The City That NEVER Sleeps

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Hey guys, we have free internet again!!!! Something that we didn´t expect, so we made sure to take some time and write another blog. So we last left off in Zaragoza, and have since headed to and finished our stay in Barcelona. It is a pretty amazing city, everyone who hasn´t been you should mark it down on your list as something to see.

We got to our hostel no problem after a 5 hour train ride from Zaragoza (no problems this time). Now Jan and I were really looking forward to getting to this hostel in particular solely for the fact that it was called Hostel Lenin! Yeah, that was totally for you Courtney, I know its not Stalin, but it was the best we could do. It turned out to be sort of mediocre, since there was not refrence to Lenin in the entire place, but it was really good for it´s location. We were just a couple blocks from the two most important sights in Barcelona, La Rambla and the Sagrada Familia. (Thank you Rod Hannaford for your map and directions! We hit everything on your list except the restraunt. Thanks!!!)

We saw the Rambla the next day, on the 22nd, we had arrived to late to do anything extensive our first night. But we did go out for tapas. Barcelona is really expensive, but getting to have a little taste of a couple of dishes was a perfect way to do it. We had a seafood salad, spicy potatoes and deep fried artichoke. They were all really good. We really wanted Sangria, but it was super expencive at the tapas bar, so we bought a box, yes a box, of sangria on the way home from the super market. We let it chill waiting for the internet, and it turned out to still be pretty bad, but hey we´re on a budget 😊.

So on the 22nd we went down the couple of blocks to the Rambla. The Rambla is Spains most famous street. It is really long, and consists of people of every sort trying to sell something or other. Actually the street was once a sewer that they drained. You can buy everything from live chickens to blue roses. There are street performers at it at almost all times of the day and food markets with the freshest wares for you to enjoy. The grossest thing we saw there were skined sheep heads - still fully intact (eyeballs, teeth, nostrils) just no fur etc. Yeah! But to each their own. And no, we did not try them. After cruising the crowds for a while we headed over to the old quarter for a free walking tour. It was a great tour, we learned things we wouldn´t have if we would have wandered on our own, so it was really great. We saw a cathedral, a synagoge, lots of old streets, and we got some great stories about the areas and the people who have shaped it to what it is today. For example, did you know that the old quarter of Barcelona did not get elecricity or running water until 1992 (due to the Olympics)? The other really facinating part of the tour was that we learned lots about the famous Barcelonian architect Gaudi. But we will get to him later. After our tour, we finished walking down the Ramblas and then headed back to our hostel to get ready because we were going on a pub crawl. We figured that it was one of the best ways to see Barcelona´s night life as it is a famous attraction of its own. We got to see 4 bars, one of the coolest was a tequilla bar where they had hundreds of different types of tequilla. It was a good time, but a late night and the walk back home along the Ramblas seemed really long and even then there were quite a few people on the street.

After a good nights sleep however, we were ready to get going the next morning. Our main thing that we wanted to go see was the Sagrada Familia by Gaudi. There are few words really to tell you what it´s like, maybe WOW is the most acurate. This guy based his design for this mammoth of a cathedral in nature. So on the outside you see lizards and turtles a long with plants and fruit. On the inside you have you head tilted back most of the way because the ceiling is like and inspired by the canopy of a forest. The pillars are like, and inspired by the trunks of trees. There are all sorts of great colors that are used in the stained glass and the tiles that decorate the outside. Most of the painting and tiling have not been started yet, because if you don´t know the church is still under construction. Gaudi started it in 1882 and it is scheduled to be completed in 2020 (if all goes well, as it is only 50% completed right now). The biggest sections have yet to be undertaken, those are the two massive domes, one of which will support the tallest pillar dedicated to Jesus. There is lots of symbolism in all of the design, and lots of detail that went into this work, and the best way to understand the magnitude is to see it with your own eyes. It has to be one of the most impressive (AKA bizzar) things we have seen. After we finished with Gaudi we went to the beach! It was a cloudy day but still really hot, so we chilled for a few hours relaxing our tired feet. We couldn´t go swimming though due to high concentrations of jelly fish. We were able to enjoy a big dish of paella and a glass of sangria (the real stuff) for dinner. It was a nice way to finish our stay in Barcelona.

Before I sign off for the afternoon Jan and I want to send Jackie and Scott our love for Saturday. We are really sad we are missing your big day, but we will be there in spirit! Congradulations guys!!!

Also Adam, have a fantastic time in Cancun, I´ll be thinking of you!

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Comments

[Marianne]

ah barcelona...
Spent my 20th birthday in Barcelona a very lovely place. Just came back from seeing your aunties Britta and Karen and they send their love. you didn't sign your postcard to Britta and she couldn't figure out who sent it??? Kent took one look at it and said Jan! Your mastercard came in mail....due soon. Love you two and miss you... House is almost done. Yahoo. Hilsen Mør

[Jackie]

I'm showing this post to my dad!
He'll get such a kick out of it and be happy you guys made it to the places he recommended. Really, I think out of all the places he's visited in the world, Barcelona was one his favourites, or maybe even all-time favourite. Thanks so much for the well-wishes to Scott and I too! We had a fantastic day, though thank god it's over now! We're going to have a major picture exchange when you guys are back in Canada, so CARVE me into your schedule before you leave me for Onterrible.