Utrecht, Netherlands and....Barcelona, Spain (Part 2)

As I mentioned in part 1,  after our trip to Utrecht, we spent the night in Gent and then hopped on a plane for Barcelona the next day. We have never really been on a vacation like this with friends, much less friends with no children, so we were a little nervous about whether or not it was a good idea to go. However, we had a great time and our friends were very gracious about the slower pace, change of plans due to naps and/or inevitable meltdowns, and they were also helpful corralling kiddos. While we consider ourselves to be quite experienced at traveling with kids, it was nice to be able to let our guard down a bit with extra eyes on them at all times!

Barcelona is such a beautiful and kid friendly place! The buildings, the people, the weather, the food, the beach...it's all amazing! Cole and I visited Barcelona about eight years ago and, while I remember enjoying our time, this trip left a much better impression. We have so many pictures from the trip, so get ready to see lots of them! :)

We arrived very late on Thursday night (it was actually Friday morning I think) due to a flight delay and immediately got the kids in bed so we would be ready for our Gaudi bus tour on Friday morning. We stayed on a cute little street in the Gothic quarter in an apartment large enough for all of us. Other than the extremely squeaky floors, it was a perfect spot for us!

The street where we stayed

Friday morning proved to be a bit stressful as we were all sleepy, but we managed to get out the door on time. After a quick breakfast, we walked to the tour starting point, hopped on a bus, and were on our way. On the tour we saw the Passeig de Gràcia, Casa Batlló, and ended at the Sagrada Familia. 

Waiting for the bus

 The tour began on the Passeig de Gràcia. It was a beautiful area with very intricate buildings. 

This broad elegant avenue was built for and by the wealthy Barcelonians and they have never left; luxury and design shops line the street along with major banks and the stock exchange. Architectural details include modernist lampposts and Gaudí’s tiles for the pavement and a myriad of grand buildings including two of Gaudí’s houses: Casa Batlló and Casa Milà also known as La Pedrera. (http://www.barcelonaguidebureau.com/guided-tours-the-gaudi-tour)

The second stop was Casa Batlló. The detail and design of this house was extraordinary. Of particular interest was the fact that there is still a resident living in the building. Because of rental laws, she can live there until she either dies or wants to leave for the same rent she paid 30 or 40 years ago!

Casa Batlló, one of Antoni Gaudí’s masterpieces, is not just a building but an artistic legend; hidden behind an exceptional façade which reflects a tranquil sea is a world of surprises and refined architectural details. (http://www.barcelonaguidebureau.com/guided-tours-the-gaudi-tour)

The last stop on the tour was the Sagrada Familia. We toured the Sagrada Familia when we visited eight years ago, but it does look different today. It was so beautiful!

The jewel in the crown of Gaudí’s works, the temple is a synthesis of his overall conception of architecture. The richness of detail and its significance need explaining in order to appreciate this fascinating and extraordinary building in full. Gaudí wanted the temple to be financed voluntarily by the people, not by taxes or funding (building started in 1882). (http://www.barcelonaguidebureau.com/guided-tours-the-gaudi-tour)

2006

2015

Ceiling

After the tour, we headed back to the apartment for naps while Geoffrey, Kseniya, and Jamie visited the Park Güell to see more of Gaudi's works. 

After nap time, we walked around and explored a bit before heading to dinner. Perhaps one of the best experiences of the whole trip for the boys was running into a man who was making giant bubbles. They ran around chasing bubbles with huge smiles on their faces for as long as we would let them! 

We ate dinner on Friday night at a tapas bar called Cerveceria Catalana. I have had tapas before, but this meal was extraordinary. We ordered a bunch of tapas, ate them all, then ordered a bunch more. We finished the meal off with some delicious desserts and coffee before heading to the Font màgica de Montjuïc (magic fountain) to watch the light show.   

We had to have all the ladies in the picture!

Some of the goodies

On the way to the fountains

After a full day, we headed back to the apartment and put the kiddos to bed. 

Loving the metro

Sleepy Zoe

On Saturday morning,  we went separate ways to explore on our own. Cameron has taken a particular interest in the Barcelona soccer team, so we decided to take the boys to Camp Nou to take a tour of the stadium while Geoffrey, Kseniya, and Jamie walked around they city.

The tunnel from the locker rooms to the field

When we were finished at the stadium, we went back to the apartment to have lunch with everyone and then nap time. While the kids napped, we helped ourselves to some Spanish churros with chocolate sauce!

Once everyone was awake, we went to take cable cars to Montjuïc to see Barcelona from above and visit the castle. We first rode a funicular (still don't know how to say that word properly?!) up to the cable cars, then the cable cars to the top of the mountain.

