Barcelona, my new favourite city

I spent the week before second semester lectures started in Barcelona, which was an excellent place to celebrate my birthday and is now my new favourite city. I spent 6 days soaking up modernist art and architecture - Gaudi and co, visiting museums, wandering around the markets(Boqueria I visited 6 times where I found a wee cafe for breakfasts)shopping, La Ramblas, and really enjoying being by the sea.
It was the first time since arrving in Europe that I experienced a slight culture shock, all due to the fact that the language was totally beyond me as I didn't really "hear" it. Back in November in Italy I managed a litttle Italien quite easily and found myself understood. Barcelona has two languages-Spanish and Catalan, which were both well illustrated in its art and history and daily life.
I met up with my Rosehill College HOH, her husband and an ex student from RH under the Christopher Columbus monument. We spent Sunday at Sagrada Familia and on a cable car from the port up on to Montjuic.

 Barcelona took adavantage of the 1992 Olympics to turns itself towards Mediterranean and is now the biggest cruise liner port in the Med. The city beaches are beautiful and well tuned to the tourist industry.

 Gothic Barcelona - Ciutat Vella - is fascinating especially where it meets the shopping presinct. These extremely narrow streets are fully of treasures, a cathedral, art galleries, old shops and ofcourse no european city would be without roman ruins

                                             Barcelona from Parc Guell - a Gaudi  production
                                              - a great view of the rest of Barcelona

                                            Gaudi's residence in Parc Guell

 A facade of Sagrada Familia- the most amazing structure I have ever visited - infact I am over the old stuff now, this is truly amazing and will probably not be finished in my lifetime.

                                                               This cathredral is a sculpture

                                                 Lower entry to Parc Guell- lots of mosaic sculpture

                                                         A bit of Savador Dali

Providing one is centrally accommodated transport is a real breeze here. The Metro is clean, safe and  goes everywhere. Walking is the best way to go as just like Paris the architecture and art is on every street corner. Will definitely be back some day.

Lectures have started, my results were good enough to put me in the top class  C1+2 level on the European languages framework at CLA  which means the compulsory classes are all too hard again. I am able to do options classes in Art History, European art Nouveau, linguistics and European studies. I have started DALF classes and will have a go at the exam in May.