Barcelona, blah blah blah

I knew I wanted to get to Barcelona after Paris, but I had no idea it would be so difficult. By avoiding an overnight train, I saved 50 euro (yes, they were going to charge me 70 euro WITH my Eurail pass), but it ended up taking about 20 hours to get there. Absolutely miserable. The only advantage other than the money saved, was the couple hours I spent in between trains in Cebere, which is a tiny little town, the very last in France on the Mediterranean. I walked down to the beach (smooth pebbles, not sand like we are used to) and enjoyed some sunshine. This was my first encounter with the Mediterranean, which is as perfect as you can get, IMHO. Clear deep blue water for as far as you can see, with rocky cliffs and beaches. Love it.

Me and the Mediterranean...I think this is the begining of a beautiful friendship.

Barcelona was a drag, though. My hostel was 10 minutes from the closest Metro stop, all uphill walking. Not fun after 20 hours in trains. I was a little freaked out about safety there, too, so I didnt want to go out at night and have to hike back so far alone.

I decided to either change hostels or see everything in one day. So I saw all I could and headed on out. The beach was sandy and crowded, but tempting still. The famous walk along Las Ramblas wasnt so impressive, I thought, but the living statues were really elaborate and colorful.

Paella

The best thing about Barcelona was the Gaudi architechture. His work is so intricate and interesting. I love that he uses so much influence from nature. I saw the Sagrada Familia (just from the outside), explored the Park Guiell (sp?), and went in the Casa Mila. The Park was probably my favorite, with ergonomic mosaic benches and incredibly views of the city.

Who knew mosaic could be so comfy? Gaudi FTW.

I have to mention the street merchants. Apparently, it is illegal to lay your goods out on the street and sell without a permit. So everytime the cops were heading in their direction, all the guys would pull a couple cords, which would bundle everything up and run like mad around the corner, out of sight from the police. As soon as they were past, back run the merchants, not wanting to waste time that could mean a potential sale. Too funny how they were so unashamed about the whole thing. It was almost fun for them.

Anyone know what these instruments are? I have no idea.

And thats it. Barcelona is known for being a party town, and I didnt party here. Maybe if I had stayed somewhere more centrally located I would have gotten more out of it, but oh well. On to more of Spain.