Day two - Barcelona

Woke up and made mimosa's. Jumped on the bus and took it to Park Guell with Alexis and Mekale. I had no previous knowledge of the park. On arrival, walking just meters into the park, I stopped and took notice to everything - A man playing the cello underneath a rock bridge, birds flying tree to tree building nests, couples walking hand in hand, children playing and the incredible architecture.  It was certainly a special place.

Park Guell is located on one of the hills overlooking Barcelona. Alexis, Mekale and I walked to the top of the hill to take in the 180 degree view. We stood upon the site at which Gaudi had planned to build a church, but during construction of the park the decision to stop was made. A total of 2 of 60 homes were built in the park - gives you an idea how much construction happened.  In 1927, years after Guadi passed away the park was recognized as a world heritage park.

Venturing down to the sea side I slipped off my shoes and entered the Mediterranean Sea. I scooped up a few shells, as I always do when at a beach, while Alexis and Mekale lay on their backs soaking up the rays. Ive got to mention, too, the color of the water was brilliant ranging from a strong, bright turquoise to a dark, shimmering navy blue - gorgeous!

At night we took the metro to an area we heard of a place providing live music. The Monday nickname given to the club was "nasty Mondays". Upon arrival we decided not to enter as we found the crowd entering was a bit younger and the music was not what we expected, electronic/techno rather than acoustic. No biggie. We walked around the streets poping and out of a couple of bars, one of which the bartenders wore matching bowties and tuxedos. I drank some Buffalo Trace (it was delicious, Troy).

Welcome to Barcelona

Hi. Last night Alexis and Mekale slept over. It was convenient since we were flying out together from the SAW Airport on the Asia side of Istanbul - only located 30 minutes from my place with no traffic. During the flight we all took cat naps. Each time I woke up I peaked out the window, sometimes pressing my face to it to get the best angle. We flew past the Swiss Alps, over the Balearic Sea, and many little towns - all of which were teasing me with their distance from me, but I knew and told meself, "Barcelona,  here I come!"

Coming into the landing, I again had my face pressed to the window inspecting every road from above. The colors of the city looked different. I was ready to smell the air and see the people. Off the plane I grabbed the luggage with Alexis and Mekale went to find out how travel to our hostel. (I should mention here Alexis and Mekale have traveled together bore in other countries - it showes and thankfully.)

We jumped the train, made a transfer,  and walked a circle of block untill we found our hostel. Too easy! Inside we rested for a short qhile before making the trip out. What we saw was incredible!

First let me express that the architecture on the "typical" building is very nice, but it is also common, in my opinion, to just have art nouveaux architecture. (ill have to double check that sytle name)

Alexis, Mekale and I only walked 10 minutes from our hotel arriving at Sagrada Familia,  a famously built and designed by Gaudi.  A spectacular sight to see. Sagrada Familia is and has been under renovation for at least 5 years. It took away only the slightest bit of pleasure, but was easy to imagine the full complexity and brilliance of the building. (Pictures to follow).

Afterwards we took the Metro (subway) into downtown Barcelona. We walked the main strip and found a few different eateries to have a beer and snack at. A couple from college was kind enough to provide me with suggestions for eateries, sights to see, and neighborhoods to visit for their uniqueness. (Thank you Chris and Sarah Hutton!) Suggested by the Huttons was, how shall I describe... the Hobbits secret pub. Full scale fake trees and cave walls. Every half hour the lights dimmed and "lighting" struck the pub. 30-40 small lanterns hung from the trees above us. What a neat place.

At night we walked out and visited the two Gaudi buildings located within 12 blocks from our hostel. The first was under construction. The second... the spot lights literally turned off when we were half a block away.  (I'll make another visit).

Ready for day two!