A few friends and I had been planning to visit Barcelona this weekend, but they aborted at the last minute, so I took it upon myself to discover this fabulous Spanish city. I booked the tickets on Thursday morning on www.airfrance.fr. I also booked a hostel in the “Les Corts” area. I flew out of CDG on Friday morning and arrived at lunch time. After a 15-20 minute bus ride from the airport, I alighted the bus at Plaza Espanyola and walked over to my hostel discussing with an Argentinean who is travelling Spain for a few months. My first impression of Barcelona is that there are lots of tourists, and a lot of men with long hair. The hostel was very small and there was no answer when I arrived, so I walked around a bit and had lunch on a terrace somewhere. When I returned to the hostel, I was greeted by a lady and dropped my bags on my shared two-bed room. I then took the subway to Plaza Catalunya and walked down La Rambla, the main tourist street in Barcelona. I then walked around the port and to the beach in Barcelonata, where I had a few drinks with an American who lives in Madrid. I also met to Swiss guys, and we had shared some tapas and a surprisingly bad seafood platter. I explored the area and visited several establishments all night, including Mar Magnum, a shopping center with nightclubs on its rooftop.
On Saturday, I got up around 11am and was informed that there was no room for me that night and that I would have to move. There were few available hostels online but I found room in a 4-star hotel for 60 euros per night. The hotel was located at the end of the subway line, but the room met my expectations. I then went to Parc Guell, a UNESCO World Heritage site on top of a hill with a steep climb to get to it. The view of the city is gorgeous, and the architecture of the site is interesting. The sun was reflecting brightly on the Mediterranean sea all weekend. I also visited the Gaudi museum. I then walked all the way to the Segrada Familia, Gaudi’s dream cathedral that is still under construction today. I then went to the Villa Olympica, where they have very nice restaurants and bars right on the beach. After some tapas, I walked back through Barceloneta and the port. I visited the aquarium, which has a 4.5M litre tank with a tunnel going through it. Inside the tank swim sharks and other types of fish. I had paella in harbour-front restaurant and then went to IMAX for a 3D movie of Nascar racing, which was pretty cool. After the movie, I walked around a while before heading back to my hotel.
On Sunday, I went to the Olympic installations located at the top of a hill. There were school children having the Olympics inside a fairly empty stadium. I then walked to the Miramar and had late lunch overlooking the city. I then walked to Poble Sec to have some tapas before taking the train to the airport. I was in Fonty by midnight.
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