We’ve been in Barcelona now for one full week and now starting our second week of classes…CRAZY! We had such a fun and exciting week this past week. As far as school, sightseeing, and activities, we had a full packed schedule. Considering the short amount of time we are here for, our classes came at us at full speed. For example, many of us gave presentations this week. In Dr. Panina’s class, my group and I prepared a presentation on the Spanish Civil War and Fransico Franco. We also had a quiz and completed several short answers regarding readings in Dr. Gundin’s class. While we did have a fair workload this week, other students and I discovered a couple of local spots to study, which made studying abroad in Barcelona so enjoyable!
However, we did not have our plates filled with school all week! We managed to see so many beautiful places and do so many fun activities as well! One of my favorite places that we visited is Casa Mila. This spectacular house is one of Gaudi’s famous masterpieces. While we were there, we participated in a walking tour of the entire house. Upon arrival, we walked up several flights of stairs (it was quite the hike), to the top of the rooftop, which offered an incredible view of the whole city. Then, we were guided by an advanced recording through our headset that explained the history and significance of every floor and every room on each floor in detail.
On Friday, we took a bus to visit Montserrat and Freixenet. At Montserrat, we experienced one of the most famous mountain top peaks in Spain. On the top, there are some of the most beautiful views that are just jaw-dropping. Also, there is incredible architecture and a historically famous Monastery at the top of the mountain that we got to explore and visit. From there, we hopped on our bus and commuted to Freixenet, which is a famous winery located in Spain. At Freixenet, we learned all about their sparkling wine production process through a guided tour of the facility and their cellars. We also got to taste some of Freixenet’s famous sparkling wine for ourselves and it was delicioso!!!
This week, we also made time to explore much of Barcelona for ourselves this week! We discovered so many amazing restaurants this week, my mouth is watering just thinking of all the food we had. My favorite restaurant that we went to is called 7 Portes, which is notoriously famous for its Paella in Barcelona. The restaurant is on the fancier side and overall had the most amazing food and live piano. We were able to explore some of the most famous beaches in Barcelona this week as well. We went to Barceloneta beach and Somorrostro beach and swam in the Mediterranean Sea for the first time! We observed that the beach culture here is a lot different than it is in the United States. For example, many vendors constantly walk up and down the beach trying to sell different products and services to tourists and locals. Moreover, it’s also considered very optional to wear a swimsuit here and many locals take advantage of that option.
To end the week, my roommates and I went to the rooftop at the Ayer hotel tonight, which offers the most beautiful view of the Sagrada Familia. Overall, I would say this past week was a success and I cannot wait for what this next week has in store!!