This is probably the only day I actually had a plan for, even if it was a very rough one. I decided in advance to purchase a wi-fi pass on my phone for the day, as I wanted to make the most of my time instead of spending half my day asking for directions. I then wanted to cross off a top priority on my list, hire one of the vintage styled and beautifully decorated bicycles and explore the city. It was then just a case of crossing off as many plans from my 'to-do in Barcelona' list. I have to say, I didn't do too well at that. I did however greatly enjoy my last day so mission accomplished!
It's not the first time I have thought this, or the first time I have discovered it to be very true, but certainly it is the first time I have shared it. For cities like Barcelona or London, the absolute greatest way to see the city is by bicycle. I'm not even sure I can explain why, there's just something so free about cycling around a beautiful city on a bicycle, the wind rushing through your hair, the buzz of all the people, all of the noise as you whizz past all the sites. It's the freedom to stop wherever you want to look in more detail, to pass a variety of styles all sharing the same city, and the opportunity to explore wherever your heart desires. I absolutely love it.
I tried to cycle from my hostel to the Gran Teatre de Liceu on Las Ramblas but that didn't go too well. I got very lost, even with GPS, and managed to completely pass Las Ramblas and stumble upon the Harbour. I wasn't too upset, as it was a lovely sunny day and another area to explore. I also found the infamous Barcelona Head, so that was pretty exciting. I did eventually find Las Ramblas, and after walking my bike the entire length of the main street just to find somewhere to lock it up, I had to walk at least half way back again to find the Liceu. When I got there, it was closed for the day and there were no more tours available! This was only at about 1pm by the way.
Disappointed but not yet broken, I returned to a food court I had found the other day, in search of some traditional Spanish food to eat (another item on the list). I wondered around for a long while, looking at the menu of every restaurant, before settling somewhere and deciding to be adventurous and eat vegetable paella. It was actually surprisingly tasty and I'd gladly eat it again. I had lemon ice tea with it, a Spanish brand which was actually way nicer than Liptons, which makes me sad that I can't get it here!
After food, I decided that clearly tours for other similar tourist attractions were likely to be finished, and instead decided to head for the Barcelona zoo. The cycling journey there was pretty, even managing to find a cycle path which greatly reduced my chances of being killed by one of the many dangerous taxis on the roads. I'm so pleased that I did make the time to visit the zoo, as I enjoyed my time there far more than I expected, even all alone! Sadly though, the main attraction that had caused me to add the zoo to my list was frustratingly absent. The cursed red panda. Without exaggeration, I stood at their enclosure easily 15 minutes at a time, and looped back to them at least 3 times in desperation, but I couldn't even tell if they were even in there. I was standing at the edge, talking to myself like a lunatic, just in case the red pandas could understand that I had come all the way to Spain just to see one little red panda, just for one second, I only wanted to see one fluffy little red face. But alas, they didn't care.
I saw many other exciting animals I hadn't seen before, including a bear that clawed away at its food hatch while I was focusing my camera for the perfect picture, then turned and stood on it's hind legs, looked square at me and growled so hard that I had to run away in terror. Also while I was standing incredibly close to a fence zooming in on a couple of innocent looking zebras, an ostrich crept up on me and pecked at me! I hate birds, they are terrifying, and these birds are dinosaur size. I think this actually scared me worse than the bear.
I then cycled back to the rental shop and sadly returned the beautiful bike. I wondered back to my hostel with a smile, and set myself up in mine and Mike's chill corner, charging my phone and camera and taking a little nap pre flight. I awoke about an hour or so before I had to leave for the airport to a grand surprise. Mike had messaged me on Facebook to say he was still in the city, he had missed his flight this morning and was now staying in a hostel a few doors down. I have never packed up my crap and ran somewhere so fast. And with a plentiful supply of snacks for my poor exhausted traveller. We decided to have a final meal together, and Mike took me to a restaurant he had mentioned a few days earlier that served the biggest slices of pizza ever. It was awesome.
We stayed so long, that I actually missed my train to the airport, and had to semi run the streets of Barcelona with all my bags and suitcase to get the next one. Thank the Lord I had Mike with me or I'd never have survived! I just caught the train by moments, and even so was due to arrive in the airport 10 minutes before baggage claim was closing. I sprinted the whole way from the train station to my check in, which by the way was the furthest possible point of the airport at about a 15 minute run. A combination of the heat and my asthma made me feel like I was about to die, and then the check in women didn't even know what flight I was talking about. They then proceeded to hurry my check in, frantically rushing me and soon as they had my bag told me I had to run to my gate!
I sprinted through the airport, picturing the whole plane boarded and waiting for me. I had forgotten about security, so had to hurriedly strip everything off and go through the metal detector three times to get clear. And prior to that my blooming boarding pass wouldn't scan, which cost me an extra 10 minutes shifting irritably on the spot while simultaneously trying not to look suspicious. I ran through, holding all my stripped layers and possessions in my arms, only to find a passport control counter also between me and the gate. I practically threw my passport at the guy, shouting "come on, come on!" the whole time he was trying to identify me. I'm still shocked to this day that he didn't have me arrested, but I guess he just wanted me out of his country. I ran through to the gate, wheezing like a walrus, bright red in the face and gleaming with sweat. But when I got there, what did I find? No, my plane wasn't gone, nor was it soon to be. There were still people queueing to board! I could easily have collapsed with relief, whilst also wanting to run back to check in and tell those women to stuff their hurried commands up their backsides.
I strolled into duty free and bought a drink for the flight, then took my anxiety tablets ready for take off, praying they would kick in early. I got onto the shuttle to the plane, still panting, only to sit on the bus full of people for a further 15 minutes and they were still actually refuelling the plane!! I chatted to a friendly young business woman also from England about how much I rushed just to stand around like lemon waiting for them to be ready and we laughed together. I then boarded the plane and hallelujah, not only did I get the extra leg room I had paid for, but the two seats beside me remained unclaimed, so I got a whole extra leg room isle to myself! Then I discovered the plane was delayed by another 40 minutes not cool. So all that hurrying and panic, and worrying I'd have to stay another night at the hostel as there wasn't another flight back to London until tomorrow, turned out to be followed by me chilling for ages on a stationary plane.
After all the stress, it was really nice to spend the flight reading and reflecting on what an amazing trip I had experienced. I have to say this trip has made me feel like a completely different person, and whilst flying back totally in my cool, flying by myself, I felt like I could do anything. It has certainly kick started me to make the most of this year, and to continue to take big steps in my journey of becoming a stronger person. I'm so glad all of you are along for the ride, and if this inspires just one person to change their lives then it's worth it.
I want to thank every person that I met on this journey that shaped my experience, all of which made it better! I've been greatly reminded in this brief time that no matter how much you plan, or prepare or worry about something, you can not plan for the people or the experiences that you will have, and it's that uncontrollable nature that makes life so wonderful. Sometimes, it's best to simply let go and go with the flow.
Puddy <3
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