Tori's Stories: Barcelona, Spain

Today is my last day in Barcelona, Spain and we are about to load the ship. I’m currently at an adorable café - Katie and Nat, think Pinterest cuteness to the extreme! Tomorrow we are starting our two day voyage to Civitavecchia, Italy and from there we will take a train into Rome and stay in the city for a few nights. The streets of Barcelona remind me of Italy and the culture is similar to Mexico, but at the are very different! We spent four full days in Barcelona and it was the perfect amount of time to become well acquainted with the city. We made sure to do as much as possible, see all of the big sites, get lost in the back streets and eat at the local restaurants. We arrived the day that Spain played in the Semifinals for the Euro Cup. Being at a local restaurant when Spain won was a memorable experience!! My favorite activity in Barcelona has been seeing all of the art and architecture. I loved seeing Gaudi’s work throughout the city! He often incorporated stories into his work, while blending the large variety of local architecture into his unique buildings. Sagrada Familia, the church he started, was breathtaking and is my favorite site that we went to. He spent the last 40 years of his life working on the church and now, after 130 years, only 60% of the building is finished. It is a constant work in progress and is completely funded by donations and entrance fees. We also went to the large, colorful park he created, Parc Guell. After getting lost in the Metro system, climbing the steepest and longest hill of our lives and stumbling upon adorable, tiny shops, we made it to the top of Parc Guell and spent hours walking around the beautiful park. The flowers were perfect and his sculptures, houses and common areas were full of color, mosaics and unique designs. To say the least, I’m slightly obsessed with Guell!

We also went to the Pablo Picasso Museum. Each section of the art gallery was separated by his age and the style of work. It was fascinating seeing the progression of his style, the themes of his work and the variety of art he produced. At age nine he was creating masterpieces, I highly recommend Googling his early work! He was an art-prodigy, but started challenging his instructors and style art around age 18. Each room informed you of his life at specific ages and you could distinctly see the change in his work. To top it off, the museum was in part of the Gothic Quarter, in a gorgeous old building.

Finally, I will leave you with some things that have surprised me about Barcelona. A) Bull fighting is illegal in the city of Barcelona, but they are having the Running of the Bulls next week! B) I knew they had later days than us, but I had a fun time experiencing dinners that lasted until 2am and city nightlife that was just starting at that time. C) The heat and humidity! Barcelona is having a heat wave and the week we are in the city is the predicted to be the hottest week they have all year! D) Lastly, the pickpockets. While in tour groups, at restaurants and just walking down Las Ramblas, the main street, we have seen pickpockets and have heard of dozens of IPhones, cameras and wallets getting snatched from our peers. I’ve been fortunate enough to not personally have a problem, knock on wood, so hopefully my last day keeps up this streak!

There were so many amazing moments and I wish I could tell you about each one!

-Click the pictures to enlarge!