Barcelona

Last week, I had Monday off for some random Luxembourg holiday (called Whit Monday). The weather in Luxembourg had been less than desirable over the past couple of weeks, so Agnes and I headed off to Barcelona, Spain for some sun. We found some cheap flights on Ryan Air and decided to brave that mode of transportation again (see the Rome blog from last Christmas).

The flight actually went off like clockwork and we arrived in the city about an hour earilier than we expected. We made our way to the hotel and then it was out for some dinner. We were looking for something simple, but the place we found to eat was actually really nice and so it turned into a serious meal. After dinner we were both beat, so we just walked back to the hotel and marveled to each other about how warm the breeze was and how alive the city seemed. Our hotel was seriously nice (modern, kind of swanky) and we settled in for a really comfortable night of sleep.

The next morning, we rolled out of bed and went out to explore. We basically just wondered around town, making our way in the general direction of the beach. Along the way, we had some breakfast (which included your choice of a beer or glass of wine!) at a streetside cafe, saw the Christopher Columbus statue (for those who look at the pics, sorry for going kind of crazy with the Columbus pictures!), walked up the side of Mount Montjuic and soaked in the warm, sunny weather. At the top of the "Mount" we caught a cable car (like a gondola at a ski resort) and floated over the city toward the beach.

Down at the beach, we took a walk through the sand and noticed that all the guys were wearing Speedos and all the girls were going topless. People were definitely out and about, playing soccer in the sand, sunbathing, etc. After we got our fill of banana hammocks and boobies, we walked into the city to check out the sights. Along the way, I discovered one of the nice things about Barcelona...you can stop in these open air super-mercados and snag a brew dog for about a euro, then just walk around the streets drinking the beer and soaking in the city. It really fits in well with the relaxed atmosphere of Barcelona.

While we were walking around, we noticed some random music. Then we'd pass a street and see all sorts of people out dancing. Eventually we put two and two together and figured out that the beach neighborhoods were having street festivals. It was pretty lively and fun to watch (while drinking my cerveza, of course).

Later on we zig-zagged our way to La Rambla, the main thoroughfare of the city. It was touted as one of the busiest streets in Europe, and it lived up to expectations. All sorts of outdoor vendors, sidewalk seating for restaurants, street performers, flower shops, and tons of people out walking.

About halfway through La Rambla, we saw a little outdoor market bustling along a side street. We headed in and were amazed at the produce on offer for both its freshness and its inexpensiveness. I bought a kilo of cherries (about 2.2 pounds) and we just walked around the rest of the day nibbling on them. These were very fresh, very juicy, very tasty and only 2 euros.

At the south tip of La Rambla, we caught a boat cruise that toured the Barcelona Harbor for about an hour. All the walking, sun, cerveza, and speedos took it's toll on me and I ended up falling asleep for a little while. Agnes of course took advantage of the situation and got someone to take a GREAT picture of me.

After the boat cruise we found a pretty nice pizza joint and had some dinner and a never-ending pitcher of sangria. It was pretty funny....we finished our pizza, but realized that our pitcher was only about 1/3 of the way finished. So, what do you do in that kind of situation? Order some more food, of course!

We decided we'd head back to the hotel and relax a little while, then decide if we felt like heading back out. One thing should be said about Barcelona here…it’s a huge city. We did a whole lot of walking…more than we’d expected. Well, after showers and about 10 minutes of sitting on the comfortable bed, the decision was made to just stay in and sleep!

Sunday morning we woke up, checked out of the hotel, dropped our bags in a locker at the train station and headed to La Sagrada Familia, a church designed by Antoni Gaudi. Even though the building is still under construction (which must be funded by the 8 euro entry fee charged to the scores of tourists), it was still seriously cool...very crazy facade on the front...kind of like melting clay with religious symbols strewn throughout. The inside pillars are designed like a forest of gigantic trees, which gives a very neat effect when you gaze up at the ceiling. On one of the side facades, the stations of the cross are carved into the stone in larger than life figures and scenes. All of the architecture was very linear on this side of the building and the inside of the church…a pretty stark contrast to the front façade.

After La Sagrada Familia, we decided to visit a little square where we noticed a lot of outdoor restaurants the day before. We sat down and dined on fresh fruit, baked chicken and paella (a Spanish rice with veggies and seafood). Feeling full and content, we decided to go to the park near the beach and catch some rays. Once again, I fell asleep in mid-afternoon!

Once Agnes woke me up, we headed toward the beach to have a few drinks in a tiki bar. We ordered some sangria and got down to some serious people watching. It’s just amazing to us how comfortable some people are with their bodies. Very little clothes are worn on these beaches, and 98% of the people out there would not be considered to be “fit.” On top of that, public affection is like a national pastime there, apparently. So you’ve got scantily clad, chubby, and not too attractive folks out there just getting it on with each other…we were quite entertained!

After the tiki bar, it was off to the train station and onto the bus for the airport. The weekend was over and it was time to get back to the rain and dreariness of Luxembourg.

General thoughts/observations:

- Barcelona is a lot like Florida. Palm trees, nice beaches, and about the same ratio of English to Spanish being spoken.

- I was a little disappointed in myself for not hitting the nightlife too much while we were there, so we are planning to go back sometime in the near future with the following itinerary: beach from morning to afternoon, eat, back to hotel to sleep, out for the night.

- Overall it was a relaxed and peaceful, outdoor warm weather experience.

The warm weather followed us back to Luxembourg. This entire week was nice, warm and sunny. This weekend we didn’t have any plans, which worked out to be a blessing. Friday we met some Irish friends - Mairead (pron: More-Aid) and Eoin (pron: Owen) - at “The Black Stuff,” a nice Irish bar just outside the city, to watch the opening games of the World Cup. We sat outside and relaxed over some pints and good conversation. The World Cup is like March Madness to these people, so it makes for some fun times while watching the games.

Yesterday we woke up, had some coffee and pastries, and watched the Ireland v. New Zealand rugby match (which was in New Zealand, so it started here at 9am) with my friend Ciaran (pron: Kee-ran), went out for a jog up in the forest, then headed out to run errands. After errands we went to one of the bars in town to watch some more World Cup games, sit by the river, and relax. We ended up running into Mairead and Eoin again, which was fun.

Today we woke up, had some coffee and pastries out on the balcony (we found some patio furniture yesterday), worked out and then the unthinkable happened…I sheered off my golden locks! After I cleaned up from the haircut, we went over to a sports complex near our apartment to watch a sand volleyball tournament that Agnes noticed was going on when she was out on her jog.

Next weekend we’re heading to Kaiserslautern, Germany to watch the USA v. Italy World Cup match. Although we don’t have tickets, just being in the city where the game is taking place should be a fun experience…we’ll keep you posted!