Days 28/31 BARCELONA

Hola Barcelona!

The weekend of Feb. 18-21 my friends and I took our first international trip!!!

Finally I felt at home within the Spanish language, where I didn't need to struggle for words as I do in Italy.

Barcelona was one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. I actually fell more in love with it than I have with Rome. But I was also accompanied by some of the most amazing people too!!

It was like a UW-Madison reunion! My college friends, Gail, Hannah Liebow, Casey, Sarah (my friends from school) and Kirk, Sarah's boyfriend, and my friend Lauren from Rome, all joined together in SPAIN! Between all of us we represented 4 different states, and 3 different countries! In addition to our random roommates in our hostel we experienced a very international weekend of all sorts!

We stayed in a new hostel near the center of the city, called The Urbany Hostel. It was very modern, with each floor being a different color and very creative mural cartoons over the walls representing events that have taken place in Barcelona. They had a lounge where they had free computers and free wi-fi, a tv, a Wii video game center, a bar, and a cafe, where we had breakfast every morning. They also had a pool and a gym, but we never made time to try out either of those facilities. Most importantly, they had a kitchen where we made dinner most nights to save money. Between all of us, we had wonderful meals because we had some great cooks in our group!

Over the weekend we visited the main sites we visited were:

Las Ramblas: a very touristy street with a fabulous food market where we bought supplies to make our picnic lunches
La Sagrada Familia: one of the most famous Roman Catholic churches in Barcelona. It started in the 1800s and will be finished in 2026. It is very modern and has some of the most beautiful stain glass windows I have ever seen!
The Gaudi Park: such a breathtaking experience. It was so much fun to climb through the park, and see all his magnificent work!

This has been one of the best weekends I've had so far. To be in an amazing city, eat fabulous food, see wonderful places, and spend time with some of your best friends, is in my book...one of my most treasured memories!