20-21-22 - Spain is beautiful! We join the New Europe free walking tour of the El Gotic area of Barcelona. Our guide is a delight and so are the narrow streets with many a gargoyle looking down upon us. Not knowing a huge amount about Spain/Catalonian culture, this really opens us up to the place (including an odd obsession with body waste, especially @ Christmas). Like all of Europe, their history is very dark and our guide tells us tales of torture, war and more recently, economic strife and social/political unrest. The Gothic Cathedral is a particular highlight as we wind through the maze of streets. Dinner is traditional paella @ Barceloneta. I get seafood and black squid ink paella and Adam goes for chicken and rabbit paella. Im delighted to hear that he thinks mine is much more flavoursome :D The next day we do some more wandering about the Gothic quarter, get food comas on menus of the day and enjoy an afternoon of Gaudi and modernism buildings. Absolutely stunning and over the top - apparently the phrase gaudi to describe over the top isnt linked to Gaudi, the man at all. Unfortunately, the Casa Mila is closed for cleaning (for the next 12 months FYI) but you can still make out where George Lucas got his inspiration from - very Tatoonie! The last stop is the Sagrada Familia, an unfinished Gaudi masterpiece. We disappear back to our hotel to relax before a tapas crawl with the same tour company. Peeps meet and we are back in the El Gotic and around Barceloneta hunting down tapas, £1 drinks and meeting some lovely new people. We shower ourselves in beer and wine drinking out of a porron, a cross between a bottle of wine and a watering can. Kinda like a Spanish beer bong ;) Our last day in Barcelona sees a slow start to the day but we manage to squeeze in a walk to Castell (Castle) de Montjuic for views on a perfectly crisp, sunny day as well a a quasi-scenic public bus ride past other major sites in this area. Our afternoon is consumed by our journey to Paris, France and our first Airbnb experience! I didnt drink from the fountain but Ill definitely be back to a beautiful city that needs our support in these tough times.
Posted on: Wed, 12 Feb 2014 23:27:17 +0000
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