Easter in Barcelona

So Robyn and I went to Barcelona over the Easter weekend. It's a city that's been on our list of 'places to go' for quite some time now and it was great to finally get there and see it for ourselves. I'm gonna try keep this fairly brief because I tend to harp on with these sort of posts. This is not to say that there isn't much to write about Barcelona because there is , it's just that I need to freshen things up a little in my approach, not stagnate creatively, raise the bar a little, evolve. So here's a list of the the things we did and liked most about Barcelona and what separates it from other European cities we've seen…

Sagrada Famila (Obviously): Barcelona's most famous building designed by Anton Gaudi. Gaudi practically designed everything there is to see in Barcelona. It's something like 120 years old and will only be finished in 70 years time. It's just such a unique structure, it shouldn't work but it does, bizarre but brilliant. There's also a great concept behind it too, if I interpreted it correctly that is.

Park Guell: Great views of the city and some interesting architectural and sculptural pieces dotted around the place. It's also stepped on many different tiers and there are a number of different winding paths to explore if you want to sneak away from the crowds.

Barceloneta Beach: It's not bad for a 'city beach' and if you're visiting Barcelona take your baggies (boardshorts) because it'll be worth a swim. There are some fairly decent restaurants/bars on the boardwalk where you can kick back, have a drink and decide whether it's warm enough to have a swim or cold enough to have another drink.

Montserrat: A Monk Monastery where apparently visitations by the Virgin Mary were reported many many years ago. It's about an hour out of town by train but this place is really worth a visit. Unfortunately we didn't have time to visit the Monastery itself but if you like beautiful mountain scenery and 'hiking' then this is the place to go.

Street/Environment Sculpture: Barcelona is a creative melting pot and evidence of this is the sheer amount of Sculptures there are around just about every corner. Some are ugly, some are cheesy, some are great but they all add character and life to the city and Barcelinians (yup, apparently Barcelinian and not Barcelonian) should be proud of this. The architecture's not bad either and you get the impression that the people in Barcelona will try anything once.

Port Olimpico: Interesting Modern buildings where the Olimpians stayed during the '92 Olympics. A welcome interlude from some of the older architecture. And the Parc de Cituadelen is within walking distance.

Chido One: A great, quirky Mexican style restaurant tucked away in the back alleys of Barcelona that no tourist could stumble on. I reckon Gaudi would've frequented this restaurant were he still alive. It literally oozes originality and character and is a mish-mash of different styles but the end result is memorable. It's like a microcosm of the city itself.


Some of the things we didn't like so much…
I'm not sure whether it's a Spanish thing or just a Barcelinian thing but GENERALLY they really seem to lack that idea of personal space. Now don't think I'm a wuss or anything, but it gets seriously irritating when almost every time you try get off a train there's a bunch of impatient people trying to shove there way on at the same time. It simply doesn't work. And don't get in the way of them walking either, sheesh the number of times I had to duck, dive, dip and dodge a charging Spaniard was borderline ridiculous. Perhaps this is why they're so good at bullfighting? Oh yes, and what's up with that weird 'mullet-like' hairstyle that an alarming amount of them sport over there? It's not like a normal mullet – 'business at the front, party at the back' – which I actually think is pretty cool, cos I've got one myself, (although mine isn't intentional) it's short back and sides all over until about 5cm from the bottom at the back of the neck and then it gets seriously long and hangs over the collar!? Come on…