Barcelona, Spain

Technically the day begins at 0000, and at that exact time I was getting off a bus with Nataliia on our way back from the airport.  We had decided to walk the last 3km to our Airbnb as practice for the near future on Camino.  The weather was cool, the night still lively enough, and we hasn't seen each other for months.

There are plenty of 24hr groceries in Barcelona and we got two 2€ refrigerated pizzas that were surprisingly delicious, along with fresh fruit and drinks.

Breakfast was croissants, coffee and pastries with fresh peaches, cherries and plums.  Then, off to the city!

We trek north and uphill along Passeg de Sant Joan towards Park Guel.  The tickets must be bought a day in advance and are 10€ (less for kids, students, seniors), and can be acquired on location or online, but are only for a section of the park.  There is a large part that is open to all for free, and we hiked to the high point and enjoyed a scenic overlook, some entertaining local talent, and a menagerie of souvenir hawkers. We have tickets for the 8am time slot tomorrow, so it will be an early morning.

 

We then hiked south and slightly east to Segrada Familia. The flowing arches and delicate lines of the half-finished cathedral challenge even even Notre Dame de Paris for "most elegant pile of stones" in the world.  I think they will have plenty of financial assets to finish this masterpiece as they charge €32 for admission, an obstacle our budget decided to divert to food instead, as hunger is higher on Maslow's heirarchy then inspiration.

We moved along a path to three other noteworthy architectural monuments, two by Gaudi and another that was labeled as impressive on the guidebook, but difficult to pick out from surrounding buildings in practice. 

By this time we had covered only ten kilometers and we headed south to Mercat de la Boqueria where we enjoyed an astounding array of food, the likes of which I have not seen in many years.  Pig brain, hoof, and leg, fruits and vegetables of every climate and continent, seafood to satisfy the palette of Nippon or Naples.  We sampled sparingly and moved on to our next destination.

Arch de Triumph in Barcelona is brick, not stone, and no less impressive for the change.  A  reminder of past glories and a symbol for those yet to come in this magnificent Mediterranean city.