A Glimpse of Barcelona

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Traveling in Europe is pretty cheap.. well, to the UK, not so cheap... However, I found a flight that was only $100 round trip.. not so bad. But here's the catch. It involves a 5 hour layover in Barcelona, yeah that's right, south to go north.. But I can't complain, it was only $100! So my journey began at 2:30am on Wednesday night..uhh..Thursday morning?? I took a taxi to the Prague airport and the plane left at 4:30am.. I slept most of the way. I arrived in Barcelona at 6:30am.. So I can say I've been to Barcelona right? No, wrong, it only counts if you LEAVE the airport. So, I go to the information desk and ask how to get to the center of Barcelona. They refuse to give me directions because they think I will miss my flight! So, I put my Spanish to the test and ask some people outside. It's amazing how much you can speak when you have to.. I was shocked. So, I hopped on a bus for a 30minute ride to the center of the city. I got off the bus at about 7:30am and it was still dark..?? I was wondering if the clock was wrong.. but apparently the sun doesn't come up until after 8am in Barcelona during this time of year.

So, I figured I only had an hour and a half to walk around, so I stayed on the main road.. At first I was walking around in the dark and the only people on the road were runners and business men. When the sun came up it was really beautiful.. It must have been a good day for a sunrise in Barcelona. I went to a coffee shop because I was tired from not sleeping in a day and a half! I ordered in Spanish 😊 When I was done with my coffee, Barcelona had finally woken up. The sun was all the way up and people were walking around.. The weather was very nice for October.. I was walking around in just a t-shirt and jeans. I walked into a few shops, took some pictures, and tried not to get lost (or my couple hours in Barcelona would turn into a couple days).

Things I noticed..There are a tonnnn of mopeds in Barcelona! and bikes.. but there may just be more mopeds than cars! The people were very friendly and acted interested in their tourists (unlike Prague!). Barcelona is a lot bigger than I thought.. and its not just a beach like everyone thinks. I definitely want to go back and see more of the city and the beach!

When I was waiting for the bus back to the airport, I met an Australian guy.. He was traveling europe because he had just finished his degree. He was in Barcelona for a week, then Oktoberfest in Munich for a month, Barcelona for another week, and he was off to the French Alps to get a job at a ski resort. I was jealous of his life!! I got to the airport just on time and they were boarding five minutes after I got to the gate! Off to Liverpool!

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Comments

[Mom]

Yikes! You really caught it close with that excursion - are you sure you're related to me (smile)? Sounds like it was worth the risk - such a beautiful city! I love that you were able to use your Spanish!