à la Suisse

Currently playing (~˘▾˘)~
Take Courage – Andrew Bird

Beautiful Barcelona,

When can we meet again? You’ve been on my mind constantly this past week and I can’t stop thinking about you. I’m not sure I’ve ever felt this way…

Yours always,
Yuliya

A really big thank you to Octavio from the Arc House hostel that we stayed at for helping us discover the best pinchos bar and to my floormates and friends for their suggestions on places to visit in the city. Both helped to make our experience in Barcelona the best possible and I am really thankful for all their help.

Inspired by this I wanted to make a list of things we did in Barcelona. Map for reference below.

When you find a deal for a weekend round-trip to Barcelona for 50 francs, there is only one possible way to go about it….. GO!

Because it is always a good idea to spend time basking under a warm sun in Spain, here are some things we did during our trip, in no particular order:

1.Walking around the Gothic Quarter was one of our favorite activities.

…Potentially because it involved a food stop every half hour or so, but who can blame us having come from Switzerland where eating out as a student is a very rare sighting (*cries a bit inside at all the uneaten fondue and raclette*)

· As you might have guessed, this area contains some of the cheapest and yummiest food in Barcelona. Although a large selection is Spanish (no complaints about that) you can also find many pizza and kebab shops here. If you see anything over 5 euro for a kebab, or 2.50 euro for a slice of pizza, it is a shop meant for tourists.

• Patisseria Santa Clara has some amazing baked goods
• Les dues Sicilies had some really really good pizza and risotto balls .. Omnom

· The Picasso museum is located in this area and is free to enter with your student card!

• One of the most extensive collections of Picasso’s work is found here. Located in a smaller building, it is the perfect way to connect closely with many stages in the artists life. The museum is actually organized in sections describing different periods of Picasso’s life. Calling all art and non-art fanatics, this is a great place to visit.

· All museums in the city are free on the first Sunday of the month!

• Some other ones that we did not get the chance to visit: the National Museum of Catalan Visual Art and the Contemporary Culture Center of Barcelona

· The cathedral of Barcelona is very beautiful too..!

2. This area has the BEST tapas and pinchos (little appetizers that you can pick yourself straight from the bar)

· Blai 9 was one of our favorites but Blai street has many, many other places that have a wide and affordable selection of pinchos, tapas, and beers!

3. This is a really good place to go to spend some time near the beach!

4. This is the Sagrada Familia

· It started being built in 1882 and was designed by Gaudí. That’s 136 years ago.. ! The newer addition is still being built.

· You have to pay to enter but the view is also great from the outside. From what I remember your student card gives you 2 euro off the regular price if you decide to enter

· Since many tourists usually visit this area, pickpocketers may also be lurking about.

5. Parc Guell is really nice to spend a sunny afternoon at.

It was much less windy here than at the beach when we visited in March so this was where we did most of our sun bathing.

· There are a lot of little pathways to wander in the park

· Locals and tourists sunbathing, watching the sunset, musicians busking all around (this was my favorite part!)

· Entrance to the park is free but there is another area with Gaudi style buildings that you have to pay to enter

6. I didn’t mention this in the image but right by the Gothic Quarter there is Parc de la Ciutadella that is really beautiful too. Its right by the zoo, and there is a lot of greenery, good place to wander on a warm afternoon too.

To get to center of the city, take the Aerobus. It will take you to Plaza Catalunya (last stop), from here the rest of the city is easily accessible. The bus costs 5.90 euro and you can pay at the machine near the bus stop by credit card or they can give you change from cash when you enter the bus 🙂

à bientôt:-)
Yuliya