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08/22/06 - Barcelona, Spain (Spain photo album) Seeing what we can see during our day-trip to Barcelona |
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This morning, we took the coastal train into downtown Barcelona,
right near some of the more famous Gaudi buildings where we
discovered that we would not be alone. The two Gaudi
buildings we looked at immediately upon arrival had 20- to
30-minute lines just to buy tickets to file through the
interiors. We quickly decided that was not how we wanted
to spend our limited time in the city, and planned to just
wander around town and look at the exteriors of any famous or
interesting building we came across. Setting off for the
harbor, we walked down Las Ramblas, the famous (and touristy)
mile-long boulevard connecting Plaza Catalunya to the
waterfront. We'd read in our guidebook that we might want
to stop and see the human statues that perform for tourists who
drop some euros into their cans. Yeah, yeah, yeah, we
thought...we've seen these people who paint themselves and stand
still to the delight of tourists in cities around the world,
we'll pass. But these guys have mad human-statue skills!
Elaborate costumes, props and routines, they put on a show even
better than San Francisco's Bush-Man (a lot better)! One of the highlights of our day in Barcelona was getting to walk through La Boqueria, the large, gorgeous food market, located just off Las Ramblas. Being used to the modest Mexican-style mercado, we were blown away by the beautiful, permanent stalls selling the best looking produce, meat and fish we'd ever seen. It made us excited to eat. We had big plans to find some paella and sangria for lunch, which we were able to find with relative ease, and we packed away the paella rather impressively. After lunch, we toured the old gothic cathedral and the Gaudi-designed Parque Guell, where apparently every Spaniard in the country had decided to come to take photos. Unless you're passing by or on some super-Gaudi tour, we'd suggest skipping it if you only had a day or two in the city. Before heading out, we just had to at least see the outside of Gaudi's famous cathedral in the works, the Sagrada Familia. This building is not a skippable site, definitely something to see. It's amazing to think that the city actually approved its construction almost a hundred years ago. We'll have to come back in fifty years when it's finished (it's actually supposed to be completed in 2020, so they say...), and give ourselves time for a more in-depth exploration of Barcelona. |
It was hot... hot enough for Caroline to drink out of the fountain at the Cathedral
"Look, it's Smoking Pooh!", exclaims Caroline
Scott presents hanging pig-legs to the camera (and also a random Spaniard)
La Sagrada Familia
Caroline enjoys a Sangria before our paella arrives |
