Montjuïc

Hello everyone, sorry for the delay on the blog but the past few days have been busy.  So today we went on a tram which carried us 8 miles across the bay until we got to Mont Sans-Montjuïc, an old jewish cemetery.  There, we visited an old castle which had later been transformed into a prison. The prison was built in the 1800's overlooking the sea.  On the perimeter, it had cannons from the 1930's.   We had lunch at the prison/castle (Castell de Montjuïc), and after that we took a bus down to the Spanish village called Poble Espanyol, a"town" where each part of the village is designed in different ways to represent each part of Spain.  Finally, we got a cab and went home to our apartment on Aragon street where I am now writing this blog.

The gondola from Barceloneta up to Montjuïc

Picture moment on top of Castell de Montjuïc

Inside Poble Espanyol

The day after that we went to the University of Barcelona.  While we where there, I was asked if I was a student at the University (most awkward situation of the trip); and then, I couldn't find my mom (it was a rough day for me).  Finally, I found her (I was not so happy) and then we left for Tibidabo, a mountain where we visited a church which had an amusement park around it (not something you see by a church everyday).    I didn't go on any of the rides but when we left we took a trolley (I think that's the right word for it) that took us down the mountain.  Back in the center of town, we went to dinner at a Tapas Bar. (If you are wondering what tapas are, they are miniature portions of food so you can try more that just one dish).  We chose among the many many restaurants, one called Ciudad Condal.

The University of Barcelona, was established in 1450

The gardens at the University of Barcelona 

The church of the Sacred Heart on top of Tibidabo

Inside the Church of the Sacred Heart

In the amusement park on Tibidabo

The next day, we went to the Sagrada Familia which was designed by Antoni Gaudí. One thing that should be noted, construction of the church is still going on today (also something to note, Antoni Gaudí was deaf and was hit by a tram that tried to warn him, he died three days later).  After we left the Sagrada Familia we went to Jardines del Laberint d'Horta. he gardens had a maze in it and we went into the maze (we never found the exit) and we explored the park for a while. that ended our day.

The Sagrada familia windows

The Sagrada Familia was built by antonio gaudi in 1883

The maze in the jardin del laberint d'Horta

Yesterday we went to the church called santa maria del mar and after that we went to a market where we got lunch. my lunch consisted of potatoes and beef and nectarines, the last thing we did was me and my mom went to a cathedral. the cathedral had a garden with geese! (there were two geese in the pond on jumped on the others back and started dunking its head!)  that was our trip and so far I have enjoyed it.

Me outside the Catedral de Barcelona

Me at the market

Hey guys, so it's been two days since we landed here in Barcelona, Spain, and so far it has been a quiet trip.  Yesterday we took a bus tour around the city and eventually stopped at a Parque Güell.  The park itself was designed by Antonio Gaudí.  I was impressed the Parque Güell because of the interesting mosaic tiles that were all over the structure.

The land was originally made for housing but was unsuccessful.  The idea for a park was inspired by the English garden city movement.

Today we went to the Barcelona Aquarium where we saw many different kinds of fish as we walked through the glass viewer when we left the aquarium.  We had planned to go on the gondola to Montjuïc
but the line was too long, so we went to lunch instead and then headed back home.

As we were walking home, we saw a parade that was seemingly in our path. none the less it was an interesting parade and we soon found out that the parade was celebrating something equivalent to our Thanksgiving which is why today most of the shops were closed.

Unfortunately,  my mom got us lost and instead of taking a cab which would have been fine, we walked until my calves burned.  I wanted a cab so badly that when one drove by,
I wanted to just ditch my mom and head back home.    I soon realized that I had no money and I didn't know our address.  Instead we carried on until after stopping to ask twice for directions we made it home.  As my mom said, this is how you get to know a city.  In my opinion, I think Google maps works just as well!