This was our last day in Barcelona and a relaxing one. However, the morning started with two big glitches:
1) We accidently woke up 2 hours late
2) We arrived at La Boqueria for breakfast and shopping to find that it is closed on Sundays
Sadness - La Boquería was one of my must-do's while in Barcelona. This revelation was followed by much pouting. After a few blocks of heavy sighs and furrowed brows we found a gem of a coffee shop.
Recovering with two café cortados and croissants. My almond one was especially divine, filled with almendra cream. Yum.
Recovering with two café cortados and croissants. My almond one was especially divine, filled with almendra cream. Yum.
We wiped the crumbs from our face and headed off to catedral numero dos.
There was a mass service when we visited, which was cool to watch, but also resulted in partial closure. We also were donning tank tops upon arrival, this not being appropriate attire for the cathedral, we were not allowed entrance. For once, we were thankful for the gypsies outside that were selling scarves for only 1 euro. We quickly covered our shoulders and explored as much as we could.
After a quick churro con chocolate stop
We headed to the Palau de Música Catalana. Another much anticipated stop for yours truly.
We took a guided tour of this amazing concert hall. Though the Palau was also built in a modernist style with nature motifs, it was not designed by Gaudí. It was designed by Lluís Doménech i Monaner between 1905 and 1908. The design, history, and sound here is amazing and beyond beautiful. Pictures inside were not allowed, however, I snagged the below photo from the web to give you a sense of it's beauty.
They played a recording of the famous (and much loved by myself) pipe organ piece "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor" by Bach. Amazing. If you're in Barcelona and a music fan, go here.
After touring the vast halls of the Palau we walked back home, changed, and headed to the beach!
I found this very accurate, commissioned piece of Kristen and I on the walk over:
You should also beware of rogue forklifts
Finally, the beach. Ahh...
We wandered the beach and unknowingly sat at the beach table for a place we had wanted to visit anyway. Carpe Diem, hottest club and foremost gay haunt on the beach of Barcelona. Score!
After lounging here for a bit and enjoying a drink, we decided to head further down the beach.
This sculpture actually had a water feature
After admiring the sand sculptures and beautiful people, it was time for a snack. Kristen ordered up a bocadillo de jamón.
While I enjoyed some raspberry gelato and found more funny ads to photograph.
We walked the length of the beach back to the bus stop to head home for a shower and to change for the evening.
Refreshed and ready for the night we once again hopped on the subway
and took the green line to the Fontana stop
At the recommendation of my friend Ferran, who is from Barcelona, we decided to grab a drink and tapa in Barri de Gracia. This is a neighborhood without a lot of tourists and one of Ferrans favorite barrios.
It's full of life, plazas, independent cinemas, and good friends. We enjoyed some cañas and jamón before heading back up to Montjuïc for the "Font Mágica" show. This is a Bellagio style light, water, and music fountain show.
The show was amazing. It lasted about 20 minutes and included parts of the following songs: Chariots of Fire, The Show Must Go On by Queen, Theme from The Godfather, Theme from The Lord of the Rings, and many more.
It was now around 10:30 pm and we were hungry. We'd walked off the caña and jamón long ago, so we headed back to the subway and our barrio - Born.
We enjoyed dinner at Tavern del Born, our neighborhood bar for a tapas dinner. We each imbibed sangria and shared a plate of pulpo feira (octopus a la gallega) and pimientos de padron. This was our last meal and day in Barcelona. It was fun and exciting but we were ready for new challenge and a change of scenery.
We headed "home" one last time and prepared for our early flight to Basque country...
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