Spanish Trip - Barcelona

I am a hopeless romantic. I love watching cheesy flicks that make me coo "Awwww" and "Ayieee". So, I have to admit that Kathniel's movie "Barcelona A Love Untold" vicariously hit me, even though I am not a fan of this famous love team in our country. When I found 52-hour Madrid layover in my roster, I immediately thought of going to Barcelona. I know I would not have the chance to obtain that romantic scene seen on the movie in real life, but at least I could experience a little of it through visiting the place itself.

On December 28, 2016, we woke up very early for the cab would pick us up at 5:30 a.m. We took a direct high-speed AVE train from Madrid to Barcelona. December is a peak tourist season, thus, the tickets we purchased online were pricey. It got us to the Spanish capital in under 3 hours.

First stop on our itinerary was, of course, the top attraction, La Sagrada Familia designed by Antoni Gaudi. I won't lie. I am not aware of the history of this unfinished church. But... But... I got this giddy feeling. Yes, I know that it is caused by the movie. This is the place where Daniel Padilla's character proposed to Kathryn Bernardo's. We probably mooched around for 2 hours.

We stopped over in another masterpiece of Antoni Gaudi, the Casa Mila or La Pedrera. It is said to be the last civil work he diseigned. We then drifted to Dreta de l'Eixample where we found Plaça de Catalunya. This plaza is surrounded by monumental buildings. At the time, it was a busy square. There were entertainers, rides, and other activities. I had fun watching kids playing with their parents, especially the Snow Ball machine.

Afterwards, we lost track. We could not find the destinations listed on our travel itinerary. We hopped into the cable car in Montjuic with an expectation of taking us to La Barceloneta. However, one staff gave us confusion. We ended up chilling at Port Vell without knowing that La Barceloneta is just 15-min walk. Sadly, we were not able to see the sandy beach. We just convinced ourselves that we would not enjoy due to the cold weather. Haha! But hey! The view from the cable car was breathtaking.

We just kept on swanning. We stopped by Camp Nou Stadium, which is out of the list. Luckily, there was an ongoing small event. We finished watching the wheelchair racing then left. Our last stop was Placa d'Espanya. This is where we hoarded souvenirs.

We could have seen Parc de l'Espanya Industrial if we had enough time. But we needed to be back to the station to catch our trip.

We missed many tourist attractions. One whole day is not enough. I may not have the opportunity to return to this vibrant capital anymore, but I will have these memories I can always recall.