I know things tourists don’t know, and I saw areas no guidebooks can describe. I ate true spanish food, and made really awesome spanish friends, while learning about Catalan and their own unique lives. I visited the Mies van der Rohe Pavilion, and the Olympic center on Montjuïc, and witnessed an impromptu family parade through one of the narrow Gothic streets. What an amazing time this has been, in one of the best cities in the world. I came for the sun and to witness the transformation of this rising city, and wow.. I’m in Barcelona!!

Buona nit, time for Paris tomorrow (though really, i’d be just as happy to stay here with Jordi and his scottish roomie Ed.. there’s so much still to learn, and many more things to see). So adios Barcelona, thank you for treating me so well.

Closer to the forum area, the cityscape became very modern. Beautiful new glass towers of all sorts of shapes and sizes, and parks upon parks with sculptures and greenery. For a moment it felt very much like Vancouver; until I found the Hilton and adjacent shopping centre. But soon after, the Herzog building was mine. Unfortunately my camera battery died pretty quickly, however I did manage to get a few good shots (though not many of the outside, because a big concert was happening past the building, so there were fences and security all around)

Satisfied with my visit, I walked back along the beach to the Villa Olympica and into the park before visiting the Arc de Triomf again and heading home. I was home early this day, because David, who will host me on his couch on my last couple days here, invited me for dinner with his current surfers – A man from Turkey, one from France, and another from Thailand. They each made a dish from their home countries, except for the Turk because he could not find the ingredients here. I explained that because a ‘traditional’ Canadian dish is really just an assortment from other cultures, and designated myself the official dish-washer. It was a good plan, and it was great food, great company, and a very late night.

That was yesterday. Today I went to explore Gaudi’s Parc Güell north of the city center. I debated taking the metro, but decided to walk because by walking I can still see the city (even if it was a 3km walk uphill). The park itself was much larger than I had anticipated. It felt sort of like a Gaudi Disneyland, with interesting monuments and architectural details around every corner. It was an incredibly beautiful park, and a lookout at the top provided my first full view of most of barcelona. When I was ready to go, I shot my last photos, bought some water, and walked back down a different street towards the Arc. It was a great walk, and I returned ready to pack up and move on to my next destination.

Which is where I am currently – finally in the Gothic Quarter! Needing an extra place to sleep for a night, I found Jordi on the internet, of all places, and soon discovered that he was also couchsurfing supporter. A fellow artist and architecture enthusiast, he toured me through the gothic downtown, and showed me his favorite spots and piazzas, including the Santa Maria del Pino – my first Spanish church visit. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t walked through this part of town yet, and I now have a much different sense of Barcelona.. The narrow streets were very familiar and comfortable after my time in Italy, and there was such a different level of activity. People everywhere, doing whatever it is people do, but at a more relatable level… they’re real people here, not just tourists coming to shop, or posh Barcelonians going to/from the beach.

We then picked up a few groceries and headed back to his place, still in the old downtown, and prepared my first Spanish omelet, which we enjoyed on the small porch over the alley below. It was a great way to end my best day in Barcelona yet, and I’m sure I’ve found a new friend for years to come.

I confess, because I’m so not used to Spanish, I ate at McDonalds and KFC… they were also cheap, so there was other reasoning behind the choice! Plus they helped me feel slightly at home (the weird thing is the only time I stepped into a McDonalds in Italy was for the cheap ice cream and milkshakes in Milano)

Overall it was a pretty full day, but not without it’s breaks. There are benches everywhere here… usually with people sitting at them. It is certainly an outdoor culture, so everyone spends their time in the parks, at the beach, or any number of benches along the streets or passeigs. So today I am at the beach under the perfect Spanish sun. The report said 26 or 27 with variable clouds, and mixed with the occasional ocean breeze, it’s exactly what I wanted. Here’s looking forward to tomorrow’s burn! (to be continued..)

I caught the 17:00 bus from Milano to Bergamo, and watched as the Italian cityscape turned into countryside, and into small northern towns. We reached the airport an hour and a bit later, and I checked my bag and passed through security (where I forgot my swiss army knife in my carry-on, but it wasn’t too big of an issue – the security guard even explained how I could go back to check-in and talk to the people there so I could keep it, but it wasn’t worth the hassle and tight scheduling after my arrival). Once it was time to board, the other passengers and myself descended from the airport and walked across the tarmac towards the jet, with the low evening sun creating wonderful orange highlights on faces and planes and everything else in the area. The mountains to the north were very much the same as at home, and it was comforting.

The flight itself was about an hour and 15 minutes, and I managed to get a window seat near the back of the plane (unassigned seating) – which meant that the wing was perfectly blocking the sun for most of the trip, resulting in a fantastic view of the world below and the colourful horizon. There were no clouds the entire trip, only a faint evening mist.. at times I wasn’t sure where we were, as we only passed over water for perhaps the final 20 minutes.

We landed, the people cheered (as seems customary on euro flights), and once again we walked across the tarmac to the terminal, where the bags came quickly. The Girona airport is basically RyanAir only, so it was very small and very efficient. I bought a bus ticket to get to the city, grabbed a map, found the bus, threw my bag in the luggage compartment, and found a seat. A few minutes later, just after 22:00, I was finally on my way to Barcelona.

We reached the center around 23:30. I had read of a few places where the bus may drop us off, but being my independent self, I decided I didn’t want to ask anyone. Bag on my back, I started walking. I walked some more. I knew the direction of the water, so I knew I had to go that way – the metro closed at midnight, and I would have had to transfer a few times, so I was quite sure I wouldn’t have time.. plus walking would let me get a good look at the city at night, to see how different it would be during the day.

A few looks at the map, and about 50min and a blister later, I finally reached the hostel (via a rather direct route…. large city). I was happy the attendant was expecting me – my original check-in time was estimated at 15:00, and I later emailed to say 22:00.. but 30min after midnight is quite different. He explained a few things, and showed me my room, where I met a girl from California who had been studying in Germany for a year, and two others from one of the Carolinas who were on a short euro vacation. Later, a Kiwi living in London showed up, and said first off that yes, he knows of the Flight of the Concords (a faux band / tv series that a bunch of us from Gruppo5 had watched while in Italy). We all had some laughs, and finally went to sleep.. looking forward to a good breakfast and my first look at Barcelona in the daylight.

I’m so glad I came, and I’m very happy I chose this place to stay (the breakfast was great indeed, and the people are very easy to talk to and get to know, even if 3 of my 4 roommates left this morning). I’m not sure what my plan will be for the rest of the day, but a walk to the beach sounds just about right. Buenas Dias! (Tiff+Dillon, remind me how to speak Spanish! Everything comes out Italian now!)