Side B: Todos las cosas son divertidos

Thus far I think I have covered a large portion of “sights to see” in Barcelona, simply by wandering around Old Town. Of course I haven’t seen anything in any real detail and will need to go back and explore more during the duration of my time here. I did however have a few “must do” items, which I wanted to get accomplished in my first few days, including find the water (port and/or sea) and locate a Yoga studio.

Port Vell

Port Vell lies at the bottom of Las Ramblas, one of the most famous avenues in Barcelona. There is a swing bridge that allows vessels to pass through and multiple pedestrian bridges that allow visitors to cross over to numerous restaurants and Europe’s largest aquarium (a site I’m saving for a rainy day). Currently in the Port is a replica of The Galleon the history and specs for which are included below.

Also near the port is the Monument a Colom, which was designed by Gaietà Buiga for the 1888 Universal Exhibition. It marks the spot where Columbus stepped ashore in 1493 after discovering America (bringing with him six Caribbean Indians). Note that Columbus is pointing out to sea.

(base of monument)

The Mediterranean Sea

Since my very first experience with the Mediterranean Sea (back in 2001), I have loved this body of water. I’m not sure why but I’m instantly happy every time I’m near it; you can imagine how happy I was to find this and to FINALLY stick my feet into the water! Now that I know where how to get to it (vs just walking around the Port) and the subway to take, I’ll undoubtedly be spending a lot of time here. Of course as you can see – so will half of the world that’s currently on vacation.

(I hope the video comes thru ok)

Las Ramblas

Las Ramblas comes from the Arabic ramla, meaning the dried-up bed of seasonal rivier. The river beds have been filled in but are remembered by the five Ramblas that make up the avenue (Rambla De Santa Monica, Rambla Dels Caputxins, Rambla De Sant Josep, Rambla Dels Estudis and Rambla De Canaletes) with Port Vell and Plaça de Catalunya at either end of the avenue.

(Plaça de Catalunya)

As mentioned in the beginning, this is one of the most famous areas of Barcelona – for good reason. There are shops galore, delicious varieties of food and of course “specialty shops”. I’ll just post the pictures and leave it at that. (No, I have no stores to tell regarding these….. yet)

One place in particular that I was really interested in walking around was Marcat St Josep La Boqueria, a large fresh food market. If you’ve never been to a market where fresh food (fruits, veggies, meat, fish) is sold – you have got to go. There is nothing like ordering something so fresh that they filet it up right in front of you (i.e. fish) so that you can bring it home to cook. These people are pros – drop cloths and all to protect themselves from flying parts! And I’ve never seen a completely plucked chicken with its head still attached.

Barceló Sants – The Train Station

I was able to achieve minimal redemption with my Vodaphone/English experience here by attempting to start the conversation at the information desk in Spanish. The guy gave me a "wtf are you saying" face but he was a good sport. We were able to answer most of my questions in a mixture of Spanish and English and eventually I will be attempting to book travel on the train. At least this is a picture of the station – which took me days to find only because I found the subway entrance first, which is on a street without a direct view to the (obviously) large train station.