Barca and Back

Sadly, as I am writing this, my European adventures have finally reached a conclusion. With one last week in Barcelona and one last night in London, I find myself waiting for my connecting flight in Chicago, back on US soil for good. But what an exciting week it has been.

Starting with that wonderful breakfast and getting to show my parents a little bit around the London that I have quickly fallen in love with, we boarded our flight to Barcelona and came to find that British airways is the only airline we want to use from here on out! On our short flight we were given free drinks and a snack (more like a meal) and told to ask for anything else we might need. Certainly a change from normal European airlines, like Ryan Air, who at one point tried to charge passengers to use the restrooms on board…

Arriving in Barcelona, we were immediately confronted with wonderful weather and made our way to our hotel to rest up for the packed days we had planned ahead.

Starting early the next day, we took a bit of a walking tour to a market a couple miles away. We were pleased to come to find that our hotel ending up being right next to one of the beloved monuments of Barcelona, the Sagrada Familia, which is an amazingly designed Cathedral by the artist Gaudi unlike anything I’ve ever seen before.

Once again, walking the streets of Barcelona, I was confronted by a completely different feel and ambiance than any other place I had seen in Europe. The architecture was beautiful though, just as the other European cities I had ventured to had been.

Since I had acquired a recent infatuation with markets in Europe, I immediately started researching the best ones in Barcelona once arriving in the city, and all signs pointed to one: Mercat Sant Josep. This indoor food market had about every single food item you could ever want. I even found fruits that I had never seen in my life before with names I can’t even pronounce. At this market also, I pushed myself to once again try some exotic dish and this time it was octopus. Although the taste wasn’t bad, the chewiness left a little something to be desired…

After walking around a bit more during the afternoon, my family and I found one of the few cafes opened in the afternoon siesta hours and relaxed for a couple hours. After we made our way to one of the top restaurants in Barcelona (based on the trusty Trip Advisor), which happened to be a Mexican restaurant called La Taqueria, where we got some of the freshest tasting make-your-own-tacos I have ever had.

All over Barcelona, one artist influenced the architecture of countless buildings, sculptures, and parks, and one of the biggest parks in Barcelona was designed entirely by him. Park Guell by Gaudi overlooks the entire city and consists of some of the most amazing mosaic work ever done. Not only were you amazed by his art, you also were blown away by the views.

We all were pretty tired from walking and doing so much over the last couple of days, along with the hassles of traveling, so we just decided to relax the rest of Sunday and wait for the adventures Monday would bring.

The first adventure Monday brought was a Monserrat Wine and Tapa tour that took us on a bus tour along the mountains of Brazil. Monserrat is the biggest mountain in Brazil and nestled in the mountain-side consists an amazing monastery with a beautiful Church, all built to revere a statue of a Black Virgin Mary, which legends say was found in a cave in the mountain. As the first stop on this tour, we were able to walk inside the cathedral and bask in the mountain views. Next, the tour made its way to a little castle in the countryside, with a winery attached to it, that had been past down by the first born son through 36 generations, with the 37^th generation already in line to receive the property. The winery specialized in red wine, and after getting a tour of the facility, we got to sit down for a lesson on wine and a lunch of tapas and red wine tasting.

After getting back from the tour, we rested for a couple hours and became determined to find a place to get the signature dish of Spain, paella. We did not have to venture far though, as we found a place right by Sagrada Familia and our hotel that had delicious seafood paella, something I thoroughly enjoyed as this was my and my family’s first time trying the dish.

The next day, we boarded an early train and found ourselves on the way to a small Spanish town an hour away from Barcelona called Terragona. This town was once a Roman settlement, so in the town was all this Roman architecture and influence, including a mini-Coliseum called the Roman amphitheater. One aspect of European cities that I have really come to love is the random side streets where you can find the best shops and restaurants, and Terragona was no exception.

That night, the US again had a world cup game and through the suggestions of some friends, we went to an American themed place called Bar Dow Jones. At this place, all the prices of their drinks are like the stock prices in stock market, and randomly will go up, down, or stall based on activity. Also, every thirty minutes the ‘stock market’ crashes and all the prices fall and everyone rushes to get their orders in before the prices go up again. It’s quite a fun experience to see. Upon arriving at the place, I had the fortune of running into two friends and got to watch and support the US with them. Although the US lost, it was a fun time all around.

