I gave in to the tourist thing

I think the picture speaks for itself...

L'eixample

As an extension built later in Barcelona, this part of town had nice straight roads, wider streets and more light coming in compared to the old part of town that had twisty narrow alleys and hight buildings so no light reached the ground.
This is roughly the route we took to get to Park Guell. There were escalators in the middle of the road in some sections which I greatly appreciated!

Park Guell and my silly TV addictions

Unless I am very much mistaken, America's Next Top Model did a runway show here at one point. While I'm embarrassed to admit that I love that show and am that familiar with it, I'm 97% confident that there was a show here with the crazy bridal theme.

Fairy Tale land

It kept reminding me of a big gingerbread house, all frosted and everything!

Park Guell, like the other works by Gaudi are just pure whimsy, and this really felt like walking into a little kid's drawing of a park.

Park Guell, a detailed look

Some of the many mosaics around Park Guell, they are part of a wall (top image), ceiling detail (middle image), and bench (bottom image).

Park Guell

The extensive garden on the side of the columns and huge terrace. Much of the rest of the park was more wild with cacti.
Why hello Barcelona! From the top of Park Guell we were able to see all of beautiful Barcelona spread out before us. It was quite a hike, and we got lost in a really bad part of town, were almost mugged (after seeing a guy sitting on a bench with a huge envelope full of pot and pills) but it was a worth it for the view that awaited us. Lonely Planet says if you only have time for one sightseeing trip in Barcelona you should go to La Sagrada, but I whole-heartedly disagree and would like to place my vote for Park Guell!

La Sagrada

The rear of the church was more completed and this shot almost looks like I captured an image of the Holy Spirit, no?
Since the church is not finished yet, masses are held outside, and will be until the roof is finished which should hopefully be later this year!
I'm sure it will be quite pretty when it is finished, but in the meantime while it's a bit on the homely side, the carnival like atmosphere around the church was rather interesting (especially since it was Palm Sunday when we were there) and I fear this church will only become more popular and mobbed as it nears completion (sometime in the 2020's)!

Ciutat Vella

Nave of the Cathedral, there was a mass in session when we went in the afternoon on a Saturday (Spain is definitely a lot more religious than the Czech Republic).
Placa del Rei with the Roman and Visigoth ruins in the basement. There was information about how laundry used to be done, where they made the wine and also the fish market where they had large vats to make garum, a sauce from fermented fish.
Courtyard of the Cathedral, the one where there were geese running amok

Casa Batllo

The facade of Casa Batllo created by Antoni Gaudi. It was built in 1877 and Gaudi was commissioned to remodel it in 1905, this is just one of many of his modern buildings that are spread throughout Barcelona. The city also has Park Guell, and La Sagrada Familia, the church designed by Gaudi that is not yet finished and projected dates predict it will not be completed until the 2020's. This house is also known as "The House of Bones" because of the design on the facade.
There are very few straight lines in this home, Gaudi instead worked primarily with curving and spiraling elements so as to mimic nature.
On the roof Gaudi carried out a St. George and the dragon theme with the roof line mimicking the spine of a dragons back.
One of the two spiral staircases leading from the loft to the roof.
At the center of the house the tiles change from dark blue at the top to baby blue near the ground floor. This all feeds into the underwater theme for the house. Also interesting was how Gaudi made sure his designs allowed for the maximum amount of light and air flow with all the doors having sliding vents to ensure a steady flow of fresh air, even with the doors closed.
Ceramic tiles on the back terrace of the house. Gaudi used ceramic mosaics extensively in both Casa Batllo and Park Guell to create colorful and whimsical pieces.

Prettiest train station ever?

So this was the station at Malgrat de Mar, yes it looks out onto the Mediterranean. Sitting in the sun and getting a nice breeze of the ocean Tom and I agreed that this had to be the nicest station ever. Not to mention we had a great view of the ocean the whole train ride, at some points the train had about five feet of land between us and the ocean!

More Malgrat de Mar

My artistic shot for the day. The terraces on one of the many condominiums/hotels in Malgrat de Mar and Santa Sussana.
I wish I could say that this was Tom's idea, but no. It was my idea to make me look like an idiot, although I do think I told Tom he should do it first. So I guess I can now say I went horseback riding in Spain!
The hills in the distance. Some stretches from Malgrat de Mar into Barcelona were a little seedy and there was a lot more signs of poverty than there are in the Czech Republic. On the hour train ride into the city, various people would come through the train begging. One young boy had cards with his story written out (I'm sure it would have been a very sad one if I was able to read Spanish, I did pick up "no home, no family") and he would drop the cards on the seat or in your lap, and then come back in a couple minutes to collect the card and some money. We ended up seeing him a couple times in the course of traveling back and forth between Barcelona and Malgrat de Mar. He was a cute kid and would give a very sincere "mucho gracias" when you gave him money, but the best part was that he was wearing a hat with just about every expletive I know written on it.

La Rambla

In the bird market section of La Rambla (I think the bunnies should petition to have it named after them) stalls like this sell birds, bunnies, guinea pigs, ferrets, turtles, and frogs the same way the newspaper stands sell magazines. I think the open air must be better for them than being shut up in a pet store, but I do wonder where they go at night.
If it was up to me, this is what everyone would have found in their Easter basket. It was all I could do not to put one in each pocket and run for it!
One of the many very entertaining street performers lining the street. They were very inventive with costumes and concepts. This little elf would have to be my favorite though!
While these are fake flowers, all the real ones in the many flower stands lining La Ramba smelled amazing! The food market that opened up off the street was incredible. I think it's what heaven must look like. Piles of beautiful fruits and vegetables, cheeses, meats, wines and candies. We got a fruit smoothie and some coconut and walked down the street snacking!

Malgrat de Mar

Our hotel was in Malgrat de Mar, north of Barcelona and on the coast. We spent our first afternoon in Spain walking along the beach. Eating tapas and paella (more on food later) and watching the windsurfers below.
These guys were really good and made it look like so much fun! Until one of them would wipe out and then it reminded me of how much hard work it must have been!

Where to start?

So we got back from Barcelona this morning and it was a great trip! We saw the Picasso Museum, Placa del Rei, Catedral, Park Guell, La Sagrada, and Casa Batlo among many other things. I loved walking through the markets, and all the food (tapas, flan, catalan cream, mmmm)! We did so much that it's hard to know where to start, and it will soon be time for my afternoon falafel break, but just so everyone gets at least a taste of Spain for now, here's a photo from our walk on Sunday.