Sorry it's been so long since I've written anything but to be fair I haven't been up to much. I mean who among you wants to read about me sitting in classes and going to the gym? - Oh yeah, I joined a gym since I last wrote and it's great when I'm not too sick to go. Anyways, I digress. I write to you all with tales of a great adventure I had - five wonderful days in sunny Barcelona, Spain. Originally this was just going to be a trip to see my childhood friend Taylor but then I convinced Marie that it was worth the money and we went in search of some Vitamin D. Our flight from Dublin was at 6:30am on the 6th which meant we needed to leave on the last bus out of Galway which is at 2am. We stayed up all day and night packing and being too excited to nap like we should have but that wore off as soon as the bus started moving and we both dozed off. Arrival and check-in at the airport were a breeze as was the flight which we also slept through.
When we touched down and I looked out the plane window and saw glorious sunshine and blue skies I knew it would be worth every cent. When we got through customs - which was a joke - and got our bags we hailed a cab and were off to the hostel but don't worry, we made sure to "stop and smell the roses" aka stare in awe at all the palm trees by the airport first. I wasn't quite sure what to expect when it came to a hostel but boy was I lucky to have such an amazing first experience. We were staying in a 9 bed co-ed room which ended up being awesome because we met people from all over and got to hear their stories and live vicariously through their adventures. However when we got there at 10:30 and couldn't get into our room until 2pm we decided to ditch our luggage in the storage room and do some exploring. And by exploring I mean getting hopelessly lost in a big Spanish-speaking city, have no fear - I made it out alive. Let me pause here for a little life lesson: never ever travel to a country that speaks another language with only the phrase "two beers please" in your pocket it just isn't good. Thank goodness I had Marie (who took Spanish in high school) to teach me other key tidbits like how to ask for and understand directions and such. Either way we ended up at the cost admiring more palm trees and the warmth - yes I said warmth - of the sun on our faces.
Eventually we found our way to food and back to the hostel for naps and showers which get this stayed warm the entire time!! It was a glorious victory over the showers we are used to at our Irish flat. That night our hostel was doing a 3 euro pasta dinner preceded by drinking games and followed by a bar crawl night out and let me tell you, it was one of the most fun nights of my life. I spare you all the details but there is something so incredibly fun about going out with a whole bunch of fast friends and enjoying the experience of a new city.
On Day 2 we slept in a little cause, well.. we needed it. When we got up and got ready we met up with my old friend Taylor for some grub and headed off to Park Guell. I don't know how many of you have heard of Antoni Gaudi but he is a major architect who contributed on a major level to the city of Barcelona and his work is beyond words. Gaudi lived in Park Guell and among our enjoyment of the never ending paths and amazing views we got to go inside the house in which he lived for the last few years of his life. Gaudi also designed furniture so one of the first things we were shown were several of his pieces. When I say that he did furniture I don't mean the cookie-cutter stuff we are used to today, I mean he designed pieces based on the person/people that would be using them. If you liked to sit with your arm over the back of a bench, Gaudi would put a nook in the back of the bench directly spaced for your arm to make you more comfortable - how cool is that?? Anyways, throughout his house we learned about his many influences (mostly water), his passions (mainly religion), and the locations of all of his work throughout the city. Once we were finished at the house we did some more wandering - I really can't even begin to tell you how huge this place was - and it was all so beautiful. The section of the park that houses Gaudi's sculptures you have to pay to get into, or at least we thought we did until a guy who worked for the park told us that it was free after 6pm which was only an hour away - we literally had spent all day in this park - so we went to get some food and then we went back to the park. I think this part of the park would've been more enjoyable for me if it hadn't gotten so freakin cold, when the sun goes down in Barcelona the temperature seriously drops like ten degrees. Luckily, there were guys in the park selling scarves so I bought one to keep warm and didn't even try to haggle.
After we left the park and said "see ya later" to Taylor we headed back to the hostel for a well needed nap. That night we had an excursion (via the hostel) to the Magic Fountain show and then to get tapas. Don't get me wrong, the fountain was really cool all lit up and showy with music playing but most of us after two minutes were really wishing we had gotten a few drinks into ourselves before enduring the 20 minute show. That being said, the tapas afterwords was probably one of my favorite parts of the trip. Tapas is something that America should really adopt, it's basically a bar filled with different kinds of hors d'oevures from which you get to make you plate and then you are charged per tapas. The one Eddie - our fantastic guide from the hostel - took us to was 1 euro per tapas so naturally in was insanely packed but eventually we all got our food and sat around a few tables outside laughing and telling stories and jokes. That night the hostel went out but we stayed in feeling very tired from all of our adventuring.
