By stlake
This past weekend, me and 8 other friends traveled to Barcelona. It was an amazing trip, with some sightseeing, nightlife and seeing my bestie Kat! Everyone loves a list so here are the 11 things I learned about the Barca culture and myself. I would do 10, but I couldn’t possibly be that predictable.
1. Don’t be so quick to judge something as “sketchy”
So as many of you would assume, organizing a hostel for 8 people is not an easy task. I ended up booking a hostel, pretty last minute. I received an email saying that this man, Enrique, would meet us on a street corner to bring us to our flat. The line in the email that struck us all the most was “This is not like a normal hostel”. We were all extremely anxious and made many jokes referencing the movie “Taken”. But the hostel ended up totally fine. We had two rooms where we had to share beds but I think the cuddling only made us closer. It was a great location, clean, with 4 bathrooms and the other travelers were extremely nice. I’ve come realize that cheap travelling is so popular in Europe that a group of people renting out rooms is completely normal.
2. You can take the girl out the city but you can’t take the city out of the girl
In my last blog post, I talked about how I am learning to be more “go with flow”, and enjoy the slower pace of Alicante. But, Barca brought back all my old habitats. I’m a walking fast, j walking all over the place, staying observant for pickpockets and yes, I was definitely more anxious
3. The DC metro has taught me well
While the taxis in Barcelona were reasonably priced, it was much more economically to take the metro. I showed everyone how to buy 10 passes and navigated us from line to line. I know you guys were impressed; my sense of direction is pretty awesome. Yes, I am giving myself a pat on the back right now.
4. I need to learn how to read a map
So yes, I did just say I led the group through the metro and have a good sense of direction. But I am quite dependent on my iPhone and my GPS speaking to me and giving me step by step directions, so navigating the tiny, winding calles (streets) of Barcelona with solely a paper map, especially while STARVING, proved to be a big challenge for me and led to me being pretty grumpy. So, shout out to Max for saving me and leading us to Milk Bar, one of the yummiest brunches I’ve ever had (totally recommend it! I got the breakfast burger; beef burger with bacon and a fried egg)
5. Catalan isn’t Spanish
I mean duh. But I was still surprised to see how prominent it was. Most street signs and menus were in Catalan. I noticed it when people said certain words and it was funny to me how much the accent was different just 5 hours north. The people of Barcelona take so much pride in their Catalina culture and it was very cool to experience the differences for 3 days.
6. Young Spaniards’ English speaking skills kick young Americans’ Spanish speaking skills in the cuello (butt)
My friend Zach’s friend from summer camp has lived in Barcelona his entire life. He invited us over to his family’s beautiful apartment and we met a few of his friends. Both groups, us Americans and the Spaniards had been learning the respective other language for about the same length of time but their skills were far better. I think it has to with how we teach foreign language in the United States; there is a greater emphasis on grammar and writing, rather than speaking. But more so, I think it has to with attitude; they all take great pride in the fact they know English and it’s the cool thing to know. Americans known this fact and selfishly find less of a need to perfect their foreign language skills.
7. Techno music is the beat of the city
Lord, if I have to hear one more techno remix! Nothing I can really do about this one. I guess I’ll just have to wait another 3 months to do the Cupid Shuffle.
8. Roman ruins exist in Spain
We went to the Museu d’História de Barcelona and one of the exhibits sends you back in time to see the Roman Ruins that were found underneath an old cathedral in Barcelona. It was incredible to learn about how the ancient Romans had a presence in Barcelona and see these artifacts still in great shape!
9. The rain in Spain doesn’t mainly stay on the plains
The first surprising rainy day was in Villena, about an hour from Alicante, at the Desfile de los Moros y los Cristianos (Parade of the Christians and the Moors) and now the second day, was this Sunday in Barcelona. Audrey Hepburn in Funny Girl was clearly misled. Check the weather before you go out and invest in a mini umbrella.
10. Gaudi runs Barcelona
My favorite place in Barcelona is the Parc Guell, which displays Gaudi’s mosaics and architecture in a beautiful garden. It also happens to be one of the places Cheetah Girls 2 was filmed (yes, I spent the day humming “Strut” a la Raven Symone). He also built the Sagrada Familia and many other buildings around the city. His style, to me is what makes Barcelona less of a city and more a work of art.
11. “I just want a Picasso, in my casa”
Jay-z speaks the truth per usual. My favorite part of the Picasso museum was his interpretation of the “Las Meninas”, a famous painting by Diego Velázquez, which is in the Prado Museum in Madrid. But Picasso’s versions are so unique and colorful-my favorites were his interpretations of Princess Margarita.
Next up: My first full week of classes followed by a CIEE led trip to the city of Valencia!