First Week Complete

San Pau Campus 

I cannot believe it has already been a week since I arrived in Barcelona, and at the same time I feel like I have been here for months. We start classes on Monday, so life will start to normalize. I am actually kind of excited to go to school, especially since the San Pau campus is absolutely beautiful. I do not think I will be able to return to the depressing BPS building after this semester.

La Sagrada Familia

Las patatas bravas

 On Tuesday Mara, Anna, and I were exploring a new area while waiting for our meetings with Ryan. We realized how close we were to la Sagrada Familia and we decided to sit at the park and just stare at it. It blows my mind that you can find such incredible sites in Barcelona without even trying. Another great discovery: las patatas bravas. Once you eat these delicious potatoes life will never be the same. 

Geese inside of the cathedral

Another highlight was our tour of the Gothic Quarter. There is so much history I would have never known, and the tour guide was fantastic. My favorite part was visiting the main cathedral of Barcelona. Fun fact: There are 13 geese inside of the cathedral in memory of Eulialia, who was 13 years old when she was killed for refusing to convert from Christianity. We also learned about Sant Jordi, who is displayed throughout the city. According to legend, Sant Jordi slayed a dragon that was killing all of the virgin women in Barcelona. When he killed the dragon a rose appeared from its blood, and Sant Jordi gave the rose to the princess. La diada de St. Jordi (the equivalence of our Valentines Day) is on April 23^rd and is based on this tale. This is why it is tradition here to give a rose (or book) to the person you love on April 23^rd. Sorry guys, I’ll stop with the history lessons.

Hot chocolate + churros

After our gothic tour we were scheduled to take part in a gymkhana (aka a scavenger hunt). Unfortunately we were exhausted from the tour, so we half-assed the gymkhana. Instead, Katie, Mara, Becca and I went to a café and ordered hot chocolate and churros. Hot chocolate here is SO good—it is pretty much a cup of half melted chocolatey wonderfulness. We were very happy, but pretty much failed the gymkhana.

That same night we decided to take on Opium for the first time. Most of you may have heard of this club before (it’s the one that everyone who goes to Barcelona talks about). We went with a big group and I was surprised by how much fun I had. The club is right on the water and was like nothing I had ever been to before. It was a great time until someone stepped on my foot, which resulted in a very bloody foot. Even so, I will definitely go back.

The next day we explored Born, which is a hip area in Barcelona. We perused the streets, munched at a café, and went into another cathedral. On our way back we finally got SIM cards for our phones (yay for being able to communicate!!) and then we prepared for another night out. Somehow we ended up at Smalls Club. This was not our intended destination; I repeat not our intended destination. We found someone advertising the club, and girls were offered a complimentary drink, so why not go in, right? To my surprise, we had a blast at Smalls, even though its name was Smalls. Even better, we found a 24hour pastry shop our on way home (this will be dangerous in the future). 

Exploring Born

Other exciting news: five of us planned our first trip--we are going to Seville this Friday!! I also booked my spring break trip to Italy WOO. Can't wait for all of the adventures ahead. 

**I just need to add that the weather here has been beautiful and my heart goes out to those living in polar bear temperatures.