May 9, 2017
Our flight out was pleasantly of little note. We flew out of Philadelphia instead of Newark, so much less hectic, and direct to Barcelona.
We had a beautiful approach to Barcelona and landed around 8:30a. It took us 2+ hours to make it to the hotel with passport, baggage, transport, traffic, but all-in-all a good journey. Barcelona is absolutely gorgeous and we had perfect weather: sunny with a cool breeze coming off the Med. With weather this good, it was time to get exploring! Our room was ready, so after a quick freshening up we hit the streets. We had 15:00 tickets to get into Park Güell, so for the next 6 hours we kicked around the old Gothic city center, El Gòtic, a collection of narrow haphazard streets centered around the cathedral with a Medieval feel, lots of shopping, and interesting architecture. Lunch was tapas, in this a case a "selection of Iberian meats," served with toasted baguette for my husband Phil, and for me ... pasta bolognese!
We happened upon a basilica, the Basilica of the Martyred Saints, which we thought might look interesting inside. To our surprise, for the cost of 2 €, we could climb the bell tower! After 150 steps we had a spectacular view of Barcelona!
After an espresso and Churros con Chocolate Caliente -- a thick hot chocolate that is used as a dipping sauce for the churros -- we headed to the nearest metro station bound for Park Güell.