Barcelona.

I just had an amazing four days in Barcelona. Barcelona is a very fun and exciting city. I would have to say that out of all of the cities that I've visited so far, this city was the most touristy. That's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just that I hardly spoke any Spanish while I was there because there are so many English-speaking people that live/work there. Needless to say, it was a really fun trip.

Casa Mila

We saw Park Guell, or Gaudi's Park, the Cathedral of Barcelona, La Sagrada Familia, Casa Mila, and various other places. My favorite day was probably Friday. On Friday I woke up to a knock on my door. Surprised and still somewhat asleep, I heard my two good friends, Kristie and Ali at the door. They had come to tell me that two of their friends had heard back from BYU and that I probably had my decision. (A little background: I've been checking my BYU status everyday since February 2nd, sometimes multiple times during the day. I've been so anxious to find out whether or not I got in, that it had basically started to consume my thoughts.) They came in to our hotel room and I pulled out my laptop. From there I read the "Congratulations..." It was an awesome feeling, but I'm not going to lie I was still half-awake so it was a little weird at the same time. After getting dressed and heading down to the lobby for breakfast, I was welcomed by the 22 girls in my study abroad group giving me hugs and words of Congratulations. They were all so sweet and I felt so happy and supported. It was awesome.

La Sagrada Familia

After that we headed off to La Catedral. I loved the cathedral because it had quite a lot of Gothic style to it. It was unlike any that I have seen because the interior was gothic- it had an entirely different feel to it. The Saint that it is dedicated to is Saint Eulalia, a thirteen-year old martyr who was tortured and crucified for her beliefs. Her tomb was under the cathedral and the cloister of the cathedral has 13 geese in memory of every year of her life. It was really cool and especially fun because I went with a few of my friends and not with a tour guide. (Tour guides can be great, but sometimes it's nice to just wander off on my own and read Rick's point of view on things).

Beach in Barcelona

Las Cuatro

After La Catedral we went around to a few stores and shopped a 'bit. I haven't done too much shopping since I've been in Spain, so it was fun to get some done and have a little fun while doing it. I'm proud to say that I purchased gypsy pants (pictures to come) along with two of my friends. Gypsy pants are exactly what they sound like, pants that gypsies wear. There are tons of gypsies in Spain, so I felt it mandatory to purchase a fun pair as a keepsake. After buying our gypsy pants we headed down to the beach. The walk was pretty long and I'm not going to lie, my feet started burning, but it was all worth it. We got to the beach and laid out in the sun for several hours. I walked in the Mediterranean Sea, had the water glaze over my feet... it was a moment of surrealism for me... that feeling of, "I'm really here. All my life the dream of coming to Europe, the dream of looking out into an unknown Sea, the dream of seeing the places I've seen"... it all hit me at that one moment and I couldn't help but be overwhelmed with so much gratitude and happiness.

Parc Guell, by Guadi

After the beach we headed back to the hotel and got ready for our dinner at Hard Rock Cafe. It was fun to go to an American Restaurant and get a taste of back home. It was definitely a little pricey, but I'd say that my salad tasted better than any I've had since being in this country. (Not that the Spanish don't eat salads, I'd just say that Americans know how to make the best ceasar salads).

I'm one blessed kid.

Barcelona, sunny and beautiful.

All in all, I loved Barcelona. I loved seeing all of the Gaudi architecture from his park to La Sagrada Familia, I was overwhelmed with his ability to think outside of the box. Everything he has created is so unique and so different. The weather in Barcelona was just beautiful and it made the trip that much more memorable.

Best gelato yet.

Best purchase from the trip.

Barcelona at night.

I'm so grateful for all that I have and for the opportunity of a lifetime that I have to be living in Spain and traveling Europe afterwards. I'm one lucky kid who has everything in the world that I could want... and now that I've been accepted to my dream school, there's nothing that can stop me from reaching every other goal in my life.