The last leg of our trip was Barcelona. We took a train from Rome to Milan, then an overnight train from Milan to Barcelona. We got a sleeper compartment for the night, and by 10 am the next day we arrived.
Each day we ambled up and down the "Ramblas"-- a pedestrian walkway that runs for about a mile from one of the main squares-- the Placa de Catalunya-- down to the port. Lots of street performers, merchants, and people out for a stroll.
About halfway down the Ramblas is the La Boqueria Mercato-- a huge open air market of fruits, vegetables, fresh meat, fish, and small bars for lunch. Every morning and afternoon we would go in there for fresh juice and fruit. Our last day we ate at one of the little lunch counters.
We ate tapas almost every night. Our favorite place was Irati-- a long bar that puts out about 20 different kinds of small open-faced hot or cold sandwiches. You buy a glass of wine, then stand there and serve yourself. Each serving has a toothpick, and when you're finished you turn in your toothpicks for the bill-- 1.80 euro per toothpick. Deb and I ate fresh sardines and anchovies in all kinds of combinations with peppers and olives. Liv was a little grossed out by that, so she focused more on the sausages.
Barcelona has it all. Culture, food, the sea (we went to the Aquarium one day, and spent our last afternoon watching fish swim beneath our legs as we sat on the bridge over the harbor!). They also have one of the best Picasso museums in the world, chronicling a lot of his early work (he grew up in Barcelona).
What struck us most of all, though, was the creative architecture of Barcelona, and specifically the modernist Catholic architect Antoni Gaudi. We loved his houses, and the park he designed. But the highlight was the huge church he worked on for over 30 years, the Sagrada Familia, until he died in 1926. The project was then continued by others, is still going on today, and is supposed to be finished in another 30 years. It is a crazy place, but somehow it all works, aesthetically and spiritually. It took us an hour to get in, and was unforgettable. It is a living thing. An event.
Barcelona was a great place to end our journey through Europe. On the evening of February 1st, a bit travel weary, we boarded a plane from Barcelona to Tel Aviv to begin stage three of the sabbatical year... we'll post from Israel when we get settled in.
Each day we ambled up and down the "Ramblas"-- a pedestrian walkway that runs for about a mile from one of the main squares-- the Placa de Catalunya-- down to the port. Lots of street performers, merchants, and people out for a stroll.
About halfway down the Ramblas is the La Boqueria Mercato-- a huge open air market of fruits, vegetables, fresh meat, fish, and small bars for lunch. Every morning and afternoon we would go in there for fresh juice and fruit. Our last day we ate at one of the little lunch counters.
We ate tapas almost every night. Our favorite place was Irati-- a long bar that puts out about 20 different kinds of small open-faced hot or cold sandwiches. You buy a glass of wine, then stand there and serve yourself. Each serving has a toothpick, and when you're finished you turn in your toothpicks for the bill-- 1.80 euro per toothpick. Deb and I ate fresh sardines and anchovies in all kinds of combinations with peppers and olives. Liv was a little grossed out by that, so she focused more on the sausages.
Barcelona has it all. Culture, food, the sea (we went to the Aquarium one day, and spent our last afternoon watching fish swim beneath our legs as we sat on the bridge over the harbor!). They also have one of the best Picasso museums in the world, chronicling a lot of his early work (he grew up in Barcelona).
What struck us most of all, though, was the creative architecture of Barcelona, and specifically the modernist Catholic architect Antoni Gaudi. We loved his houses, and the park he designed. But the highlight was the huge church he worked on for over 30 years, the Sagrada Familia, until he died in 1926. The project was then continued by others, is still going on today, and is supposed to be finished in another 30 years. It is a crazy place, but somehow it all works, aesthetically and spiritually. It took us an hour to get in, and was unforgettable. It is a living thing. An event.
Barcelona was a great place to end our journey through Europe. On the evening of February 1st, a bit travel weary, we boarded a plane from Barcelona to Tel Aviv to begin stage three of the sabbatical year... we'll post from Israel when we get settled in.
No comments:
Post a Comment