Some final tidbits from Barcelona~

In some of the final picture from Barcelona below you will see:

- Here we are trying to get the fountain in the picture with us. Ben's arms aren't quite long enough, but you get the idea!
- Photo shoot! Jumping in the arch.
- Day 5 'beard' of Ben's. We didn't check any luggage and therefore didn't bring any razors.
- Outside the contemporary art gallery. Ben went in when I went to the aquarium. He said it was great!
- Eating some breakfast in the market. So much yummy fresh fruit and bread and cheese and candy.

La Rrrrrrrambla!!! A fun street in Barcelona!!

Oh yes, we drank that whooole pitcher of Sangria.


Don't remember much after that.














This was this amazing bar called Cafe L'Opera. Everyone in Spain seems to love their jobs especially here where they talk and visit and smoke and drink with all their customers.






Sunshine! Water! Blinking!













What's that smile? A girl who didn't know she'd been tourist trapped and didn't know that beer would be 6 euro. Oh yeah. At least it didn't happen too often.





This picture was taken because it was so sunny and beautiful and we had to capture the warm sun on our faces.

Gaudi Apartment Building

This is an apartment building that Gaudi also designed.

Here Ben is speculating what Gaudi's inspiration was for this part of the roof sculpture.




















On the rooftop of Gaudi's building.

Sagrada Familia

Here is Ben next to the famous Gaudi who designed all of the amazing architecture in Barcelona.


There is so much intricate detail. It has been worked on since the earler 1900's and it's approximate finish date is 2030.





Here is the front. The top four pillars are amazing and there is a huge middle piece that hasn't been built yet but will change the whole skyscape of the building.
The inside. Amazing, it's still all under construction so you can see all of the people working on the building.

The Barcelona Zoo!!!

Ben and his new best friend.

One can't figure the other out....









The deers with the Dears on their anniversary!! :)












They let you get scarily close to the animals. I could have easily reached over and put my hand in the gate and pet this cute little animal.

Ben said no though.







Look at the cute goats!! They chewed on everything. It was cute.

Some Spanish Celebrations!

Can you see these puppets? We learned later that some of them date back to the 1800's and are restored and used during these festivals.

They varied between about 20-30 feet tall and people would hold them on their shoulders and dance with them.


It was truly amazing.




Here you can see me standing next to a couple of them that aren't even the tallest ones!!!














Hopefully you can see here these human towers! They are truly amazing. We saw the men wrapping themselves in these huge black clothes. We were trying to guess what was happening when we saw them being wrapped up. Someone overheard us talking and explained that people would be making human towers.



They would crawl up each other and when they made the towers and then the towers supported by about 30 men and women would walk through the square.

Gothic Quarter for Valentine's Day

here we are in one of the oldest remaining parts of Barcelona.

I am hugging the A in Barcelona.


Also you see the Cathedral and some yummy bakery cakes on Valentine's Day!

Barcelona

Well, we had a wonderful time in Barcelona. We saw the sights, lived the life, drank lots of the beer! I will post some of our favorite pictures from the trip on here.








These are some pictures from the hostel we stayed in. It was a great little hostel. Very very clean and quiet, just what we needed. There was a sweet little room that we had all to ourselves and were next to a little common room.

The staff was really friendly and helpful and gosh, did I mention how clean it was!

Awesome.

Hola from Barcelona!!

Weeks without updates again... I am a terrible blogger. However, we are in Spain and loving it! (despite the rain, but my father said if he was in Spain he wouldn´t be complaining and my mother said that it also sounded like my diamond shoes were too tight, so I won´t say anymore about the weather)

It´s hard not speaking the language, but as Ben pointed out that at least it´s a latin language so we can guess what some words say because they are somewhat close to french. Everyone so far in Spain is really really friendly!! We have not come across anyone rude or annoyed when we don´t speak Spanish. In paris people would sort of scoff at you when you spoke English, but here they all seem to want to try their english out and most are pretty good!

The sights have been great. We have seen lots of amazing architecture by this man called Gaudi. He is very famous here so we spent the day seeing the cathedral that is currently in it´s 120th year of being built or something crazy like that. We also saw an apartment building he finished in the 20´s. It´s some amazingly spooky and interesting stuff for sure. Tomorrow we are going to a market that apparently fills the whole street. Lots of food and handmade stuff from Spain, I think it will be the sort of thing we have been waiting to see. Yesterday we went to the Zoo (it was so awesome, we saw Gorillas!!) and to a Flea Market.

The Hostel we are in is truly amazing. For our first Hostel Experience, we are feeling very fortunate. It is very quiet and relaxed and CLEAN. We have our own little room and share the bathrooms and showers with everyone else, but they must clean them a few times a day because it is immaculate. We are in a really nice posh area too it seems. about 3 blocks up from us is an incredibly fancy shopping area (gucci, louis vuitton) so it doesn´t quite feel much different then London at times. When we ventured to the Old Gothic Quarter though, that definitely felt really unique and Spanish. I have taken many pictures but we did not bring the camera, so I will post some up here when we get home on Saturday.

Love to all at home, wish I had something Spanish to finish this note off with. However all I know how to say is Hola and Hermano (means Brother- thanks Arrested Development)

A list I have been working on...

We are currently in a debate about when we should come home- more details to follow when we know what the heck is going on. In the meantime part of my strategy is to think of a list of things I would miss if/when we leave this country.

Here is a list I have come up with so far:

1) Jacket Potato
So amazingly delicious. A russian girl who has for years survived on potato and cheese, they come together in harmony. This I would miss.

2) Online Grocery Shopping
Click click done! Grocery shopping has never and may never be easier and as much fun as doing it in your underwear surrounded by your closest friend and boyfriend. And, they bring it right to our front door. While sometimes the milk expires the next day- it's a small price to pay for laziness and technology.

3) Being called 'Love'
While at home coming from an old bus driver it might seem a little bit... weird, here it warms my heart every time. Must be something to do with the way 'Love' rolls off their British tongues. It just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

4) Riding on the Train
Very relaxing, almost always warm and cozy, and because we are under 26, surprisingly affordable and convenient.

List to be continued.....

Our Sunday Legend.... wait for it....

Hello all. Today I would like to share with you our glorious Sunday (and sometimes Snow Day) routine. There is a little unsuspecting cafe just down the hill. It is modest on the outside, more simple on the inside. Often the windows are steamed up and it's hard to see inside past the clumsily placed lettering on the windows. It's called Legends you see, a little breakfast cafe opened for "Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner 7am-3pm", every day of the week. Breakfast is cheap, and it's always buzzing with regulars. The food is so great. It's perfect hangover food, or Sunday morning food, or just anytime food. Here are some pictures of the main meals we always order.

1) The two cheeseburger meal with onions. Two cheeseburgers, fried onions as promised and pile of chips for you to enjoy.

2) Traditional Breakfast Here being eaten by Kate, is the traditional English Breakfast. This is one version which can be adapted to include such things as stewed tomatoes, fried mushrooms, blood pudding, more meat, less meat, extra egg and of course toast or bread.


3) Jacket Potato (seen here with cheese) Oh yeah, jacket potato of champions. While I have only experienced the amazing Jacket Potato with cheese, it also comes with an option of beans, meat, ham, tuna, or anything else you may require. I opt out of the coleslaw, but if you fancy some more calories, opt in- I hear it's great.

The Newest Member of the Family.

Everyone, meet Nora. She was brought home in November of 2009 and has been flooding our halls with magical tunes ever since her glorious arrival.

Little Bit more Louvre

More Louvre

The Louvre