Day 2 - Barcelona's Tour Day

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As promised we took a million pictures today!! We went on the hop on/off tour that takes you through the city of Barcelona past all of the main historical sites and attractions. The advantage of this tour is that the busses run all day so you can quickly and easily get off and on at any one of the site you would like to visit. Unfortunately, only stopped off at two. Half way through the tour (just past three of the most beautiful beaches) we realized we didn't lock the safe at the hotel! On our walk back we were stopped by a random man sitting outside who wanted to take our picture. We couldn't understand a word he was saying so he put his arm around Emily and pointed to the camera. Emily looked horrified when he tried to kiss her on the cheek. I wish I got a picture of that.

Luckily nothing was stolen, even though it had been obvious the cleaning staff had been inside. I truly witness the goodness of people today. It was not long however before we were back on the bus and on our way.

The first stop was one of the most famous cathedrals in Barcelona, known as the Sagrada Familia. Interesting fact that the tour guide repeated over and over was that the original aritect was run over by a tram in 1926 and died three days later in the Santa Creu Hospital. Usually details like that wouldn't stick but she clearly repeated it at least three times for me to remember that. The cathedral was beautiful! The intricate detail on the outside of the buildings always amaze me. Although, I think I enjoyed the cathedral in Toledo the most when I went in highschool. This was one just didn't have the same effect for me. Still very interesting.

The second act of human kindness I witness today was in the cathedral. The girls and I bought a couple of water bottles from the vending machine but it wouldn't dispense the last €0.10. This little boy followed us to the next floor just to return it. At first Emily thought he was trying to buy her water bottle off of her but his father persisted and explained so I would keep it. I love people.

At the cathedral we also paid to ride the elevators into the high towers. The view was so nice but a little nerve racking. We had to climb a couple of staircases that were scarily narrow. I almost tripped and gave Avery a heart attack! The picture taking was so very worth it.

Our second stop was at Park Guell. This was probably my favourite part of the day even though it was way to hot to do anything but amble around. The scenery was amazing and the vegetation is so very different from ours. I keep talking about the palm trees because they are so fantastic. I swear they look fake sometimes.

After that we headed back for a nap and then bought dinner from a local grocery store. Tomorrow we plan to go to the beach and maybe tour around a little more. I'm sure there will be more good stories!

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