Day 3 began with what was probably my favorite thing we went to in the whole city - Basilica de la Sangrada Familia. The construction on this amazing church began in 1882 and is still going on today. It was designed by Gaudi and goes on per his explicit instructions now even though he is no longer alive. There were two completed facades at the Sangrada Familia, the nativity facade and the passion facade and the striking difference between the two is striking.
Gaudi's design here is just.. awe inspiring, the grandeur of the nativity at the front of the church and the bare bone reality of the passion at the back.. it took many many minutes to process it all. The inside of the church was like standing in a rainbow because of all the natural light that filtered in through the stained glass windows. And (as designed) the pillars throughout the church reached up high like trees and the spread out into branches that light shone down through. I must admit that I was surprised by the crucifix over the alter, I was imagining something huge like the outside of the building but the crucifix inside was not at all like the one of the passion facade but it was beautiful. The organ pipes were as thick as my forearm and taller than I could crane my neck to see. Basically, this place is a gem for religious art nerds like me and must-do for anyone in the city.
When we got back to the hostel we took a nap and then celebrate the birthday of one of our new friends via the hostel's 3 euro sangria night. Instead of giving you all a play-by-play of the night, let me add another life lesson to this story: homemade sangria is to be taken seriously.. very seriously.
Day 4 (because of how day 3 ended) was a very relaxed day in Barcelona. We had every intention of taking a cable car from the beach, over the harbor, and up to a mountain. However, the universe had other plans for us. While enroute to the cable cars we heard loud music and saw lots of people flocking towards one street. It took a little convincing but I got Marie to agree to check it out and boy were we glad we did. Basically, we stumbled upon a carnival parade and a shop stalls going all down the street. It was a sea of color and costumes and music and I loved every second of it. The market booths were equally as cool and we saw all sorts of foods and crafts - which of course we had to try and get bits of.
When the parade was finished we made our way to the cable car take off point just to find out that it was an hour wait until the next car would leave so we decided to ditch it and go enjoy the beach instead - and oh was that glorious. There is nothing more enjoyable then heading to a beach in a sunny warm place after being cooped up in rainy dreary Ireland. When we got there we realized we didn't have anything to lay on to avoid sand landing in every nook of our clothing, not to mention our hair. Luckily there was a guy - several guys really - walking around selling blankets to lay on so we bought the first cool ones we found and settled in for some really great relaxation. In Barcelona almost everywhere you turn there are guys selling beer, many times if you say no they change their advertisement to "sexy beer" whatever that means, I usually passed up these offers but on the beach I decided to say screw it and I got myself two very sexy cold beers and laid back to enjoy the sun. After some time I flipped onto my stomach - its much easier to drink beer that way - and before I knew it there was a Spanish woman offering to massage my legs for 5 euro. After spending days walking around the city nothing sounded better to me than a good foot rub so I agreed and got the best foot/leg massage of my life so good was it that when she offered to do my back and neck for another five I agreed without a second thought. However, as soon as I agreed the woman started to take off my shirt - remember when I said I didn't have any beach stuff?? That included a bathing suit. Luckily (I guess) she only pulled it up to my neck but again, before I knew it she also had my bra undone - thank goodness I was laying on my stomach! I didn't have time to be mad or feel insecure because the massage felt so freakin good and soon my only concern was that she righted my clothes before I had to pay her - which she did. And that my friends was the best 10 euro I spent in Barcelona.
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View of the city from the park  |
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| The Magic Fountain |
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| The Nativity Facade |
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| The Passion Facade |
After leaving the basilica we went to the city's Arc de Trimof which I guess is similar to Paris' L'arc de triomphe. It was surrounded by very cool street performers and on our way to the Picasso museum.
We couldn't take any pictures in the Picasso museum but trust me, it was very very impressive. Next we headed to Parc de la Ciutadella which felt like walking into the coolest hipster hangout ever. We were surrounded by jugglers and soccer players and people doing tricks on slack lines and lets not forget the many people just lounging around enjoying the sun and listening to music. In the park there was a gigantic fountain, I mean it was truly remarkable with golden statues at the top and beautiful sculptures all throughout. Also in the park was a gigantic elephant I don't know why and I really didn't ask. Something I've learned while being abroad is to not second strange new things, but to embrace them.
