Andy in The Netherlands: Day 139 - 142

From Dublin, it was on to sunny Barcelona!

Day 139 - Dublin to Barcelona

Ryanair has always been talked about as the worst flying experience in Europe, and Adrian and I were expecting the worst, but the three hour flight from Dublin to Barcelona on the continent's cheapest airline was actually not so bad. We got into steamy Barcelona in the late evening, and made it to our wonderful hostel around 10:30, where we were promptly greeted by Ankit, Alan, and Liz. I'd seen Ankit and Alan in Amsterdam and it was great to see them again, and it was especially great to see Spain's newest transplant, Liz, who's living in Madrid for the summer (read her blagh here). After moving our stuff into our tiny 6-bed dorm, we all went down to the hostel's very nice terrace bar and spent some time catching up, which was great.

With Liz taking on the role of navigator we all set off on the Metro to an area that the incredibly gabby hostel guy said would be a good spot for food and nightlife. We got pretty good doner and cervezas in a buzzing area, and set off in search of some bars to go to. The first one we ended up in had a really nice vibe, and we realized five minutes in that it was a gay bar, which was amusing - when you looked around and thought about it for a second, the only ladies in the place were Liz and the bartender! We eventually moved on to an Irish bar that was rocking pretty steadily, and had a great time in our state of questionable sobriety. The music selection was most interesting to me, as they played a Kings of Leon song from at least three different albums, Franz Ferdinand, Interpol, and multiple Kaiser Chiefs songs. There was a great moment when Adrian and I thought a song was "Oh My God" by Kaiser Chiefs, determined that it wasn't, and then the NEXT song was "Oh My God." Needless to say, we lost it.

Afterwards we wandered into the protest zone, which was pretty sleepy at night, but seemed like a chill place to sit down and soak in the atmosphere. We ended up meeting a goofy Swiss guy who helped us navigate the layout of the protest encampment, and Adrian had a ridiculous exchange with a guy selling beers that I'll never forget for the absurdity of the moment. We finally decided it was time to go home (it was probably 4:45 at this point), and we all piled into a taxi to take us back to the hostel. The taxi driver, however, said he would only take four of us, so Liz and I climbed back out to get another taxi. As Alan, Adrian, and Ankit sped off without a care in the world, Liz and I made the strange decision to completely bypass the waiting taxis behind us and began a ridiculous quest to walk back to the hostel. We eventually grabbed a cab - who proceeded to get us lost - and ended up wandering around the streets of Barcelona at 6 in the morning with only a semblance of where we were going (I was more convinced of our route than Liz, for the record :)). Eventually we found a cab driver to get us back to hostel, and I ended up climbing into bed well after 6 in the morning. It was a most glorious night in Barcelona, and one I probably will never forget.

Day 140 - Barcelona II

In the morning we headed out as a big crew to Mont Juic, a mountain in the city with a palace and the Olympic Park amongst other attractions. There was a weird NBA event going on in the streets surrounding the place, which was kind of funny to watch - far too hot to actually be playing sports, though. There were escalators up the mountain, which were both ridiculous and amazing, and we rode them basically all the way to the top to see the really beautiful Olympic grounds. We walked through some gardens, lounged in some shade, and eventually descended back down on our outdoor escalators to head over to La Rambla to meet up for a Gaudi tour. Liz had some trouble with the doors to the Metro - if only we had the video - but we all made it intact otherwise.

The Gaudi tour was really cool, and while there was a high walking to sights ratio, there were some really amazing buildings on the tour, including the famous Sagrada Familia. Gaudi's works are simply astounding in their ambition, and it's really remarkable to me that not only did he dream them up more than a hundred years ago, but that such outrageous buildings were welcomed at the turn of the 20th century. Taking in the Sagrada Familia is quite the experience.

We ended up getting some sketchy food near our hostel - I had a calamari sandwich after I was assured it was a local thing - and sending Liz back off to Madrid for the rest of the summer. After she left we went back to the room and chatted for a couple hours with our Canadian roommates, which was fun. Ankit and I then set out to teach Alan and Adrian euchre, which was a pretty hilarious happening. They eventually picked it up well enough to play games without much hand-holding, and ended up really enjoying it. Alan and I closed out the night just sitting in the park in the median across from our hostel soaking in the atmosphere of the cool night.

Day 141 - Barcelona III

After answering some panicked emails from my mom - I hadn't been on the internet in a few days - we took the Metro to the general area of the beach. After delicious durum, we strolled out on the beach, which was gorgeous. The sand was nice, the water was warm, and there were people everywhere. Adrian and I ended up swimming out to a rock jetty and promptly stepping on all the sea urchins in the sea, apparently, and then proceeded to spend a few minutes pulling spines from our feet (everyone had the misfortune of a similar fate). It was cool to explore the warm waters in between the rocks, as they were full of sea life.

As we were leaving we found ourselves caught up in a massive holiday that resulted in tons of marching bands and dancers parading through the streets, which was fun to watch. We went back to the hostel and were playing euchre on the deck when I guy walked past us, only to do a double take, walk back to our table, and ask "What are you guys playing?" incredulously. "You must be from Michigan," I said to him after we told him it was indeed euchre, and he was in fact from Michigan, and Ankit and I ended up vanquishing him and his buddy while they regaled us with stories of cliff diving in Switzerland. After showers we headed out in search of paella. We ended up overpaying, but Alan and I split a seafood and chicken paella that was really quite good and I couldn't complain too much. We made it back to the Irish bar we went to earlier, but it was much less crowded and the music was bizarrely missing the bass track on every song, to disastrous consequences. The highlight, however, was our impromptu "All-Star" singalong. Everybody loved Smashmouth when they were 10.

Day 142 - Barcelona IV

We ventured out to St. Joseph's Market, which was full of amazing fruits, vegetables, meats, seafood, cheeses, and candy. It was really vibrant and fun to walk around, and we ended up getting delicious organic, vegetarian tacos with salad, and I washed mine down with fresh kiwi juice and more fresh fruit. Afterwards we walked around the Gothic Quarter, which was nice, and we did get to see an awesome harp player who was probably my favorite street performer in Europe.

Next up was Park Guell, which was Gaudi-designed, and was amazing. There were great views from the top (escalators up the side again, duh), and the park itself is beautiful and relaxing. We spent a few hours there just soaking in the tropical vibe, complete with parrots! On our way back to the city center we got delicious baguettes with oil and meat, and ventured back to Mont Juic to see the Magic Fountain Alan had been hyping since our arrival. Unfortunately it wasn't in operation, but we still had a nice time soaking in the atmosphere and watching all sorts of goofy dogs play with each other. The night was complete with more durum near the hostel, and plenty more euchre. Now I want to play with my family again!

This was the last full day in Barcelona. I had a truly memorable time, and enjoyed every second of my time in Spain. It was especially great getting to do stuff with so many friends, and I can't wait to see all of you guys again soon.

Here are some of my favorite pictures from Barcelona.