Warning: this entry might be a bit long..feel free to skim or just look at the pretty pictures ha!

I think this week it finally hit me.. I am studying abroad in a foreign country in Europe..something I have talked about doing my entire life. Even though I have certainly been living in the moment the past seven weeks, there is something special about being able to pay less than 80 Euros, pick up, and fly to another country or part of Europe without telling anyone.. (let’s be honest here..you ALL know that I told my parents of my travel plans, had a backup passport scanned and emailed to me in case of theft, and alerted my program of where and with whom I would be traveling...BUT.. there is still something magical about not having to do so and no one knowing exactly where in the world I am : )). On Friday afternoon I flew to Barcelona with two friends in my program, Amy & Bianca. Although our trip started out as a crazy one due to arriving at the airport late, going all the way through security without knowing that you have to get a special stamp on your boarding pass when flying with RyanAir, and having to force our ONE (that includes a purse!) carryon into a small box before being permitted onto the plane, we just barely made it!!! Once we touched down Barcelona we immediately knew we were no longer in Andalusia (the southern region of Spain where Sevilla is located) but rather we were in Catalonia, the northeastern region where Barcelona is located. (For those of you who don’t know, Catalonia has its own unique dialect, Catalan, that is just different enough from Spanish that it is hard to understand. It is also currently undergoing a movement to be considered its own separate nation, independent from Spain. ) 

When we landed it was considerably cooler than what we left behind in Sevilla, and was quite overcast. We boarded a “Aerobus” to take us to a main plaza near the hostel where we would be staying. After about half an hour of aimless walking around in the pouring rain, we eventually found our “not so sweet” home sweet home for the weekend. The phrase that I said innumerable amount of times on the trip was “You get what you pay for”.. our hostel was no exception. For 20 euros a night, your roughin’ it... all a part of my character building..right? (;  After ringing out our clothes and safely locking away our belongings, we headed out for a bite to eat. At dinner we learned it is not safe for us to drink the water in Barcelona (I think its just another tactic to force tourists to buy big expensive bottles of water, but hey it works!) as well as the fact that the way we were used to speaking would not work for the next few days. Although we had hoped to explore the city a bit more, with the stress of nearly missing our flight and the dreary weather, we all decided to grab some food for breakfast and call it a night. (Except we really couldn’t considering our neighbors came back to our hostel at 4 a.m. screaming and fighting in another language that none of us understood! Quite a comical experience..except when all you want to do is SLEEP!) 

The next morning we all forced each other to get up so that we could make the MOST of our few days in Barcelona! I found a flyer for a “hop on, hop off” tourist bus that would take you all over the city from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m... I was sold! (I then had to of course sell it to my two travel buddies who weren’t sure about dropping 20 euros right off the bat!) We all agreed that it would be the best way to see the most things in the city conveniently.. boy am I glad we did! We started out on the bus and headed down main plaza’s admiring the unique architecture that Barcelona has (Gaudi (and Dali) were very influential there, so many of the buildings contain distinct architectural styles and designs not found in other cities.) While aboard the bus we were all given headphones where we could choose to listen to the history and descriptions of what we were passing by bus. The first “stop” that we decided to hop off on was La Sagrada Familia - the famous and MASSIVE church designed by Gaudi that is still one hundred years later undergoing construction. I was told before arriving that it is not enough to merely look at the structure but that I must also pay to go in; unfortunately due to time and money constraints I was not able to enter. I did however spend a considerable amount of time just looking at the amazing details of this building. 

La Sagrada Familia

From there we headed back on the bus and stopped once again at Park Guell - a winding and beautiful park designed by Gaudi that is open to the public. The park has tons of mosaic work and is home to the famous mosaic lizard pictured in most photos depicting Barcelona. The park also is placed up on a hill that overlooks the beautiful city. Great for photos! 

View from Park Guell

After wandering around there for hours we headed to old palace, where the King and Queen of Spain used to stay when they came to visit. Now, it has been preserved as a beautiful museum complete with unique botanical gardens and courtyards. 

The old Barcelona Palace

As you can imagine, after these three spots we were quite exhausted and it was only 2 p.m.! From there we decided to ride the bus and enjoy the view from the top of the double decker while snapping photos and listening to the history of all the places we passed; Including but not limited to : the Barcelona futbol (yes I do mean futbol not football!) stadium ,Casa Batlo, Montjuiic, and the sight of the 1992 Olympics games. Once our bus tour was complete (7p.m.) we headed back to our hostel for a brief rest and regrouping.

