October 6th, 2009
Sesame Street of Barcelona
I received several warnings or cautions about Barcelona, but now that I’m here, I’m pleased to report that I have been having an absolutely fantastic time. I don’t speak Spanish or Catalan, well only the words I learned while watching Sesame Street really, but despite this hindrance, I’m faring really well in this robust city by the sea.
Barcelona is the last stop of my journey, so I treated myself to one of the five star Barcelona hotels close to the marina where my boat for the States leaves on Monday, which, by the way, is the start of a new adventure. I go into that in a later blog, so stay tuned.
The marina was only a short walk from my hotel and only a short walk from the marina was the spire of the famed explore, Christopher Columbus. The spire points west, to my home. I was surprise at how this tribute gave me mixed feelings about my exploration of the last city of my world tour. The feelings didn’t last long, because Barcelona swooped right in and whisked me away. Las Rambla called to my heart first. It’s a pedestrian main street of town and an entertainment zone too. I walked past some street performers, but stopped a one who made me laugh, he was so funny. I dropped a Euro in his hat. The walk led me to Placa de Catalunya. It’s a big square with fountains, statues all along this huge plaza where major streets intersect.
There were a lot of motor-scooters and motorbikes parked here. Later, I learned that Barcelona has the most motorcycles of any European city; it’s due to the excellent climate. Plus, Barcelona has over 100 kilometers of bicycles lanes, which makes the traffic here less hectic like most major cities. I decided to see this city by foot mostly. I only took a bus or a taxi if I needed to get somewhere quickly. I was fortunate enough to see the Flamenco dancers and culture. I sat next to a woman from Cape Town, South Africa. We immediately hit it off and afterwards we enjoyed some drinks and tapas at this quaint little tapas bar that was hidden in the ancient, winding alleyways of Barcelona. We exchanged email addresses, so we can stay in touch. She was a fellow traveller just like me, we had virtually the same experiences, and all the naysayers about a woman travelling alone. We both understood just how wrong all our relatives were, we both were just a glow with our adventures. So, I say to you fellow single women, don’t let people talk you out of traveling alone, it actually is a mind-blowing experience and one I will cherish the rest of my life.
Related posts: