On February 19th, I began my third weekend trip out of London in a row. This time I caught a flight to Barcelona, my first visit to Spain, to see my friend Alex who I had not seen since 2005 when we lived in the same residence at Otago University in New Zealand.
On the train from the airport into town, a picturesque home that could easily have been in the middle of nowhere in the countryside:
Alex met me at the metro station and we headed to his apartment, where I met his girlfriend Rosa and got to see some photos from our days in New Zealand, back when Alex had long hair:
That night we went to a going away party for one of Alex’s friends, which was really nice, then a had a good night’s sleep. On Saturday morning we got up and headed out to look around town.
Before we headed out, however, we had to have a drink. No, it’s not vodka – Alex keeps filtered water in a Swedish vodka bottle. Luckily there was no vodka beside the water, so I never accidentally poured myself a glass of vodka in the morning.
A few random photos taken around Barcelona:
The graffiti says “Don’t believe anything”
We walked a whole lot in and around the old town, admiring fancy old buildings and taking photos. Alex and Rosa explained a lot about Barcelona to me, so it was a very educational experience.
Neat gargoyle:
Flags of Catalunya, Spain, and Barcelona:
Inside an old church:
More old town:
Inside the cathedral:
I was really impressed by the underground parkades in Barcelona, which have little infrared sensors that activate lights above the parking spots so you can see from a distance whether there’s an empty space (red light = occupied, green = vacant).
Of course, as a tourist in Barcelona it’s impossible to completely ignore Gaudi’s legacy. He designed some pretty nifty buildings in downtown Barcelona:
Before we headed home for supper, the three of us checked out a department store for a couple things, and of course Alex decided to play with the puppets:
That night we went out to celebrate the birthday of one of Alex’s friends, and then another good night’s sleep at his rooftop apartment in preparation for an active Sunday.
omg those red lights above spots would be sooo useful for those times you think there’s a spot and drive up the aisle and there’s a smart car there…
the bone house looks really cool at night lit up! i usually don’t pay for stuff like that but it was totally worth the 13 euros or whatever it was, and so was sagrada familia