Barcelona

Howdy! Just got back from Barcelona Sunday and it was amazing! We arrived around 8 Friday night and navigated the bus and metro with our luggage. One kind woman helped us out; she spoke English! After wandering around lost for quite a while, we finally made it back to the right directions. The person who emailed Melissa said it was a short walk just a bit uphill, and a taxi would cost 3€, so of course we decided to walk it...20 minutes later we were drenched with sweat, seriously it was straight uphill! We arrived, and got checked in and met a few of the other guests at the hostel. They were all very nice. Melissa went out with them, but I went to bed around 1...you know me and my bedtimes!

The next day, we got out of our hostel around 10, and made our way downtown to meet up with a Mike's Bike Tour that started at 11:30. It was so much fun! We got to tour the Gothic district, a large park, some of Gaudi's (a major architect in Barcelona) more famous works, including a church that is still in progress, the Arc de Triomphe, and ended the tour with a drink at a beach bar. It was a lovely afternoon. After that, we headed to the van Gogh Museum, which was incredible, but very daunting, as there were so many works of art. After the museum, we were beat, so we headed to the beach! After picking up some straw mats, we arrived, and let me tell you, I have never seen a beach this crowded before! Tons of people. We sunbathed and swam for a few hours, then headed off to a restaurant that our tour guide had recommended: The 15 Nights. The wait was long, but the fare was delicious, and good! I had chicken, zucchini, rice, and sangria, and was stuffed. We stopped for ice cream on the way back to the hostel.

Sunday we got up, checked out, and went to the beach for a few hours. We then took the metro and bus back to the airport, and arrived with just an hour to check in...only to find that the line was ridiculously long! We were able to use a computerized check-in though, and made it back to Duesseldorf uneventfully. I had dinner with my host father, and we chatted in broken English for a bit before I headed up to pack. It was very nice. Yesterday was Wurzburg, but more on that later!

All in all, Barcelona was wonderful; definetely worth the trip! I had no idea what an architectural wonder the city is, mostly due to Gaudi. The church we saw was only 25% complete, and it was begun over 100 years ago! Apparently Gaudi got so into the church that he moved in, stopped eating, and stopped showering. He was hit by a bus stepping out of a cafe one day, and no one stopped to help because they thought he was a beggar. Eventually some tourists picked him up and took him to the hospital, where he died. Pretty sad, considering what he did for Barcelona.

Anyway, hope all is well. Tschuss!