The next day, my sister and I decided to venture off on our own and enjoy the day just the two of us, something we both don’t get enough of. The first thing we decided to do was something on my bucket list I had been dying to check off, driving a Moped around a European city. After renting the Moped right by the hotel, we were surprised to find that we were unleashed on the Barca streets without so much as a test drive, with neither of us having driven a Moped or motorcycle type vehicle ever before. Luckily, we both mastered them pretty quickly and had the time of our lives going up and down the city streets on our awesome rides. We made our way to El Raval, which is a younger part of town, and settled down to have lunch at an Indian restaurant that made fresh hummus and falafel upon ordering, and had one of the best lunches of the trip. After lunch, we mad our way on our Mopeds to the beach, where we enjoyed an afternoon of basking in the Spanish sun. That night, after loving the first meal at the restaurant, Aitor, by our place, we again went and had paella again, although opting for a vegetable version this time, and tapas that were to die for.

We had one final morning in Barcelona before starting our trek to eventual US grounds, so we spent it on a morning family walk around Sagrada Familia and the surrounding area. We also stopped at a little bakery and tried yet another Spanish dish called Horchata, which was a kinda like a spiced Coconut Water, but very very good.

We caught our flight back to London, and spent one last evening in what has come to be my favorite city, before embarking on our trip back to US grounds on the best day to do so, July Fourth! Although my European adventures have finally come to an end, I am left with a lifetime of memories to keep me with a thirst to explore the world some more.

Hola, cheers, and bye,

Elyse

No Place I'd Rather Be

The past two weeks have been the two of the quickest weeks in my life. Not only that, but they also involved some of the best experiences I’ve ever had. The conclusion of our London program brought us all to the sad recognition of having one of the best summers yet. But before I get to the talk of the end, I need to update on all I’ve done since Paris weekend.

After spending most of our time with London touristy things sprinkled here and there while focusing on our abroad weekends, we finally got to do all the things on our London checklist that we’d been missing out on. And I can definitely tell you, London has an absolute infinite amount of things to do, but we definitely conquered all we could with the time we had left.

Starting on the Monday we got back, my London as Arts Capital Trip took a trip to this famous art auction called Christies, where we got to see some of the most famous art work in the world, all for sale in their auction. From the works they were auctioning on, I decided to go ahead a buy a Roy Lichtenstein, an Andy Warhol, and an amazing Alexander Mcqueen gown, which of course would only put a small dent in my wallet…

That night, America played their first game in the World Cup against Ghana. The American Outlaws, who are the official American soccer team follower group around the world, threw an American watch party at this pub called Old Kings Head pub in London not far from our flats. We got to the pub and it was fully packed with Americans all screaming and chanting for the US to defy odds and make it out of the group of death, which we now know they did. The atmosphere was electric and it was great to see US capture their first win in these World Cup games with some great friends, all the while singing “God Bless the USA” all the way home..

The next night was one of the most anticipated nights by most of our group since the trip began. Lauren and another girl in the program organized a 4 hour river cruise that took us up and down the Thames River on Tuesday night. It was an amazing time filled with music, dancing, great views, and even better friends. As our time in London was coming to an end, it was exactly the thing we all needed to fully enjoy some of the time we had left as a group.

If you asked Lauren and I what has been our favorite thing since being in London, then we are most likely to say the food, because we never seem to not find amazing food wherever we looked. This included four little stands located in a Church courtyard that opened for lunch every single day right outside our flats. Included in these stands was a falafel wrap station, where you could get a generously sized falafel wrap for 3 pounds along with countless falafel samples the guy willingly gave out. The wrap was delicious, as just the picture is making my mouth water wanting to go back for another.

That next day, a group of us did something after class a little out of the ordinary. We went willingly to a bar that was 23 degrees Fahrenheit inside. Paying for a ticket to IceBar London gives you entry into a forty minute session at a bar completely constructed out of Ice. The ticket includes getting to wear one of the eskimo capes and gloves, along with a free refreshment of your choosing. Although freezing, it was definitely an experience unlike any other.

