GAUDI , GUITARS AND A GUEST SAXAPHONIST

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"This puppy aint moving tonight".My siesta turned out to be a "mucho siesta".Decided to have a quick easy dinner and a night watching Will Farrell speaking Spanish on TV ,quite entertaining.

It definitely takes a few days to "settle" into the vibe of a city and knowing that Barcelona was playing a rival futbol team along with it being public holiday, we knew we'd be in for an all nighter of drunken alleyway shenanigans. Answer: a few relaxing beverages then insert earplugs and sleep 😊

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So not to be outdone by the thousands of waiting tourist's to see "Sagrada Familia" we made some enquiries and learnt that the best way to beat the crowd was to book an organized tour. As these types of "touristy" things are not really our cup of tea we reluctantly booked in for a small group tour called "skip the line" because damned if we're going to come all the way to "Barthelona" and not get to experience GAUDI from the inside.

As we blogged previously the first sight of this monolith was jaw dropping. But to enter inside to stare stunned at the design and architecture was a fabulously breathtaking moment. GAUDI was a madman or genius, a man before his time.

Visiting a few other "must see" places, like the 2000 year old Roman Columns and the remains of the old Aqueduct accompanied by the vivacious Catalonian guide Gloria (who in typical Spanish fashion nearly poked a couple of our eyes out when talking with her hands) the tour turned out to be thoroughly enjoyable. Note to self: book in for fish feet nibbling tomorrow for sure!

We wander back home after the tour following the little blue route line on iphone maps thst had us zig zagging through cobbled paths to have a short siesta before heading out to see "Versus". Performed by Manuel Gonzalez, Xavier Coll, Ekaterina Zaytseva and another gorgeous amazing guitarist whose name is not on the program (don't worry I dont know em either but they really are a big deal in Europe) set in a spectacular theatre, the show was a meld of brilliance and comedy.



These guys are so far out of the stratosphere they are never comin down. They toy with their prodigious skills with a nod of their head to the crowd and a smile on their face. The nylon string classical guitar is their home and they own it. Mind blown.

We leave the Palau de la Musica once again weaving our way through cobbled paths heading to the "Harlem Jazz Club" which was highly recommended by our stoner guide Mike the previous day.

First impressions were that it was another wanky jazz club where everyone sits around in silence and you're never allowed to have too much fun... then you start paying attention to the band. High brow keyboard player, the dorkiest looking bassist (but man he was solid) and a mesmerising drummer that must have Gene Kruper's blood running in his veins. As a trio they were great then a brass player wandered up on stage from the crowd with what looked to be a 100 year old sax and just wailed away. Awesome talent rivaling what we saw from the classical guitar gods earlier.

As you would hope after a few too many free poured spirits (love that European custom!) a few laughs were had, from trying to get money out of an ATM that only issues location information and not money, to being propsitioned by two German tourists whilst waiting for Mick in the Gothic Quarter. So far the best day we have had in Barcelona!

Peace out party people.

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Photos

Sagrada Familia
"Life is not measured by the breaths you take, but by it's breathtaking moments."
~ Michael Vance