Barcelona, a little late.

Barcelona was amazing. It was vibrant, and full of life. It was not what I was expecting but it was a pleasant surprise. It was though, to my expectaions of not being truly 'Spanish.' They actually speak Catalan and while they have most of the same traditions and food. Either way, Barcelona was full of things to do. There were so many little things to go see and do that one could spend years there and still not see and experience everything. Brie and I did all the main Gaudi stops, the houses, Sagrada Familia, and Parc Guell. All of which were interestingly captivating. Honestly, before learning about Gaudi and his works, i just thought they were too over the top and simply too much. Although, after the mini museum in Sagrada Familia about him and his work, I understand it. I still think it's rather unnecessarily loud, but I at least appreciate it. We went to the HUGE market on La Rambla and up and down La Rambla in all the shops and side streets. One of my favorite parts of the trip was just wandering, and getting lost in the Gothic Quater. Which was just an array of churches, gothic architecture, shops and restaurants. One thing that caught my attention in Barcelona was all of the street performers and how amazing they were. Most all were musicians and I seriously would have listened to their music if they were famous. There was everything from a classical violinist to a crazzzy reggae band. There was a point where a high school drum line started a mini parade through the streets and everyone started dancing and following. All the energy and happiness was contagious. I loved it.

Barcelona night life isn't so bad either. :) The first night we went to a local couch surfing house through a friend and shared wine while conversing with people from all over the world. On Halloween we did a pub crawl, which was an experience to say the least. It was so fun and I now know why it is a pub 'crawl' and not a pub hop, or walk. Every Friday and Saturday night there is an extremely large fountain that does a show, with lights and music. It was nothing short of spectacular. The colors and water show combined with the music was something that everyone needs to see, after all, it was FREE!

The food was also great in Barcelona. The Paella and tapas were delicious, and the sangria was perfect. The market had fresh juice smoothies for a euro that they made that day with all their fresh fruits, I had 2 a day :)

Overall Barcelona is a beautiful city that is full of life, and I definitely would go back.