Hotel Abat Cisneros Montserrat

... but well worth the view. We rode it around and got off a few times. By early evening, we decided to find a place to eat some dinner. Unfortunately, it was less than memorable. But, it was food. We made our way back to the bus and got back on. We went to see the Arc de Triomf. It's smaller than the one in Paris, but it was nice. It was the main entrance to the 1888 World Exhibition. We walked from the Arc to the Sagrada ...

... care to make a big deal of it, and when I planned to be here on this day, I had no hope other than to simply be in Barcelona. Turning another year older in the country I love is the best birthday gift I could receive, and I need nothing more. Perhaps I'd feel differently if my friends were here to celebrate with me, but even then, a low-key dinner is all that I could ever want or hope for.

They play a lot of reggae in the hostel - I'm starting to ...

Visited Montserrat today, a nice and peaceful monastery on top of a rock. It was a great break from the crowds of Barcelona, so we took it slowly and relaxed a bit. There's a famous statue of Black Madonna in the monastery, which they supposedly couldn't move, so they had to build a monastery around it.

... surrendered his arms to Our Lady of Montserrat, a beautiful statue of the Virgin Mary and the Infant Jesus, to put on the armor of Christ.  After this, he walked to Manresa, a town about 23 km from Montserrat.  Here, here prayed in a cave and wrote the Spiritual Excercises, which would change the world forever.   So four of my buddies and I set out on our pilgrimage through ...

... so. The Catalan name for the statue is La Moreneta, which means "the little dark-skinned one."  The Virgin of Montserrat is one of the black Madonnas of Europe.  She is made out of wood and believed to have been carved in Jerusalem in the 12th century.  She has been named the patroness of Catalonia.  The story goes that back in 880 AD some local shepherds saw some lights and heard angels' voices near a cave at Montserrat.  When they explored ...

... train at Monistrol de Montserrat Cremallera. I ask the guy that works there if there is a way to get to Stiges from Montserrat. He responds with a definite no. The transportation system here is reminiscant of Madrid's. I have to go back to Barcelona and than catch a different commuter train to go west to Stiges. I also ask about this elusive bus that goes to Stiges and again he hasn't heard of it. This bus must not exist even thou the guy at the hostel ...

... morning at this point. We walked down this little street and have to turn into this shady alley. New city, don't know exactly where we're going, and it a shady alley...we were kinda scared! And then we find our hostel and have to go up this tiny stair way that way super sketchy to the office where the desk man was not friendly at all. Starting off right! The room we were staying in was a 14 person room ...

... elements made by Gaudi. Btw the name Guell came from Count Eusebi Guell who constantly sponsored Gaudi for his works. The park was in Barcelona city ...

... After a bit of lazying about watching the waves, we moved on around and back to the bike shop. We booked a little village tour for Saturday at a local travel outlet. Sounds exciting :) I went for a little walk around some less visited places in Barcelona as the sun began to set. The fringes of town was a little scary at times, especially walking through this park with groups of youths (and a few old men) staring as you walked past. There were lots of little shops in some of ...

... in Spain. Founded in 1025 to celebrate an apparition of the Virgin, Montserrat gained increased popularity with the discovery of a hidden statue of a Madonna and child. Both mother and child's skin had mysteriously turned black and it is this miracle that draws the crowds. Montserrat has acted as a beacon for Catalan national pride for centuries and each day the monastery is visited ...