#tripl3t

Day 1 Marlee and I left the house around 9:30 to get a taxi to the bus station. Once we got on the bus for Madrid it was about a 2.5 hour ride. Finding our flight and gate wasn't too difficult. Another culture shock item came when on the flight to Barcelona. You have to pay for the drinks on the plane. Never in my life have I experienced this so I didnt get a drink. Thanks Air Europa. Roger picked us up from the Airport and took us back to his apartment. He looks just like Gabriel except a little shorter. He told us some places we need to go and the do's and dont's of the city. He walked us to the Metro and wished us good luck! We took the Metro to Port Olympic for our boat ride adventure. We boarded the boat and throughly enjoyed the unlimited refreshments. Sadly we couldn't jump off the boat and swim but it was still lots of fun. On the boat we met people from all over Europe and other parts of the US. There was a big group from Temple University there. After Marlee and I went to get food and drinks with friends we met on the boat at a place that had a great deal for the a combo. We were not dressed for the nightlife so Marlee and I headed back to the Apartment which was quite a bit of a ride back. We decided we needed some sleep after such a long day and went to sleep. 

Day 2 - GAME DAY 

Sometimes a girl just needs her sleep. This is not a problem in Spain because people do not start going out for the night until 2am. Once Marlee and I were up and out for the day we started our walk to the Plaza de Catalunya from the apartment. Roger said we follow one road all the way down and we will eventually run into it. Marlee and I figured it would be about a 30 minute walk and it was very nice out so we decided to enjoy the city while walking. In Spain everything is just around the corner and very close but in reality it is NOT just around the corner or very close. We ended up walking 45minutes to an hour to get to the Plaza. On the bright side I got Starbucks on the way! (That makes me a very happy girl) Buying FCB jerseys were 1st on our list of things to do. We saw a group of Americans wearing jerseys so I stopped them and asked where they bought them. They pointed us to a street vendor and said we can bargin with them for 15 Euros. I found a Messi jersey and go it for 15 Euros like they said but Marlee wanted a Neymar so we had to keep looking. While walking around we decided the best way to see the city in such a short time was the Hop-on, Hop-off busses. It was 27 Euros for the whole day and they had an east and west side bus system. It was the best investment of the trip in my opinion. BarcelonaCitytour.es if anyone is planning on going soon! We were on our way to the Stadium to get Marlee her Jersey but decided to get off at Passage of Columbus monument. 4 minutes off of the bus we see a street vendor who has a Neymar jersey = Happy Marlee. She happily paid 18 Euros for hers. For all of those who do not know Marlee, she is madly in love and obsessed with Neymar and all thing involving him. Marlee cries for many reasons and her love for Neymar is just one of those. We shared a crepe and took a seat on the other side of the harbor and ended up watching the bridge slide back to let boats go through. Anytime I am near water here it reminds me of home. That is always a nice and comforting feeling. After taking pictures around the harbor area we needed a restroom so we wandered down some steps under the monument and ended up finding the way to go to the top of the monument. For 8 Euros we went to the top of the monument and got a glass of wine once we came back down. The wine was excellent and well worth the 2 Euros. After we decided to walk to the Cathedral, where we had to buy silly scarfs to wear over our shorts and Marlee’s romper. The Cathedral of Barcelona was absolutely stunning. After our time at the Cathedral we got on our lovely bus and went to the Sagrada Familia. Holy Moly - WOW. Pictures can not even begin to capture how intricate and beautiful it is. Gaudi had quite the vision to dream up such a place. It was honestly breath taking in every way. We stayed about an hour - until closing when we got kick out. Then the search for our Big Red Bus again to take us back to the Plaza de Catalunya. Once back we were on a mission to find food and a place to watch the game. Found a great place to eat that had great food and a big projector screen. A Spanish guy and Russian boy studying in Barcelona joined our table. It was very exciting to be in Barca watching the game with all the locals. They live, eat, and breathe to the beat of FCB. After Neymar Jr. scored the 3rd goal for FCB making it 3-1 the game was over and the restaurant erupted in cheers! The streets were filled with Chants and tons of people. Before we joined the celebration, Marlee and I took the Subway back to drop our stuff from the day and get ready for the crazy night ahead. The Subway was just as crazy as the streets and everyone was overjoyed! Barça,Barça,Baaarça - the never ending chanting of the FCB fight song. Dropping our stuff off quickly we hurried back to the fun! We went to the center of the Celebration/ Riots! Calle de Las Ramblas! HOLY MOLY! Firecrackers, Sparklers, Bomb Fire, singing, screaming, shouting, you name it - it was happening. A little frightening but so much fun! What a once in a lifetime experience for us - hopefully we can do it again! Just to repeat myself - We went to the Riots in the streets of Barcelona after they won the European Championship Game!! #TRIPL3T So much fun and a night I will never forget. I can say that I am now a fútbol fan because I appreciate the culture surrounding it and I am in love with Barcelona. 

Day 3

Woke up early, subway ride to the Plaza for Starbucks. we boarded the bus to the airport even though I never wanted to leave the amazing city. Check in and finding our gate all went fine except for the fact our flight was 45 minutes late getting into Madrid. Due to this traveling delay - we missed our bus back to Salamanca. I managed to talk to an information guy - all in Spanish - explaining to him the situation and asking for number and other means of transportation. After I had all the information I needed, he asked where I was from and proceeded to tell me that my Spanish is really very good. That was nice to hear after missing the bus and stressing out. Marlee and I studied on the bus ride back, took showers, ate dinner and went to bed. 

Such an amazing weekend in Barcelona! I will definitely be returning one day. I have decided that if I ever choose to truly live abroad one day it will be in Barcelona. VIVE BARCA! 

Muchos Besos,