Life is good in Barcelona!

Within the past week I have had a lot of fun experiences, it seems like! Megan's sister was here from last Thursday until Wednesday and I did a few things with her and Megan. On Friday after class, we met up with Steph (her sis) and decided to go to Montjuic. Montjuic is a hill on the south side of Barcelona with a large Catalonian art museum (MNAC), botanical garden, Poble Espanol(a place which imitates the many regions, traditions, and trades in Spain), the Olympic Stadium from 1992, and other things..We walked up the main sidewalk up to the MNAC museum, past lots of fountains that were going to be part of a light and music show later that evening. It was a long walk, but the view back the way we came was beautiful, looking onto Plaza Espanol. We walked toward Poble Espanol and on the way, Megan looked over into the bushes and saw a naked man!! She turned to me and asked if he was really naked, and I confirmed it! So we walked by nonchalantly (although Megan kept looking back over as we passed, curious girlie...she told us details afterward haha) and oh, did we laugh! We got to Poble Espanol around 6:30 or so, and decided to go in although the shops were closed. We did walk into some shops that happened to still be open and the dresses/paintings and other artsy things were so neat! The mini town/country was great in general, especially since it was sunset and the buildings were very pretty. We started hurrying at the end in order to go to the fountain show at 8pm. We got there in time to find a seat on some steps in front of the large fountain. The show was wonderful!! The music was classical, although I'm told there is also a pop music show, and the colors and water coordinated really well with the music. I didn't have my camera that night but I plan on going back to see it again, this time with a camera. Afterward we decided to go to a restaurant for dinner, and headed to Benedictus, the small tapas bar where the R.A. took my hall on our first weekend here in Spain. We had many problems ordering with the waiter and he probably tells stories about the dumb americans who came to the restaurant that night lol! We accidentally ordered calamari without meaning to and then wanted to order tortilla espanola but it was out...However, the food that we got was great and we had a good time. By the end of the night the we had reconciled with the waiter, in part because of Megan's spanish skills, saying we were "tonto" ha ha.

On Saturday morning, Tara, Megan, Steph, and I went on a scooter tour! Tara and I were late but not too late to the place, and we got started about 11:15. I rode behind the tour guide because I did not want my first time riding a scooter to be in a city of 3m people. The guide was super cute, too :). Tara rode behind Megan because after testing out the scooter she didn't feel confident enough to drive one herself. On the tour we went down the coastline to Port Olympia, an area revamped for the Olympics with many beaches and clubs and shops. We then drove on to the Sagrada Familia, after driving past a beautiful decorative bull-fighting ring. Next we drove to an apartment designed by Gaudi, the Pedrera (It was neat but I'm not all that interested in Gaudi's work. It's just an apartment!). Here we switched bikes..turns out the guide's 50cc bike couldn't handle 2 people that well so we got on the 125cc one instead lol. We drove to Montjuic next and stopped at MNAC for a break, then we went to the Olympic Stadium, and then down the mountain for a ride once more along the coast before the tour was over. It was so much fun! The ride down the mountain was beautiful, with land on one side and sea on the other, and riding in the city was exciting. I managed to smack helmets with Robert, the guide, many times when he stopped quickly and I wasn't paying attention or holding on tightly enough. I also learned more about things to do and see in the city from talking with Robert while riding around. I got the more "personal" tour ha ha. I might have developed a slight crush on him as well, but maybe that was just an effect of the motobike driving and cute smile...And the fact that he plans on going to India to study yoga(but plans on coming back to Barca because his mother would miss him if he moved to India), which is completely random but so cool! After the tour, Tara, Meg, and I went back to the dorm to eat lunch around 2:45pm and then Megan met back up with her sis while Tara and I went to the beach. We stayed until 6ish (when the sun went behind the buildings and it got CHILLY) but had a great time. I brought homework, which I didn't do, and a book, which I read, and a stolen airplane blanket to lie on. Taleah, after many phone calls and confusing directions, found us and chilled as well. We then went back to the dorm, napped, ate dinner, and went out. We ended up meeting some mutual friends at Pippermint's, a nearby bar (for us that live in the dorm, only 2 blocks away!), and then went on to Elephante, a club/lounge that was also nearby. So many places are close to where I live, which really saves on taxi fares and things when the metro is closed in the middle of the night, because we can just walk home, especially now when it's not freezing outside.

Sunday was a very lazy day, Tara and I went to the beach again and met up with Caitlin, a good friend of mine in IES. We only stayed for an hour and then met Megan and her sister near the Catedral. We walked and found a Gofres shop, which are delicious sweet waffles with icecream and chocolate drizzled all over them. YUM! We ate those, and then split again, with Caitlin and I going to see a church, the Santa Maria Del Mar. The church was amazingly beautiful, with tall ceilings and columns. Even though the walls were bare, it was surprisingly pretty that way, with only soft lights and some priest speaking Spanish up front. Afterward I went home and at some point that night managed to do my homework.

Monday I went out, yet again, for Caitlin's 21st birthday. Megan and I met her at a Mexican restaurant for dinner, where we tried Cava, the catalonian version of Champagne. It was good but not too special. We then traveled across town after some debate, to go to Pippermint's again, and then when her and her roommates were sufficiently drunk, we went to Broadbar, a club not too far away. It was a lot of fun! Megan's sister came with and so we got to show her a bit of the night life as well.