Barcelona Bonita

Barcelona is amazing. Pack your things and head there immediately. The spirit of the city is contagious -- it's a happy-chill place. People are so kind but not too rowdy. Food is simple but has such rich flavor. There are gorgeous plazas (which double as parks) every other street. The city also boasts tropical beaches surrounded by moutains, speckled with distinctively Spanish buildings. The port is crowded with sail boats, and the plaza surrounding the port is covered with tapas bars.

Speaking of --I love the concept of tapas. We ate patatas bravas (potatos with a spicy sauce), croquettes, jamon (thinly sliced pieces of ham drizzled with olive oil), olives (and not just any olives-- mixtures with both green and black olives sprinkled with miniature pickles and garlic--yum! we also had olives stuffed with anchovies, which was so divine!), chorizo, goat cheese, bread rubbed with garlic, tomato, olive oil and parsley .... it was all so yummy!

We completely enjoyed our time with James, Matt's good friend from college. Having lived there for several years, James was basically a local expert and we completely detoured the typical tourist path. Instead of eating on La Rambla, we sought out the little hole-in-the-walls in Barri Gottica and Gracias. We took pictures of Gauid's buildings and places like La Sagrada Familia, but also headed to Montjuic, the site of the '92 Olympics, Park Guell, the Barcelona Cathedral, the Roman ruins, the Jewish Quarter ... and we did our absolute best at seeking out every plaza for a stroll and a sit. The street performers range from violinists and opera singers to headless men and freaky clowns. They, too, were interesting and entertaining.

I'm having difficulty with blogger this evening ... it doesn't want me to post pictures! I'll have more posted soon on beautiful Barcelona. We also saw things like a car go up in flames, little old ladies in plazas placing dainty handkerchiefs on their laps for their dogs to sit on, Matt drinking out of a street fountain .... only to find out it's really a fountain meant only for dogs. So stay tuned!