puedes decir barcelona?

Can you say barcelona?! but really, can you say it?  Remember that spaniards pronounce the "c" and "z" with a "th" sound.  So.. bar-TH-lona.  But, did you also know that Spanish isn't actually the official language of Barcelona?  They speak Catálan.  Do you find yourself wondering what on earth that is?  Well.. I will tell you.  It is this weird language which is basically half french, half spanish. Don't even ask me how the heck you speak it.  The idea of language is so abstract and incomprehensible to me.  I often find myself wondering, where did all these words and languages come from, and how can they all be so different?  For goodness sake, Barcelona is only like 6 hours away from Madrid.  That would be like people in Las Vegas speaking an entirely different language than the people in Salt Lake.  Blows my mind.

So, as you have probably already guessed, my featured blog today is about my trip to Barcelona! But first, I just need to share an experience real quick.  This one is definitely a strong contender for making my top 10 experiences on this trip.  All of the girls have been divided into Family Home Evening groups.  It just so happens that Aly, Kim, and I are the parents of our group.  So, last week we decided it would be a fun activity to invite the girls over to learn how to make Tortilla Española from Santi.  Santi is such a little show off. He was SO excited to have everyone over so he could show everyone what's up.  Such a good man.  So the girls all came over, along with the BYU photographer and his wife.  We all crowded into our little kitchen and helped peel the potatoes, whisp up the 18 eggs we had to use, and fry the onions.  SOO MUCHH OIL! Spaniards might as well drink their olive oil straight, they just use so dang much of it! We took turns flipping it and joking around.  Before we started, I bore my testimony and shared a spiritual message in Spanish, which was REALLY hard by the way.  Right after, all Santi says is..."Anna, you REALLY need to work on your masculine and feminine." haha and then he just walked out of the room laughing.  We all ate dinner together and after words we taught Gloria how to country dance.  Our house was just full of so much laughter that night and I feel like it was incredible exposure to the spanish culture for us, and to the church for Santi and Gloria.

Ok, so the next day was Barcelona.  We really only spent two full days there, because we had to use 2 days for traveling.  We stopped in Zaragoza on the way there because it is entirely equidistant from Madrid, Barcelona, and Bilbao, which I think is pretty cool.  We stopped there to see the Cathedral where they treasure the Virgin Pillar.  This pillar was a gift to one of the saints in Zaragoza from the Virgin Mary and to this day people worship it by kissing it and praying to it.  We also saw a Goya museum on our stop.

So, Barcelona.  I am just gonna go through a list of highlights from the trip.

FLOWER SHAPED HELADO. 
Once we arrived at our hotel, Lance told us he wanted to buy us all ice cream at a gelato shop which he claimed to be the best in Barcelona.  They shaped it in the form of a flower.  I got chocolate, vanilla, and lime. Best tasting flower I ever did have.



LA BOQUERIA
La Boqueria is this giant, beautiful market where they sell an assortment of fresh fruits, fish, meats, chocolate, bread, and basically anything your heart desires, for a very reasonable price.  We probably stopped here twice a day to buy pineapple and strawberries and these DELICIOUS fruit smoothies.  I love the buzz of markets. The smell (good or bad) the produce sellers trying their hardest to get you to buy things, and the array of people wandering in awe of all there is to offer.  I guess you could say I am an avid "market" goer.  I would like to say its my scene. haha




PARC GUELL
Gaudí, the famous architect, very much associated with Barcelona, designed this housing complex.  He entirely intended to finish it, but the project fell through and the neighborhood was never completed.  However, what he did finish was remarkable.  I don't know how he came up with all those crazy buildings.





LA SAGRADA FAMILIA 
Gaudí's masterpiece.  La Sagrada Familia stands for the sacred famila, referring to Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.  Gaudí began this church, but died in the process.  He was hit by a car and did not receive immediate attention because he was dressed so shabbily, no one could recognize it was him, and decided not to care.  How sad is that?  Just cuz they thought he was some hobo didn't mean they shouldn't have tried to save him!  Anyways, the church is also unfinished, but is being created by other architects now.  This is very evident in the different styles of all the facades.  The building is very symbolic and I couldn't help but think while I was there how knowledgeable about the church Gaudí must have been.  My favorite aspect was his design of the interior.  He intended to have the chapel look like a forest, with light coming in from the stained glass windows.  It goes to show we should learn from nature and from God!

This is supposed to be the finished product in 2026. Reunion anyone?

DINNER DATE AT THE PLAZA DEL TOROS
For dinner the very first night, Jenna, Aly, Kim and I happened to stumble upon an old Plaza de Toros which has now been turned into a mall because Bull Fighting is illegal in Catalunya, the region of Barcelona.  We went to the very top and ate an authentic Catalonian restaurant. After we also tried Gofres which are like these thick and doughy divine waffle things that they cover in chocolate. Incredible.  We could see the view of the palace and magic fountains.  I will always associate my experience in Barcelona with those beaming spotlights of the palace.








LA CASA MILÁ
Another crazy apartment complex designed by Gaudí.  The chimneys look like Elvish warriors.








LA PLAYA 
Who goes to beach in February? We do.



CAMP NOU
YES. YES. YES. Though we didn't want to pay 22 euros to get into the tour, just walking around the outside of this awesome stadium was so worth it. I can only imagine how packed it would get on FC Barcelona game day.  I WILL go back someday to witness such a spectacle.










DANCING ON LAS RAMBLAS.
We may or may not have gone to a club.  Have you ever been to a club with 8 other BYU girls? Let me tell you how it goes.
-You show up too early and are forced to go wait in subway haha. In Spain, 11:45 is too early.
-You are the first ones there, and have the floor entirely to yourselves for almost 45 minutes.
-You don't buy any drinks, you dance like dorks, and therefore all the club workers hate you.
-Any time a boy gets anywhere remotely close to any of the girls, you make a certain sign and everyone starts dancing like idiots to scare them away. I was on "creeper" alert.  When I saw the enemy approaching, I stuck both hands up and immediately we all started to dance super bad.  This way, no one has any desire to get near us.
-You leave the club at 1:30, when the majority of people are just arriving.
-You wear the same things you did all day. No way were we gonna get ready for some dumb club.
-You laugh the whole night at how mormon you are, and how happy you are because of it.

madness and an experience I will never forget!

In conclusion. Barcelona is a way nicer city than Madrid. haha.  The city was a lot more diverse and there was just so much going on.  I would absolutely one hundred percent recommend seeing it someday. I know I will go back, any one want in?