Funicular ride

Of course the boys needed to play with the cannon before we went into the castle.

When we entered the castle, we discovered that there was a food truck festival inside. 

Since we stumbled upon a fun event, we decided that we would definitely take part. But we first walked through the castle and took in the views.

Watching the planes take off and land

Taking a little rest

After enjoying the castle and sights, we went back to the festival for dinner and music.

Chicken mole taco and nachos

Potatoes with a fried egg

We also enjoyed music and dancing before heading down the mountain.

Beautiful sunset

 

The cable cars were closed when we were ready to leave, so we decided to walk back down the mountain to the funiculars.

We put the kids to bed once we got back to the apartment and then Cole and I took advantage of free babysitters and went out for a late night date walking around Barcelona. We enjoyed some gelato and walked around reminiscing about our trip eight years ago and talking about how life has changed so much since then. It was a nice moment to ourselves.

Eight years ago

Now

Sunday morning, we walked around the city exploring with Jamie (and Rick Stevens) as our tour guide. We ended up at the El Born Cultural Center and then the Parc de la Ciutadella.

Catedral de Barcelona

Santa Maria Del Mar

Fossar de les Moreres - a curved sculpture with an enternal flame. The memorial is for the Catalans buried in a mass grave in 1714 resisting Felipe V's conquering troops. The depression represents the sinking of the ground as the bodies decomposed.

El Born Cultural Center:

Under the structure of an emblematic market with iron casting architecture of the 19th century, the archaeological site of 1700 Barcelona is found, which is unique in Europe, along with the old market, the memory of the events of 1714 and exhibitions, all located at El Born Centre Cultural, a new and exceptional historic venue that links three centuries of history. 

An exhibition to recall Barcelona society of the 18th century, that was a dynamic and modern society, but also marked by the wars suffered between 1691 and 1714.

The exhibition includes around 1,800 objects that have provided valuable new information to portray everyday life and how the people of Barcelona lived three centuries ago. Linked to the permanent exhibition at the foot of the site, there will also be three exhibition areas displaying various objects. The most remarkable is the Sala de la Guerra (War Room), where a selection of over three hundred bombs are exhibited, of different sizes, types and materials which were discovered during the excavation. (http://www.barcelonaturisme.com)

Arc de Triomf, Barcelona style 

Parc de la Ciutadella: The boys spent most of their time playing at the playground in the park while the girls walked around a bit. It was a beautiful day and a beautiful park.

Cascada Monumental

After the park, we went back to the apartment, making a pit stops at the fountain at Plaça de Catalunya, to listen to some street music, and buy the boys their promised Messi jerseys. When we got back to the apartment, we had lunch together before heading to the beach.

After lunch, it was time for the beach! As this was Zoe's first trip to the beach, I obviously have lots of adorable pictures of her...bear with me!

Walking to the beach!

Despite the warm weather, the water was freezing. That didn't stop the boys from spending hours in the water!

After sitting in the sun for a while, I convinced the girls that we needed to make some memories and jump in the water! It took a little persuading, but in the end, we agreed that we definitely needed to take advantage of being at the Mediterranean Sea and go for a little swim.  

Planning...

My understanding was that we were going to just jump in (Jamie dove all the way under), but as you can see from the following pictures, I was definitely the wimp when it came to getting wet. It was COLD! 

Great memory with great friends!

Building a fortress

Jamie had to leave early from the beach to catch her flight home, but we stayed until the sun started to set and it began to cool down. We went back to apartment, ordered some tapas for delivery, and packed up for our trip back to Belgium in the morning. 

We got up bright and early on Monday head to the airport. Unfortunately, we discovered that Harrison had a bad ear infection when we got him up and found blood in his ear and on his sheets. He was not a happy camper and we found out once we were home that he had ruptured his ear drum! Anyway, I mentioned earlier that Barcelona is a kid friendly city and the airport was no exception. There was a special security area for people with strollers and small children. It was nice to be able to go through at a relaxed pace, but it was also pretty intense. I had to put Zoe in a pack n play while going through security and Cameron and I both got the pat down after walking through the metal detector. I can understand me, but Cameron? Other than the pat down, it was a pretty uneventful trip home. We enjoyed beautiful views of Barcelona and the Swiss Alps on the flight and I got to snuggle with Zo bug.

Adéu Barcelona

As I said before, I wasn't sure how this trip would go, being with friends with no kids. While I'm sure there were times for all of us that were a bit frustrating for one reason or another, looking back, we had an amazing time and made memories that will last a lifetime! So thankful for wonderful friends and the opportunity to travel!