Barcelona Is....

Barcelona is wonderful. I had no idea what to expect other than crazy architecture and the 9th best chocolate store in the world. But it is so much more than that – so much so that I didn’t even get to the chocolate store, nor did I get my beloved cupcake that I set out to find with such determination. Yep, I forewent legendary sweets and baked goods, so you know this trip was a big deal. I got off the Metro Friday afternoon to a huge port filled with the sails of private boats, yachts, and even floating restaurants. The first smell to hit me (other than the Metro Musk, which I don’t feel like I need to recount) was sunscreen, and I was LOVING IT. I walked to our beachfront hostel and met up with SARA YUSKO (hey girl you’re famous, at least among the 8 people who read my blog other than my parents) and some of her friends from the Notre Dame program in London. We had a great afternoon on the beach, which was a pleasant surprise. I had wanted to jump into seeing some sights immediately, but as soon as I sat down I realized how much I wanted to be lying on a beach. So we did that. And then we ate delicious seafood paella at a restaurant on the water.
The rest of the weekend was just as relaxing. We kept a great balance of tourist-ing and beaching. The weather all weekend was ideal for both. “Abundant sunshine,” according to weather.com. It was hard to get a feel for the people in Barcelona – it seemed to me to be very much a city of tourists, although much of that probably was because we hit all the tourist spots. I will always wonder where all the Barcelonians were hiding this weekend!
As for the sights:
- Parc Guell. INCREDIBLE. This park was filled with unique mosaics and designs. We pretty much had to walk up a ninety degree (180 degree? Straight up) incline to reach it, but it was well worth it. Like a playground for grownups (although as a kid I would have FLIPPED for this place).
- Sagrada Familia. A magnificently unique cathedral begun by Gaudi and still under construction for at least 10 more years. It is one of a kind because nobody in history liked his style enough to copy it (though it is so intricate, few people could). I sat and just took it in for a long while. It is absolutely necessary to see in Barcelona – for a good five minutes, all I could say was, “wow.” It is certainly striking at 1st glance and 2nd, and 3rd.
- Lunch at Mercat de la Boqueria, lots of colors and smells, though free samples are scarce so I wouldn’t see any reason to go back there personally.
That night, we ate Mexican food and found a bar to watch the Barcelona-Real Madrid soccer game in (Barcelona won!). The next morning I got up and went to the Cathedral for mass, then hit the Picasso museum which I LOVED. I never really knew nor cared much about Picasso (I suck, whatever) but this museum presented the progression of his art over the course of his life in such a fascinating way. I learned a lot and really enjoyed it. The museum is tucked away a bit into some side streets, which made it all the more fun to discover.
AND now I am home, heading to Portugal on Friday until Sunday, will be home for FERIA until the end of next week, then going to the Costa del Sol to soak up some Sol (sun)! I’m happy that I’ll be able to fully experience Feria while still traveling a bit when people flock to Sevilla. Sevilla has been inundated with tourists ever since a few weeks before Semana Santa and it is a bit much for me. It’s such a clash of foreign and familiar, although the interesting thing is, hearing all the English and seeing all the people of my heritage and brand preferences (think North Face and Starbucks) is kind of more the foreign part. I have been getting used to feeling like a black sheep lost in a big city – uh, combo of metaphors there, go with it. Spain is my place to feel like a lost American wide-eyed mess, not like I can walk up to a stranger and have them speak to me in English! It really messes with my mind. I have heard that the culmination of Feria is the peak tourist time. It’s funny that the draw of an event so deeply cultural as feria can be almost countercultural in how much it attracts people of other cultures. I don’t know if this goes for feria, but I think semana santa is gaining the reputation in Spain for being an overwhelming, overcrowded mess of tourists blocking the streets. Many Spaniards of more recent generations, my senora included, take Semana Santa as a time to leave! That also might be because Spain isn’t as religious in principle as it is in tradition, but it is certainly a factor. Neverthess, Semana Santa and Feria are still decidedly Spanish and I am so glad that coming abroad in the spring has given me the opportunity to experience them.