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Sagrada Familia is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. The inside was well worth the cost to enter. Absolutely awe inspiring.

 

i wasn't all that hyped to visit it based on the exterior alone last year, but once we got inside it was pretty special.  the view of the city was excellent too -- did you guys ride the elevator?

Home safely.  A little dizzy, not sure if from turbulence/pressure changes playing with my inner ear or just fatigue and jet lag.  I'm staying up another hour or so and then off to bed.  I don't want to go to sleep too early, need to get back to US time biologically.

Barcelona was a great city to visit.  The people were friendly and polite, the costs were reasonable, and at least the area we were in was very pedestrian friendly.  The city is clean (except for dog shit, people clean up after your dogs!) and the attractions are well worth seeing.  I am used to being armed everywhere I go and never once did I feel the lack of a weapon with me while I was there.

 

The apartment we rented had a beautiful view and was ideally situated.  There was a cab stand across from the door, a bus station at the next intersection, and a subway station 2 blocks away.  We were surrounded by small bakeries, produce shops, coffee shops, etc.  There was a large diagonal street that was primarily for pedestrians and was chocked full of restaurants, bars, and interesting little shops.

 

At the Picasso Museum the couple in front of us in the line for tickets were from the UK.  She was from Liverpool, he was from Ireland (didn't say what city) and they had been living in Ireland for 15 years.  The lady commented that even their bar crowds were well behaved.  She said Ireland was a lovely place, but the drunken young men were often loud, obnoxious, and annoying but in Barcelona even the drunks were quiet and polite.  I didn't see anyone I would really consider drunk, so I'll take her word for it, but even the drinkers were quite well behaved. 

 

The crowds in the restaurants and on the streets were a mix of different ages that I find unusual.  Usually in the US I see mostly young people here, older people there, and it's a rarity for the intermingling of college aged revelers and retirees to be drinking side by side or enjoying the same activities  I found it very nice.  I also liked the fact you could buy bread fresh every day right on your block, you could buy fresh seafood every day right on your block, etc.  I liked how easy it was to get around without a car.  The bus service confused the hell out of me, but the subway was easy to navigate.  There are plenty of small parks and playgrounds, children are welcome everywhere, and they were all so welcoming and never made us feel like outsiders.

 

All in all, I think it was my favorite city I've ever been to.  I'm a country mouse, but Barcelona is a very nice city.

Nice post Doc, don't forget the pics! Did you book the apartment through an agency in the States or off the Internet? If it was the web, could you put up a link or PM it to me please. Think I'll see what Mrs P thinks about a visit

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Thanks to Capn_Underpants for the artwork

Nice post Doc, don't forget the pics! Did you book the apartment through an agency in the States or off the Internet? If it was the web, could you put up a link or PM it to me please. Think I'll see what Mrs P thinks about a visit

 

Airbnb.com

 

This was the apartment:  https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1529855

Maybe you even convinced Jason to travel out of the country.

Looks like an awesome trip.

 

Barcelona would be a good place to start.  It's a relatively inexpensive trip, especially with the strong dollar now, it's pretty easy to navigate, etc.

 

If you have a smart phone, take it with you.  For 20E you can buy a tourist sim chip from Vodafone that gives you 1GB of data and you can have access to GPS, Google Maps which includes Barcelona's mass transit system, etc.

 

Rome would be my second recommendation to start.  Also very tourist friendly, easy to get around, it's very easy to find English speakers, etc.

Thanks for the advice. I'll keep that in mind.  Already have our next trip planned though. Spending a week in Virginia. But someday it would be nice to venture out to Europe.

 

Someday comes and goes.  You have to make a plan, budget, and just do it.  We put back a set amount of money each month and keep a schedule for checking/renewing passports, buying plane tickets, getting lodgings, etc.  If you don't plan and make it real, it's always just some nebulous goal and before you know it, its 2-3 years later and you're still sitting on your thumb spinning.  We've only missed one trip, and that was due to a major home repair that ate up our budgeted money for a year.

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