Saturday, June 16, 2012

Barcelona!

   Friday morning we hop on a train to Barcelona. It was our first experience with the Renfe (Spain's high speed train) with no stops the trip is 2 and a half hours, we were very impressed. It is a smooth ride, the seats are comfortable and come along with feet rests and the kids are free, you can't ask for more. The kids and I headed out first, with Nick following after he got out of work that evening. It was a pain free trip with the kids being entertained the whole way with a movie and we were in Barcelona by 11:15 am.

   We walked around a bit ate lunch and hiked up to Guell Park. It was literately a hike and my Dad was not prepared for it, it was quite funny watching him but I don't think he appreciated our humor. The kids loved climbing on the rock hall wall and running through Gaudi's maze of pillars below the main terrace. It was a great introduction to Barcelona.







   
The next day with Nick in tow we got out of the apartment quickly to start our day. We went to La Rambla, a pedestrian mall that reminded me of Third Street with all the different kiosks that lined the street. It is also famous for pick pockets, so I held onto my purse as we made our way down the street. At the beginning of La Rambla is the Christopher Columbus monument which is huge and overlooks the port where everyone comes in from their cruise ships. On our walk we saw Palau Güell, Antic Hospital de la Santa Creu, Mercat de la Boqueria, Palau de la Virreina, Plaça de Catalunya, the Catedral, and Església de Santa Maria del Mar.

    After the long day we hung out and watched some street performers on the Plaça de la Barceloneta which is right along the water and is also the place where we found out that my Dad had been pick pocketed. He denied it, he couldn't imagine that they had got him. I felt bad for him but Nick was excited that we got the full Barcelona experience, even if it was at my Dad's expense. After we got the kids down to bed that night, Nick and I went out on a date which was really nice. We found an awesome restaurant and Nick was thrilled with his dinner (he ordered the piglet) but what was really great was my dessert: Pineapple creme brûlée. It was as good as it sounds.

Monument to Christopher Columbus

Really appreciating the city and taking it all in.
If they didn't know we were American before...
La Rambla


Palau Güell
In a small courtyard garden at the Antic Hospital de la Santa Creu

Antic Hospital de la Santa Creu. And Jamie's boyfriend.
Bunny burgers at the Mercat de la Boqueria! (Don't worry, we had the veggie option)



Spain is famous for its ham


Plaça de Catalunya

Terrorizing the pigeons at the Plaça de Catalunya

Barcelona's Catedral

Andrew helping Nick find a geocache near the Catedral. Mission accomplished!

Església de Santa Maria del Mar



     Sunday we walked down Passeig de Gracia and saw Casa Batlló, La Pedrera (both Gaudi), and some more awesome architecture that lined the street. From there we went to Sagrada Familla which was pretty incredible and we only saw the outside, I heard from my parents later how awesome it was inside but we couldn't put the kids through it especially because we were off to take them to the Picasso museum. Right after the museum Nick got on a train back to Madrid and we headed back home; this time my parents went out while I stayed with the kids.

Casa Batlló





In search for a geocache!


Andrew holding up the geocache that we found, right in front of La Pedrera

La Sagrada Familia

The other side of La Sagrada Familia

Inside the Picasso Museum




   Monday was a slower paced day which was really nice after our jam packed weekend. We took the telefonica (a type of tram/cable car) up to Montjuic where there was a beautiful fort that the kids loved and that gave us incredible views of the city. Afterward we headed to the beach with a detour to Parc de Espanya and lunch. The beach was perfect, the weather couldn't have been better and I was able to go in the Mediterranean for the first time. It was a perfect way to end our trip to Barcelona.















1 comment:

Kristin Johnson said...

Wow! This sounds like oh, so much fun. I loved the Renfe too. So wish they could put them in the US. I got pick pocketed on the subway as I carried our stroller up the stairs...