Hi there! I am now 13 as of 11 days ago when we were in Barcelona, Spain. I am sad to say that we never really ventured far into that country, only entering Catalonia, one of 17 regions in Spain. What little I did get to see, I loved. Spain is such a beautiful country filled with massive cacti and heavenly beaches to explore.
We arrived in the outskirts of Barcelona in a small village with a population near 900. It took us a while to find our apartment, but we got a warm welcome from the owners who were glad to show us around. The beauty of the rooftop terrace was far beyond what I was expecting. Ours was the highest in elevation and gave us a great view of our surroundings. That evening, we explored the village, wandering in alleys and occasionally coming across a small lizard. We also got to stop at an ice cream shop just around the corner. At night, the temperature was sublime, but the buzzing mosquitoes were not. I had few sleepless nights because of them.
On the second day, we got a lazy start. I was allowed to sleep in, and we had some yummy chocolate croissants from a nearby bakery. We of course ate on top of the terrace and had a good time chilaxing. We headed out around noon and walked over to the train station, where we rode into downtown Barcelona for the first time.
As I emerged from the underground train station, the intense light of the Spanish sun shone down on me. Palm trees lined the streets, and I was pleased to see that many people were wearing tinted, West-Coast-USA aviator glasses like me. Thankfully I don’t think I looked too much like a tourist. From there, we took a very hot and long bus trip across the city and arrived in a spot where the famous Segrada de Familia loomed over every building. At that point, I was very dehydrated from the Catalonian heat and so was everyone else. We had a little pizza and some water and sat back to recharge before heading over to the world famous Segrada de Familia. From our lunch spot, it was only a straight walk down to the Gaudi church. It was a magnificent moment as we approached, and the front was impossibly intricate with scenes from the bible sculpted into the face of the Basilica. If the exterior of the building was exciting, it was nothing compared to the surprise that pounced upon me as a magical world was unveiled to me in the Segrada de Familia. It was rather like what one would expect from heaven itself with its white, tree-like pillars, and it’s rainbow stained-glass windows. It was truly moving, and I couldn’t help wondering why some people were only focused on getting cutesy photos or buying toys at the gift shop. Something of such wonder and genius should be truly appreciated in this world. In everyday life, one rarely has such opportunity to come across visionary pieces which channel the very human spirit that inhabits us all.
The outside of the Segrada Familia is splendid indeed but what makes the interior so special is its uniqueness. In some aspects, it is otherworldly, but it shows a clear resemblance to the natural world which is very much of our own planet. Sometimes I wish I could have something of such splendor to myself. Can you imagine the wonderful things you would think and the feelings you would feel? Emotions are beyond definition, and that is what spoke to me at the Basilica rather than God himself.
We didn’t have a printer at our disposal, so we had to show the staff our tickets online, which proved to be a problem because there wasn’t good cellular connection there. It took us a good while to come up with our tickets, so I would suggest printing beforehand. Another good piece of advice is to get audioguides. They were very nice and the music that played alongside the info was the perfect way to invigorate the experience. They also have a museum that is fun to zoom through. I wouldn’t spend too much time there just because it’s more tourist-y and unexciting. I will say this as a side note, but you may have heard that the Segrada Familia will be finished by 2026 for the 100-year anniversary of Gaudi’s death. Everyone laughs at this, and we’ll see if it comes true. Since construction began in the year 1883, only a fraction of the towers have been built, and one whole side remains blank. If the Segrada Familia is finished by 2026 it will be a wonderful miracle.
One thing I didn’t tell you about our visit is that it was my parents’ 23rd wedding anniversary on September 12th, which happens to be the very day before my birthday. There are so many special things happening for our family in September. So after our great experience at the famous Basilica we went to a really awesome tapas restaurant, where we had a great time. The tapas was delicious and not too expensive, plus we got there early and it wasn’t crowded. We started eating around 6:00 PM and the women with small children ate around 8:00 PM, which is definitely different from where we are from. 😉
The next day was my birthday! It could have been slightly tragic, but it ended up being the best birthday ever. Due to the lack of a ticket booth at the local train station we missed our first chance into town. I then had to sprint back to the apartment and grab the keys to the van. From there, we jumped into our seats and hauled ass into Barcelona. Sorry, in all this rush, I even forgot to tell you why we needed so badly to be in the center of Barcelona. To make a long story short, we wanted to make the 11:00 AM bicycle tour of Barcelona for my birthday. I am so glad we made it because it shaped our day really well, leaving time for us to get tons of ice cream and explore the underground Roman ruins (for more info. on that, check out my sister’s blog post about the Roman ruins).
Our bike tour was nice. We saw the Segrada Familia for a second time, we visited a beautiful city park, and we saw another of Gaudi’s great works. At the end, we walked down this long street that had about 4 or 5 different gourmet ice cream shops on it. Of course, I got a double scoop of hazelnut and almond which was absolutely divine. After our delicious treat, we went to see a great Roman ruin very near to our location.
It was discovered when people were trying to build a church. Much to their surprise, they dug into the ground and found the ruins of an old Roman City. Most of the ruins date back to the 1st-6th centuries A.D. We saw basins designed for keep wine in, and places to park chariots. It was a well-preserved site, and Raisa was really excited about it.
For my birthday dinner, we went to get Paellas. The restaurant was really nice, and it was one of those warm and happy experiences. I tried some rabbit, and also had a really yummy desert. It was just so amazing to experience so much good food and culture on my birthday. I am really happy with my trip to Barcelona. 