This is a post from my sister, Chloe. She really wanted to write a post about her week in Spain...so I let her! I've been meaning to post it. Hope you enjoy!
First of all, hellooo to all you lovely people who follow AJ's blog. I finally convinced her to let me guest blog about my visit to Barcelona so sit back, relax, and enjoy. AJ already filled you in on our wondrous trip to Amsterdam, but it was amazing. The city was nothing like I expected it to be; I had high expectations and they were definitely met. But enough about that. Let’s talk about Barcelona. I have been to Spain before: my Sophomore year I went on a trip with my Spanish class all over the south of Spain and also to Madrid. I thought I knew what to expect, but Barcelona was nothing like I thought it was going to be: it was better!
After we got back from Amsterdam we checked into our hotel and were all way too tired to do much that night. Kermit and I had gone straight to Amsterdam from a sleepless flight, and Alison (AJ’s amiga from UGA) had also just gotten into Spain. For dinner, we went to a charming little restaurant close to AJ’s apartment: La Turca. There are pictures of food on the outside, as well as strings of flashing lights covering the windows. I mean, who doesn’t love a place where you can order a falafel, pizza, and noodles? As we ate, AJ explained that in her neighborhood, Sagrada Familia, there aren’t many good places to eat. La Sagrada Familia is one of the oldest neighborhoods and isn’t the hip and happening place like other areas of Barcelona. But she does live a block away from Gaudi’s La Sagrada Familia, one of the coolest and most beautiful basilicas I have ever seen. And, AJ being AJ, had a thorough itinerary planned for us for the week. At first I thought it was her OCD-like tendencies shining through, but as the week progressed I was so thankful for her extensive planning. The only reason I think we were able to be so efficient with our time was because of AJ. I definitely think if she had let us figure out our days on our own we may have been sitting there, with blank stares, going “soooooo, what do you wana do today?” for hours.
The next day was our first full day in Barcelona. Alison, Kermit, and I ventured out to La Rambla, a street filled with tiny kiosks, restaurants, and stores that is a must-see when visiting Barcelona. We just wandered down the long street and accidentally ended up in La Bouqueria, a popular outdoor market that has everything from cow tongues to fresh juices. We then met AJ for lunch at this awesome Mexican restaurant, La Rosa Negra. I got some delicious sangria and ceviche, while Kermit, Alison, and AJ got drunk off mojitos and margaritas. I clearly did that all wrong. After lunch, AJ had to go back to class and we wandered over to the Arc de Triomf. It’s a beautiful arch that sits at the enrance to a park. We mozied down and eventually decided to lie down on a grassy knoll. We took a little nap, surrounded by what we can only assume to be drug dealers and Spanish couples participating in excessive PDA. We finally managed to get up and meet AJ. We headed to Parc Güell, designed by Gaudi and breathtakingly beautiful. It was one of my favorite places. We got there a little before sunset and the orange glow coupled with the unique structures of Gaudi made for an amazing view.
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| The gang enjoying Parc Güell |
We then went to this awesome burger bar called Kiosko Burger. You basically build your own burger; it was so delicious! We then went back to prepare for Nasty Monday's at Sala Apolo, a club type thingy that to be honest I still don’t completely understand. At the last minute we decided to forgo Nasty Monday and go to Loco Lunes at the club Otto Zuttz. We danced. We drank. We made some new friends. And then all of a sudden it was 5am and I needed my bed.
I don’t know how AJ does it, because when I woke up at 11:45 the next morning it felt like the hand of God had slapped me. We were suppose to meet Alison at 12 to head over to La Sagrada Familia, but we were moving a bit slow that morning. We finally left the hotel and made it to La Sagrada Familia. La Sagrada Familia is Gaudi’s unfinished masterpiece. He started building it in the late 1800’s but he died in 1926 before he could finish it. At the time of his death it was only about a quarter complete. Since then, work has been continued on the basilica with the goal of finishing it in 2026, the centennial anniversary of Gaudi’s death. My first impression of the basilica up close was: this is insane. Like seriously, this thing towers over the entire city and is so intricately designed that you have a hard time processing it all, but then I went inside. *Suggestions to those who plan on visiting: do not tour la sagrada familia when you are hungover.* The moment I stepped inside and looked up, I swear I started tripping and even contemplated throwing up. But I didn’t want to be that girl who threw up in Barcelona’s most prized basilica, so I pushed through. The inside of the basilica was nothing like I had ever seen before. All the columns were constructed differently with a myriad of colors; it was like I was in an enchanted forest. Even though every time I looked up my depth perception was compromised, it was still breathtaking none the less.
