Barcelona 1
Sunday January 9, 2022
Barcelona is amazing, beautiful, quirky and delicious as I remember it from 2017. It helps that Toronto went back into lockdown this week, and that makes my gallivanting around these magnificent sights and restaurants that much sweeter. However, the looming deadline of having to return home to frigid no fun wasteland is fast approaching and is definitely unappealing.
My first day here was on Tuesday, and in the morning I went up to the bunkers and Parc Guell. The view from the bunkers was stunning, but in the morning, the sun is right in your eyes so I vowed to come back another afternoon. Parc Guell was smaller than I thought it was, but still incredibly interesting. Even though it’s quiet season, there were still quite a few Instagrammers posing for that perfect picture, so I didn’t stay too long. I spent the afternoon walking around Montjuic, then saw the Christmas lights around the Gothic Quarter and Passeig de Gracia with Marc. We finished up at Sagrada Familia, which has had a new star addition since 2017, and then a big tapas meal to end the night.
On Wednesday, I met up with Kevin who took me to some of his favourite places while he was living here. We ended up back at the bunkers and just chilled out for a while, admiring the view in the perfect weather. We parted ways at Sagrada Familia, and I went to - of all things - a Malaysian restaurant for dinner, at the recommendation of Owen. Not bad at all, and better than most of the places in Toronto!
Thursday was a public holiday and absolutely perfect weather, so Marc took me to Montserrat, where we hiked around the gorgeous rock formations for four hours, going to Sant Jeroni, Creu de Sant Miquel and of course, the monastery. The last time I was there, I was very strapped for time as I was part of a bus tour, so it was awesome to explore the mountain a bit more and see the most beautiful lookout points around. For dinner, we went to an excellent Italian place close to Marc’s home back in Barcelona.
On Friday, I took it easy. I had a bad blister from all walking I’d done in the week so I tried to walk less. I ended up down by the beach and had lunch at Barceloneta. In the afternoon, I went looking for Amorino, my favourite gelato chain which crafts their ice creams into the shape of a rose. That took me to Plaça de Catalunya, and it was a quick subway ride home for some very average takeout pizza. It was a snap decision, but we ended up driving to Marc’s home town of Manresa to see if we could head up to Mont Rebei Gorge the next day, pending the state of my blister. We had several options based on whether I’d be able to hike or not, but I really wanted to make the gorge happen, the tourism pictures looked stunning.
The next day, we were up as early as we could be. My toe was feeling really good and the weather forecast looked equally as good, so we did the two hour drive to the gorge. Straddling the border between Aragon and Catalonia, the Mont Rebei Gorge is a massive canyon with a vibrant green river running through some massive rock formations. The scenery was hands down the most beautiful I’d seen on this trip, and everything was absolutely perfect about the day. The first section of the hike led us through some frosty landscapes, the area still sheltered from the sun by the rock mountains. After crossing the first suspension bridge, the path continues onto the cliff side, carved into the side of the mountain, and no barrier to prevent you from falling into the river below. After crossing the second suspension bridge, the path continues up a rock hill until you reach the most precarious wooden stairs leading straight down the vertical cliff face. Truly one of the most exciting hikes I’ve ever been on, and unparalleled views. We ended up near the carpark with some super cute, friendly Catalan donkeys!
With only a couple of days left, I’m cramming in some last moment sightseeing and eating. Hopefully the PCR test comes back negative, but honestly, staying here for another few days wouldn’t be that bad.
Posted by Jeremy at 10:22am on Sunday January 9, 2022 :: 0 comments :: 