Living in a Dreamworld

I keep singing the Rilo Kiley song "Dreamworld." Even though the lyrics refer to something different, I can't help but sing the chorus because daily I have to remind myself that this is real, you are really here in Barcelona! You aren't in a dreamworld.

As I mentioned in my last post, a few days ago I had the opportunity to partake in another walking tour, "Be Gourmet in Barca". Like the other tour, it was very, very enjoyable. We learned a lot about the different types of food in Barcelona, and discovered "Barcelona's most emblematic gastronomic establishments and Catalan gastronomic culture."(I obviously didn't write that, haha) The main highlights of the tour were the two large markets we stopped at. The rest of the trip we just winded down streets in the old town and our tour guide discussed a variety of places to eat, what they offered, and how they came to be in business. The first market we stopped at was Mercat de la Boqueria. This market was right off Las Ramblas, and many Catalans shop there most, if not every day. The market was very incredible. Full of every type of fruit, vegetable, candy, chocolate, and seafood you could every possibly want. I could have easily spent at least an hour wondering around just browsing all the different thing you could buy.

I'm the type of person that is big into presentation. If a store lays something out in a nice display, I am definitely more apt to buy it. This considered, La Boqueria was like my heaven. Each booth (which would be devoted to one type of food) had such a precise and perfect layout. Not a piece of fruit or fish or chocolate was out of place. It was amazing, especially considering the amount of people that go in and out of the market a day. It made for a really great "show" of food.

Another thing that amazed me was that I was not utterly sickened by the enormous

seafood selection. It didn't smell bad at all, and that may have been one of the reasons I wasn't grossed out. At any rate, the seafood section was really fun to explore, and many of the creatures were still alive :( If anyone has every heard the lobster story from our vacation to Maine, they would understand that I just really don't like the idea of seafood, especially when it is still alive. Poor lobsters! Maybe I'm growing up, because this didn't seem to bother me as much as my younger years.

After exploring the market, we got a small thing of fresh fruit salad. I was in heaven. Each piece of fruit was just exploding with flavor. mmmm,mmm,mmm! In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I went back yesterday and bought another one. For only 1E, it was definitely a great deal, and that day we got it for free as part of the tour.

We ended the tour at the other large market in the city, Mercat de Santa Caterina. This market is relatively new, and extremely modern in its design (unlike the old Boqueria). At this market, we went into the restaurant portion (which, sidenote, Jose designs kitchens for a living, and he designed the whole kitchen for this restaurant.) At this restaurant we got two tapas. (One with sausage, and one with anchovies) We also received Cava, the Catalan version of champagne or sparkling wine. According to our guide, it is called Cava because it is double fermented in a cave for nine months or more. The wine is aged in a dark, cool “cava,” at a temperature between 55 and 59 degrees Fahrenheit, and the bottles are turned occasionally. This process causes the residue from the yeast to collect in the neck of the wine bottle. The neck of the bottle is then frozen, which forces the sediment out, and the bottle is re-corked immediately. At any rate, it's my new favorite, and tastes just Welch's sparkling grape juice. Cheers to Cava!

That night we went on a "pub crawl" across town sponsored by some company to get students involved in the local "scene." It was fun, and showed us some neat spots. Next morning (yesterday I guess) I got up and decided I needed to hit the beach. It was 60 degrees, and I knew that I couldn't miss my chance to soak up some sun. While wandering down to the beach (it's a couple miles away) I saw one of the most, if not most, horrific sights I have ever scene. Call it bad luck, I'm not sure, but I saw ANOTHER person get hit by a car. This time the man was clearly dead, and was laying stone cold on the ground with blood everywhere. It was such a sad sight, and it took all I had to remain composed (i did let out a few tears because it was just so sad). Onlookers had taken to helping him, so I left quickly. Witnessing two accidents in one week has been the worst part of living in Barca.

In trying to clear my mind from what I just witnessed, I got a little turned around on the streets, but eventually made it out to the beach! It was such a gorgeous day, and I counted at least 60 surfers in the water. I don't know how they did it because the waves were so incredibly enormous! Very impressive! I sat and watched for about an hour, then headed back to class (another 3 mile trek!)

After class, Tina and Angelina wanted to see the beach, so we wandered back down to the beach (stopping first at La Boqueria so they could see how cool it was) We all got fruit salad and fresh fruit juice and walked out to the beach to enjoy the sunset (which doesn't really set on the beach, more so over a mountain). After a long walk by the beach (near the port residential area of Barceloneta) we ventured on home for a delicious dinner by Jose! Best pizza I have ate in my entire life. Peppers, tomatoes, cheese, onions, olives, and artichoke hearts(all put together on a homemade pizza)! So amazing (my mom would have been in heaven). Later we went out to a Salsa club, which was very cool and authentic! The Spaniards sure know how to have a good time, and a salsa club is a great way to witness that. Late night, but a fun time. When I got home, my legs were so tired that I decided to googlemap how far I walked, and I walked 14 km! Icarumba, that's 9 miles in one day! No wonder I was so exhausted. Great exercise I guess.

Now off to explore some more of the city...and walk, walk,walk! Everyone else is still sleeping, but I just can't resist this beautiful day and city. What a dreamworld!