Barcelona
I was really sceptical about Barcelona. Before we had even travelled to Madrid I truly believed I would prefer Barcelona to Madrid and that Madrid would be incredibly boring in comparison. I don't know where I had even got the assumption from. I was pleasantly surprised by Madrid and I absolutely loved it.
Barcelona was amazing but for anyone that has only thought of visiting Barcelona, there are other places that are just as amazing that you really should experience.
Barcelona was amazing but for anyone that has only thought of visiting Barcelona, there are other places that are just as amazing that you really should experience.
When we landed in Barcelona we got the airport bus to Las Ramblas which was close to where we were staying. It was also close to where the attack happened. We met our host at Hard Rock Cafe so he could show us directly to the hostel which was really kind of him. I had to stop and take a picture of the memorial people had created as it was so beautiful.
We stayed at the Poprooms hostel just off La Rambla, it was in a secure building, we were upstairs and the apartment itself was really clean and cute. There was a shared bathroom which was always kept clean, a kitchen which we didn't end up using and we had our own bedroom. It was cheap, clean and a really decent place to stay for friends and the host was incredibly friendly and helpful.
Our first evening we spent walking down La Rambla so we could explore the different shops, restaurants, get an idea of our surroundings and also have a look at the port. We found an amazing restaurant/bar called Ultramarinos which had the best vibe. Good music, graffiti'd walls and funky interior and the biggest jugs of sangria. I WISH i had kept the pictures of my food as it was absolutely insane. I selected a few tapas dishes but the best thing I had was the fried aubergine with goats cheese & honey. GIVE ME LIFE.
We also went to another bar that night which was also on La Rambla which had a really friendly atmosphere and the bartenders just kept handing everyone shots and encouraging people to talk to each other which was so refreshing when we live in an age where everyone is glued to their phones.
Now, lets once again talk about food. For anyone that knows me you know how much I love my food. Whenever I travel anywhere I always read up about the best places to visit but without a doubt I will always research the best things to eat. We spent the second day exploring the sights and most days we didn't eat lunch, we would fill up on breakfast in the mornings and then get so caught up with exploring that we wouldn't end up having lunch so we would get a snack and then go out for dinner. This was the 'snack' we found the second day in Barcelona. We found the cutest little bakery that seemed to be pretty busy quite close to Park Guell with one woman running it we went in and saw lots of locals which is always a good sign. Emma loves bread so she was in love straightaway and got herself a baguette and I got myself an empanada to try and we each got one of these bad boys. These are like a doughnut crossed with an egg custard. They are called Rosquillas and they are alike to doughnuts but they are more dense and have a cake-like consistency, they are also a taste of heaven that you HAVE to try.
On our second day we got a ticket for the hop on/hop off bus. Throughout Barcelona there are so many incredible buildings and so much great architecture that I was mesmerised. We got to visit Sagrada Familia, we didn't end up going inside as the tickets were pretty expensive but it is definitely a must-see building, even if its just to stare up at it for a solid five minutes. We then went on to visit Park Guell which is free except for a certain part, I would have liked to have visited this part but we tried to keep things as cheap as possible so we could experience as much as possible and honestly we saw so much for free that it was definitely worthwhile anyway. The park was full of artists and odd street performers including a man that was playing a guitar topless with a skirt on wearing a Lion's mane and meowing....my kinda party.
Also you could see for miles from Park Guell which was defo crucial for the Gram.
There was so much artwork and quirky monuments throughout Barcelona that I couldn't stop taking pictures and I don't think I walked in a straight line once because I was in awe of everything. We walked past one building which was open and I couldn't see any signs of the artist or price tags or anything but this one building was just exhibiting the most amazing pieces of art and thats what I loved so much about Spain, it is bursting with culture.
Nothing to see here except more food and sangria....
This was one of the best places to eat. Again, it was on La Rambla but being the piece of shit I am I can't for the life of me remember the name but the owners were so lovely and friendly. We got an amazing deal for Sangria, a sharing paella and tapas to start and it was a DREAM.
