Barcelona

So I realise this is two months too late, but I wanted to share the lovely memories Ash and I made in sunny BARCELONA! I'm not going to share every photo we took, there's way too many, and the photos I do present won't be in the order of what we did day to day, but I'm sure you can still appreciate Barcelona's beauty, and it may even inspire you to go... It definitely stole my heart!

I'm going to mention the best parts of our trip, and some things I would recommend to anyone who loves stunning views, interesting architecture, and the best part of any holiday - constant sun! Our magical trip only lasted 4 days, we therefore couldn't see everything, which only gives us an excuse to go again!

It all started off with a train journey from Northampton to Liverpool, where Ash and I then took another train to Liverpool John Lennon airport, and flew to our new favourite place...

And then we arrived here...

We arrived on the 6th June, 2016 and stayed in the funkiest house ever! It was our first time booking with Airbnb, and let me tell you, it did not disappoint! We felt so lucky to be staying with such a warm and welcoming spanish senorita, Olaya, and lets not forget her shy little pup, Sombra! After exploring the house of our dreams, we couldn't wait to get lost in the historic streets of Barcelona, a place I have always wanted to visit after watching Cheetah Girls 2 - if they could strut through Barcelona like they meant it, so could we! The first night was definitely one of my fondest memories of the trip, it was so lovely to treasure our first reactions of seeing Barcelona in it's full beauty. We walked amongst hundreds of interesting people, all with different cultures and backgrounds. That's the great thing about getting lost in an unfamiliar place, you never know what you'll see!

What sticks out in my mind when I think of Barcelona are the colours! I loved finding all of those warm spanish tones of orange, red, and yellow by simply walking around; soaking up the cobbled streets, with the wild flowers, and bright tapestries - it really felt like this place was lived in, and it was always buzzing with life and laughter! No matter what corner we walked down, there was always a bar, or a pastry shop, or just a group of people enjoying the spanish sun. I also loved the sense of workmanship, people working together, either stocking up their little independent stores, or offering a rose to holiday makers. It was a real delight being with and around such lively people!

A few touristy bits that I have to mention are: Sagrada Familia, Park Güell, Picasso Museum, and Barceloneta- the beach!

Like I said earlier, we would have loved to explore more, but we could only fit so much into 4 days.

I'll start with the most jaw dropping destination, Gaudí's Sagrada Familia! I'm actually sitting here trying to think of ways to describe this building, but seeing this masterpiece for the first time was unforgettable! That morning we had planned the metro route, but didn't know what direction to head in once we had walked up and out from the underground station, and the surprise we had when turning around to see this great building standing proudly was quite amazing!

This photo does not do it justice. The guy in the checked shirt, who kind of resembles a happy-ish Simon Cowell, was obviously loving it! Google will give you a more accurate representation of it, and just wait till you see the inside. Please go ahead and google it right now, you can return to this article afterwards!

Park Güell, another stunning Gaudí creation. We were both in awe of the delicate design, with such an intricate and bright colour palette. Park Güell was the first touristy place we visited, and it started our holiday off with a bang!

Our matching stripes were unintentional... I promise!

Annoyingly we didn't get any pictures of the Picasso Museum, or the beach (Barceloneta). But here's a picture of me at a beachside restaurant pretending to enjoy what actually wasn't a very nice burger. Here's the thing, I'm not vegetarian, but I am incredibly picky with meat, so although I loved overlooking the beach on my right and the cool skateboarders on my left, the meal itself wasn't anything to scream about, but our view made up for it.

After a fun filled day we would usually plan the metro route to whatever place we wanted to explore that night up on Olaya's PLANT FILLED rooftop terrace. Ash took pride in his direction planning skills...

And that's it. The 6th - 9th of June, 4 days of exploring and eating lots of pastries. Our favourite and last night was finding this rural little cafe (above), full of coffee, sangria, and of course pastries! The perfect way to end a wonderful holiday.

Thanks Barcelona, you did not disappoint, and we can't wait to explore more of you!