We sorted out our tickets for Sagrada Familia, which turned out to be more than a little bit of a faff, and then headed to the local supermarket to stock up on supplies. I hadn't bothered to track this place down yet, but I'm so glad the guys showed me where it was as I ended up getting many a sweet treat there, and much cheap wine for the evening ;) Admittedly some of it was shit, turns out I know very little about wine especially when all the labels are in Spanish, but some of it was alright! Either way, it was cheap and we all got drunk so mission accomplished.
With my lovely new friends as tour guides, I found this day much less stressful than trying to navigate the metro and the streets by myself, not once having to stop to ask for directions. I must admit exploring was much more fun when I could just follow someone else while snapping away on my camera. We got there slightly earlier than our slot, and the fresh air had worked it's magic in curing us enough to have an appetite. Instead of looking out for something super cultural, the guys prompty found a subway. And I have to say, good call! We sat down for lunch in a small park opposite the cathedral, and even though it seemed to be inhabited by a horrifying amount of fearless pigeons, I got through the experience more or less unscathed. By this point, Matt had started a hilarious mission of the day known only as Selfie Saturday. This involves being incredibly vein and taking pictures of yourself everywhere you go, while the rest of the group photobomb you in the background. Maybe you had to be there to appreciate it, but I have to tell you this is one of my fondest memories of being in Barcelona as it only got funnier as the day went on and by the evening we were in stitches trying to take the final photo. If Matt ever posts a blog of these pictures, I will be sure to share it. If not, maybe I can persuade him to do a guest post here ;)
Matt lining the guys up for a selfie
The Sagrada Familia was incredible and easily the most beautiful place I've ever been. The atmosphere in there was indescribably peaceful, and there was a real sense of faith that I've not felt in any other religious building before. Of course, visiting somewhere like this with a group of architecture students definitely gave it a fresh perspective, but for me it was all about feeling the most connected I have felt to my faith since I decided to become Catholic. Don't get me wrong, I still am a very pick and choose Catholic with my own opinions and beliefs, but that doesn't change the fact that in my heart I am connected to my faith.
The Sagrada Familia is where I experienced my strongest connection yet, and I truly hope this is something I get to experience again in my lifetime. I felt honoured to have the opportunity to pray in this breathtaking place of worship, and I could not thank God enough for turning my life so far around. The girl I was merely 12 months from now would never have dreamed of going on such an adventure and would certainly not have visited a cathedral to pray. I like to think of myself as living proof that you never know what is just around the corner for your life.
After playing jointly the hyped up tourist and the astounded Catholic, we decided to head over to Las Ramblas in search of a few others from architecture group. This time I took in a little more of the area, now that I wasn't stressed to hell, lost and desperate to find someone who spoke English well enough to help me! Including the cultural wonder that is McDonalds [thanks guys ;)] which it turns out is even more packed in Spain than at home. While the guys ate, we were sitting near probably the largest single group of pigeons I have ever seen in my life. They looked like a sea of pigeons, they moved together and covered an entire square. Fortunately we were just far away enough that I would have enough time to throw myself onto the floor and scream like a lunatic if they did all take off, but I can't claim to have been particularly cool about it. Still, I stayed and I didn't cry or faint in panic so that makes me proud. It's the small victories in life sometimes.
Outside the Sagrada Familia with my little adopted family :)
Having decided that we were not going to be able to find the others, we wondered around Barri Gotic for a while eventually making it to a museum where a whole bunch of young people of varying skill levels were making the most of the smooth level ground as an improvised skate park. It was a pretty cool setting right outside a super modern building, and I would have taken a few snaps had I not been sooo ready for an afternoon siesta. I did take an awesome shot of what the streets of Barri Gotic where like though, the only shot of that area I remembered to take it turns out!
The gorgeous little streets of Barri Gotic
We all headed back to the hostel for a quick siesta before another epic night of drinking. I woke up with plenty of time to spare this time, and got a shower, change of clothes, and even had time to go over to the supermarket to stock up on wine, and pastries. You know, the essentials. I had dinner at the hostel again, this time enchiladas which wasn't bad, but would have been much better if I had any skill whatever in wrapping them. I pretty much just ate chilli on an open wrap, with a knife and fork haha. This is where I met the lovely Hayley, who was kind enough to not only look after my stuff while I gathered my meal, but also let me sit with her as we were both all alone! We had a great chat and I felt like I had an awesome bond with her, so gutted she's all the way on the other side of the world :( [Wish we'd had more time girl!]. For having only just met, we actually had a DM [Deep and Meaningful, learnt indirectly through Mike from the Aussies Brandon and Cam, love this and definitely bought it home to use in England!]
Trying to take Matt's last selfie of the day as his phone couldn't handle the dark!
That night was seriously awesome, but in a bittersweet way as it was the last night I would spend with my holiday family. Much, much alcohol was drunk and many a silly event occurred [ahem, looking at you Will for repeatedly telling me in a surprised voice that you had no socks on!] but it was all in good fun and I laughed my way through all of it. I took some of my favourite pictures of the trip that night, and for me it's strange as I pictured myself going out to enjoy the nightlife for at least most of my evenings, but it turned out the most fun for me was staying in with some cheap wine. Just goes to show you can never plan these things! Thanks again boys for making my trip so memorable and accepting me into yours! :)
Puddy <3
P.S I found one of the many collectable Space Invaders spread around the city!!
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