I've fallen in love with yet another European city. Barcelona was incredible. From getting a late night "local" tour of the Gothic Quarter and the surrounding areas from Kase on Thursday night all the way to our eventful trip to the airport early Sunday morning it was a fabulous weekend. Highlights included visiting the Cathedral of Barcelona, particularly the cool courtyard area, sampling Spanish cuisine from local markets, admiring the progression of Picasso's work, attending a flamenco show, and taking in the bizarre yet incredible architecture of Gaudi. Park Guell designed by Gaudi was my absolute favorite, loved his strange buildings and colorful ceramics but also just loved wandering through the outdoors in such beautiful Barcelona weather. The weekend also provided a chance to get sand between my toes, eat paella, and drink Sangria on the beach in barcenoleta as well as the opportunity to take in the breathtaking mountain views and visit the Benedictine monastery up in the mountains of Montserrat. It was un viaje MUY bueno! (oh and I loved getting to use a little spanish too)!
Here is a little visual evidence of the weekend's goodness...
Food Market outside the Cathedral of Barcelona.
I Love Palm Trees. Gaudi in Park Guell.
Barceloneta Beach!
Sangria and Guac with Leah.
Cable Car to Montserrat.
The Barcelona Gang overlooking the Mountains in Montserrat.
La Sagrada Familia:
huge and incredibly detailed cathedral designed by Gaudi,
still under construction today!
ADIOS!
MG, glad to see you are still having such a good time. It sounds like it keeps getting better. Like this is the trip/experience that just keeps on giving. I'm sure you've talked with your dad about both Barcelona and Montserrat but your dad, your uncle Tim and I visited both those places in May. We didn't get to spend enough time in Barcelona, just enough to know I want to go back some day. And La Sagrada Familia was amazing. It was so big and so intricate that it was too much for me. It somehow didn't feel like a church to me. But very impressive!! And Monserrat, that was one of my favorite stops on our tour. I have a picture taken from the exact same place as the picture you posted on your blog. Ask your dad about the hike that he and Tim and I took. Of course your dad had to create his own short cut and he lost the two of us. We couldn't find him for a few hours, hoping he hadn't fallen off those steep sloped hiking trails. As it turns out we went back to our room, showered and headed for the bus that was taking us to dinner that night. We walked on to the bus and there was your dad, no shower, same clothes as he hiked in and all sweaty. He decided to take on a much more aggressive hike than he probably should have and it took longer than he thought but it all worked out. London looked like a fun trip. Did you get to see Les Mis ? Well, keep enjoying yourself over there. As I'm sure you fully appreciate, this experience you are having right now really is a once in a lifetime kind of thing, so soak it all in. Oh, btw, are you doing anything over there that even remotely looks like some type of academic acticity ? Or is this just a cushy Furman trip where you travel from one exotic city to another and somehow get a full semesters worth of credits ? haha Take care MG, stay safe and know we are thinking of you and excited to see you in Greenville !!!!
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