One of the things I was most excited about bringing on this trip was a higher quality camera that I borrowed from my boyfriend. On my lazy Sunday before classes began, I decided to take the camera out and see what I could find. Photography is an easy habit to have in Barcelona because everything here is heavily ornamented with details and colors that are more intense than the ones I typically see at home.
I started with a walk around the Arc de Triomf. It was a beautiful, breezy Sunday and the promenade leading from the Arc to the Parc de la Ciutadella was crowded with cheery children almost as sunny as the day. I couldn't believe that there were four men selling big bunches of balloons the way I thought only happened in works of fiction. I loved how well my camera could focus in on the details that decorate the city even further than the eye can see. It definitely helped me to appreciate why the architecture here seemed so powerful and, at times, overwhelming.
Shortly after returning from the Arc de Triomf, I took a fifteen minute walk down to the Barceloneta Beach. This beach is said to have inspired Miguel de Cervantes as he wrote Don Quixote, a novel I'll be reading for class and one of the most influential works from the Spanish Golden Age. The walk there included beautiful graffiti and street art on the garage doors that cover stores' front windows while they're closed. That's one of the things I appreciate most about Barcelona so far: even the functional is admirable. Once on the beach (my first trip to the Mediterranean!), I again appreciated how fine of details my camera could capture. I love seeing the individual grains of sand, each a unique shape and color. Sand is under-appreciated. A grain of sand is just as unique and takes longer than form than a snowflake, but receives no acknowledgement and little appreciation as it cozies up to our feet and wiggles its way into every nook and cranny.
Today, I had hot chocolate and churros for breakfast in the El Born neighborhood. The hot chocolate was thick, almost like pudding, and quickly developed a skin. I've never liked churros in the U.S. as I always thought they were too limp and spongy. Here, the churros crunch as you bite through the outside and aren't covered in sugar. They're not as sweet or airy as a doughnut, but they break cleanly with few crumbs lost. After breakfast, some friends and I took a spontaneous walk to El Born Centre Cultural, which homes 18th century ruins uncovered as the city began to remodel its very first market. The market building was left standing to preserve these ruins. There's no reason not to visit the cultural center as it's free to see the ruins. We finished our exploration with a wander through the Parc de la Ciutadella. The park is bursting with fruit-bearing trees and heavily perfumed by the many types of blossoming flowers scattered throughout. I have fewer pictures from today as I did not bring my camera and was taking my time to enjoy simply being present.
Tomorrow, I have a long excursion to the north of Catalonia. I'll likely return late in the day and I'll definitely have homework to do afterwards, so the blog will have to wait a day or two.
Until next time!