Adventures through the Borne District and Gothic Quarters

Hola!

Yikes I didn't realize it's been almost two weeks since I last blogged...Sorry! Life in Barcelona is keeping me extremely busy, but don't worry I can easily catch you up in one long post.

Since Interlaken, I've not traveled out of Barcelona. Instead my friends and I have tried to become "locals" and explore various areas in Barcelona. One area I've become absolutely obsessed with is the Borne District. It's very euro-trendy and chic. There are boutiques on every corner. All of which carry so many things I'd love to own, yet none of which I can even afford. What's fun about wandering around the Borne District is that there are great local eateries that all have really yummy food. There's one place (that I recommend to anyone visiting Barcelona) called Pim Pam's Burgers. Amazing food and they even have a veggie burger! Next door to this burger joint is Pim Pam's Plats, which has a ton of pasta and vegetable salads, empanadas, and so much more! I'm hooked on this place and plan to take everyone who visits me here! (i.e. Alison, Chloe, Kermit, Hannah, Mom and Dad -- you're all going to love it!)

Tortilla* con verduras.
*New word. Tortilla in Español means omelet!

Another area I've explored recently is the Barri Gotic (Gothic Quarters). I went with Shannon and her best friend visiting from Florence (side note: I met her in Interlaken. We canyon jumped together. Bonded for life). We started our adventure with brunch at Milk. This restaurant is a big hit among study abroad students because they offer an American style brunch on the weekends, but it's also popular among locals because the food itself is actually good. I got a vegetable omelet...and it was amazing! I can't wait to go back.

After brunch we wandered around. We had addresses for places we wanted to visit, but that didn't really help us. The streets are pretty confusing and everyone knows how great my sense of direction is. We stumbled across Parc de la Ciutadella. It's a beautiful, massive park that is at the end of a path that leads to the Arc de Triomf.

I went back to Barri Gotic with one of my roommates the next day. She's on a quest to find combat boots and of course I offered to come with. I can never turn up an opportunity to shop (thanks for that mom.) We checked out the candy store, Papabubble, which makes caramel, sweet candys where they make the candy right in front of you. These intricate treats are so cute, so I of course I bought a baby-sized case to have as a souvenir!

After Annie and continued to wander around the Gothic area. I've been in search of this famous espadrille store my mom told me about and somehow or another we randomly stumbled upon it! It's called La Manual Alparagatera and is family run. It's the type of place you would never know existed unless you knew about these specialty shoes. The store hand makes each espadrille and offers every style and color known to man! I bought a pair  of red and white flat espadrilles that tie up the leg and I also splurged and bought a pair of brown suede, high-heeled wedges! I can't wait for it to get warm so I can show of these beautiful finds!

Espadrilles galore!

Some exciting news! One of the excursion my study abroad program offers us is an opportunity to go to a FC Barcelona futból match! We went to the game last Saturday. It was against San Sebastian. Not a really exciting game, but our seats we're right on the goal line. We we're so close we could literally see every facial expression the players made. One of the coolest parts of the game was watching Messi score the second goal. The excitement in the crowd and the passion from all the fans was incredible to watch. Even though it was an uneventful game, it was still a really cool experience!

Vamos Barca!

This week hasn't been to exciting. I did venture (all by myself!) after class to a local café in the Borne District called Bubo. I got my everyday dopio espresso and treated myself to a macaroon! It was so yummy and I can't wait to go back! This weekend three of my roommates and I are off to explore Madrid! We're going with our study abroad program. I'm so excited to visit and explore this place! My mom and sister went last summer and told me how much they loved it...so I can't wait to see it!

Okay I'm off to eat dinner with my roommate!

Ciao!