Truly Thankful

Thanksgiving, as well as many other holidays, is a time to reflect on your life, and appreciate all that you have.  This is something that is usually very hard for us to do.  Many have grown up in houses with loving parents  siblings and pets.  A lot of you have wonderful significant others.  We have good jobs.  We have never been in need anything like food, shelter or clothing.  These are all things that we have taken for granted while growing up.  In the aftermath of Sandy it is much easier to be appreciative and thankful for everything that we have.

When Sandy hit, my house lost power for 7 days.  I am so thankful that we only lost power.  I couldn't believe people were on Facebook complaining that they did not have electricity, internet, or cable when there were, and still are, so many people that have lost their houses and family members.  Hurricane Sandy put a lot of things in perspective for me.  Not going to lie, it was difficult living in a house with no lights or heat.  I was constantly worrying about my dog becoming too cold, or someone breaking into my house because it was so dark.  All of our food spoiled, and we couldn't even go out and buy more because there was no where to store it.  I wasn't able to do laundry.  I couldn't figure out outfits because it was too dark to see in my closet.  I had to throw on layers when I went to sleep in order to stop shivering.  Thankfully I had friends who did not lose power, and invited me over to recharge (mentally and electronically), eat, stay warm.  I am very happy to have you ladies in my life.

But I only had to live this way for 7 days.  There are so many people in America who live worse than this every single day of the year.  I find it very interesting how after a big natural disaster, people come together and help one another.  So many donated food, clothing, blankets and money to those who have lost things during Sandy, but once the hype calms down, people aren't as generous.  

One of my new years resolutions for 2013 will be to volunteer at least one day a month.  A program called "New York Cares" (http://www.newyorkcares.org/volunteer/volunteer_opportunities/) has a lot of different options to help those in need.  I am eager to get started, and would love friends to participate with me.  Please let me know if you are interested!

By the way, in case you were wondering, here is what I am thankful for this year: mom.  dad.  jeremy.  pudge.  having a house.  heat.  a laundry machine.  a refrigerator and freezer.  awesome friends who are always there for me.  electricity.  my iphone.  my computer.  memories.  a job I enjoy.  my TV & DVR.  freedom.  always having food in my kitchen.  all my readers.  my extended family.  books.  my parents jobs.  a full closet.  traveling.  happiness.  

Mi corazón está en Barcelona

Today totally made up for sleeping in yesterday, but I´m pretty sure my family doesn´t love me too much at the moment. Woke everyone up around 8:30-9, saying we had to leave by 9:30. Since not everyone was ready by then, Jeremy and I left on our own. We picked up the tickets for La Sagrada Familia, walked over, went to a souvenir shop and had cappuccino. At 11 we headed over to the church and went inside. This church is like NOTHING I have ever seen before.

 

This is what the ceiling of the church looks like (taken from Wikipedia, my pictures will come soon)

 

 

Seeing this as you first walk in is breath-taking. The first thoughts that come to your mind are: OMG how is this possible, this is one of the most beautiful churches ever, and how did they build this in such early years?

 

There is a lot of information connected with the church, but here are the parts I find most interesting. Construction of the Sagrada Familia began in 1882, and they are still not completely done with it. A year after construction began the artist Gaudi became involved. He included his architectural and engineering style. Gaudi continued working until his death in 1926. Construction was halted during the Spanish Civil war, and resumed in the 1950s. There are four spires, one on each corner. The highest spire is 560 feet tall, making the Sagrada Familia the tallest church in the world. However, as tall as it is, the spire is not as tall as Monjuic since Gaudi did not want to outdo something that G-d made Himself. The design of the church is supposed to portray a forest. Some of the stained glass windows are a flower shape. The second tier, for the singers, can hold 1,00 people alone. They are hoping that the church will be done by the 100th anniversary of Gaudi´s death.

