Just another day in Barca

Well considering I have not left my house today I thought why not give you all a little taste of what's going on in the city right now. I'll start with yesterday:

My friends and I attended a wine tasting night set up by our program. It was at this really neat little wine store that is still standing from the old city.  They are the only store in Barcelona that still has barrels of wine and let people come in and fill up jugs straight from the barrel. It had such a cool vibe and the little lady who runs is was adorable.  We tasted a Cava (their type of champagne), a young white wine (I know it was young because the 'legs' fell very quickly when we swirled it around the glass and it was very transparent), a young red wine and then an old red wine.  The guy doing the tasting asked us what the old red reminded us of and I immediately said steak, potatoes, and green beans, broccoli, and asparagus.  Immediately the entire table digressed into talking about how much we miss dinners like that, it was pretty funny. But anyways, the tasting  was actually VERY informative and now hopefully I'll be able to tell which 2 buck chuck is older and which one is still young :)

(One of the original barrels)

So today almost all of the city of Barcelona was on strike. Our classes were canceled and we've staying in all day which was probably a great idea (you'll see in a minute).  There are some really tough new labor reforms and spending cuts.  This is the first general strike called by the unions since 2002 and they're trying to stop the overhaul of the system that is trying to lessen unemployment because they are taking large pay cuts.  Only 10% of taxis were in service today, there were only a few metro trains and only during the rush hours, and there were zero buses functioning. Unfortunately it did get a little violent with 20 people injured, around 60 arrested, and a cop car was lit on fire in the center of the city.  Lets hope things get resolved and that they find a happy medium.

(The first is my picture from last night of Plaza Cataluyna - the main plaza - not sure what it says since it's in Catalan; and the second is not my picture, don't worry, it's from a newspaper site)

To back up a little bit and on a lighter note, my friends and I met some Spanish guys (they're 20) a few weeks ago and have become pretty good friends with them. They come out with us and make us speak Spanish so not only are they really fun but they're helping us all learn the language. Well last night, per usual, they came out with us.  We went to this really fun local bar and our friend Paú told us he drove his vespa and that's why he wasn't going to be drinking.  So anyways we carried on with our night and the wee hours of the night came around and we were trying to figure out how to get home. Some of my friends live near each other so they were going to all walk home together and my plan was to take a cab because the buses had started their strike at midnight. Then Paú me dijo <<Kathleen, no, estoy te conduciendo.>> So last night I was driven home by a Spaniard on a motorbike. I felt like Marykate and Ashely Olsen in their movie Passport to Paris (they meet some French guys who drive them around Paris on their vespas).  It was, once again, such a fun new cultural experience to put in the books haha.

And then today, with no school, my roommate and I cooked our señora, Conchita, pancakes. She had never heard of them and Katie brought pancake mix and syrup here so we were the chefs for a change. And Conchita LOVED them! She called her best friend, MariCarmen, and took the extras over to MariCarmens's this afternoon...it was precious. 

(Conchita on the phone with MariCarmen, my roommate Katie, and delicious American pancakes).

La Mercé

¡Buenos dias! This past weekend was the Catalan festival of La Mercé in Barcelona. It celebrates the feast day of the patron saint of the city, Our lady of Mercy or La Mare de Déu de la Mercè in Catalan.  The feast day is September 24th but they celebrate for the whole weekend. There are different stages, activities, and bands that play in various plazas all around the city for 4 days.  It was such an awesome cultural experience, I am definitely NOT in Kansas anymore :)

On Thursday night we went to the opening ceremonies where we saw the the paper maché giants or gegants i capgrossos, the Barcelona Devils, the City Giants, the Eagle, the Lion, the
Dragon Monster and a forty person orchestra with very traditional instruments that only plays publicly once a year.

(The Dragon Monster; the paper maché giants - gegants i capgrossos; and the 40 person orchestra)

Friday morning we went to another plaza to see the human towers or castells. The three best human tower groups of Catalonia put on quite the show of strength, balance, and pure talent in which they create...human towers. Friday night started in a plaza down Las Ramblas with a concert from The Morning Benders, a band from Malibu.  We actually got to hang out with the band after they played which was a very nice addition to the evening.  Although they are an American band it was really neat to see how many Spanish people were so into the performance.

