Barcelona,
Spain
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Our train last night was a Spanish train with nice dining facilities but very small sleeping cabins. I didn't mind the size- but there was no ventilation or AC whatsoever and the windows did not even open so it was EXTREMELY hot and almost impossible to sleep. After a restless night our really cute stewardess-lady woke us up for our free breakfast in the dining car which was hearty and super yummy. The train was running an hour late but we really didn't mind. When we arrive in Barcelona at Franca station around 10 we deboarded to find that there was no subway attached to the train station we were at. With only vague directions, we decided to take a cab to our hostel to be safe since it looked like it might be a very far walk and since Spain is relatively cheap. We showed the cabbie the address and 6 Euros later we were dropped off at 11 Carrer de Commerc which was a non descript building wit no sign After buzzing a bunch of people inside, someone on the street finally told us that we were at 11 Carrer de Commerc and our hostel was at 11 Junta de carrer de Commerc, which was apparently no where near our current location! Completely lost and unable to obtain a good map as of yet, we were forced to take another cab to get to the right location. Our hostel, Hostel La Terrassa, was under renovation and is somewhat new. We dropped off our bags since our room wouldn't be ready until 1pm and headed out to wander and eat. Our book recommended a place called El Quatro Gats which is a traditional "bohemian" café where Picasso used to frequent, displayed some of his original works, and even designed the menu! When we arrived they informed us that they didn't open for lunch until 1- which we later learned is pretty typical in Spain! The dinner menu here is quite pricey but this and many other cafes in Spain offer very economical fixed price lunch menus. We had a great meal which included a glass of wine, two courses, dessert, and coffee for about 14 euro each! I highly recommend visiting this place for the décor, service, food, and history! After lunch we were able to check into our room which was a small room with one double and one single bed, a private bathroom, a ceiling fan (yea!) and a tiny balcony overlooking a courtyard- all for only 68 Euro a night! This hostel also had a nice community patio area although their free breakfast service was not yet operating. Overall we had a very nice stay aside form the fact that you can't really sleep in since the construction and renovation guys start working in neighboring rooms around 9.
After a nap and a shower we headed back out into the streets of Barcelona and walked along the famous main street called La Rambla which extends through most of the city. Off of La Rambla is an amazing market called La Boqueria with huge stands full of tropical fruits and vegetables everywhere. Chris had a fruit juice puree and I ate a half of a papaya as we walked through! Our neighborhood, Bari Gothic, is the oldest part of Barcelona and full of fun little alleys and sidestreets. Avoid eating or buying on La Rambla if you want authenticity and to avoid tourist prices. After another stop at our hostel and spending some evening time on the hostel terrace we headed down to the Port Olimpic waterfront area which was developed as part of the 1992 Olympic Village. We wanted to eat diner here at a place recommended by our book but it stopped serving at 10 so we had some delicious seafood paella for two (a Spanish specialty) at the place across the square from it. This is a beautiful area with a boardwalk and lots of docks for small ships as well as an entire strip of vibrant open air nightclubs. Going here is not as inexpensive as a night out elsewhere in Barcelona, but is worthwhile even just to walk through and see the nightlife here. After some pricey drinks we scored a free entrance to a club called catwalk from a promoter working on the board walk and checked that out. True to what we had heard it was rather dead when we got there and didn't start filling up until about 2 which is when we decided to grab a cab home! (Subway runs until about midnight in Barcelona- later on weekends).
