My Travel Blog
Last night we left our apartment and headed in a different direction, this time into the El Born neighborhood. It's just as close as every other area we've explored, just across a street that we've never crossed before. (When you actually look at a map you see all sorts of cool things!) We were happy to find a multitude of little squares and quaint streets with lots of different restaurants to try. The evening cooled off nicely so we were completely comfortable, and the mosquitoes stayed away too which was a very welcome event. We ended up at a great place and tried a variety of different tapas. The kids had some chicken skewers and we also ordered potatoes with a spicy mayonnaise which was really delicious. (Patatas bravas - they appear on every tapas menu we see but it was the first time we'd ordered them.) A nice salad, a little steak, and we were very satisfied. We happened to be across the little roadway from a gelato shop so the kids had already staked it out and decided their flavours. I fear they will go into a gelato depression after this trip!
This morning we all slept in late and then ate bowls of Special K while huddled around our little kitchen table. It amazes me that we haven't had coffee this entire time, and although I'd sure love a cup it's not worth searching the streets for it in the morning. We've seen a few little cafes that would be nice, but by the time we are up and organized it's so hot outside and I no longer feel like it. This may be a record for us in going without coffee, because in both Scotland and England we weren't really 'fond' of their type of brew so we've had maybe 3 cups in the last 2.5 weeks. I think we'll be making a giant pot the morning after we get home!
After our brunch of cereal, we went off in search of some cool looking old buildings and a church that we saw from the taxi window yesterday. The first thing we came up to was the old 4 A.D. Roman walls of the city of Barcino (which is now Barcelona). Very old, and very cool. Pictures never do those things justice but I try anyway; the best thing is to just take a memory snapshot and hold you don't accidentally delete it!
Up the road a little bit was a very impressive Barcelona Cathedral (also known by the very long name of 'Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia') with a huge area with museums and various buildings around it. It was built mostly in the 14th century and was very beautiful. The best part of that area (besides the impressive looking church) was the great restaurant we ate lunch in. I may have mentioned this before, but both Jeff and I are very scared of paella. We know it's a very famous Spanish dish, yet every time we've ever had it we have been very disappointed. On our honeymoon in the Canary Islands (owned by Spain) it was everywhere so we ordered it. It looked beautiful and impressive, yet had absolutely no flavour. Then in Spain 4 years ago we ordered it and although the kids loved it, we again thought it was pretty boring. I've heard from so many people lately how much they love it, so today we were brave and went for it. The restaurant was really nice and the menu said it would take extra time for the paella, so we felt that was an indication that they cared about 
their food and gave it extra love and care. Well, it was delicious. Lots and lots of flavour and I can see why people like it. I will not make a face anymore when someone else says they enjoy it; I get it. Julia ordered the very (non-Spanish) spaghetti Bolognese and ate every single bite, and Chloe went out on a limb and had spaghetti with olive oil and parmesan. The adults drank Spanish wine and ate a very Spanish dish and were super-duper pleased.
We saw a market nearby on our map so we made our way over there with grand expectations after our recent market experiences. This one was very beautiful and shiny and clean and had amazing architecture, but it was missing the energy and life of the previous market. Lots of meat and vegetables but not a single gelato stand… what?!? It was interesting to see, but it didn't make us want to buy anything. Instead we walked the little streets back, went into a few souvenir shops, and had some ice cream. By then it was definitely pool time so we spent a really nice few hours lounging around and relaxing. At one point I looked up and all 4 of us were engrossed in our books; what a great way to spend an afternoon.
