*12 Years of Spanish Later*

Barcelona. A beautiful place where the Cheetah Girls visited in their second movie. A place where the 1992 Olympics took place. A place where the architect, Gaudí, claimed as his home. Barcelona is located on the coast of Spain and is the capital of Catalonia. The weather in Barcelona is very similar to the weather in California. I have always wanted to visit Spain because as a student of Spanish for 12 years, you study Spain a lot, and it only makes sense to have to visit it at some point because of all the cultural history.

Many people in Barcelona, speak very little English or it is very broken. The people that do speak English, speak as though they are translating the Spanish to English. For example instead of saying “my mom’s dog” they will say “the dog of my mom.” I also learned that they study the customs, clothing, food, etc. of America in school, just like Spanish students study all of these for Spain, Latin American countries, and South American countries. 

We spent a total of two days in Barcelona. On our first day, we took a panoramic tour of Barcelona and started off by seeing the outside of The Sagrada Família. The Sagrada Família is a large Roman Catholic Church that has been under construction since 1882. The construction team would love to be finished by 2026, however many people don't believe that this will happen because there is still so much that has to be done in 9 years. Some even believe that the Sagrada Família will never truly be completed. Sagrada Família was designed by Antoni Gaudí and you can tell the difference from the parts that he completed before he died to the most recent ones. The part that Gaudí worked on is a brownish sort of color, while the newer portion is white. 

Gaudí was a Catalan architect who designed using very organic shapes. He designed the Sagrada Familia, certain houses, and even Park Güell. The houses that he designed are very distinct because of the organic way that all of the shapes connect together. Something interesting about the houses inn Barcelona is that the first floor balcony is always more lavash than the other floors because originally the owners of the house lived on the first floor, and all of the renters lived on the floors above. 

Gaudí was a very influential designer at his time and many people wanted his advice or his designs. In fact, one of his really good friends, Eusebi Güell wanted Gaudí to plan out an estate for wealthy families that would be used as park space. However, after Güell's death, construction was halted until the government provided the funds and turned it into a park for everyone. This was the next place that we went and it is a beautiful place with wonderful buildings and open areas. 

After all of this sightseeing we had to stop to eat, and what better way to finish off all the sights than with Tapas. Tapas are basically small plates or appetizers that can be combined to make a full meal. The tapas can either be served hot or cold and many times people will order a lot of tapas because lunch is typically eaten at 2:00pm while dinner is served earliest at 9:00pm. We decided to order a bunch of different Tapas and eat family style. 

Our second day, we chose to visit a a monastery in Montserrat. Montserrat is located 1 hour away from the city of Barcelona in the mountains. It is a place where priests live and perform services everyday. It is also the place where the Black Virgin was discovered. This place was very holy and there were times where you could feel the energy. Although we did not have time to hike to the very top, we did hike a little bit. Shoutout to my parents for facing their fears of heights and hiking for a little. 

Leaving Barcelona was not easy because it was a place where I felt very at home. It was awesome to be able to communicate and eat some of my favorite food. I now know that I will for sure be returning to Spain and enjoying the beauty of the Spanish culture again. Now, we are off to Athens, Greece.