Day 4 (because of how day 3 ended) was a very relaxed day in Barcelona. We had every intention of taking a cable car from the beach, over the harbor, and up to a mountain. However, the universe had other plans for us. While enroute to the cable cars we heard loud music and saw lots of people flocking towards one street. It took a little convincing but I got Marie to agree to check it out and boy were we glad we did. Basically, we stumbled upon a carnival parade and a shop stalls going all down the street. It was a sea of color and costumes and music and I loved every second of it. The market booths were equally as cool and we saw all sorts of foods and crafts - which of course we had to try and get bits of.
When the parade was finished we made our way to the cable car take off point just to find out that it was an hour wait until the next car would leave so we decided to ditch it and go enjoy the beach instead - and oh was that glorious. There is nothing more enjoyable then heading to a beach in a sunny warm place after being cooped up in rainy dreary Ireland. When we got there we realized we didn't have anything to lay on to avoid sand landing in every nook of our clothing, not to mention our hair. Luckily there was a guy - several guys really - walking around selling blankets to lay on so we bought the first cool ones we found and settled in for some really great relaxation. In Barcelona almost everywhere you turn there are guys selling beer, many times if you say no they change their advertisement to "sexy beer" whatever that means, I usually passed up these offers but on the beach I decided to say screw it and I got myself two very sexy cold beers and laid back to enjoy the sun. After some time I flipped onto my stomach - its much easier to drink beer that way - and before I knew it there was a Spanish woman offering to massage my legs for 5 euro. After spending days walking around the city nothing sounded better to me than a good foot rub so I agreed and got the best foot/leg massage of my life so good was it that when she offered to do my back and neck for another five I agreed without a second thought. However, as soon as I agreed the woman started to take off my shirt - remember when I said I didn't have any beach stuff?? That included a bathing suit. Luckily (I guess) she only pulled it up to my neck but again, before I knew it she also had my bra undone - thank goodness I was laying on my stomach! I didn't have time to be mad or feel insecure because the massage felt so freakin good and soon my only concern was that she righted my clothes before I had to pay her - which she did. And that my friends was the best 10 euro I spent in Barcelona.
That evening I met up with Taylor and her mom and sister-in-law and hit up La Rambla which is a huge outdoor market that sold all sorts of goodies. That night our hostel took us to an Irish pub where I salsa danced and listened to really bad karaoke, yeah no explanation needed on that one.
Day 5 Marie and I got some breakfast and headed out to la Casa Batllo which is a home (more like mansion) that was designed by Gaudi. It is said to be inspired by water as well as a dragon so there are no straight lines in the majority of the building. All the walls and ceilings are waved and all the staircases were curved - it was amazing. I don't know what else I can say about Casa Batllo so I'll just show you pictures instead.
After we were done at Casa Batllo, Marie wasn't feeling well so she went back to the hostel and I headed back to Park Guell. I had an amazing couple hours sitting on a wall looking out over Barcelona and listening to street musicians before heading back to the hostel for a roomie dinner date with Marie. After a delicious dinner with strawberry daiquiris Marie headed to bed and I went out with a few friends from the hostel for a drink and some good conversation - I mean come on, it was Monday. The night proved interesting as we helped a very intoxicated girl from the bar to her hostel, shared a sandwich with a homeless man, and scaled a giant cat statue but it was all in good company and was a great way to end my trip in Barcelona.
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| Getting up there was a lot harder than it looks!! |
The next morning Marie and I woke up bright and early to check out and catch a shuttle from our hostel to the airport. There was never more anxious feelings than as Marie and I had our carry-ons weighed at check-in - luckily we were both under the 10kg limit and got to check our bags for free. We got through security with no problems and were soon on our way back to Ireland. After a flight which we both again slept through we went through customs in Ireland - another joke - and hopped on a bus back to Galway. We were very happy to get home to a beautiful sunshiney day in Galway and pass out in our crappy two-bed bedroom safely home with many new memories and friends.
Sorry this was so long but it was a long trip with lots to talk about. I'll write another post about what has been going on in Galway since our return from Spain soon - and this time I mean it when I say it will be shorter!
Until next time,
Sarah
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