three people on one double bed. Also, the hostel is really nice. Classy, you know?

After arriving we did some sightseeing/shopping in combination with a ton of walking. We saw all of La Rambla, which is the major tourist street that leads to the major Port in Barcelona. We walked all along the water and through the narrow streets taking it all in. The city is spectacular. After walking for hours we were worn out and decided to come back to the hostel and do some work. Turns out, Chelsea and I fell asleep for a couple of hours. When we woke up it was 10:30 and we were starving. Lucky, we are in Barcelona where they eat extra-late at night and everything was open. We ate "Italian" which really means wanna-be Italian that tastes a little off. BUT, we were starved and it did the job. Actually, all of the food does the job but tastes a little off. It just isn't what we are used to.

The people here are more than willing to help with directions and really any questions that we may have. Of course, their English is very minimal so we sometimes just smile and nod. It has been really fun for me though to refresh my Spanish, and the people here appreciate any effort to speak in Catalan Spanish so it is rewarding even if my grammar is equivalent to a 5-year old's.

Today was extremely enjoyable. We devoted our day to the architectural works of Gaudi. If you haven't heard of this man, you should look up his works. Actually, if you haven't been to Barcelona, you should come. I know this is pretty hasty for me to decide, but of all the cities I have visited during my travels, Barcelona wins. Who is to say what Paris or Venice may do to my opinion, but for now Barcelona has my heart. The city is small enough that it is easy enough to get around, but so rich in culture. I am just going to post a couple of pictures on here to give you an idea of what it is like, or you can check out the album on my Facebook page. There are entertainers all over the streets performing dance or drama with their hats out and face up to collect tips. There are balconies and fancy crown work on every building. We saw Gaudi's La Segrada Familia (a cathedral), Casa Mila (apartment building), and Parc Guell (national park) and all of them are spectacular. We walked all over the city today to see them, and the sore feet are definitely worth it.

Tomorrow we have plans to see the Castle of Montjuic and the sandy coast. There is also a fantastic Aquarium here that has a 250 ft. tunnel with sea creatures swimming all around. We are thinking about doing that depending on the price.

Anyway, I have got to get back to work! I just don't have as much time to blog as I used to. We are leaving Spain on Thursday afternoon and heading back to Dublin for 3 more weeks. Jason comes on March 10th, which is something to really look forward to. I hopefully should have some time to post again before then. Thanks for reading :)