I was nearly certain that I had failed at least one of my first round final exams. Miraculously, I had managed to receive sufficient passing marks in all three of my courses meaning I was officially finished with my semester. This prompted a very last minute solo trip to Spain.
I received my exam scores on a Monday morning, purchased flights that night, and was in Barcelona, Spain by Wednesday afternoon. I walked briefly around the city that evening, but it wasn’t until the next morning that I really began exploring what Barcelona had to offer. As you may have learned in my previous posts about Rome and Venice, I’m a huge proponent of free walking tours. Barcelona was no different. I doubled up on both free Runner Bean tours exploring Antoni Gaudi’s architecture and the historic city of Barcelona. Both were absolutely great tours. Just a sidenote for any fellow coffee nerds reading this: If you’re in Barcelona, be sure to check out Nømad coffee. I stumbled upon it in between tours and was very pleased. It’s a great specialty coffee shop (which I found to be a rare treasure while in Europe).
Later that night, I boarded a night bus to Pamplona, Spain (about 6 hours away) for the Festival of San Fermin. The 8 day festival is known worldwide for the Running of the Bulls. The bus arrived just after 4:00AM and it was obvious that the city had been partying through the night. The bars and clubs were packed and the streets were crowded and sticky with spilled sangria. I purchased some red and white clothes to fit in and got a spot in the stadium to wait for the festivities to begin. As terrifying as it would have been, I look back and regret not actually running with the bulls. Regardless, watching from the stadium was still a blast.
After exploring the city of Pamplona for a few more hours and catching a quick nap in the park, I again boarded a bus back to Barcelona. The following morning I returned to La Sagrada Família. The basilica, which began construction in 1882, is still being built and is unbelievably beautiful. Gaudí must have been part madman and part genius. I sat inside for hours just admiring the geometric columns, ceiling, and stained glass. After being sufficiently amazed by the basilica, I took the metro towards Park Güell, a Gaudí-designed park originally intended as an upper class residential neighborhood. Less awe-factor, but still interesting.
Having no plans for after the park, I took the metro towards Plaza Espanya with no set goal. From the plaza, I followed the crowds of people up a beautiful boulevard with fountains on either side. At the end of the boulevard, there was another central fountain changing shape and color to some music. Beyond this sat a intricately detailed building that I later learned to be the National Museum of Catalan art. Usually museums and art galleries charge an entrance fee, but people seemed to just be walking in. I followed a group of people inside, hoping I wasn’t intruding on a private event or anything. I eventually learned that night was Museum’s night featuring free admission, music, an acrobat, and a dance company performance. I would say it was a good evening for aimless exploration and a great way to end my visit to Spain.
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