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| People skateboard in Barcelona! |
¡Th-th-th-th! I knew to expect it, but I still couldn’t help but giggle at the fact that Barcelona is a city full of people with lisps—even the most rugged Spanish gentlemen sound like they are about to begin elementary school when they say any word that has a ‘c’ or ‘z’ in it (e.g. Barcelona becomes Barthelona).
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| A view of the city, looking outward from atop Park Guell. Notice how enormous Sagrada Familia is on the right. |
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| A tiny piece of Park Guell. |
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| This is the monstrosity known as Sagrada Familia, a church designed by Antoni Gaudí in 1882, but still after 128 years it is not complete, and is not scheduled to be done until AT LEAST 2026. It is truly overwhelming, and it is definitely Gaudí's masterpiece. This is just a portion of it. It is around 556 feet high (170 meters). |
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| Me enjoying a game of giant lion statue mounting, a sport that is taking Barcelona by storm. |
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| The Mediterranean Sea from a beach in Barcelona. |
Barcelona has the most efficient public transportation of any city I have ever visited. If a metro says it will arrive in 3 minutes and 45 seconds, it will be sitting at a standstill at exactly 3:45. But by far the most impressive experience for me was discovering that Barcelona is home to an affordable and colorful vegan restaurant called Juicy Jones. Juicy Jones is operated by two bright and joyful Indian-Spaniards, and they offer a variety of flavorful cuisine on a menu that changes daily. A delicious and filling, three course meal was 8 € per person, but the most rewarding part of going there was being reunited with my beloved green smoothies! They happily served me a smoothie with apple, spinach, banana, and celery; and needless to say, it quenched my soul. My spirit was so pleased that we just had to go back three more times.
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| green smoothie! Inside of Juicy Jones thinking about freedom and peace and puppies. |
For one of the meals, I accidentally ordered a dish of salad, polenta, Mexican black beans, salsa, and guacamole; I am so accustomed to ordering Mexican food in California that I forgot that Spain is a long ways from Mexico. Who would have ever thought in a million years that two Indian immigrants living in Spain who exclusively cook vegan food, and have literally no experience with Mexican cuisine, would not have known how to make good Mexican food? Wellp, they couldn’t. Although the food tasted really good, the flavor was absolutely and positively nothing like Mexican food. The black beans tasted exactly like Indian beans, and while most pico de gallo salsa has cilantro in it, this featured an abundance of its retarded step-cousin-in-law, parsley. It was a valiant effort. What cute little Indian men they were.
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| People dress differently in Barcelona |
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| Another view of the city from Park Guell. Notice the row of the trees on the left. That is a beautiful street called "La Rambla." |
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| There is so much gorgeous architecture in this city. Especially the works of famous architect, Gaudí (but this arch is not one of his). |
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| We even found a little time to toss around the old frisbee. |
I promise to be caught up with my blogs soon; it is just really hard when many places I stay at don’t have free Internet. Next up is Madrid, and things get juicy, and I’m not referencing more liquids. Let me just say that I knew I would experience new cultural and social encounters in Spain, but no one can predict how atypical this new experience was for me. Hasta luego.
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| We saw an amazing classical guitar concert in a 13th century church one night. I caught myself a few times with my jaw open, in amazement of the sounds he was able to make with a guitar. |
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| One day at 7 pm, we walked by a small group of older people, who were participating in Silencio por la Paz, a silent protest group that meet every day from 7 to 7:30, in the same place and at the same time, to spread peace. They have been lining up along a wall for over 30 years in a plaza that is at least 600 years old, and they have always allowed anyone else to join in on the silence. So Alyssa and I did, and it was incredibly rewarding. It was particularly nice for me to internalize, for a half-hour, how odd and unbelievalbe it would be if there was actually a world of peace. I couldn't help but smile at the image that this put into my head. |
PS: For ALYSSA
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| Inside of Mercat St. Josep La Boqueria |
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| Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice |
Nick! You have no idea how excited I am to read this new post! Barcelona must have been my favorite :) This city gave me good vibes.
ReplyDeleteI was not sure if you would choose to include the 30 minutes that we spent in silence in front of the Presidencia de la Generalitat de Cataluña, and am delighted to see that it made a memorable impact on you as well. I recall you shared with me your vision of a world with peace including, of course, lots of music! There were a lot of emotions felt during that half hour for myself, from disappointment to excited to brave.
I wish though, that you had included a picture and caption of the marketplace. I know you did not have the best experience there with a raw cashew transaction, however, both markets were so impressive to me.
Does anybody miss Nick as much as I do?
You're awesome.
ReplyDeleteYes, Alyssa, we do miss Nick, too! But somehow, this blog makes it seem almost as if he's carrying us along in his backpack. And this trip is SO over-the-top fabulous that not one of us can begrudge him one second of his absence. Nick, the photos are matched only by the delightful, funny, educational and poignant comments. Your musical ventures will influence your own music forever - what a trip! (As we used to say in the 60's). Hugs & kisses, Grandboobly
ReplyDeleteHey Nick, just read through all of your blog posts. Looks like you're having an amazing time! I love the pictures. :) Keep living the dream, and put in a good word for me with the Spanish babes.
ReplyDeleteLove,
David