Barcelona

Buenos Dias,

I am back on the ship after an incredible time in Barcelona.  I did a lot of sight seeing and walking during the day and checked out the nightlife at night. 

I spent most of the first day riding around on the top of a tour bus to see some of the major sites and get oriented with the city.  Some friends and I saw an exciting Flamenco dance and music show that night.  On the second day, I hopped on the metro to go see a famous cathedral called “La Sagrada Familia,” and then I hiked up to a park called “Parque de Guel”.  The park was up on a hill at the edge of the city, which made for an extraordinary panoramic view of the city accompanied by the sounds of park musicians in the background. 

After a tiring day, it was time for some sangria before going to an Irish pub to watch the Spain vs. Chile futbol match.  It was an exciting night in the streets after Spain won, besides the fact that I got pick pocketed by some prostitutes, but luckily I didn’t get anything stolen besides some cash.  After finding my way back to the ship at like 5am with no cash, it was definitely time for some sleep.

The next day was just as exciting, even though I didn’t have any more encounters with the ladies of the night.  I spent most of the day finding my way to Mount Tibidabo to take a hike to the top for a cerveza and a great view of the city.  There was nothing better than some fresh paella, sangria, and the USA vs. Ghana soccer game after a sunny day of hiking.  Unfortunately the U.S. got knocked out the world cup, but that didn’t stop anyone from enjoying the nightlife of Barcelona.  My plan was to go to a relaxing light show at a fountain, but I found myself at a gay pride street festival/foam party instead.  I didn’t know that the area with the fountain had a gay pride festival going on for the weekend, but I guess it was interesting to see half naked people raving to techno music in a pile of dirty foam.  It was a bit too gay for me though, so I decided to make my way to a club called Razzmatazz, where they had 5 stories of music, with a different type of music on each story. 

The final day in Barcelona was a relaxing time at the beach spent reminiscing about the crazy times people had over the past few days while looking out at the clear Mediterranean sea only to be blocked at times by old topless women.  Now I am ready to go to Italia!

~Adios