The Rain in Spain

February is widely understood to be the worst month to visit Spain, and now I know why. Almost seven weeks in, I still have yet to see so many of the attractions here simply because of the weather. Parks, plazas, beach and mountain, Barcelona is an outdoor city, and I'll be damned if all of my pictures feature gray skies and an umbrella. It seems to be overcast so much here that a sunny day catches me off-guard, always some day when I haven't gotten my act together early enough in anticipation of a touristy adventure before class. Complicating this fact, weather.com lies. Half the time it'll say it's only partly cloudy when I look out my window and see quite the opposite. And the conditions in Sarrià are never the same as those in Plaça de Catalunya so I'm always without my (broken) umbrella. What is more, it's still cold because there's no sun out. I'm pale and cold and out of warm outfits and all I want to do is sunbathe on the roof of my residencia or in Barceloneta in my free time, dammit! The only good news is that the days here are so long - it doesn't get dark until close to 7pm - and the beautiful days are nothing short of glorious, giving me great promise for the months ahead.

One such day was this past Saturday, which I spent at Parc Güell with Eileen, a friend of mine from Fordham studying abroad in Paris. I was so delighted for someone to finally take me up on my offer and stayed the weekend with me. Not only was it a treat to have a familiar face around, but we also got to see a few things I hadn't yet gotten around to on my own. The tour included: La Rambla, La Boqueria, Barri Gòtic, Barcelona Cathedral, Parc de la Ciutadella, Castell dels Tres Dragons, Arc de Triomf, Barceloneta, Port Olimpic, La Pedrera, Parc Güell and Sagrada Família. Other cultural activities included catching Eileen up on her Vicky, Cristina, Barcelona and grabbing a bite at Rosa Negra, a surprisingly legitimate Mexican food joint that also boasts €3.50 mojitos and margaritas. I had a salad with grilled shrimp, tomato, red onion, avocado chunks and a tangy mango vinaigrette. Eileen had a hearty tortilla soup and tacos stuffed with smoked shredded pork and sweet onions. It was divine and, even better, didn't break the bank. I'll be heading back there the next time I have a yen for Tex-Mex. Oh, and for dessert we splurged on a European gem: McDonald's Toblerone McFlurry. Dyn-o-mite. Overall, I'd call it a successful stay in Barcelona.


Eileen and I at Parc Güell


Sagrada Família

And now as February winds down I'm getting pumped for my own March Madness: a weekend in Sevilla, 9 days in Beijing China, and then a week with the bee-eff during la Semana Santa, Spanish students' spring break. Gonna be a whirlwind. Cannot wait.

<3