Barcelona

So last weekend my roommate, Kelsey, and I went to *snap snap* Barcelona!

We got off to a rocky start when we flew in on Friday. We took the aerobus into the city center, and because we were tired and it was raining, we wanted to just take a taxi to our hostel. It was outside of the city, and more specifically in Badalona rather than Barcelona. So we get into the taxi and show him the address, and he starts driving like he knows exactly where to go. He drops us off, we pay, and then we're like….ok….
Where is it?
we walked up and down the street, then up and down the cross street.
Um…
We finally go into a cafe and ask them where it is, and they say oh you have to be in Badalona- you're still in Barcelona!
….
Crap.
The taxi driver tricked us and took us to some random place on the road that was similar to the road we had to be on [Alfonso XII rather than Alfonso XIII].

So after we had our cliche "American" experience, we finally find our way to the hostel. It was really nice because it was a block from the metro which made it really easy to get to the city. I've never really had to travel by train in order to get around a city, but, if i do say so myself, by the end of the weekend I was a pro at it!

So the first night, after we checked into our hostel, went into the city and walked down Las Ramblas- one of the main streets in the city center that is lined with shops and restaurants. It's one of the big tourist attractions in Barcelona. We found a restaurant on the street and because of the day we had, didn't really care that it was there and might not be totally "authentic". We ordered a paella menu which included a salad, paella, and dessert for 12 euro, then we also ordered a pitcher of sangria. It was so good!! I got the mixed paella, which had chicken, mussels, shrimp, oyster, calimari, and probably some other seafood as well. It was absolutely delicious!

After a very very good dinner, we walked down the rest of the street until we reached the water- it was such a sight! We saw the Monument to Columbus and the port next to it. He's at the top pointing towards America.

It really did feel like a beach town even though its such a big city. The atmosphere was just so relaxed and warm. It was so nice. Then after that, we walked back up the street and got a drink on the street to people watch and talk. It was such a good way to turn around the trip.

We decided that night to wake up really early, grab some breakfast at the hostel (it was free! well, included), then go around the city to see as much as we could. Because it was such a long day, I am going to have to make another post about it. So that is coming tomorrow! Brace yourself!