On that Friday, my Arts Capital class went to the Royal Academy, and I got my first experience at what became my favorite art museum yet. The Academy was featuring a summer exhibition that included works from not only famous artists, but also regular citizens that were chosen. The exhibition was amazing as it showed such a variety of work, that everyone was able to find something that they loved.

That night, most of the group ventured their way off to numerous locations for the last weekend we had left, but as we had gone to Paris last weekend, we decided to stay. Regardless, I didn’t want to waste my last Friday in London just sitting around. So after grabbing another delicious Indian dinner of 3 different types of curry from the weekend food market right by our flats that we’ve come to love. Chris Bondi and I found online a free comedy show to go to. After being hesitant of what we were about to see on the way there, we were pleasantly surprised by how much we enjoyed ourselves. The comedians were absolutely hilarious, and we were shown that a good time is never hard to find in a place like London.

Waking up early the next day, Lauren and I finally did the classic touristy London thing to do and go on the London Eye. The advantage to going this late in our program is that we were able to see and point out all the places that we knew and we were able to see just how much London had become another home since our time being there.

After, we made our way over to one of my favorite parts of London: Camden. Camden is a London borough and practically the whole little town is a huge market. Featuring everything from clothes to home decorations to amazing food vendors, this market literally has it all. Also located in Camden is the number 1 fish and chips restaurant, and Lauren and I finally got to try the English delicacy, which is one of my favorite dishes in the states. Poppies was unbeatable though, and I’m not sure I’m going to be able to eat it in the states without the painful reminder that it’s just not the same.

Coming back from Camden, we decided to take a final walk around central London and get some last pics at some classic sites, which you will probably recognize. That night we decided to participate in another pub crawl around a part of London we hadn’t really experience: the younger, trendy Shoreditch. What’s awesome about these pub crawls is that it takes you to these random, little hole in the wall places that you would never think to go to, but turn out being awesome times.

The next day Lauren and I slept in a little, but then decided to treat ourselves to a good breakfast, and we went to a place called My Old Dutch, where they serve these huge, very thin pancakes with about any topping you could imagine. Lauren got a berry compote one, and I got a smoked ham, sautéed apple, and cinnamon one. Delicious as always.

After, we took the train and ventured off to Windsor Castle, where we had high tea with the Queen herself (well, we wish). But I did get to get this pretty awesome selfie with a guard (bucket list, check!). We also explored the little towns surrounding Windsor, and then made our way back to Conway Hall to rest up for our last week in London, while also enjoying the US game at the Old Kings Head pub once again.

On Monday, I started the day early as I normally do and went on a run. I decided to go off of my normal London route though and use this run as a site seeing tour. I ended up running to the Tower of London (where I got another guard selfie!), the Shard, the Gherkin, and the oldest church in London. Definitely a more enjoyable run than your average one.

Next, I got to visit the awesome Victoria and Albert museum and see an exhibition there I had been highly anticipating: Italian Fashion. The exhibition housed amazing clothes from every century since the start of the fashion world and illustrated just how Italy influenced it all. Here are a couple of my favorite pieces, including a suit worn by my man JFK. Next, I ventured off to another market (can you tell I like markets?), the Covent Garden Market, and got to enjoy one last cookie at the absolutely fantastic Ben’s Cookies. YUM. After that, for our last British Moral Philosophy class our teacher decided to treat us by taking us all to a local pub and buying the first round of drinks for everyone (what a guy…).

The next day was the final day in the program, and after enjoying some amazing views from my normal run route, Lauren and I had a picnic in St. James Park while studying for our final later that day.

Most of the group left extremely early the next morning, but with my fam coming to meet me and London to make our way to Barcelona, I had a full day in England to do as I pleased. I got up early and made my way to Wimbledon to see if I could get in and watch a match or two. After waiting an extremely long four hours, I finally got a grounds ticket and got to go in to watch a few matches and eat Strawberries and Cream on the famous Aorangi Terrace. Going to the Wimbledon championships was something I never dreamed of actually getting to do, and was well worth every minute I had to spend waiting.

I met my family that night, and after finally enjoying one last English delicacy, a full English breakfast, we jetted off to Barcelona for a week. Currently sitting on our terrace here, writing this, experiencing new adventures to fill you in on in a weeks time.

One last London Cheers,

Elyse