Week One, out and about

Each day after class I made an excursion, wandering to some part of the city to see something. I had a guide book that was broken out by neighborhood, with waking tours and highlights and all manner of good things. My original thought was to do each walking tour, taking one or two afternoons after class to do so. However, by the time class let out, and then I grabbed a solid lunch, it was already mid-afternoon (the daily schedule was so different for me that I was ravenous by this point). So I kept the walking tour and excursion theme, but modified it.

Actually, because the school failed to notify me that Monday schedule is different, I ended up leaving class early because my grand plan had already changed. One of the consultants was giving a lecture about Cusco, about water management and urban form, and invited me to go with him. So he came to the school to collect me and off we went to the suburb town of Sant Cugat. The rapid immersion to all Spanish was catching up with me and it was a rough afternoon. Of course the Catalan mixed in wasn't helping. But Sant Cugat was lovely and we spent the afternoon there.

 After lunch and meeting his dissertation committee, then the lecture, we wandered the town a bit. This is the cathedral. Beautiful! It was too late to go in, but we walked around, then grabbed a beer on the plaza and chatted for a while, before catching the train back into the city.

I found a great pharmacy on the way home for some homeopathic immunity boosters, fearful I was starting a cold.

After class the next day I took the school excursion to the district called the Raval, which is where the consultants' office is. It was fine but nothing I couldn't have gotten from the guide book. Moreover, there were a lot of people, and in cliques, and I would much rather explore on my own. So, that made it easy to nix all the other school events. I was also very frustrated with the school.... I stopped in a fancy coffee place and discovered a new favorite thing, although I never managed to have it again while I was there: a velenziano, granita coffee with nata, or whipped cream.

 After the tour, I went to the La Boqueria, one of the grand markets of the city. I remembered this from years ago. It's along La Rambla, one of the core streets and most commercial areas of the city. Dangerous for pickpocketing. Tons of tourists. (Hence the pickpockets.) It's incredible and I was looking forward to going back.

 Yes, hams. This is Spain....

 Sausages. The pig really is king here.

 And on the coast, great seafood. The color, the variety, ....

 Lots of eggs too, not that I cared about that, but I liked the display. I started my olive oil and saffron shopping here.

That evening, Barcelona was playing Ajax in football (soccer), so the streets were crowded and people were all over the plazas, drinking beer and singing....

 Next day I went to Santa Caterina, a market closer to the school. This one is well-known for its colorful undulating tiled roof. It's also lovely. I had a phenomenal seafood lunch here, once I finally got the rent payment issues settled to my landlord!

I then went over to the Picasso Museum. My colleague wanted to go here but didn't have time. He did try one evening, but it didn't work. I was interested, but also felt a bit of obligation to go. It's in a beautiful mansion, and is quite lovely. No photos are allowed inside, which is too bad because the collection is fascinating. I was really puzzled by the Las Meninas paintings. They were interesting and I liked the story and the ability to see the progression of his work. But for me, they would have made so much more sense if a photo of the original work by Velázquez were there to compare them. Unfortunately, I think a lot of it was therefore lost to me.

 The courtyard of the museum. There were a lot of pieces related to Picasso's famous doves, and I did like those very much. The building was almost as interesting as the works of art.

The next afternoon I tried to find a couple of paper shops I'd seen that morning on the walk to school, but couldn't. I tried the puzzle shop again, and it was closed again. So I found a great little place for lunch and regrouped. After lunch, I stumbled onto one of the paper stores (where I got some paper because I needed a sympathy card and could not find a single one anywhere I'd been), and then the Modernism Museum! Wasn't I lucky after all.

 Such a fabulous period for design! I love most of it. How I want this mirror/coatrack/umbrella stand in my home!

 These chairs are by Gaudí. Maybe someday I can afford one. Same as someday I'll have a Sam Maloof rocking chair....

Lots of beautiful stained glass too. What a gorgeous screen/window! I don't think I'd ever tire of looking at it.

The next day I would lunch with the guys after school exams, then head to Casa Battlò.