Spain (Barcelona)

Friday, August 28, 2009
we were up early and into city, catching that replacement bus service certainly made things slower. We started the day off with a Fat Tire Bike Tour – which I highly recommend. The tour guide was fantastic and we got to see most of the city in 4 hours.
We stopped at the Barcelona Cathedral, and then headed to the famous Sagrada Famillia, Antoni Gaudi's creation. We also went through the park and headed past the bull fighting arena, stopped at the Arc De Triompf (Barcelona Version) and down the main road to the beach! This was where we stopped for some lunch and a well earned rest! We got chatting to a kiwi couple Megan and Grant who were lovely, and we decided to go out for a drink after we got back to the bike shop. The boys didn’t care where as long as they got beer, so an Irish pub it was!
We then headed back to the hostel, I had a quick shower and change and headed back into the city to meet back up with Megan and Grant and go to watch a Flamenco show in a little bar in the square!  This was one of the highlights of Barcelona for me, the 2 dancers were fascinating to watch, and they had so much passion showing not only in their faces but through their dancing as well.
The background singers were amazing; they were so enthusiastic and made the show come alive. It only lasted about 30 minutes but was definitely worth the time and money.
We wandered up the famous La Rambla where people were dancing, singing, painting,

Saturday, August 29, 2009
Today was slightly overcast but still really warm, not such clear skies today!! :( it even rained in the afternoon!!
We headed back into the city, we went to the eastern area, and checked out Mount Montjuic.
We headed up the front entrance up towards the The National Art Museum of Catalonia, instead of having to walk up the hundreds of stairs to get to the top, they had conveniently created escalators for us to use :) Was such an amazing view of the beaches along Barcelona! It would have been cool to take the cable car to the other side!
We then walked along the roads and past the Plaza de Cataluna and went to Pablo Picasso's museum, which was another highlight of the trip. I found the museum really interesting cos it started off showing Picasso's really early work, right through (in order) to his latest stuff. im not a huge musuem fan but i really enjoyed this museum. And bought a few postcards too!
We then headed back to the hostel for some Mojitos and Tortillas. One of the American guys there was a chef and we all put in €8 and he (and we helped) made a huge helping of tortillas and a extra large helping of Mojito mix. We later took the left over mix and went down to the beach.
The evening was just amazing - it was so warm on the beach at 11pm and there were great little bars all along the beach - local bars!! and fireworks even went off :)
Tim and I left the beach and went to a bar for some drinkies then back to the hostel about 3am!

Sunday, August 30, 2009
I had a very nice sleep in this morning - after the drinking the previous night a sleep in was definatley what i needed!!
Tim was supposed to come with me down to the beach but by 12noon the sun was shining and i wanted to chill on the beach!! so me and tim's friend Allen headed down to bask in the sunshine!!
We went swimming, drank some beers and got burnt all afternoon - it was brilliant!!
The evening was spent chatting and drinking to fellow travellers in the hostel
I think it was the best way to spend a Sunday!
I really wish i had taken Beccy's last name! she was so cool to chat to, and it would have been nice to keep in contact!!

Monday, August 31, 2009
Today was our final day in Barcelona! I was a little bit sad - there was still so much to see and do - the city was so big and with hidden treasures!!
We headed back in quite early and started the day in a queue for Gaudi's apartment - the wait was definatley worth it though, his house was amazing!! With random little corners and quirky little toys - then the roof  - Oh My God! It was incredibly, with a view overlooking most of the city it was like walking around in one of those mazes you go into at carnivals - the ground was all undulating - it was similar to walking on mini rolling hills!
We then headed up tp Gaudi's Park in the North part of the city - it was a bit of a mission, i think today i was struggling to get motivated to walk more than any other day so far! I just could not be bothered today!
But yet again it was worth the walk - the park was amazing - with eccentric random little designs all over the place. And a giant lizard at the front entrance.
From here, we wandered (slowly) back into town and went to the Cathedral - where i had to buy a head scarf for my shoulders to enter - i always get an eeiry feeling when i enter churches and this was no exception. Sends chills down my spine. The outside was pretty cool too - with a little garden and fish and a drinking fountain. The inside was spectacular (of course) it has quite an interesting history behind it - which is ...
"The cathedral is dedicated to Eulalia of Barcelona, co-patron saint of Barcelona, a young virgin who, according to Catholic tradition, suffered martyrdom during Roman times in Barcelona. One story is that she was exposed naked in the public square and a miraculous snowfall in mid-spring covered her nudity. The enraged Romans put her into a barrel with knives stuck into it and rolled it down a street (according to tradition, the one now called 'Baixada de Santa Eulalia'). The body of Saint Eulalia is entombed in the cathedral's crypt."
From there we went and wandered along La Rambla - it was so different during the day and i found myself clutching my bag the whole time! We stopped at little corner cafe for some Sangira and people watched for a while, i was very tempted to buy a pet squrriel from one of the stalls along La Rambla but i dont think he would have made it back into London!
I was totally knackered by the early evening - and the night was spent back at the hostel for a "home" cooked dinner ... and an early night!