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Published: March 26th 2013
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Forgive the Queen impression (Freddie not Elizabeth) but I can never, ever hear the word Barcelona without the song going off in my head. So you can imagine what writing this blog is like. Better do it quick before I start air-miking.
Barcelona has been a bit of a travel bete noir for me. 2 aborted trips in the past and one of my best friends had her hen weekend there at my suggestion.....and I couldn't make it. So I was very excited when Mark suggested we fly from Italy to Barcelona on our way to France.
The problem is that by this stage of our travels we were a little jaded and also we were REALLY not used to masses of people everywhere. We struggled with this in Venice and Florence, and Barcelona was another case in point. I know if we had visited there direct from California we would not have noticed or cared but unfortunately it did mar our visit somewhat.
OK - that was just a warning in case the blog sounds a little spoiled bratty. We are aware that yes we were very lucky and more than a little spoiled. It was still
a great visit.
Our first stop outside of Las Ramblas where we were based was to probably the most famous sight in Barcelona - the Sagrada Familia. Gaudi became involved in this cathedral construction in 1883 and was still working on it when he died in 1926. In 2012, as per his plans, it is still under construction -due for completion in 2026. Unfortunately this means it feels like a construction site and although you can get a sense of its majesty and, OK, wackiness, it is definitely marred by the cranes and tarpaulins. Now of course we should have gone inside but a (rare) lack of planning on my part meant we hadn't purchased tickets in advance and the queue was huge. Plan B was to buy them on line and come back another day but due to other demands on our time involving tapas and Cava, that didn't actually happen. So my apologies to fans of the Familia - it was a big disappointment to us but I have made a diary note to revisit in 2026.
As the weather was pleasant during our visit we chose to walk nearly everywhere which meant we caught some
of the famous Gaudi buildings as well as his Parc Güell a garden complex (apparently an ex-housing project!) which contains various whimsical architectural pieces including his house. It was a pleasant park but again (stamp foot!) there were too many people. We enjoyed walking miles through the back streets however stopping off in shops, bars and coffee houses along the way.
Food-wise we were definitely not disappointed, although it took a bit of work to avoid the tourist traps. We did pretty well and enjoyed some great Montaditos (open faced sandwiches) topped with various cheeses, charcuterie, anchovies etc. We also indulged in huge plates of Serrano ham (food of the gods) and even found somewhere selling rabbit stew which is one of my favorites. We did not have paella because unfortunately one of the few things I don't like is crustaceans and molluscs and the specialty is laden with mussels, shrimp etc. It's such a shame because all that stuff looks so yummy - but every time I try it I dislike it. And no, you can't pick them off because it is made with fish stock and the flavor pervades! Of course paella is made to share so
Mark missed out too because I wouldn't let him eat a whole one. Mean wife. Next time we will go with friends!
We also visited the beach (OK - we looked at the small, packed beach and then went for more tapas). On our final evening we stumbled on (and out of) a local Cava tasting festival which was very good fun (and good value). Having talked to some of the producers we have decided that we are definitely going to travel further around Catalonia when we next visit the area.
The following day we sadly split up for a week as Mark headed back to the USA to interview for a job and I headed off on the bus over the border to Montpelier, France to attend french school for a week.
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