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Hello PortAventura

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Almost wrapping up my time in Barcelona as I am motivated to catch up on my blogging and update you guys on my latest adventures. Although I am 2-months behind, I am determined to publish a new post every other day and hopefully power through to the end of my trip. So much has happened in this 4-months time and I am very excited to share and show you visually my stories, so please wait—I am worth it!

This was the last week of October and almost 2-months in the semester, and I forget why or how, but the topic of curry came up while chatting away in class. So a bunch of us decided to go for Indian food after class and it was my first time trying Indian in Barcelona. Shaun who had discovered the place first and he ordered a bunch of food for us to share. Naturally, I love spicy food, so when he told me that it was going to be spicy, I just couldn’t wait. The restaurant we went to was called Swagatam and it was harder to find than most restaurants because it was located in a hidden alleyway! A little sketchy, but the food was very authentic and judging from the atmosphere and decor, it was very traditional Indian. We ordered four different curry (a mix of sweet and spicy and paired with either chicken, lamb, or beef), nan bread, and rice. There were eight of us and portions were fair, so we had plenty of food to share! The food was very good, but I was a little disappointed that it wasn’t spicier as it didn’t pack enough of a kick in my mouth. Afterwards, we wanted desert, specifically Spanish churros and hot chocolate, but when we got to the cafe, it was already closed, so we resorted to gelato

The next day, a group of us woke up extra early and took the train to PortAventura! It was an amusement park located just south of Barcelona in Salou, Tarragona. It was like a Spanish Disneyland with its own hotels, restaurants, and of course, rides for all ages. The park was divided into five main areas, Mediterrània, Far West, México, China, and Polinesia, and each having its own themed rides and special roller coasters. Each area is also decorated to fit the theme of the area, not to mention, we went during the week of Halloween, so the park was transformed to fit the occasion with people in costumes roaming around. There were also several additions to the park just for Halloween like haunted houses, parades, shows, events, and games.

We first went to China since they have two thrilling rides: Dragon Khan and Shambhala. The Dragon Khan has been with the park since the opening and it’s suppose go as fast as 110km/hr. However, I felt the Shambhala was more fun since it was the highest roller coaster in Europe (76 meters), longest drop (78 meters), and the fastest as it reaches 134km/hr during the first drop. I love roller coasters, so this was definitely one of my favourites and its no wonder there’s always a full line for this one! Next, we explored México and rode on the Hurakan Condor, which at the first glance, it just looked like a higher version of hellevator. However, it was actually pretty scary since it was about 100 feet high and just before I was dropped, the seat tilts upwards and I found myself facing the ground. When it drops, it felt like free falling (much unlike the regular hellevator). Some of us like Shaun has actually gone skydiving in Budapest, and he said that the ride was even scarier than skydiving…I don’t know if that’s true, but it was definitely worth the 30 mins wait.

A little tired and hungry, we stopped for food in their food court just in time for a singing and dancing show. Oh I forgot to mention, this park also features Woody the woodpecker (cartoon) as their mascot. I’m not entirely sure if this cartoon still runs, but it used to be one of my favourites growing up. So don’t be surprise if he shows up here and there around the park. Afterwards, we moved on to Far West and raced in a ride called Stampida. This ride allows you to choose between red or blue colour ride and they blast off side by side and compete to win the race. Although, I am pretty sure the operator controls the speed of the ride, so really, it was a matter of which colour the operator favoured. I didn’t like this ride that much since it shook a lot and I got bumps and bruises from bouncing around in my seat. The Silver River Flume was up next and it was your typical log ride expect with more drops and a whole lot of wet. This ride was pretty fun except for the fact that during the last drop, my cap threw off and fell into one of the cliffs of the ride. It was a very sad moment indeed and long story short, I begged and begged to collect it after the ride closed and nada, they didn’t let me and told me to report to customer service which led to no where since I received an automated email the next day saying they don’t have my property. Rude. Of course, I complained through social media and it took so long for them to reply back to me that by the time I received an email from them, I already have a new cap. The last ride we did from Far West was Grand Canyon Rapids, which was kinda like river rafting in a round floaty-thing (I have a way with words don’t I?). Of course, water would spray out of no where and we would crash into rapids and splash water everywhere. Needless to say, we were pretty soaked after the two rides.

Good bye PortAventura!

Good bye PortAventura!

