Day 5: Barcelona: The Gothic Quarter, The Market, Downtown Area, & The Beach/Port Vell.

The girls slept until 9:30ish (and Annie probably would have slept longer if she hadn’t fallen off the bed…) and after showers and getting organized we headed out by about 10am. We headed back down the hill toward the subway to find “Churros con Chocolate”. Unfortunately, Josh thinks the place he had them before closed so we just stopped by a place that was selling them. They were very interesting. They were described as donuts that you dip into chocolate, however, I thought they were much crunchier than a donut and they were dipped in a sauce that tasted something like hot chocolate and pudding. I actually thought it was a bit odd but maybe because I was imagining something different.

I took this before we went to bed but didn't use the flash in fear of the unknown!

This was the scene in the morning. Somehow, Annie got her backward pjs off!

I couldn't resist. She's so cute. Unfortunately, about 15 minutes later she landed on the ground. I guess I should have moved her more onto the bed.

"Churros con Chocolate"

After breakfast, we headed toward downtown hitting the market and a downtown square on the way. “La Rambla” is said to be the most famous street in Spain (it reminded me a lot of New Orleans). It is a broad pedestrian boulevard, lined with cafes and restaurants, filled with sketch artists, street performers, and souvenir shops (where I got my Barcelona shot glass). In the middle was a market, Mercat de la Boqueria, it was mainly filled with fresh fruits, meats, and seafood but also had a few little cafés, wine shops, accessory shops.

A little of the market...

... a street performer.

We made a loop and then headed toward the “Placa de Catalunya” which was a square in the middle of a more business district area. It had different statues, fountains, and lots and lots of pigeons.

Annie checking things out sans stroller!

After letting the girls out of the strollers for a bit, we headed east to the “Gothic Quarter” which is the medieval warren, grand mansions, monuments, and plazas of the city’s golden age. We walked right into the middle of the “Placa De Sant Jaume” Square completely by accident. It is quite amazing what they could do 2000 years ago! It has been Barcelona’s political hub since at least the 15^th century. (Sorry for all the info but since there is no internet and I have a little time I’m using the Guide book to help!)

This was a little atrium across from the Roman Walls near the Cathedral.

We took a lot of pictures of the outside of the Cathedral and its magnificent Gothic structures. We decided not to pay to go in because the girls were getting hungry and we were not sure how long they would last. However, we did find some of the Roman Walls.

Lillie and Annie trying to break in... and refusing to look at me for a cute picture!

Views from the front side of the Cathedral.

Lunch at a café!

We had sandwiches, coffees w/baileys, & the girls had a chocolate milk shake.

The “Museu dela Xocolata”… that’s right the Chocolate Museum. The girls did alright for a bit but let’s be honest they just wanted the chocolate. They can do some amazing things in chocolate… all of the following pictures are made completely with chocolate!

Tom & Jerry made of Chocolate!

Gaudi's Dragon in Chocolate

Minnie Mouse... so exciting for the girls!

Lillie checking out the UP display.

Annie having fun with Josh

Next, we headed to the beaches. We found a memorial for Catalina veterans who were killed in 1713-14 in their fight against Barcelona… Lillie and Annie tried to steal the flowers that had fallen but Jeremy put them back in the stand.

On the way, we found another church and square before finally finding the water and Port Vell.

Port Vell & the Beaches: I’m sure this is an amazing area in the late spring/summer/early fall. It was a beautiful area and reminded me a bit of San Francisco with the water and the city and surrounding areas. I would have loved to take the girls to the Aquarium but it was crazy expensive. We did make it to the beach and spent quite a bit of time just sitting there and letting Lillie play in the sand. She had a blast! Everyone touched the water… some (me!) more than others. I got a little too close and the wave covered both of my feet and ankles. However, my boots did a wonderful job and kept my feet dry!!

After our time on the beach, we headed to the Christopher Columbus monument got a few pictures and then headed back toward town for some dinner.

Josh took us to a tapas bar “Taller de Tapas” where he and Peter had gone on a previous trip. It was pretty good. We had a pitcher of Sangria and a variety of tapas –“patatas bravis” potatoes w/garlic mayo and red sauce; fried egg, spicy sausage, & potatoes; seared mushrooms (the best!!); cured ham with tomato bread covered in olive oil. The girls also had a fruit cup (that they gobbled up in about 5 minutes… apparently they had been missing their fruit and milk to drink. After dinner, we continued to our hotel/hostile/apartment and picked up some Spanish wine… we went a little higher class this time with an 8 euro bottle of wine and then headed to the same restaurant as last night for the ham & tomato bread and another pitcher of Sangrita. The girls are asleep and we are watch Barcelona play “football” on tv because they are actually somewhere in Germany playing tonight… go figure and resting up for what day 7 will hold!