our final chapter..spain pt 1

Barcelona. A beautiful city with fantastic food and over the top churches. It is a walking city, with many streets closed to autos, littered with cafes, sidewalk restaurants, and designer shops. I loved the ambiance of the tourist district..you walk everywhere and as you round a corner, there is a beautiful cathedral or groups of men and women dancing the Sardana, Catalonia's national dance.

Being in the city for 5 days gave us a great sense of its people and culture. Above is a charming selection of barnacles that are sold in the open market that has been in existence since the 1100's. I might need to skip that. However, Iberico ham is a delicacy there..and incredibly tasty.


Barcelona has beautiful beaches on the Mediterrean and mountains a short distance away to the west. There foods are influenced by their specific region-Catalunya. It consists of cured hams, lots of seafood (fresh fish, octupus, squid), fresh veggies, rice dishes, and tapas. We consumed copious amounts of sangria and tapas dishes (some we liked better than others). And they eat alot of tomato bread..toasted artisan bread where you squeese the juice of tomato on it.

obviously, its all about the food. But the city is beautiful, clean, and despite the warnings of pickpockets, no issues for us. Recommend to anyone.