I don’t think we spend that much time in Polynesia since there wasn’t a ride worth trying. So the last area we explored was the Mediterrània and behold, the ultimate ride and my personal favourite: Furius Baco! This ride was super fast (faster than the Shambhala) as it blasts off from 0 to 135km/hr in a second. It was so much fun that I went on it three times and it becomes super scary at night since it basically launches you into darkness!

Photo 10-28-2013, 9 28 39 PM

All in all, this park was super fun and definitely worth a visit! And if you’re coming to Barcelona anytime soon, there’s a deal going on (I think until January 31) that if you buy two bags of Chupa Chups candy with the marked stickers and bring the two empty bags to the ticket office, you can basically buy two regular adult tickets for the price of one! What a sweet deal right?

Beside having an awesome day at an amusement park in Spain, I also made my way up Montjuïc and visited the Castell de Montjuïc which once was a military fortress that dated back to the 1600s. There’s still tanks and cannons positioned around the castle! Since it was located on top of the hill, it overlooks a great deal of the city. You can see the port, the beach, ‘W’ Hotel and everything from Agbar Tower to Sagrada Familia. But I must warn you that it requires a lot of walking and it can be quite chilly at the top. Then after our hike, we went to good ol’ El Raval for paella, pizza, and empanadas for dinner at L’Avia, where we also met up with James Shaw (from Sauder who is studying in Bordeaux)! It still boggles my mind that I’m studying in Barcelona as I’ve never been away from home for this long before!

Lastly, on Halloween, there was a house party with all the BBA exchange students and I struggled trying to find a costume for the event. Mainly, because I didn’t know where to find a costume shop as Spain or most parts of Europe is not that invested in Halloween, let alone dressing up. Pretty last minute, Sophia, David, and I google mapped a few stores and managed to find a matching costume for us three! We went as Fairies! We were so cool and unique that even SeongHyuk joined in our ‘fairy fest’. Also the fact that it was super last minute and the costume costed literally 3 euros made this decision a no brainer.

Anywho, that wraps up October and with only two more months left of my exchange, my weekends are going to be jam-packed with food, travelling, friends, sightseeing, and shopping!

Cheers,
Kevin

Hello Paris + Disneyland

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At first, I had no plans of going to Paris, or anywhere for that matter. I was just planning to stay in Barcelona and chill for the weekend, but somehow my bestest friends (cic paid me to write this) in the whole universe Cicely and Tyler convinced me to go… Also I haven’t seen either of them for a long time and since my trip to Paris (two summers ago), I couldn’t wait to get back to the Parisian lifestyle. Love them baguettes, cheese, croissants, pâté, macarons, and wine.

And even though I’ve already been to Disneyland in Paris and once was enough (the park was not as great as LA), Tyler tricked me (he lied about buying me a ticket -_-) and I got sucked into going again. But nonetheless, thanks to them, I had a great time at the park and thanks to Tyler and Meag for hosting me at their lovely apartment. Paris was definitely a good idea, especially for a weekend getaway. I just love the culture, beauty, and elegance of the city and since I knew more French than Spanish, life in Paris was easy.

I took a super early flight at 6am, so I had to leave the house around 3am to take the night bus to the airport. And once again, I took RyanAir, which I was dreading because the airport it arrives in Paris is in Beauvais (RyanAir only flies there) and that is about an hour bus ride to the city. It’s a waste of time and the bus cost 16 euros (outrageous!). The downfall of cheap RyanAir flights is that it takes you to the worst airport, ever!

I got to the Beauvais airport around 8:50am and after a sleepless night and commute, I finally got to Tyler’s apartment around 11am. We were running on a tight schedule, because Cicely was leaving the next day (only had a day’s time with Cic after weeks), we left right after to take a train to Parc Disney. I wasn’t feeling my best since I was super tired and the cloudy weather definitely didn’t help my mood. On the other hand, Tyler and Cicely were so hyped, and I didn’t want to be a party pooper, so I got a red bull and pound it back like no tomorrow—I was good to go!