After my near death experience at the basilica, we headed over to meet AJ to get brunch at this place called Milk. This was one of my favorite places to eat in Barcelona (I went there a total of 3 times in 6 days). It's an Irish owned restaurant in el Born (my favorite neighborhood) and offers a “recovery brunch”, which is definitely what I needed. AJ, Kermit, and Alison sipped on bloody mary’s and mimosas while I tried to come back to life and keep some food down. Thankfully I started feeling like a normal person again and we ventured out into El Born to do some shopping and exploring. El Born is a neighborhood filled with small boutiques, hip restaurants, and other hole-in-the walls. It’s a bit edgy and I loved it. We went to this shoe shop that makes its own espadrilles and slip on shoes. Naturally we all got a pair. AJ also took us to this awesome bookstore that had over 8,000 books and me, being the book nerd that I am, had so much fun wandering around the store. After our afternoon in El Born, we went home for a siesta and then headed out to dinner. The tapas place we originally planned on going to was closed, but we stumbled upon this AMAZING pizza place called Pizza del Born. From the outside it just looks like this small pizzeria, but 3 slices and an empanada later, I wanted to move-in and never leave. Our parents had said this was one of their favorites while they were here, and obviously if it has the blessing of Jeff and Adriana you know it’s good. AJ was already planning her trip back here for another empanada. Still tired from the night before, we headed back to AJ’s apartment and just chilled for a bit.
Feeling a bit bold, we woke up a little earlier on Wednesday (read: 11:00) and headed to Casa Batillo, an apartment designed by Gaudi on the famous street Passeig de Gracia. It hard not to spot it as your walking down a street filled with designer stores and upscale hotels and then you see a house with skull like balconies and Gaudi’s signature designs. The house is about 6 stories and each level is as trippy as the next. My favorite part was the roof, with yet another spectacular view of the city. After our tour, we walked about 10 minutes to Gaudi’s other apartment (located on the same street) and just viewed it from the outside. We then met AJ for some paella on the beach. They served us a huge pan of paella, bottles of wine, and complimentary shots of peach and apple flavored liquor. We were all feeling very good afterwards and headed back for a much needed siesta. Later that night the 4 of us went to a bar called Pipperments, known for its excessively large drinks that range from 1 liter servings up to 13 liters. Because we are stupid and let AJ order for us, we got a 13 liter drink of vodka lemonade. For the 4 of us. I’m not that good at math, but I’m pretty sure that’s about 3 liters a person. As we tackled our drink, AJ became friends with the owner Jaime. He took waay to many pictures of us, and I am expecting to be their new website cover photo any day now. Fast forward to closing time, everyone has left, except the 4 idiot American girls who are trying to finish the biggest drink ever created. The bartenders even gave us to-go cups. But no, we manage to leave the bar successful.
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| 13 liters. And counting. |
The next day, AJ left for Dublin and Alison went home, leaving me and Kermit alone in Barcelona. We went to this tapas place called Cerveceria Catalana. Kermit’s friend Amber had recommended it to us as the best place in the city for tapas. It had delicious tapas and we had no trouble ordering because everything spoke to us. Too bad we were so full after lunch that we had to waddle home and sleep it off. That night we went to the bar L’Ovella Negra (the black sheep) for pitchers of Sangria. This was definitely one of my favorite bars. It was basically a cave with a tavern inside. It was mostly locals and you could get a pitcher of sangria for a very good price. We made the mistake of sharing a table with some over-friendly guys from Venezuela, who took a liking to Kermit and I. I got to practice my Spanish, while Kermit got to practice slapping their hands away from her butt.
Friday we went back to Milk for their recovery brunch. It’s just too good. We then headed back over to La Rambla to do some last minute souvenir shopping. Later we went and bought some snacks from the store and headed to Mont Juic, known for the best view of the city. We took the gondola up to the top and sat and watched the sunset over the city, while enjoying cheesy bread and avocado.
The next day was St. Patrick’s day and we were ready. Oh were we ready. We headed back to Milk to get some food in our stomachs before the drinking began. We spent the day at an Irish bar called Dunnes that we passed earlier that week. They were streaming the rugby 6 nations games and what better way to celebrate then with drinking Guinness and watching rugby? We got there fairly early and were able to snag a table in view of the screen. 5 hours later, we are still there and ready for some food. We grabbed Wok to Walk, asian stir-fry, and head back to AJ’s apartment. We had an early flight the next morning and had to leave for the airport in a few hours. We decided not to push our luck and resisted the urge to go back to the bar. Is this what growing up feels like?
Overall, it was an amazing spring break. I had so much fun and am so glad that I was able to visit AJ. THANKS AGAIN FOR AN AWESOME WEEK. You da best, Chloe
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| Sisters in Barca! |
Sorry that was long...Chloe had a lot to say! As for me, I had great trips to Dublin and Valencia which will both be blogged about very soon. I'm officially on La Semana Santa (aka Spring Break) until April 11! Hope everyone has a wonderful Easter/Passover.
Ciao.
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