Okay Huns if you know me and know my love for Eggs Benedict you will know I almost lost. my. SHIT. at the sight of this baby.... ooooh lord. BENEDICT BRUNCH BISTRO BAR. You fucking heard me people this is not a drill. This beautiful little brunch bar we found by ACCIDENT. Can you imagine my delight??? They had at least TEN different versions of eggs benedict on the menu, I almost passed out. I got the Italian eggs benedict which had mozzarella, tomato and pesto on it. Sweet freaking lord it was good and it came with house hash so if you want to go have the best food baby OF YOUR LIFE be my guest and go asap Rocky.
We spent a couple of our days in Barcelona relaxing our blistered feet at the beach. We bought a giant funky little sheet for about 8 euros from a man by the beach to use as something to lie on and we had ourselves a free little lounger. There were so many beach bars along the beach and the waiters walk around with trays of mojitos and sangrias that you can buy if you wish. One day we bought sangria and nachos and it was the best because we didnt even have to move from being the sloths that we are. I also had to post this picture because I remember feeling so self-conscious about my body when I first got there because I wasn't ripped and I wasn't in the best shape i'd ever been in but you know what? You're not on holiday to look like America's next top model, you're there for the EXPERIENCE, the memories you will make that will last a lifetime, we are here for a good time not a long time am i right??? Love your body Huns in all its forms.
You know when you have those moments in life where you and your friend have a dead good idea that isn't actually a good idea at all but neither of you have a brain cell between you?? Well this was it...all for the memories Huns. We went to the 'Jamon experience'....what we actually wanted was a wine tasting experience but some idiot on Google led us here. So we learnt about how the spanish make ham in the strangest interactive experience i think i'll ever have in my life, we wore headphones whilst walking around weird windows that lit up with a projector showing a video or lit up with weird moving models and god knows what else whilst listening to how ham is made. We then went to a room and were given a plate of different hams with ONE glass of wine and we had to sit there and taste them all. I mean I don't even like ham that much so I dunno what I was thinking but it was an experience to say the least....
I now present to you all the TEQUILA BAR. If a bar has a neon 'tequila' sign you bet your bottom dollar I am going in and I am taking a picture. It wasn't busy at all in here which made me so sad cos I would have loved it to be full of people dancing on the bars like Coyote Ugly and shotting Tequilas left, right and centre but it just wasn't. SO CAN WE ALL COLLECTIVELY AGREE TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN....OK THANKS.
This was also another amazing bar in the Gothic Quarter which is well worth a visit, the interior was beaut and the Espresso Martinis were unreal!!!
Our final night was spent at Font Magica in Montjuic which was FREE and probably one of the best nights I've had. We bought a bottle of Sangria from a local shop, took plastic cups and got drunk whilst watching an incredible show. I honestly can't believe it was free as it honestly was amazing. We sang and danced and laughed and it was honestly the best thing we could have done to end our trip.
Now we all know if my face is this happy it can only mean one thing....food. The magic fountain show started around 8pm and we didn't end up leaving it until around 10pm, we had been given a recommendation for this place and honestly it was the BEST food I had the whole trip. It was called La Tasqueta De Blai and it is only a five/ten minute walk from the magic fountain which was perfect for on our walk home. You find a seat, order a drink, take a plate and a shot glass and then load up on all the goodies!! You take as much food as you want- the normal sticks are worth one euro and the other sticks are worth say one euro 50. When you finish each thing you pop the stick in the shot glass and at the end the waitress counts up the sticks and that is the bill you pay, amazing right? The food here was honestly incredible, we had major food babies here and it was well worth every single bloody bite.Honestly I can't believe how long it's took me to finish writing about this trip because it really was one of the best trips i've ever been on. It was an amazing experience from the food to the culture to the people to the sights to the sangria I honestly couldn't recommend Barcelona and Madrid enough.
Hope you enjoyed reading. H x