The park was around 45-60mins away from the city by train, but luckily, the train (RER A) runs pretty often and no transfers necessary. I guess it was good that the weather was cloudy, because there weren’t as many people as then last time I’ve been. I highly recommended buying tickets ahead of time online (so much cheaper) because the tickets at the booth costed 79 euros for a day pass to two parks. In order to get through both parks and get on as many rides as possible, we strategized on a plan to first explore Walt Disney Studios park and then Disneyland park. We also decided to only go on the rides that are good/thrilling, and if we had more time, we would try other rides. And it wouldn’t be a trip to Disneyland without getting some Mickey and Minnie ears—we looked adorable! Also because Halloween was just around the corner, the parks were fully decorated to match the festivities!

First ride we went on was the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (happens to be one of my favourites) and Cicely couldn’t have been more scared when we were lining up. The line wasn’t too bad (we waited around for 15-20mins) and the ride was just how I remembered it, except for the fact that a crazy dude wouldn’t stop taking pictures, even during the ride. So our ride was stopped early! Boo! Our next ride was Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith and it was kinda disappointing since it was pitch black with super loud rock music playing. Crush’s Coaster was really fun, although, I don’t exactly remember what happened except that it was fast and on water. There weren’t as many thrilling rides in the studio and most of the attraction were sit-down movie shows, so we made our way to Disneyland. Lucky us, it started to rain at that point and we ran like maniacs to the other park. Regardless, we were soaking wet by the time we made it there.

I forget in what order, but we went on Indiana Jones, Phantom Manor, Big Thunder Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, Alice’s Curious Labyrinth, Mad Hatter’s Tea Cups, Les Voyages de Pinocchio, Peter Pan’s Flight, Space Mountain, and Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast. My favourite would have to be Space Mountain because the ride was sheer speed. It was so fast and the visual effects were awesome. Although, it was very bumpy and at one point, I felt like I was gonna be shot off the ride, it was by far my fave! I went on it twice! Another highlight was Peter Pan’s Flight and even though it wasn’t a thrilling ride or anything, the visual was terrific and I got to relive the story in a minute or two. I also recommend going on the Tea Cups to embrace your inner child and practice your hand-eye coordination on the Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast. I challenge you to try and beat my score! Tyler and Cicely had nothing on me. 😉

And because of the rain, we didn’t have to wait very long for many of the rides. We also weren’t sure if the rain would interfere with the parade that was scheduled. Luckily the show went on and I caught everything on camera! My favourite would have to be Mickey and friends of course. Just when it couldn’t get any better, the finale to end it all… FIREWORKS! I can’t remember what happened during the fireworks at Disneyland in Cali except seeing Tinker bell flying around at the end. Nonetheless, the one in Paris was pretty awesome, and in my video, I kept saying “wow” every now and then. Watch a snippet here on my Instagram!

Too bad half the time, the projection was in French and I wasn’t standing in the centre, so it didn’t look as great. The night ended with us going to a nearby cafe for late supper. I had some sort of grilled duck and layered potatoes. The taste was superb as the duck was grilled to medium rare and had the right amount of fat and lean meat. The potatoes were soft, but not mashed and cooked just right. The sauce had this peppery flavour which only enhanced the taste of the duck and potatoes to heavenly standards. I want seconds just thinking about it. Paired it with a glass of vino blanc and that’s what I call a perfect dinner.

The next morning, we woke up starving for sushi. So we met up with some of Tyler’s school friends for all you can eat, and boy did we order a lot. I was blinded by how hungry I was, so Cicley and I just ordered six of everything. The owner had their doubts and eventually, we stopped more food from coming. There was so much food, Cicely had to run to the washroom to dispose a handful sushi (mostly rice, they gave us bowls of rice along with sashimi! How cheap!). It was not our proud moment, but it felt so good to finish everything and prove it to the owners. I am pretty sure, Tyler’s friends are scared of how much I can eat. Later that afternoon, Cicely left us to flight to South of France for the weekend—but I’ll see her the week after because we are going to Palma de Mallorca for some sun and beaches!! Woot woot!

Besides going to Disneyland, I had another mission. Go check out the Paris outlet and try all these Parisian Patisseries that my good foodie friend Cherrie recommended! The outlet was called La Vallée Village and although it had brands such as Burberry, Céline, Dolce & Gabbana, Givenchy, Fred Perry, Paul Smith, and many more, it was a bit of a let down. The prices weren’t as discounted and the stuff was very outdated. The only thing I bought was a black leather belt with a gold buckle from KENZO. What can I say, I love gold. And I finally visited Ladurée for their infamous luxurious macarons. I highly recommend the rose flavour, it was one of a kind and I’ve never tasted any macarons as delicious as these ones. It is a bit pricey compared to regular patisseries, but trust me, Ladurée is worth every penny. Not to mention, it came in a very luxurious box (I kept it of course!). Another great patisseries is Sadaharu Aoki which is a bit like Parisian/Japanese fusion. My top recommendations are their green tea pastries like macarons, cakes, and chocolates.

