Barcelona and Lisbon

I know it has been a while since I've given an update but the internet has been hating me here. I finally was just able to upload some photos on facebook today and before I started writing a blog and then it failed as well.

As most of you already know, I took a travel week to Barcelona, Spain and Lisbon, Portugal. Both cities were a blast but I we were a little worn out by the time we got to Lisbon.

We flew to Barcelona and stayed there for four nights. We were in a brand new hostel (About a year old) and was made very urban. More like a hotel than a hostel... So didn't get the hostel vibes. Barcelona grabbed me right away and I'm not quite sure why. Maybe it's all the things to do, the city, or even being right on the ocean.

We spent the first 2.5 days touring Barcelona, taking the metro and walking everywhere. We saw a lot in under two days, including the park, the 92 Olympic stadiums and a famous cathedral that isn't going to be finished for many more years. The last full day we were there some of the group split off and went to a coastal city, but I stayed in Barcelona and shopped. They were very smart when they put a mall at the end of a pier. We didn't even realize it was a mall at first but once we entered, it was deadly. Good clothing stores for cheap. What more could someone ask for?

Barcelona seemed to be non-stop, early rise and see as much as possible. We didn't go in many places, only the Picasso Museum, since that was free the Sunday we were there. I found a lot out about Picasso that I never knew or that he even did ceramics for a while. The Arc de Triomphe (Barcelona style) was in a very nice park with palm trees everywhere (Those always grab me, just love them)

After we all were worn out from Barcelona, we headed to Lisbon. We landed in Lisbon and were immediately reminded of San Francisco. Very hilly city with trams everywhere and a golden gate bridge (looked very similar). Lisbon was very laid back and we would split off in group of two or three and some actually tried sleeping in in the hostel. This hostel was very cute and very much a typical hostel. Met some other great people traveling, even some other study abroad students studying in Spain.

We actually ate at Hard Rock Cafe twice while in Lisbon and all us Americans were able to get our fix of American food. One day three of us went to the beach, I'm sure it would be full of tourists during the summer. Had cute restaurants and shops along the boardwalk and jet ski and boat rentals during the day. Only three of us went cuz it was raining when we left the hostel and we didn't care while everyone else didn't want to go wander in the rain. Little did they know by the time we got to the beach it was already clearing up and the sun was coming out.

The city was very condensed and it was easy to walk everywhere but it also had all types of public transportation including a metro, buses and a tram. This capital city knew how to make sure people got around.

Another day we went to another touristy area with a castle literally on a sandy beach. It actually was surrounded by the water and was just a little ways out. People were filming a movie in the field behind it and Natalie and I almost walked right through it, being completely oblivious. We don't know any Portugese and when some guy started trying to talk to us we just ignored him and kept walking figuring it was someone trying to get us to purchase something (Or previosly some guy tried asking some members of our group to be IN a film) but then realized that he wans't trying to get us for something but was actually directing a film... Oops.

The streets in Lisbon were gorgeous, with decorated coble stone everywhere. It was interesting to see what designs they put and there even were fish designs near the aquarium.

It's just amazing how old some of these cities are and the building structures they have. It's also interesting to throw ourselves into new countries knowing basically nothing about their language or culture. Barcelona was pretty easy since 3 members of our group spoke spanish, although in Barcelona they speak Catalunyan but it was still basic to ask questions and get our point across. Portugese? No one knew. We just threw ourselves in and managed the best we could.

This past week of school was very busy and so will be the coming week. I was planning to go to Milan this weekend but am very glad I didn't as I have lots of homework to get done for tests again next week...

Today I am going to Bassano del Grappa, a city about 20 minutes away from here. They have a Saturday market and also is one of the bigger cities in the area. It will be nice to actually see more places around where I am living instead of always leaving. This actually is my first weekend staying in Paderno. I am already liking it. There's no need to rush off to other places, I need some time to relax.

Photos on the right - Barcelona
Photos on the left - Lisbon

More photos can be found at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2007984&l=4015a&id=1279830007
P.S. Dad or Sarah, I hope you are ready to change and wash my sheets weekly and clean my room twice a week. I am really getting used to this way of life :-)