(The castells; the Morning Benders concert)

After sleeping in nicely on Saturday morning, we walked around the center plaza looking at all the tents and boutiques that had been set up for the weekend.  As it was our friend Meghan's birthday (21!) we headed to the beach for a relaxing day. Then Saturday night, the night we had been looking forward to most of the festival, was upon us and so was the Correfoc - the festival of fire.  The gates of hell open, devils and beasts of all shapes and sizes run through the streets throwing fireworks and chasing the bravest citizens. The only thing you can smell is gunpowder, the only thing you can see if fire, and the only thing you want to do is run.  It is one of the most popular parts of La Mercé but everyone is advised to wear sweatshirts, hats, and pants as there is actual fire being thrown throughout the streets.
Tuvimos mucho miedo (we were very scared) but we knew that we could not miss out on this part of the festival.  We stayed towards the back of the crowds on the street as to avoid as much fire as we could but it was still such an amazing thing to see/be a part of.  I wouldn't go as far to say that next year I want to be one of those 'brave citizens' running from the fire but I'm so glad I can cross watching it off my bucket list.

(The gates of hell; the devils coming out)


After the Correfoc we went to another plaza to watch a Catalan reggae/dub step band. Although we had no idea what they were saying (Catalan is an entirely different language from Spanish or Castellano) we really enjoyed it. The plaza was next to the port so we had a great view of the fireworks going off at the beach while we watched the band.  Then we headed to yet another plaza, Placa Espanya, where I have never seen so many people in one place at one time. The plaza is on the steps of the National Catalan Art Museum, Muesu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, and almost looked like there was a very important inauguration going on. The music was fantastic, the people were great, and the vibe was unforgettable. 

(My friend's Dani, Katie, and Meghan at the Catalan concert)

And last night was the closing evening of La Mercé. My friend Honor and I went to this circ de soleil- esque performance at Parc de la Ciutadella.  It was truly phenomenal. They were suspended in the air and made all their moves look effortless. And it was a musical performance so there were people singing and acting and dancing.  At the end of the show, Honor and I met a guy who plays rugby for Barcelona and he came with us to Plaza Espanya for the closing ceremony and fireworks. He was really cool and it was just fun to be hanging out with a professional athlete :)  But anyways, the fireworks were beautiful and just lit up the sky wonderfully.   It was the most perfect end to the most fantastic weekend.

(The shows; Tane (the rugby player), Honor, and me at the fireworks)

Parc de la Ciutadellas=1343377824937668447

"Study" Journey to Figueres, Cadaqués, Girona, Empúries, and Collioure

Hello everyone. Sorry it's been a little while since I've written but there are just so many things to do in this city - it's hard to sit still. But here I am, taking a break, and sharing my adventures.

Last weekend, my program took us all on a trip to Costa Brava, which is in Northeastern Spain. It was a really great opportunity to meet the other people in our program as I have mostly been hanging out with Santa Clara kids since I've gotten here.  I made some really good new friends but feel bad for people when they meet us because our names are: Katie, Kaylee, Kristian, Casey, Kate, Kelsey, and Kathleen haha.

The first day we arrived in Figueres to visit the Salvador Dali Museum.  It was really cool! He was a  VERY weird guy but incredibly talented and created some really neat pieces of art. I'm still trying to figure out how to put pictures up on here but when I do, I'll upload a few pictures from the Muesum.
After that we got back on the buses and went to Port-Iligat where Dali and his wife Gala lived. We then walked towards the little beach town of Cadaqués which was very quaint but lovely. My friends and I got invited to a Spanish wedding but unfortunately we were only going to be in the city for a few hours and the wedding was that night..it would have been quite the cultural experience. We then drove to Girona to our hotels - they split us up into 4 hotels, ours was the only 5 star one :)

(if you squint at the last one, you'll see a certain famous someone...)