I was also suppose to visit this market (Marche Saxe Breteuil) near the Eiffel Tower, however, I got there too late and it closed. According to Cherrie, they have amazing seafood for an incredible price and fresh fruits, veggies, and meats. I was gonna get a dozen oysters there (after seeing some of her pictures), but instead I found another fresh oyster stand near where Tyler lives. It was relatively cheap too (I think it was around 11 euros/dozen)! I am very picky when it comes to raw oysters and I have a strong preference for the tiny ones only, and the ones I bought was perfect in taste and size.

I also did some (not a whole lot since I’ve already been to Paris) touristy things like walk around Champs-Élysées, the Louvre, Arc de Triomphe, Eiffel Tower, and etc. I stood in the middle of Champs-Élysées and snapped the exact picture of the Arc de Triomphe as I did two years ago. It brought a lot of memories back, crazy times with great friends. The last thing I wanted in Paris was to visit the KENZO store and finally get my hands on their New Era hats. And surprise surprise, they didn’t have the design I’ve been eyeing on for weeks. So instead, I made a spontaneous purchase of the Tiger Head sweatshirt. I see it all the time, but I could never reason myself to spend so much on a sweatshirt, even if its branded. But I pulled a #yolo and spoiled myself and now, I couldn’t be happier (love it sooo much)!

new favourite sweatshirt

new favourite sweatshirt

Near the end of my trip, Tyler had a Canadian Thanksgiving dinner at his place and he invited all his buds from Science Po. I had the pleasure of meeting them lovely people and we all became friends instantly. They were all super friendly and easy to talk to, I wish they were going to school with me!! For dinner, Tyler and I attempted to bake a whole chicken with mixed veggies. It wasn’t the best dish, but it was definitely edible and besides, there was so much food that a whole chicken lost its appeal in comparison to all the fine dishes that other people had brought. Ku Young made Korean chicken wings and they were the bomb.com!—a little spicy, just the way I like it. Rosie made a pumpkin pie and we devoured it in less than a minute. And there was definitely more dishes, but I can’t seem to remember anymore since wine was also on the menu. No doubt, I had so much wine on this trip.

To end the trip, on the last night, we all went to the Eiffel Tower which I never got to see before and I regretted ever since. We sat in the park and toasted to wine and chips (classy pair right?). It was a beautiful weekend, lots of memories were made and Paris will always have a place in my heart. 🙂 I can’t wait to go back in December, but this time with my parents and brother. Special thanks to Meag and Tyler for hosting me at their lovely Parisian apartment and I’m so glad I got to see my fellow Sauderites and not to mention, I had a wonderful time meeting all of Tyler’s school friends (I’m gonna steal them away!).

Anywhos, that’s what I did, how about you? I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and hopefully it is just as eventful (if not more) as mine. Now I have a question for you all, what is your favourite ride in Disneyland?

Cheers,
Kevin

Hello Thanksgiving Weekend

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Before I go into my weekend, I thought I share what I did during the week. I had an assignment from my Spanish History class (taught by the talented Alex Fernandez de Castro) to visit the Museu D’Història De Catalunya. Before this class, I had no idea how complicated and how much hardship Spain has suffered to become what it is today. No idea about the Catalans and what the 2nd republic was and how that was linked to World War II. It’s all becoming so interesting to me and although I’m not a very political person, this class has become my favourite class in ESADE.

Sophia, Cherrie, and I went together to the museum and we had a list of questions to complete. I definitely recommend history enthusiast to come check it out! Also students get in for free with their student ID card (bonus!). It took us nearly 2 hours to search for all our answers because there was just so much to see and read. Afterwards, we got tired and started being silly around the displays. I had no idea if I was allowed to touch everything…but I did haha!

