Wandering through Gaudi's Wonderland

Barcelona was my favorite out of all the cities we visited. It really reminded me of New York city. There is a street down the middle called La Rambla, filled with markets and stores and thousands of pedestrians. During our full day in the city, we went to a bunch of buildings built by Gaudi, an architect who was active during the early twentieth century. Gaudi must have been insane. His buildings do not have any straight lines, and appear as though they came straight out of a scene in Alice and Wonderland or perhaps a Dalí painting. One of his (incomplete) constructions was la Sagrada Familia, a gigantic basilica with towering spires and Christian symbols all over it. We contemplated going inside but the line was absolutely insane, wrapping around the entire block and beyond, so we decided to trek up to Parque Guell, an entire park built by Gaudi. 

Sagrada Familia

We had barely walked around for ten minutes before the downpour began. Luckily, there I was stuck in ridiculous indoor line for the bathroom and did not get drenched. My mom and Lilly were not so lucky however. I came out of the bathroom and find them huddled by a cliff with their legs completely soaked. My dad had found shelter under one of the big café umbrellas after he went to the bathroom. Fortunately, thought, the rain ended quickly and we made our way back downhill to the Parque de Ciutadella and el Museo Picasso. Lunch was followed by a stroll through the park and a long walk up to Montjuic, where we saw the Olympic Stadium from the 1992 games. Then, we saw the Magic Fountain (which unfortunately did not have any water) and the Plaza de España. To Lilly and my delight, we were back on La Rambla early enough to do some shopping before heading home to dinner. 

Olympic Stadium

catching part of the Semana Santa parade on La Rambla!

Lilly's Kinder and KitKat gelato

My smurf and hazelnut gelato

The next morning, my mom and I got up a bit earlier to do some exploring at la Boquetería, the huge bustling food market off La Rambla. It was the coolest market I’d ever seen…I’d never seen so many freshly-made smoothies (I got a pineapple-coconut one!) and tropical fruits, colorful displays of dried fruits and nuts, and hunks of Spanish ham everywhere. 

As we drove out of Barcelona, I kept on thinking that I would definitely come back to visit. I’d even be willing to live there for a few months…a day and a half certainly did not do the city justice; I feel like I’ve barely even scratched the surface. I got the impression that it’s a city with so much personality and hidden places to explore.