Well, spring break has come to an end and once again we have
been thrown into the thick of things. Coming
into the AIB building this morning and seeing Joanna sitting at the table like
normal made me so overjoyed to be back that I gave her a huge hug, which I
think surprised her. It feels like
forever since we have been back at AIB, but in reality is was just a week
ago. Spring break was the perfect mix of
relaxing and touring, as I spent the entire time in Barcelona seeing the sights
and enjoying the beautiful sunny weather.
Man there is so much to tell I do not even know where to
begin! I did a lot of touring around
seeing the sights, went for runs on the beach with Kathryn in the mornings,
took a daytrip to the nearby town of Terragona, saw some awesomely breathtaking
views, enjoyed the fantastic weather and somehow managed to spend all of the
money I had brought with me. I guess I
will just go day by day and try to give a short recount of the major happenings
throughout the week. We arrived midday
on Saturday, checked into our apartment, went crazy taking pictures of Las
Ramblas, and ate Tapas for dinner.
Another thing I get to cross off of my trip bucket list! Las Ramblas was a sight to see, which lots of
open air shops and living statues, but my favorite part was probably La
Boqueria, a gigantic open air market located off of the side of the
street. There were vendors selling
everything from fruit and produce to whole pig legs (hooves still attached) and
octopus. It was a bit overwhelming and
after seeing fresh cuts of meat and seafood dangling everywhere I seriously
considered becoming vegetarian. I would
much prefer the food I eat not to resemble the animal it came from, thank you
very much. I especially do not like it
when the fish’s eyes stare back at me when I go to eat it. After dinner we tried the gelato, which in my
opinion pales in comparison to the gelato in Italy.
Our second day was declared a beach day. Although only Seth got in the water (it was
freezing!) we spent most of the day lounging in the sun and playing
soccer. On the way home that night I had
a delicious ham and cheese crepe which I am seriously considering making in
lieu of grilled cheese when I return to the states. The third day some of us paid a visit to the
Sagrada Familia, a gigantic cathedral designed by Gaudi. It was of course not nearly as tall as the
one in Köln, but it was still a sight to see.
The outside was unique, but the inside was breathtaking. The concrete structure seemed light and airy,
and the columns and stained glass windows made you feel as if you were in a
forest. It was not at all what I was
expecting, but I am very glad I paid the money to go inside and see the
church. It was around in here where I discovered
I suck at haggling with street vendors. That
night Kathryn and I tried Churros, which are a bit like chocolate dipped funnel
cake. They were deliciously warm and
sugary. The perfect nighttime snack.
The fourth day, after a nice run on the beach (have to work
off all of the chocolate you know), four of us set out for a day trip to Terragona. This is a small town south of Barcelona that
is home to a bunch of Roman ruins. The
town was gorgeous. It was right on the
ocean and that combined with sunshine and picturesque views from the top of the
ruins made the day trip one of the favorite things we did on the trip. This day was also the day that Kathryn and I
learned that there is such a thing as too much Nutella. Shocking, I know, but believe me when I say
you do not want to figure this out the hard way.
The fifth day we moved to another apartment (we had two
different places booked) and then paid a visit to the Picasso museum. The museum housed a lot of his earlier art
which allowed us to see how his style developed. I really enjoyed seeing the influences of
Velasquez and other artists in Picasso’s work, and also the fact that the
museum had things written in English.
Kathryn and I had the idea that we were going to go for a run on the
beach and watch the sun go down, but right at the moment we set foot out the
door a thick fog rolled in. We still ran
in it, which actually turned out to be really cool. There were few people out on the beach and
the fog made the water change from sky blue to a dark grey, which made for some
neat pictures.
The sixth day Kathryn and I visited the Sant Maria del Mar
cathedral where I lit another candle for Grandbob. I was interested by the fact that the church
was built right into the city. It seems
like in other cities we have visited, like Köln, the cathedrals tower over
everything and stand apart from the houses.
Here, the church was so close to everything you couldn’t even get far
enough away to take a picture of the entire building. I really enjoyed looking at the different
architectural style and comparing to the other cathedrals that I have seen on
the trip. After the church we met up
with some more of the group to hike up Montjuic, a mountain just on the edge of
Barcelona. We did not have a set plan,
and just took our time wandering around past palaces, gardens, the Olympic stadium,
and finally to the castle on top of the hill.
There we were greeted with a huge cannon and a spectacular view of the
city. It was perfect weather for hiking,
and I was even able to wear short sleeves!
 |
| This is one of my favorite pictures of the trip |
The seventh day was our last full day in Barcelona. Kathryn and I took a long run in the morning
to get all hot and sweaty, and then on the count of three ran into the
sea. It was freezing cold, and locals
laughed at us as we both did a face plant in the water. It was so much fun though, and nice and refreshing. We spent the next two hours laying in the sun
on the beach and then ran back to shower and meet up with the rest of the
group. BEST MORNING RUN EVER! That afternoon Kathryn, Andrea, and I paid a
visit to Park Guell which was also designed by Gaudi. The park was not what I expected. It was huge! Paths wound up and down the
sides of the mountain, accented by unique architecture and buildings. After taking a bunch of pictures and walking
around some we headed back to the apartment to celebrate Katie’s birthday with
some cake.
Unfortunately the eighth day we had to catch our plane back
to Bonn. I think all of us wished we
could have stayed longer, but I am happy that I was able to see everything that
I wanted to. It was tempting to think
that we should have studied abroad in Spain instead, but I realized that
despite the preferable weather I actually missed Germany. Sure it is dreary and cold most of the time
(or it has been up until this week), but you can’t beat the bakeries on every
corner and the unique German culture.
So that sums up my week in Barcelona. I am glad I got to experience some sunshine
and make use of my Spanish, but now I have to change gears and throw myself
into preparation for the Biomechanics test this Friday. Wish me luck!
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