So I have been out and about for
the past 3 weeks traveling around Spain. It has been amazing to tour around and I love that I have been given such a great opportunity to do so! For the first
week of the trip I was on a work-cation in Marbella!
I met my family down in the south of Spain at
the beach! And MAN I cannot tell you how beautiful it was! Just from the balcony
of my room it seemed like you could see for miles and miles! just seeing the ocean again was amazing! After a week well spent FINALLY getting my tan back… sort
of, I was headed off to Barcelona and my summer vacation finally began.
Day One:
Arriving in Barcelona late
afternoon I was able to check into my hostel and take a small rest. When I left
my hostel I headed out to check out the town. Heading down one street taking a
turn here and there some how I ended up on the main streets of Barcelona. I was
searching for food and just kept walking and walking! The streets at 10:00
where just so busy still! I found it so amazing that is was late and there
were kids and adults alike out running around, smiling, laughing and giggling,
acting like children. Being able to find everything you want one that street
from ice cream and gelato to F.C. Barcelona gear or flowers. I loved the
atmosphere of the city! Even walking the city at 10:30 or 11:00 it was so
active! 100’s of tourists, street performers, and street artists! Finally
getting back to my hostel I noticed something interesting and I have yet to
figure out why, but the hallways to the hostel were green! I thought it was
cool! By the time I got back to my room I was in time to meet most of my
roommates. The first night it was a total of six Canadians, a Dutch guy, one
English guy, and two Australians. To put this as simple as possible they were
all guys and to make it even better they were all totally awesome, nice and
rather talkative! Not to mention they were really attractive but that is not
really the point… Really!
Day Two:
On Sunday I
decided to take a tour of the city, to learn about Barcelona, past, present,
and future, also all the different things that I would be able to do. On this
tour I learned so much and not only the history but also that I love to learn
and hear about all of the history. There were stories of men killing dragons
such as Wilfred the Hairy and St. George. And my personal favorite about a
little 13-year-old girl named Eulaia, who later had the Cathedral of Barcelona
named after her. But the story behind her goes like this. One day little Eulaia
was walking through Barcelona and happened upon a group of Christians getting
prosecuted because of being Christian and not Roman Catholic. After seeing this
she decided to give the man in charge a piece of her mind. Clearly he did not
appreciate this confrontation and in retaliation he decided to humiliate her to
the MAX. She was put in the center of the city tied to a pole naked in order to
humiliate her. Now here is where things get interesting. In the middle of all
this happening it began to snow. The snow covered her naked body so that no one
was able to see her naked. After this happened the person in charge decided
that she was 13 years old and in turn she should be punished with 13 tortures. Another
torture was that they put her in a bucket, filled it with broken glass, rusted nails and razor blades. After this they proceeded to put the lid on the
bucket and roll her down a hill. After they opened the container and let Eulaia
out there was nothing wrong with her, no cuts, no scrapes, and no bruises. As the
tortures continue so do the miracles. By the 12
th miracle they
decided the best way to make her suffer with out there allowing to be saved by another miracle they decided to behead her. When her head came off a white
dove proceeded to fly out of her body. So in the long run the miracles never
ended. As I said they named the church after her and also they keep 13 white
geese in the courtyard. It is stories like these real or not that make me love
traveling. Stories like these that make me love history, love culture, and
gives me something new to live and work towards.
Day Three:
Walking
down the main tourist street there is a big food market. I was headed for a
food person’s paradise! There was everything: fresh fruit, seafood, and meats,
tapas, nuts, and candies. There was Greek food, Chinese, and Spanish of course.
Walking through there were hundreds of people and vendors as well. I had a try
of some of the food and it was delicious! After leaving I wandered the rest of
the city I pure bliss and happiness! I ended up at the port and there was a
mall that had a life size Mammoth and all of the popular clothes shops! Being close
to the water again was so nice! It smelled like home.
Days Five: (No I did not miss count.)
After
smelling the ocean air it reminded me about how much I enjoy the beach. To some
peoples knowledge I don't love the beach but it was nice to remember what it is
like to just lay out in the sun, read a book, listen to music, and completely
relax. By the end of the day and after a good meal and talking to a bunch of
tourist I decided that it was time to turn in as a day well spent.
Day Six:
The Sagrada
Familia: WOW! Something that has been getting built for over 100 years and is
still in the process having about 15 or 20 more years until completion. Just to
talk about the outside! This was absolutely amazing! You can tell from this
alone that it is going to be just amazing from the inside as well. The
architecture is absolutely amazing. There are truly no words that can
appropriately describe how beautiful it was! One day I will go back when it is
finished and I already know that I will be just as amazed, as I was this day!
Day Seven, E.T. Fly Home:
Having to
check out at 10:30 and my flight being at 9:30 at night saying I had some time
to spare was an understatement. So while I was checking out I heard about a
tour. In my head I there was nothing else that I needed to do. SO I went around and saw new things and learned new stories!
AFTER FLYING HOME…
I had a
couple of days to recuperate before I was headed off to Orgaz a small city
outside of Toledo, which happens to be the old capital of Spain. One of the
days I went into the city with the kids, nanny, and grandma. They showed me
around and it was so beautiful. There are small windy streets and the second
biggest Cathedral in Spain, also churches, little bakeries, and so many
tourists. Toledo is so beautiful and so is the little city that I am staying
in.
The history of these cities is
amazing, beautiful, and incomprehensible. I love that I was able to go to
Barcelona and spend time there being able to see so much! Then also being in
Toledo was great! Everything here in Spain is so visibly old it is great and I
feel like I say it over and over again but is indescribable. I love that I have
been given this great opportunity and could NEVER take this for granted.
Your Perplexed Traveler;
Natalie
Romo.
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| I was jumping the route for Don Quijote |
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| The church across from the house during the fair. Orgaz |
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| Sagrada Familia, Barcelona |
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| Food Market, Barcelona |
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| I was standing with Christopher Columbus! |
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| The shopping mall on the pier. |
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| That tall statue in the background is Christopher Columbus |
Barcelona, Toledo, and Orgaz, Spain 2013
