Barcelona September 2014

I decided to go on a 'free' walking tour today as I felt I still didn't have my bearings on Barcelona and wanted to know more about the city and its history. I started the tour at 11am outside Jaume metro and was 2.5 hours. We went to several places including Barri Gotic, El Born, Cathedral and several plazas. The tour guide was very enthusiastic but a tad too long. It overran by half an hour which sucks when your knackered from walking in the Sun and hearing the same voice for hours. I gave a tip of €5 but you can give however much you think the tour is worth/how much you like the tour guide. 
After the tour I went back to my hostel for a bit then went to Parc Guëll which is another Gaudi masterpiece. You can buy tickets online or on the day. It's €7/£5.50/$9 online or €1 more to purchase on the day. Head to Vallcarca metro station and follow the signs to the park. The park is not the place for elderly or unfit people as there are a lot of stairs and hills. To get to the park there's about 5 escalators and flights of stairs. You can walk around the park without tickets as there are parts you can see without paying. The ticket ensures you see the whole park and more of Gaudi's work but you see a lot without buying a ticket too. If you do buy a ticket I would recommend doing it in advance to save time. The ticket will include a 30 minute time slot which you have to stick to. 
Parc Guëll is big and has a lot of architecture and interesting buildings. After the park I headed home to relax before heading to dinner with Alison. We were going to go to a taco placed called Taqueria near Sagrada but it was a very small restaurant with only about 10 tables which were all full. We headed to another restaurant in the area called Fidalga. After about 10 minutes of waiters walking past us and ignoring us in the doorway we decided to sit down. They had a set menu of a 3 course meal for €22/£17.20/$28.10 so we had that which included iberica ham, cheeseburger and strawberry sorbet for me and smoked mozzarella, cheeseburger and Oreo ice cream sandwiches which were delicious. 
After being totally stuffed we headed back home and I got some well needed sleep on my last night. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Praha 14th April 2011

Image
Trdelnik We woke up at 8:45 to the sound of drilling as there were some roadworks going on outside our windows :(  Everyone got showered and dressed and we left at 10am to go to the Old Market Square, we saw the Astronomical Clock, walked around the market and had these sugary sweets called trdelnik. There were several stalls selling them. They are the most devine dessert I've ever had and the thing I miss the most about Prague. It is made out of dough and like a pretzel but with a more crispy consistency. It is made by wrapping the dough around a roll pin type device which is then rolled above hot coals to cook the dough. After it's golden brown it is then rolled in a sugar and cinnamon mix. Then you get to wat it! This has to be tried and searched for when you go to Prague as it's delicious! Trdelnik Outside the town hall there are several tour guides waiting to with umbrellas which is a sign that they are tour guides. Some are free and others you need to
Read more

Buenos Aires April 2013

Image
Today I attended my first Spanish class. I was supposed to have group classes but there is nobody else at my beginner level so I am having 1:1 classes at the moment. I currently have 2 hours of lessons per day and if I change to a group classes I will have four hours a day. It was a bit weird at the beginning, kind of like my first day of school. I was introduced to my professor Bruno and was given a textbook and a tour of the school which took no time at all. There are a few computers, wifi throughout and several leaflets with information about Buenos Aires and things to do. The first class was good and I was given homework for the next day so it really felt like I was 14 again. I continued classes for the rest of the week in addition to my own form of studying from reading Spanish books, magazines, watching telenovelas and talking to as many Argentines as possible. One night this week me and Corrie had heard of the round the world party at a bar in Soho. Basically you are given
Read more

Amsterdam 10th December 2010

Image
We woke up at about 8am so that we could leave at 9am to see the house of Anne Frank. We got dressed and went downstairs for our free breakfast which consisted of juice, toast or cereal. We used our map and walked to the Anne Frank House which was on Prinsengract which was about a 20-25 minute walk from our hostel, I would recommend walking as much as you can in Amsterdam as most things are nearby plus you get to see more when you walk. The Anne Frank House costs €9 or €4.50 if you are between 10-17 years, those under 10 only have to pay €0.50. You can buy tickets online and print them or buy them on the day. I would recommend purchasing your tickets in advance if you are visiting Amsterdam in the tourist season and if you are going in the afternoon or if there is a group of you. We went early in the day so there wasn't much of a queue so we didn't buy our tickets online. The House's opening times vary depending on the time of year.  Signpost The House was very in
Read more