A map can be a deceiving thing!

---

Hi! Hope everyone's week is going well. Well, the weather here in Barcelona is nice now. It's pretty warm but is great compared to the first hot couple of weeks. It's still possible to go to the beach and I went this past weekend. On Sunday I was at the beach here in Barcelona, but on Saturday I had a great trip to Girona. I visited Dali's museum in Figueres, a town in Girona, Spain. It seems to be the only reason for people traveling to Figueres, but it is definetely worth it.
The museum was amazing because not only are the works exhibited that of Salvador Dali but the entire museum is created by him. On top of the museum building, which by the way used to be a theatre, there are eggs, yes huge eggs sitting on top of the museum decorating it along with golden statues of people and bread sculptures all over the facade.
Inside is an amazing collection of so many of his works, an enourmous amount of drawings and sketches. I absolutely loved it!
After the museum we took a one hour bus ride to Cadaques, it's a small village on the coast of Costa Brava. We stayed for about two hours and relaxed on the stoney beach looking out into the harbor with gorgeous summer houses all along the harbor. I can see why it had attracted Dali and so many other artists who came to Cadaques.

A map can be a deceiving thing! I agreed to meet my roomate this past Tuesday at the Miro museum which is located on Montjuic. When I looked at the map, it seemed that the Museum is a short walk from the train station, but I had no idea it was gonna end up being one of my hiking days. The streets leading to the mountain were like those of San Francisco and when I got to Montjuic there was obviously much more to conquer. I got a little sidetracked, meaning I also got lost and hiked around the mountain through beautiful gardens and woody areas. It was all very nice except for the bugs that were attacking me and the fact that my roomate waited almost an hour for me.
Well, anyway when I finally got all the way up there and we entered the museum, there was an enormous line, so we ended up not going in. So, I must return to that hell of a place, when I recover from my walk. And of course, there is an easier way to get there. However, we did take the cable car up to the castle on top of Montjuic and from there a beautiful view of Barcelona was in front of us. The city looks so small and flat from up there with Sagrada Familia sticking out and a few other buildings. From up there, you can see the harbor, the beach, the place where the olympics took place and it was easy to spot the places that I've visited. It's high enough to see everything and low enough to recognize most places.
As if I didn't have enough, I went to the Museo Picasso yesterday. Walked back to school, and of course, I took my little detour again so it ended up being a workout once again. The museum itself was kind of boring in terms of the interior, but the exterior and the courtyards are amazing. The museum is a combination of 3 or 4 buildings which used to be palaces beginning in the 13th century. There were works from almost all of Picasso's periods, even his early years which show his amazing talent for painting portraits. The temporary exhibition entitled "War and Peace" was sad and upsetting. His many sketches and works that revolved around Guernica were exhibited there along with videos being shown of the bombing of Guernica, a small village in Spain. His paintings were abstract and at the same time real, depicting all the horrors of war. Here's a quote that's still on my mind ...
"...painting is not done to decorate apartments. It's an instrument of War for attack and defense against the enemy."
Pablo Picasso, Les Lettres françaises, 24/3/1943

---

Comments

[anonymous]

I'm sooo jelouse
Hi Maiiiiiiiiiinochka, Obviousely even though this comment is "anonymous" you know who it is that's writing it. Hahaha. I'm soooooooo jelouse. I wish I could be there with you. I walked through all those places and hiked through Gaudi's park and visited his buildings too. Isn't it great!!! Gaudi's park is the most beautifull park I've ever seen. Have you been to that church or Cathedral on top of the mountain with the huge statue of Jesus on the Cross on top? If not, you have to go. You have to take the cable car thingy up there and it is truly the best view of Barcelona, not to mention that the size of that Jesus is quite freaky. Also, I tought I told you about Catalan and that you were gonna have trouble with it. But what I find wierd is that you don't find the people friendly. I found them very nice and patient. Anyway, it looks like you're gonna come back in better shape then me from all that walking. Speaking of which, I'm fighting in a week and a half. I played hookie from work today hehehe, and finally had the chance to read my emails. Anyway, cuidate, que te lo pase bien, y escriba un dia solomente en espanol. Oh, and I miss my running/roler blading partner:-(