Today was Gaudi day. After a semi-late start thanks to the night before, I didn't even head out until after 11:00. Nathan went to go run some errands, and I decided to head over to Park Guell, a natural park with pieces designed by Gaudi that I missed when I was in Spain with my Bobe in '05. After ditching my bike in a bike rack at the bottom of the hill leading up to the Park, I worked my way up the overly steep hill trying my best not to lose my footing or trip. After a tough trek up the hill I made it to the park to find that it was completely worth every minute of the walk up.
Gaudi or not, the park is gorgeous. It is situated on top of a hill that overlooks the entire city. Barcelona, I have to say is an interesting city to view from above. Surprisingly enough, none of the buildings are really that tall so things like the Sagrada Familia, stick out a lot. The view was made even more spectacular though by the shimmer of the Mediterranean at the very end. After working my way down from the view, I found myself at the famous park bench at Park Guell. Said to be the longest park bench in the world, it is an incredible display of tile and mosaic work designed by Gaudi. There are mosaics everywhere... on the bench, on the fountain at the entrance, on the vaulted ceiling supporting this giant park bench and so on (you get the idea). After walking around the park, I decided to find a grassy patch of park to write in my nonexistent journal.
Somehow I ended up talking to the guy who had a very similar idea (except his involved sleep) and we got to talking about our trips (a very popular topic among backpackers). There is even a standard list of questions:
1. the obvious, name
2. where are you from
3. how long are you staying "insert some european city here"
4. how long are you traveling
5. where have you been
6. where are you going
7. are you still at university
8. what are you/did you study
And then, depending on the person, you just kind of go from there. I found out that this guy was dutch, traveling for a year, and hitchiking, couch surfing, and genuinely spending as little money as possible. It sounded like a great trip, and it was really intersting to hear some of his experiences.
From Park Guell, I picked up my bike, rode it down what little hill was left and very slowly made my way back to the hostel. I had no idea where I was and the Park is actually on the other side of town from the hostel. It was a great ride. I saw a lot of the city and had very little worry of actually getting lost because I was following the city's bike lanes.
The next morning we woke up and headed straight for the beach. It was a beautiful, if not incredibley hot, day which made the Mediterranean look all the more inviting. I walked in the water hoping to avoid the heat, and was met with cold water. It felt great, after a while. The water is so clean and clear that where its shallow you can see the bottom and where its deep you can swim out without a worry of nasty jellyfish or seaweed. It was incredible and I spent way to long out there. I could tell because I was sunburnt the next day when I tried to put my backpack on.
Next up: Valencia?
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