Barcelona

Hola mis amistades,

Before I get rolling on this post, you all need to understand one thing: If you are ever in Europe you must visit Barcelona. It was one of the most interesting, beautiful, and liveliest cities I have ever been too, and I think you will know why when I finish.

The entire group, 42 of us, including an eccentric but very funny tour guide named Enrique, spent 3 days in Barcelona and 1 day in Terragona. First Terragona. Terragona is about an hour south of Barcelona on the Eastern Coast of Spain on the Mediterrean Sea. However, the real importance of the city is not its proximity to Barcelona, rather, it lies in its historical significance. Within Terragona, there is an ancient roman city, still largely intact. Many of the towers, walls, and ruins date back nearly 2000 years. We walked on a sidewalk that Romans walked on. For many of you that may not mean much, and it didn't mean much to me either until I learned about the history and architecture of the Romans. However, I won't go into detail here, as it may bore of some you. But as I have said before, I would love to describe anything to any of you if you want more of the details.

Side note: I have changed the settings for this blog so that anyone can post a comment without having to get a user name or sign in. Hooray.

Now the part you have all been anxiously waiting for. Barcelona. As I mentioned earlier, one of the coolest cities I have ever been to. Heres why.

Imaginad conmigo (imagine with me).

A dense city of 5 million people with large avenues and apartments above every store. You are merely ambling throughout the city and you can see a priceless sculpture on every corner. Like our friend Cristobal Colon (Christopher Columbus). Funny store about this sculpture, many people assume he is pointing towards America. INCORRECT. He is pointing towards Italy, for a reason I have not figured out yet.

You walk down las ramblas (the busiest and most famous street in Barcelona) and you have street performers trying to make a buck with music, magic acts, gymnastics, and the most interesting to me, people who dressed up in crazy costumes such as trees, aliens, or tin men . If you are fortunate to walk down there at night, you have the amazing privilege of having Packs (slang) trying to sell you beer every 10 steps.

You make it down to the oldest part of town the gothic neighborhood, where you can view this cathedral complete with gargoyles just like in the movies.

Perhaps you want to go view some of the works of Antoni Gaudi, a famous spanish Architect. When looking at these pictures, it is important to remember two things. These buildings were revolutionary at the time and Gaudi was fascinated with the interplay between nature and architecture as you can see.

Casa Mila an apartment building built for the priviledged.

Parque Guell now a public park, was meant to be developed for housing. We had lunch here, and since it is a tourist attraction there are many street vendors there. Watch out, they will try to cheat as they tried to cheat a girl in the group.

La Sagrada Familia a church started in the late 19th century and is obvioulsy still under construction. Without a doubt, the most awe-inspiring building I have ever witnessed. The maginitude and grandiose of this building cannot be put into words. I like how it looks like there is a large mouth in the center.

Now you have heard that the people of Barcelona are known for their nightlife. Rumors of bars and clubs that stay open till sunrise with 50 euro entrance fees swirling around in your head. Well let me set the record straight. POR SUPUESTO (of course). I am just going to state a fact. Spaniards dance way better then Americans. However, as amazing the nightlife is, the cab driving is not. Monday night, we were on our way back from a discotecca (basically a club, but a lot more dancing and of course, American Music), and were dropped off a good mile away from our lodging. In a foreign country, lost, and 4:30 in the morning, you can imagine there was a bit of fear running through us. Luckily, we walked for a while and got lucky enough to recognize some landmarks, 45 minutes after we were dropped off.

Lastly, a friend has told you about the wine of Spain. The best in the world according to him or her. You may want to explore a vineyard and winery to see for yourself. Try the winery Cordoniu. Lucky for Allison, Brock, and my loving father, they are going to get to try the finest cava (spanish champagne), straight from the winery itself, in the world when they come to visit.

This concludes the trip. It is my sincerest hope that you enjoyed the ride and will take a week out of your busy schedules to experience these wonders in person.

Hasta Luego

Tommy