Barcelona's Top Ten

Barcelona was amazing. Karinne, Haley, Annie, and I met Karinne's good friend Shannon (who is studying abroad in Alicante) and Shannon's friend Emilio (also studying in Emilio) for an unforgettable weekend.

So, my top 10 Barcelonan adventures:

10. Spanish Tapas: Practically every restaurant in Barcelona is a Tapas restaurant, and these tiny treats are delicious and diverse. I had to choose between chicken croquettes, spanish meatballs, and German potato salad for lunch on Saturday-- and I think I made the right decision with the meatballs. Small, filling, and spicy.

9. Las Ramblas: This main street is absolutely bustling. We were warned by classmates who had already visited Barcelona to be very aware of pickpockets on Las Ramblas and to stay away from the main street at night-- but the street during the day is a fiesta of sorts.

Saturday morning, we lazily made our way down the wide street, admiring the souvenirs, flowers, pets, food, posters, and soocer jerseys all for sale. We also saw at least twenty varieties of "statue men" vying for tourists' petty change. Las Ramblas is also home to American familiarities that I suppose come with any city bigger than Aix-- McDonalds, Burger King, Starbucks, and Hard Rock Cafe.

8. La Boqueria: This huge outdoor market close to Las Ramblas made me feel as if the Aix market wasn't quite the feat I thought. Lines and lines of stands contain every ingredient under the sun-- meats, fruits, spices, vegetables, and prepared foods. The market buzzed with the noise of rapidly speaking Spaniards and Catalins, butchers chopping meat, and crowds navigating through the narrow aisles marveling at the array of food.

7. Club Razzmatazz: Saturday night meant one thing: we had to go out and experience the nightlife we had heard so much about from everyone.

We arrived at Club Razzmatazz around 1:30 a.m. and were faced with a very un-Aix-like conundrum-- a line. After about a 15 minute wait, the line began to move, and upon entering, we realized why-- the club was just opening-- at 1:30!

By the time we left around 4:00, the place was packed. Razzmatazz was a three story building with different floors and rooms dedicated to different genres of music. The music was blaring, multi-colored lights were dizzying, and everyone was dancing to techno. It was a lot of fun.

I had a conversation with a student from the U.K. who yelled to me over the music, "You are from America, right?!"

"Yes." I yelled back.

"America-- that is the greatest country in the world!!"

Definitely the first time I've heard that abroad-- and probably the only.

6. Parc Guell: Gaudi, the famous Barcelonan architect, worked on Parc Guell for many years, transforming a piece of land in the northern part of the city into a playscape of sorts.

Colorful tiled lizards, colums made of rock that look as if they are growing out of the earth, a huge square with a tiled bench that stretches the length, and hidden staircases made the park seem less like a place to relax from city life and more like a place to explore. I felt like a kid trying to discover all its hidden secrets. I love Gaudi's work.

5. Seapoint Hostel: If only it had been warm, this would surely have been my number 1 pick.

Our hostel looked out onto the beach, and the view in the morning as I ate my complimentary cereal breakfast was amazing. It was the perfect start to a day of sightseeing and endless walking as it was so relaxing to see the sun's rays reflecting of the calming water of the Mediteranean in the morning. I would recommend this hostel to anyone staying in Barcelona, especially because the people were friendly and very helpful.

4. Picasso Museum: I had never been to a museum that focused solely on one artist, and after my visit to the Picasso Museum, I have to say it is a style I prefer.

The museum chronologically followed Picasso's life work-- and it was truly incredible to see where he started (simply painting portraits) and where he ended (cubism, sculpture, ballet set planning, abstractionism).

I learned so much, and truly appreciated how the city affected Picasso's life and painting in various ways. Barcelona is very proud of Picasso, as they should be.

3. Authentic Paella: Saturday night for dinner, we made our way to a restaurant recommended by the hostel as having the best, freshest Paella in town.

It was incredible. I ate things I never had before (mussels, shrimp that still had their heads) but it was delicious. Everyone around us was a local (good sign), the waiter didn't speak English (better sign), and we ended up staying at the restaurant for about 4 hours (maybe I'm a bit European after all?).

2. Sagrada Family Cathedral: Amazing. Everything I had heard about and more.

The architecture of the church was unlike anything I had ever seen, but in such a good way. I feel sometimes as if churches can seem heavy with stained glass windows that let in little light and columns that appear to be holding up a heavy ceiling. Sagrada was completely different. Gaudi was inspired by nature, and while I think the outside is okay looking (definitely different), the inside was truly magnificient. The ceilings were soaring. Light was streaming in from every window. The columns looked as if they were leading up to heaven. I loved it. My neck hurt afterwards from looking up so frequently (with my mouth open in awe, of course).

1. My first glimpse of Barcelona in daylight: It was so inspiring. Looking at the city from the harbor made me feel as if there was endless possiblity for adventure and discovery. The sun was shining, everyone was happy, and I couldn't help but feeling so incredibly lucky. I said to myself over and over again, "I'm in Barcelona. I'm traveling around Europe like I always dreamed I would. You can't take a single moment for granted because this is actually happening."

It was a 'pinch yourself' kind of moment. I suppose it wasn't a "sight", but it is a feeling I will remember forever.


Click here to see Barcelona pictures. When you get to the page, click Barcelona on the top of the screen. Then, once it takes you to a new page, click slideshow after the brief description of Barcelona (I took too many pictures to put on blogspot!).