 |
| Barcelona, Here We Come!!!! |
After staying a night in Bristol, we made the short plane
ride to Barcelona, where we were going to start our first of eighteen days on
Spanish soil! We met Phil and
Debbie in the Barcelona airport (as they flew in from Paris) and the four of us
made our way into the city centre, and ultimately our hotel. Once checked in and comfortable in our
modern apartment, we decided to venture out for the rest of day to get a feel
for this brand new city. We took
the metro to the Barcelona waterfront and took a nice stroll along the
promenade where we saw a working marina, hotels, restaurants and apartments. We decided it was time for our first
taste of Spanish cuisine…..and we were not disappointed! We ate outside where we each had a
delicious dinner of authentic paella and sangria. After an evening of food and catching up with Phil and Deb on
their trip to Paris, we decided to call it a night.
Saturday morning was a mixture of relaxation and excitement
as we had nothing planned for the day other than meeting Dad and Rhonda at the
train station later that afternoon.
Yes, you have it correct, we had an overlap of two nights in Barcelona
with both Phil and Deb as well as my Dad and Rhonda! As Phil and Deb were finishing up their almost two weeks of
visiting and European travel, my Dad and Rhonda were flying over to begin their
almost two weeks of visiting and European travel. So began the two day overlap with parents that was beyond a
success!
 |
| National Art Museum of Catalonia Steps |
So back to Saturday morning! Phil
and Deb decided to go on their own for a bus tour and John and I spent a lazy
morning at the hotel trying to recoup from a crazy past couple of weeks. Once late morning hit, we knew it was
time to go explore more of the city.
We strolled through Plaza de Espana, stopped for the best churros we’ve
ever had, sat on the steps of the National Art Museum of Catalonia listening to
live music and ended eating a beautifully two hour long tapas lunch outside in
the sun. Life doesn’t get much
better.
 |
| Dad and Rhonda have arrived! |
Once late afternoon hit, we headed straight for the train
station to welcome Dad and Rhonda to the amazing city of Barcelona. I’m not going to lie, I couldn’t
believe my eyes when I saw my Dad in a train station in Spain. Never in my life would I have guessed
that my Dad would make the journey across the world to travel alongside John
and I in Spain. Luckily (for him
and us) he has a wife who pushes him to try new things and she was able to get
this man to take time off work and make the journey over to Spain to
travel! Talk about a
once-in-a-lifetime experience!
 |
| Inside Segrada Familia |
As we met Dad and Rhonda, we gave hugs and said our hellos
and then made our way to the apartment where the six of us would be
staying. As Rhonda has endless
energy and is always thinking ahead, it was of little surprise that the moment
they reached the apartment, Rhonda pulled out a bag filled with food she
brought to snack on. Yes, a wheel
of cheese was part of her “thinking ahead” for snacks for the group! Once the six of us finished catching up
and sharing appetizers, we decided it was time to walk around the neighborhood
and get some food. As it was
another nice night, we found outdoor dining where we ate our hearts out and
shared some more of the amazing sangria.
 |
| Group Shot Outside Segrada Familia |
As Monday was the last day all the six of us would be
together, we decided to enjoy it together and made our way to the famous
Segrada Familia. Segrada Familia
is a church in the heart of Barcelona designed by Antoni Gaudi (not the last
time you’ll hear his name).
Building of the church began in 1882 and to this day, is not yet
complete. It was no short wait to
see the inside of this church, but once inside, you quickly realize it was
worth every minute. The design is
like none you’ve ever seen before and it has such a different feeling than any
other church or cathedral I’ve been in.
Pictures just don’t do it justice.
After walking through and learning about and experiencing
the Segrada Familia, we decided to head to Las Ramblas which is a gorgeous
tree-lined street that cuts through with heart of Barcelona and ends at the
port. The street is filled with
entertainers, shops, restaurants, statues and more. After taking a nice stroll through the craziness of Las
Ramblas, we decided to make a stop at La Boqueria. La Boqueria is a public market that has an extensive array
of foods and goods to offer where your senses are hit at every corner. The colors are vivid and the scent is
strong, a good indicator of what each stall sells. Everything from the mundane to exotic, from fresh fish and
meat to fruit and candy.
After a day of touring the city, it was time to relax and
have a final dinner with John, myself and our four travel mates. We made our way to a cozy restaurant
down the street from our apartment and had a delicious dinner where the six of
us had great conversation and one of the best meals in our Spanish
travels. Hosting two sets of
parents at once in a foreign city ended up being a success!
 |
| Park Guell on a Sunny Day! |
Come early Tuesday morning, Phil and Deb sadly had to make
their way to the airport and ultimately, back to life in La Crosse. It was sad to see them go, but we were
happy to know that they had a great two weeks in Truro, Paris and Barcelona. As Tuesday morning was rainy, dreary and
cold, we spent a little extra time at the apartment in the morning until we
finally made our way back to the waterfront harbor of Port Vell. We decided to explore the long dock
which leads out past the sailboats and to a mall located in the middle of the
harbor. After some exploring
there, we then made our way to the popular Park Guell designed by Antoni
Gaudi. The park has multiple
facets and contains some amazing and distinctive structures such as the long
and multi-colored tiled bench overlooking the city, a mosaic dragon, a twisted
rock walkway and even a home Gaudi once lived in while building this park. It really was a sight to see, even on a
gloomy and rainy day!
Despite the weather, we decided to take some time, sit
outside and have a couple drinks at a café by the park. From there we headed back to the museum
where we sat on the steps overlooking the city and then made our way to a tiny,
local restaurant where we had an authentic experience of being in the midst of
Spaniards watching a Spanish football game. It just seemed fitting that this was our last experience in
Barcelona before we hopped on the train the next morning for our next
desination…..Seville.