Now on to the weekend… although it wasn’t Spain’s Thanksgiving weekend (do they have one?), it was for Canada and that’s what matters. And even though, I’ve talked to my mum every week through WeChat, I still miss her, mostly the food and the benefit of not doing my own laundry and grocery shop. I miss having extra free time to just relax and watch movies and catch up on pop culture. Now, with taking 6 courses and going to school three days (Mon-Wed) a week and weekend for either homework or travels, I barely have time to work on this blog or shop!—but anywho enough complaining… This week Melissa, Erika, and Derek came to visit!

They are currently staying in Vienna right now for exchange (I’m going to visit in Dec) with my girl Claire and of course, I did what I could to show them around Barcelona and introduce them to the Spanish nightlife. I first met up with them at the beach (Port Olímpic) and we chilled with my good friend Don Simon (best sangria in a bottle!). Since it’s already October, the beach weather has come and gone (no more Mr. Sun for working up a tan). But the temperature was still warm enough for t-shirts and shorts. Melissa and Erika were brave enough to go into the ocean water and collected a bunch of shells and rocks—are they even allow to bring those on RyanAir?

Opium: Club and Lounge

Opium: Club and Lounge

After the beach, we went our separate ways and met up for dinner at L’Avia (second time going), because they were craving paella and cheap eats. We were so stuffed and of course we ordered way too much as usual (we had a whole chicken!). And like any good host would do, we went to Chupitos and pre-gamed with 2 euro shots. As usual, it was packed with exchange students and travellers. After they experienced having their shots on fire, we taxi’ed to Opium and made it in time for free cover (before 2am)! This was my second time at Opium and last time I was there, there weren’t any dancers or electro-violinist. It was so cool this time around!

The next day, I felt so lazy and I ended up just doing some laundry before meeting up with Melissa, Erika, and Derek for the Magic Fountain show in Plaça d’Espanya. This was  my first time seeing it up close and personal. The show only plays during the weekends (Fri – Sun) and during different time slots in the day. It reminded me a bit like the fountain show in front of the Bellagio in Vegas. There was music playing and different colour of lights shining at the water. I could see why couples would want to spend their romantic evening here.

For dinner, we went to La Fonda (recommended by Sophia, you can find her food blog here). The restaurant looks super fancy and you would think their prices must be outrageously expensive and afterwards, we would probably have to go to McDonald’s to stuff our faces. However, their prices are very reasonable and affordable for students. They had a great dinner deal. Order 1 paella per two people for 7.9 euros each person. We went with one seafood paella and one black rice paella. We also ordered a side dish of cod with this mustard sauce. The cod was kind of a let down, but the paella, wow it was good. I loved the black rice paella so much. It was super flavourful and the reason why it was black is because there’s squid ink in the dish. The portion was definitely shareable and still filling even for four people. However, the service was quite slow and since, they make their paellas fresh (they gotta boil the rice, etc), so it took some time before we got our food…and we were starving! (sorry, I totally forgot to take pictures before eating ahaha)

Dinner @ La Fonda

Dinner @ La Fonda

Instead of going out for the second night in a row, we went back to Mel’s hostel to pop open a bottle of champaign and sangria, and played cards. Their hostel was similar to a flat, shared washrooms, kitchen, and lounge, with a room full of bunk beds. The girl running the hostel was very friendly and she even sat down to play a round of cards with us. Almost 2am, I bid my good byes because they had a train to catch (back to Vienna) around 3am and I was beginning to fall asleep too.

On Sunday, I organized a Thanksgiving Dinner with Una, Sophia, and Cherrie. It was my first Thanksgiving in Spain, so I thought we should make it special, not your good ol’average Joe turkey and pumpkin pie dinner. It was a very cultural potluck and I made chicken chow mein and mixed veggie stirr-fry, while Una made baked salmon, rice, and salad. Cherrie made chicken wings (my fave~) and spicy hot and sour soup, and Sophia “attempted” to make desert crepes (good effort on her part, but…failed). Everybody did a great job making dinner happen. I was so full, I barely had room for desert (I ended up making my own crepe haha).

It felt super nice to have a homemade sit-down dinner with friends from UBC and new friends too. Also, I don’t normally cook back in Vancouver, let alone cook for other people (I’m lazy and once people know you can cook, they will ask you to cook for them all the time -_-;;). But nonetheless, I’m a great cook and I can take care of myself. So far, I haven’t had any complaints about my cooking yet, so I consider that a success story!

Anywho, I know this is a (pretty) late post about Thanksgiving, but I am curious, did you celebrate Thankgiving and what did you have?

Cheers,

Kevin