After enough sun it was time to relax in our apartment and wait until the appropriate time to go to dinner. I saw Julia sneak into the fridge a few times and cut a little piece off of the block of Manchego cheese we keep in there. (It's a Spanish sheep cheese that she has developed quite the taste for!) Waiting until 'dinner time' here is sometimes difficult, especially when you're 9. I'm going to do a pre-dinner post again tonight as I'm reading a good book right now and as soon as we're home from dinner I want to hop into my pj's and keep reading it! (I'm on vacation after all…)
With nothing on the agenda today we lazed around in the morning until hunger drove us out. We had some peaches, yogurt and juice in the fridge but that can only take you so far! We headed back to the Mercat de la Boqueria and we weren't disappointed. We approached it from a side entrance this time and it was much calmer and easier to manage that way. We bought some fresh juices and Julia finally got the half dragon fruit that she's been wanting (quite literally) for a year. I always say no in Calgary because they are so expensive, and I keep telling her that although they are very pretty they are super pricey and have very little flavour. Well, today was the day she finally got one! To add extra excitement it wasn't the regular white with black seeds, but magenta on the inside so even more exotic looking. She ate about 1/3 of it and then begrudgingly admitted that it was pretty blah and wondered if she had to finish the whole thing. We all had a bite because it's hard to imagine that something so beautiful and colorful could taste so boring, but it does. It's strange because they really look as though they should be sweet and juicy and delicious. Not so.
Chloë found the hugest, ripest mango and somehow (in a cute Spanish accent) got the lady to cut it up for her. We also bought some dim sum dumplings through a lot of hand gestures and broken Spanglish and then happened upon a very busy Latin stand. We bought a few empanadas and a beautiful bean salad and took our food out in search of a decent place to eat it. Our map directed us to a patch of green (like an oasis in the Barri Gotic area!) and we sought it out only to find a very hot and dismal playground surrounded by a few bolted in chairs. Luckily those chairs were in the shade and had a slight breeze so that became our picnic spot. The empanadas were great, the bean salad came with little packs of olive oil and vinegar to dress it yourself, and the giant mango was juicy perfection. That combined with the cold bottle of water I bought from a very hot corner store completed our very fresh and delicious meal. Sometimes those ones are better than a fancy restaurant!
We ended up at the huge El Cortes Inglés department store in search of a new bathing suit for Julia. That kid is growing!! We had just purchased two new suits before leaving and all of a sudden they are too tight. This led to a grand adventure in the biggest department store I've ever been in. Each floor (I think there were 7 or 8) had multiple sets of escalators and it was very easy to turn yourself around. Getting out was like a maze! Eventually we were back on the street and thankfully Jeff had the idea to take a taxi back to our place, because until then we hadn't quite realized how hot and tired we were. A mere €4.50 later we were in front of our building and thankful to have not spent the last 20 minutes walking and sweating! We had lunch in a really great place not far from our apartment; we chose it based on it's calm interior and gentle air conditioning. We had some of the tastiest calamari of our lives combined with artichoke heart chips (never heard of it before but it was delicious!), olives, and some little fried croquettes. Julia accidentally mistook Jeff's wine for cranberry juice and took a swig much to the amusement of the rest of us. She was completely disgusted and spit it out with so much force that we knew she wasn't faking. Pretty funny - and she is positive that we are completely nuts for liking such a vile substance.
Pool time took over siesta time and we just relaxed for a few hours soaking up sun and enjoying this magnificent place. It's a perfect combination of being right in the middle of the action, yet having a little oasis on the rooftop to keep you grounded and sane. It's also fun to see who you'll meet each day as the apartments change over and new families arrive. It looks like the Scandinavian family checked out and a new Swiss/Portuguese couple with a young son came in. Lots of languages being spoken while kids play and adults visit - it's really nice.
Tonight I'm going to post this before we go out to dinner because the wi-fi is strange and my computer only works when at the rooftop pool. The first night I snuck up there to post (literally just do a few things and hit 'enter') and I made it just before the security guy came and told me he was closing the top level. Last night I used a USB key to transfer it to Jeff's computer (it's the only one that works in the apartment) but it was a pain and the pictures wouldn't allow me to adjust the size. Too much frustration, so today I have resolved to just post now (without having to sneak up in the dark!) and if anything of interest happens tonight I will simply document it tomorrow!
We're all hitting the showers and getting ready to see what the night brings. (Oh, side note, last night I was woken up in the middle of the night by a loud group of very drunk men singing a pop song over and over again. I completely forget which song, but it was something extra-poppy like Carly Rae Jepson or Britney Spears. They only knew one part and I was just about to throw a tomato out the window at them when they finally piped down. Sounds like they were having fun, but perhaps forgot how sound travels in the dead of night…) Ahh, to be young, carefree, and not care about hangovers! :)
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