Amy & I on the bus tour

 Around nine a’clock we walked thirty minutes to the “Magical Fountain of Monjuic” where a water light show is put on every half an hour on Friday and Saturday nights. It was spectacular! (Reminded me a bit of some of the beautiful fountains we have in K.C.!) After the light show we proceeded to get lost and walk and extra hour, but eventually we made it home and grabbed a bite to eat. 

Montjuic Light Show (the picture doesn't do it justice!)

Sunday morning we once again set off for the day quite early and hit up Las Ramblas, the famous street located only about 10 minutes away from our hostel, with local vendors and shopping galore! Once we finished buying knick-knacks and touristic mementos, we walked along a pier located just at the end of the street.  We headed into a shopping mall to use the bathroom where we learned it would cost us 50cents each.. quite an interesting experience! (it was a pretty nice bathroom though ;)). From the shopping district we headed to the Gothic quarters of Barcelona where the most famous cathedral is located. We grabbed “bocadillos” (sandwiches) and picnicked along side the cathedral steps, offering our bread crumbs to the millions of pigeons flocking beside us. 

Barcelona's main cathedral

From the cathedral we headed to the Picasso Museum which we researched and found out was free on Sunday’s after 3 to the public. Knowing this fact, we maybe should have gotten there a little sooner, as we stood in line for quite a while.. it was worth the wait for me! It was very special for me to see some of Picasso’s original work that he completed during his many years spent in Barcelona, while I was IN Barcelona! Not to mention the images that I engrained in my memory for art history tests, present in their original forms right before my very eyes! Pretty cool! 

Just hanging out with Picasso in his museum in his home town

Although tired and disheveled after miles and miles of walking, we headed to “Casa Batllo” designed once again by Gaudi. Although we didn’t enter, we got great pictures from outside and were able to admire the unique colors and tiles used to form the outside of the structure. Once again, we headed home for to recharge our cameras, phone, and ourselves! Sunday night we walked along some of the main plazas near our hostel and grabbed dinner at a mediocre buffet - definitely catering to American tourists with a fresh salad bar, french fries, and pizza! 

Bianca & I with our "American" ice cream - not gelato

Monday morning Amy had to catch a very early flight but Bianca and I stayed for the remainder of the day exploring the city some more. We checked out a few free museums in our area, including a famous photography museum. We walked along Las Ramblas one more time to buy a few last minute trinkets. After grabbing a leisurely lunch and documenting our millionth photo of our trip, we headed back on the Aerobus to the Barcelona airport. (This time WAY earlier than our initial departure!) 

We returned to Sevilla around 10p.m. with a new respect for our current “hogar” (home), language (REAL Spanish) and the free home-cooked meals we are provided! I can honestly say that I am very happy that I got to visit Barcelona for a few days, and that I chose Sevilla to live in. The city is huge, very expensive, non-traditional, less-friendly, and very touristy. Don’t get me wrong - it made for an unforgettable weekend getaway! But it also made me appreciate my city of Sevilla even more! ( :  It may be  home to the fastest speakers you’ve ever heard in your life, 100 degrees in the shade, and people who dress up WAY too much everyday, but it is also beautiful, navigable, and home to the friendliest people.. It’s what I currently call home!!

It was a great experience to travel with two friends who had never visited Barcelona before, and who were willing to get up and make the most of our short time there! I really enjoyed getting to know them both better and seeing the majority of the city! It was a great weekend and one that I will not forget (partially thanks to this blog!!!) 

As for my life in Sevilla, I am sad to say that my roommate Dana who was in the accident last week has decided to go home. Her mom arrived last weekend and they both decided that it would be best for her to seek medical care back in the states. I am happy that she is doing what is best for her but am very sad to see her go. Tomorrow I will be volunteering once again at Colegio Claret, the English immersion program I am involved with. I am very much looking forward to that. There are also rumors that I will not have class tomorrow at the Universidad de Sevilla (University of Sevilla) due to protests about the rise in tuition.. (to 500 euros a year... they should hear what our’s is!) I will keep you posted on what happens there. Seven weeks down, nine to go.. I continue to try to make the most of each day here as I know I will wake up in two months and it will all be over. As always, thanks for reading!

Con Amor (with love)

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