November 20, 2017

I’m ashamed to admit that I ate the first breakfast at Starbucks. Why? What a sacrilege! Why? Starbucks was right across from the hotel, the girls really wanted to go there, and I thought I could count on Starbucks serving me a good yoghurt granola. And wi-fi? Well, coffee was good, granola was delicious, and the pain au chocolat did not disappoint, so I forgave myself for acting so American in Spain.

I wish for a room here...

Cristopher Columbus Column

Maritime Museum

We walked down La Rambla all the way to the monument dedicated to Christopher Columbus in Port Vell (sadly, the first time I heard Romanian was when a beggar asked me for change).







From there, we walked to our destination of the day, Casa Batlló – one of the many Antoni Gaudí masterpieces we set to see on this trip. Next to it is the elegant but strikingly different Casa Amatller, on a block called Illa de la Discorda.

Casa Batllò

Casa Amatler

The story of the dragon spread on top of Casa Batlló is that of Sant Jordi (aka, Saint George). A scary dragon was terrifying a small village close to Barcelona, where he ate first all the animals and then moved on to people – preferring virgins. Each year, the residents of the village put all the names of the virgins into a hat and one terribly unfortunate one would be chosen to be eaten by the dragon. When the king’s own daughter was chosen for the sacrifice, San Jordi killed the dragon with his sword, saving the princess. A red rose bloomed in the place where the dying dragon’s blood spilled. San Jordi married the princess and became Catalonia’s beloved saint, who is celebrated every year on April 23. On this day, men give roses to their ladies, who in turn give books to their gentlemen because two of the greatest writers, Shakespeare and Cervantes, died on April 23, 1616 (St. George’s Day). Gaudi was inspired by this story in creating the roof of Casa Batllo, which has the shape of a dragon’s back and shiny green-blue tiles representing the scaly dragon skin. At the top of the building there is also a small balcony in the shape of a rose. I’ll let the pictures speak. This house is like a magical walk through the whimsical world of Gaudi.

Dragon back roof and chimney - Batllò

Through the glass - Batllò

We walked back to La Rambla and ate a killer sandwich with jámon iberico and cheese in La Boqueria Market.

La Boqueria

That was lunch, since it was 2:30PM. If I ate that late back at home in California, I’d starve and faint every day before 2:29PM. Lunch and no coffee?








Carmen took us to Caelum, a small Café in Barri Gotic, an intriguing place offering deserts made by different nuns from several monasteriies. Here is a sample menu from their website: “fried milk. Panellets of all saints. Polvorones. Rose of Santa Catalina. Tocinillo de cielo. Turrones. Yolks of San Leandro. Bienmesabe. Cherry flan Ascension. Figs in syrup.” I ate the “tocinillos del cielo” (little pigs from heaven), and I was floored! A new taste coated my palate and I was in heaven with the piggies. Literally. They were soft, eggy and sweet, with a subtle velvety flavor. That’s life!

Barcelonta 

El Peix

We walked to the port again and carried on from the Maritime Museum to La Barceloneta (most famous beach of Barcelona) and further on to Platja de la Nova Icaria. For dinner, Carmen took us to Tapas24, a place specialized in Catalonian tapas. My most favorite dish: eggplant with sardines in sweet carrot sauce. We walked more than 11 miles, but it was a fantastic day!