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.

First, a few other cities

For the last week we have been getting ready for our year abroad – especially focusing on the rainy season, the medical supplies, and the work and climate-appropriateness of our clothing. But, for the next two weeks, we will actually be traveling to Barcelona, Genoa, Florence, and Kigali, all before we drive up to Kisoro. We will try to keep you updated on the sights, tastes, and experiences from these places before we settle down in our new hometown.

Taking off

And so it begins!

One Last Look Around

Yesterday was our last full day in the US (but only just barely -- our plane doesn't leave until 11:45pm tonight).

We spent it scouring the house for odds and ends, pacing around the living room, and staring at the same four not-fully-packed bags. By early evening we were both feeling pretty frayed around the edges and needed to get out of the house. Katrina went to shop for some last-minute necessities and I took the new camera and biked up the hill to Larz Anderson Park.

It was nice to only think of trees and sunlight and fitting them into frame for an hour. Scroll through these and think of us scrambling to get everything ready before tonight!

The front walk at our house

On the road to the park

These birds appeared just as I was pressing the shutter

A pastoral painting

The tree-lined path up to a granite seat

Standing at the seat. One of those shadows is me

See-Ya-Later Garden Party

Thanks for a great send-off!

We made the most of a lovely evening in my parents' backyard with food, fire, and friends -- courtesy of all you lovely people. Those of you who couldn't make it were in our hearts, but the food is pretty lousy there so I apologize for that.

Well, you can check out the photo album -- courtesy of my attentive mother -- to experience the jubilee one more (or first) time.

We'll miss you all next year but this modern age affords us manifold means of easing that heartache. Why, you're using one of them right now! You clever thing, you.

Our New Camera

Our parents generously donated a Sony WX-300 to help us photo-document the coming year. I took a bike ride yesterday beneath a foreboding sky (which finally broke into sun showers) to give the camera a workout and take a look at the neighborhoods I grew up in before settling on a new continent for a year!

You'll notice that I went a little nuts with the "Watercolor" feature on the camera. Vintage-y filters are all the rage these days and I normally don't have much patience for them but this Watercolor effect (one of many baked into the WX-300) affects the picture at a deep level and turns it into something fresh and new.

I had a lot of fun shooting these which hopefully means I can foster a habit of frequent photography when we're abroad. Enjoy!

Prince st: It cuts around Jamaica Pond but above the main thoroughfare. I always bike this route home even if it's a little out of the way. Woodsy, quiet, beautiful.

Harrison st: The street I grew up on! On the right you can make out the fence of Northeastern's football field which we got very good at scampering over as kids. At the end of the street is Lawrence school were I went from 3rd to 8th grade.

Community garden and mural at the Lawrence School

The field behind the school

That fountain is where "circle soccer" was born: the sport of choice for all Lawrence school kids...even if you didn't want it to be.

Trying out the High Dynamic Resolution feature. Brookline recycles!

Sidewalk sunflowers

Another quiet street in Brookline, all watercolor-y

I climbed a tree on the Longwood Mall to get this so you'd better believe it's getting posted

The far end of the Longwood Mall: these trees have been here since the Civil War 

Some apartments nearby: through the portal you can just make out the steam tower that sits in the center of the Longwood Medical Complex. More on that later...

Along the Muddy River pathway

Muddy River

More of the paths along the Muddy River 

Construction near the Museum of Fine Arts

More construction on one of Boston's many sports fields

Beth Israel Hospital and the heart of the Longwood Medical Center; Harvard Med School is a few blocks down and Joslin Diabetes Center (where my mom works) is across the street

The steam towers that power the hospitals. When we first moved to Brookline I got lost walking around by myself but I spotted this tower on the horizon and used it to retrace my steps back home

Geese along the Riverway which connects Brookline down to Jamaica Plain

Houses and art along the Riverway

I dropped the bike to grab for the camera many, many times. This time the sun was peeking through the branches

Jamaica Pond: our neighborhood body of water. Minutes from home and the rain just started!

We canoed to this island with Gina and Daniel last summer! You can see the pond boathouse on the far shore