BARCA!

03.11.09

I have finally caught up on some serious lack of sleep from this weekend! It was sooo much fun to be in Barcelona with my girls from Minnesota! I took the train all by myself (it left at 730am!) and I made it there without a problem. I was a tid bit nervous when we crossed the border to Spain, since all of the announcements being made were in Spanish. As you may know, I do not speak a word of spaniiish, BUT luckily no problems arose. My train did get in 20 minutes late, and I basically sprinted off it out of excitement. Katie and I must have crossed paths looking for eachother, BUT I spotted her and ran. It was sooo good to see her and we went back to her house to wake up miss Kristen Karlin, who decided to nap in the morning. After a fun recap of each other’s lives we grabbed a late lunch at a local spot and ate delicious paella and tapas! We found our hostel soon after, and I may say that we were a little frightened at first. We walked into the place, it was deserted and no one was in sight. Kristen called the man we were supposed to meet and he came about 30 minutes later, BUT luckily lead us up a stairway we didn’t see that was actually our hostel.

This hostel/apartment was so cool! We really lucked out, and it was only 16.50 Euros a night! The complex was basically an apartment, with six different rooms, a kitchen, small living room with a tv and a dining room table. We happened to be the only people in the place for the weekend, minus our bff Finnish girls who moved out early Saturday morning. In other words, we basically had our own little apartment for the weekend. It was right outside of Las Ramblas and actually the location worked out great. Friday night we met up with some of Tara’s friends who were also in Barcelona from her program and grabbed a quick dinner, before going out. The nightlife there was crazy, since many people there don’t even eat until around 10ish, the night gets a late start! We went to a few different places that night, ending up at a local club right by the beach.

Katie was a master of the metro, so it was really easy to get around. Barcelona is seriously HUGE. I knew it was going to be a big city, and a lot different from all of the places I have been so far, but it was truly a lot different from what I expected! I always felt safe, but I definitely had to be more aware of my surroundings. Katie would always warn us before getting on the metro to hold on to our stuff for good, since a lot of people tend to get their stuff stolen. Luckily none of us ever had a problem!

The weather was GORGEOUS all weekend; I think I even got a little tan! We walked around the boardwalk and made our way to the beach. It was so great to explore the city in such great weather and with my besties! We finally ate lunch around 3ish after walking around, and scored a prime spot at an outdoor café. We did a little shopping after, and headed home for a quick shower, and then off to a late dinner. I did forget to mention that we had STARBUCKS for breakfast. Literally amazing, since mochas were calling my name. We found a place with delicious burgers, not exactly European fine dining, but we were craving them. That night we did some more hopping around, met up with some of Katie’s friends and had the time of our lives. Kristen and I made it back a little later then Tara and Katie, so we had to cab it home and make an unexpected buzz to the owner of the other hostel to let us in. Quite frankly, he was not so pleased, but luckily we ran past him before he could catch us.

The next morning we had to pack up our things and move out (we almost forgot to return the key..) and took our things with us while we did a little more exploring. We decided to go to the Park Guell by Guadi. It was definitely quite the hike uphill and not so easy with our bags/luggage, but we managed. The park was so crowded, but amazing to see! Everything was extremely intricate and really cool to see. We walked back to the beach after and we all grabbed a few munchies to snack on there, before we had to find our way back. It somehow worked out perfectly that Tara and Kristen had to catch a bus to the airport around 3:45 and I had to be at the train station by 4:15, so we were all basically on the same schedule. My train ride back was a bit delayed, so I didn’t get home until around 11pm, but I did get to chat a while with mama wight on the train ride home which was nice! I am sooo happy we all actually met up and Barcelona was the perfect place for it! I would love to go back there, since I feel like there is so much more to explore! Overall, it was a very successful weekend and made me so excited for next year!

Nothing is too new in the land of France other than the fact that planning spring break is a little stressful and my family keeps growing on me more. Last night they had a food fight in the kitchen, and kept pretending to moon everyone. They crack me up and help me from not being homesick. I promise to get some pics up of the boys soon, but I keep forgetting! Tonight is the night and I will not let them leave the dinner table until a photo shoot happens.

This weekend should be a little more relaxed since I’m not doing any traveling AND my friend Katie from Barcelona might actually come here this weekend! Nothing is finalized quite yet, but hopefully things work out. Vero said she could stay with me in my bed and that it would not be a problem! This is awesome since she won’t have to pay for a hostel and I can spend oodles more time with her! Saturday the Sounds and Fallout Boy are coming to Montpellier (craaazy, eh?) so a few friends and I thought it may be fun to go to a concert while we are here.

Sorrry for the long post, enjoy the pics! :)