The next day we had a guided tour of the city of Girona including Arab baths, the cathedral, and the old historical walls that separated Catalonia from the rest of Spain back in the day. The city is basically half historical and half extremely modern but it all fit together really nicely. We then went to Empúries for a tour of the old Roman and Greek ruins.  There was not a whole lot still intact but it was really cool to see the layout of what their town centers looked like.  And then it was back to Girona for the night.

(The first is Kelsey and me in Girona, the second is from the ruins, and the third is all of the K's)

Our last day was by far my favorite (other than the Dali Museum). We went to La Jonquera to visit the Exile Museum (the Republicans exiled themselves because they disagreed with Francisco Franco because Franco was a socialist). After that we went to the most beautiful place I've ever seen. It's a small town in the south of France: Collioure.  It's on the water, has vineyard covered mountains, the most breathtaking views, and the best crepes.  We were able to explore the city and lay on the beach and just take in the serenity.  It was the perfect end to a great weekend.

(The hillside/vineyards and TOMS in Collioure, France)

All in all, the weekend was fantastic. We traveled to some amazing places, learned about the great history that Spain has, met lots of new friends, and now I can't wait to travel as much as I can. There is so much out there for me to see and I'm going cram the most I can into these next 3 months.

A Taste of Tapas - Just the begining

Hole de Barcelona!! After some begging and pleading from many interested parties, I have decided to re-live my Spanish adventures on this blog for all of you. I hope you enjoy it and I will try to update it as much as I can.

This first week and a half has been absolutely amazing. This city is so alive and so beautiful!  We've explored Las Ramblas, the main shopping area of town. It's really neat but there are alot of pickpockets so we always have to be very aware of our things. I've walked by a few Gaudi museums and La Sagrada Familia but haven't had a chance to go in them yet, but am really looking forward to it.  The clubs are great, a little touristy but fun, the bars are a blast, and the men are beautiful.

(Gaudi; La Sagrada Familia; and rooftop with Gaudi to the left and La Sagrada Familia to the right)

A friend of my mom's from church, Roberto, owns a tapas restaurant in Hollywood (it's called Tinto - go if you have a chance, it's fantastic!!) and the bartender is from Barcelona and his younger brother, Cristian lives here now. So Cristian took me around the city last week to get a local perspective. He would speak to me in English and I would speak to him in Spanish so we could both practice, it's a great learning experience. And he wants to take me around the city again this week so hopefully I'll become more and more like a local.

On Saturday night I got back from Ibiza. It was the most surreal place I've ever been to. It's a tiny little island off the coast of Spain and it's beautiful! The beaches are breathtaking and the nightlife revolves around clubs and famous DJs. They close the island at the end of September so tourists can't visit anymore so it's only locals.
Thursday night we saw 2 DJs who I have wanted to see for a long time: Deadmau5 and Michael Woods both of whom were fantastic! I'd heard deadmau5 wasn't great live but he rocked it! And he threw in some dub-step (for those of you who don't know, it's a kind of techno/house music) and then he left his booth, sat cross legged on the front of the stage and mixed some song from his ipad which was really cool!! And then Michael Woods finished off the night wonderfully! We got home as the sun rose and then just laid on the beach all day and explored the island.
Friday night we saw Calvin Harris, Pete Tong and Laidback Luke. The venue was small-ish and we were able to get right next to the DJs. We got so close that Calvin Harris winked at me and then Laidback Luke smiled at me and shook my hand. I just about died :)

(TOMS in Ibiza; Ibiza at night)


But vida es buena! Real classes start this week so I guess it's back to reality - or as much reality as you can have when you're studying in Europe in 4 months. It will be nice to have a schedule and a little structure.
My senora, Conchita, is great!  She lets us have our freedom but really tries to make us feel at home as she is our surrogate mother until December. She cooks us dinner every night (she's a great cook!) and leaves us things for breakfast in the morning. We only speak in Spanish to her so it forces us to become part of the culture - which is exactly what I wanted from studying here! It's only been a week and a half and I can already tell my Spanish is improving.

(Casey, Kristiana, and me at La Cascada)


That's all for now but I hope everyone is doing well and I'll keep you posted on all my Barcelona busquedas.

Besos,
Kathleen