españa

I just got back from Barcelona, Spain! At the beginning of this trip, all I could think of were all the Cheetah Girl songs, but at the end of it, I felt I had actually experienced the amazing Spanish culture. We were in the Dream Cube Hostel, I recommend, it was really cute and nice. The first part of the trip was the Museo Picasso. If you do not know, I am a huge fan of Mr. Pablo. The Spanish painter spent part of his life growing up in Barcelona, so I felt as though I just HAD to go see his early works. I can’t even explain what being in the presence of his pieces was like. It kind of felt like when I saw those Dior dresses by Raf Simons at the Met…speechless. I got in free too since I am a student so that was a bonus. I then saw the Sagrada Familia; Gaudi’s masterpiece is a huge, intricate Roman Catholic basilica. It looked so gothic and there were entire trees carved into the oldest part of it. That was my favorite part of it. After the basilica, I went on a hike to Park Güella. It was so beautiful, I almost felt like I was in a forest. This is where Jocelyn bought one of the street performers mixtape. They did classical covers of current pop songs, loved it. We sat and listened to them for quite a while to relax and just enjoy the park/forest around us. It was Haylee’s birthday, so we went to a restaurant called Àndele to celebrate. That night, Jocelyn, Claudia and I went to a little place off the beaten path, Harlem Jazz Club. Live music, dancing, and Spanish jazz. IT WAS SO COOL!! Everyone was dancing and doing the Cha-Cha, the band was super cool. The club was located in the winding alleys of Barcelona so that made it an experience in itself, just exploring the city and the secret surprise locations. The next morning, we had to hop on a plane back to Milano! When we landed and I was walking around the train station, I felt this weird ‘home’ sensation, like I’m actually getting used to living here, which is such a refreshing feeling. It was a great weekend away, and Barcelona was great. I am sure the rest of Spain is so beautiful, and I hope to explore someday further on in my life!