Barcelona

Barcelona

Ryan Air, a very stressful flying experience, arrival at Girona, almost to Barcelona—just another 1.5 hours by bus. After café-ing European style we unloaded at our apartment down a cute alley off La Rambla, the main shopping/pedestrian drag in Barcelona.

Again, beautiful architecture, a very pretty marina and quite an imposing monument to Christopher Columbus were my first impressions of the city. Barcelona seemed to be a bit younger and livelier than its Madrid counterpart, and a bit more relaxed.

Having been deprived of shopping opportunities, I was very interested in browsing—but our priorities were more focused on seeing the city and Gaudi works of art. Thus, I came away with only a pack of socks and a zip-up sweatshirt…

We kicked off New Year’s Eve in the apartment with a few beers and headed out to La Rambla and detoured to a giant metal cat sculpture, which Alex, John and I climbed. It was all fun and games until it gave me pink eye. We then rang in 2009 on the street with champagne and the rest of Barcelona. A house party followed with excellent cheese, fish, chocolate, and caiperinas (Brazilian mixed drink), actually mixed by a Brazilian named Raul.

Barcelona highlights:
-Park Guell
-Marina
-Overpriced tapa bars
-Shopping
-New Years party
-Fish and cheese
-Dirty cat sculpture
-Views
-Acting like birds for the camera, and jumping.

On the go... Back to the Girona airport for a flight to Fez and another Ryan Air experience… Goodbye Europe, hello Africa!