First Day in Barcelona

We arrived in Barcelona around midnight on Saturday and fell into the warm embraces of Joey and Becca who are living here for the next two years. We're so lucky to have friends like them! They just found an incredible apartment that includes, among many other fabulous amenities, private access to a roof deck that would, by itself, constitute a luxurious home. We're talking a grill, hammock, seating for a dozen, an opulent-looking divan, and a sweeping view of the city. In addition to finding a great apartment they've both very quickly become locals, navigating us through the city with Spanish ease that the belies the single month they've spent here

After our giddy reunion we got quickly to bed and weren't all upright until 10:30 the next day. At least one person would have been happy to push that back even later into the day but this unnamed party will now admit that the day which was about to unfold was well worth the sacrifice. Knowing we would only have one full day with Becca -- who is starting her first day with students at the American School of Barcelona on Monday -- we used it to head out of the city...and into the distant past!


We traveled to Girona, a medieval city that is a 90 minute train ride north of Barcelona. Becca used this time to educate us all to the city's history which spans millennia and includes such players as the ancient Iberians, the Visigoths, the Moors, and the Romans. We listened, rapt as she wove the names and dates together like a consummate professional.

Upon arriving, we walked from the train station where the boulevards are wide and the buildings modern up towards the old city. We crossed the Rio Onyar and stepped into shady, cobbled streets where the houses are pressed close together and the paving stones are worn to a smooth sheen.

We wandered in the direction of the city's main cathedral, which has been built up over the centuries from its days as a Roman temple. It sits atop a hill and can be reached by a half-dozen different winding, narrow streets, many of which we had explored by the end of the day.

Because it was Sunday, we got to enter the cathedral for free. The four of us walked through the small gift shop -- the postcards and cash register at odds with the ancient stone walls and vaulted ceiling -- and towards the huge portal into the nave, or main body of the cathedral. The nave of the Girona cathedral is the second largest in the world after St. Peter's Basilica and we wandered up and down its echoing depths, our necks craned back to take it all in. Incense was faintly in the air and piped-in baroque music quietly reverberated around the space. A long timeline and a series of glass-encased miniatures showed the evolution of the building from early Roman days to modern edifice.

We found lunch in a quiet square at the foot of the cathedral before continuing our adventure. Another vast and incredibly old feature of the city is the fortified wall that runs down its eastern edge. Cool gardens and lookout towers are tucked into its mazey meanderings and the ramparts afford a great view of the new and old city below.

Katrina enjoys every last bit of her chocolate gelato

At this point we had been trekking up and down the hills and walls of the city under a fiercely beating sun for hours so we found shade and gelato, specifically mango gelato that had been recommended to us and proved to be the silkiest, most sublime creation I had ever tasted. If you are in the area, be sure to visit Rocambolesc.


We slowly ambled back toward the train station and made it on to the 6:19 back to Barcelona. Our seats were cushioned and the car was mercifully air-conditioned and many of us took advantage of this by promptly falling asleep. Back in the big city, we took the Metro (another example of this region's great public transportation) back to Joey and Becca's neighborhood, picked up a few groceries for dinner and then were in for the night.

Becca left bright and early this morning for her first official day as Ms. Berwick at her new school and we know she'll be great. Who knows what fresh adventures this day holds for the rest of us!






Here are some more pictures from the day that I couldn't squeeze into the main post.