Barcelona: More Than Just a Walk in the Park

BARCELONA, SPAIN -- May 4, 2006

Day One turned out to be quite overcast and disappointing. Still making no headway with my medication, I felt like I was walking around in a blurry cloud. The sounds around me were muffled, and after another near-sleepless night on the train, I was hoping to work in at least a few top attractions before my endurance gave out.I am learning as I travel that Europe is the place for museums, sights, excellent cuisine, and late, late nights, but not so much the place for relaxation, reflection, and rest.

Being an early riser, I'm always cutting it short on the sleep meter, because I'm up when the sun hits my hostel room, and ready to head out into the city. But on the flip side, the evenings tend to be the time to meet up with other travelers, swap stories, relax, and enjoy some company, and I always feel like I'm shorting myself if I head off to bed too early in the evening.

I'm also learning that I don't like lingering in one place too long; I move quickly, and wherever I go, I'm always trying to see and do more than perhaps the average person. I like the freedom of being on my own, but I also like the odd opportunity to meet up with another travelers or a local and take some detours from my previously thought-out plan and see another side to the city I happen to be traveling in. But in any case, being constantly on the move, and always on the lookout for the next new experience is exhausting. I'm going to have to work on finding a balance somewhere... in the meantime, I'll try to adjust to 5 hours of sleep.

Today I strolled the famous "La Rambla" from top to bottom, starting at Plaza de Catalunya at the north end, and ending at the statue of Christopher Columbus on the south, just a few meters from the port and esplanade leading out to Barcelona's wharf and aquarium. La Rambla is an absolute tourist trap, created with every breed of tourist in mind.

Within a few long block stretching to the end of town, this pedestrian-only walkway is cluttered with fresh flower shops, souvenir stands, street entertainers -- including the ever-popular human statues, which generally tend to come covered in layers of metallic paint, cafes and restaurants displaying eye-popping menu-del-dia prices and filling the air with delicious fragrances, and hordes of tourists streaming up and down between its treelined curbs. There is even a canary shop, where the sound of dozens of caged, chirping birds fills the air.

I rambled my way through the Barri Gotic, which is a confusing jumble of narrow streets that contain some real gothic architectural treasures. I eventually found the Catedral, and enjoyed a tranquil walk through its corridors, as well as beautiful views into its verdant central cloister. I then meandered back through the Barri Gotic, until I eventually found my way to the Picasso Museum, on the east side of Barcelona's central district.

I've never been much of a modern art connouisseur, but I did enjoy my stroll through this exhibit. Picasso is the man who invented the technique known as Cubism, in which on one two-dimensional canvas, an artist pulls in three-dimensional interpretative views of the subject. There were two entire rooms of the gallery devoted to Picasso's variations of Velasquez's famous painting, "Las Meninas."

Even though my artistic tastes are quite different from those of Picasso, I was intrigued by the artistic capability he had of recreating the same subject with so many alterations, while taking into account the same lighting, placement, and other features which Velasquez used in creating the original work. I was also impressed with Picasso's range of artistic talent -- his early works mirrored a more classical approach, and showed mastery of sketching and painting.

A quick walk through the harbor and the borders of Parc de la Ciutadella rounded out the sightseeing for the day. While it was enjoyable enough, I was missing the sunlight which always seems to make everything that much more beautiful.

~Melanie