 

Like I said yesterday, we ordered our tickets to visit the church and tower yesterday online. We were able to pick them up from a local bank, or you can swipe your credit card right at the church, and they will give you the tickets. I highly suggest pre-ordering tickets wherever you go to eliminate waiting time. We entered the church at 11, and had to wait until 11:15 to join the line to visit one of the towers. I kid you not, the line was over an hour long! We had to wait for the elevator (which only held 5 people plus the elevator operator at once). I was extremely antsy since I wanted to do so much that day. We finally got up to the top of Torre Naixement (nativity). This tower faced the water, and had a pretty great view. We were able to see the city and ocean. It was an awesome experience, but I would not recommend people going up to the top of the towers. The wait was very long, and the view at the top of Montjuic is way better! Plus so many churches out here have bell towers that you can visit, so you will be able to walk up the 400+ winding stairs. Stick with just the church. Also, below the church is a museum of the church´s construction. I walked through quickly, but it looked pretty interesting, and it was pretty big.

 

After Sagrada Familia we picked up lunch and hopped in a cab to go to Parc Guell. Since we took a cab, we didn´t have to walk up the steep hill with all the stairs and escalators, but we did go in through the exit, so I felt like I was missing a lot of the park. We had lunch on some benches, and then Jeremy and I took pictures near the lizard. Jeremy has been doing the Tim Tebow all over Europe, so we decided to take a picture of us posing with the lizard. Pictures are pretty cute!
 
We walked through the park, admiring the artwork and view of the city. We we felt like we had enough of Park Guell (which I´m not sure is possible) we headed towards Montjuic. The views are unbelievable. You can see the whole city from the castle at the top.  Everyone was impressed with the view.  The only problem was it was bit chilly.
 
Once we were done with Montjuic we came back to the hotel for a little siesta.  Many places are closed here on Sundays, but we were able to make reservations at this amazing restaurant called Bar Mut.  It is all tapas, and their menu is constantly changing depending on what is fresh that day.  Apparently Anne Hathaway ate there recently!  I highly suggest people try it out.  They also have a night club upstairs every night except Sundays.  Apparently it gets very packed so you need to make reservations. 
 
I can´t believe we leave Barcelona tomorrow morning and head to Seville.  I am completely in love with this city, and cannot wait to return.  Next time I come back, I will make sure it is late spring or early summer.  It was a little chilly this time around, making it somewhat difficult to stay outside most of the day.  The sun also sets much earlier, cutting down half the day.  There are also so many more museums and attractions that I want to visit.  Who is ready to travel with me this summer?!

 

Barcelona dia 2

¡Buenos Noches!

Today was a somewhat stressful day.  Jeremy and I woke up around 11, having no idea what time it was.  We were expecting to be woken up early, but were not.  We rushed to get ready (and I ordered my iPhone 5), and managed to leave the hotel around 12.  A little to late for my liking.  

We walked down to the Gothic area of Barcelona.  It was a nice walk, and the area was great.  There are a lot of small, winding streets filled with stores.  We passed a big Cathedral and tried to go inside, but they closed right as we arrived.  Instead, we continued to walk around and found a music hall.  We wanted to go inside, but they only allow people to take tours.  They have a restaurant area and it was decorated very ornately.  There was a lot of stained glass, and the large polls had flowers going around the top, near the ceiling.  The ceiling also had a nice crisscross pattern.  We all split up for a bit to wander around, and I spotted a man carrying a pug inside a bag.  The pug was so cute!!  She was 13 months old, and weighed 8-9 kilos, or about 20 pounds.  He said that they had been walking for a few hours and she got tired.  We were able to pet her, and fell in love.  Wishing Pudge was here with us!

After we found the music hall, we started walking towards the Mercat de la Boqueria, or the market.  This market is amazing!!  There are probably 50 stands crowded in a square.  The stands offer meat, fruit (and juices), candy, nuts, cheeses.  It was so overwhelming how much was there!  Jeremy had a coconut, banana, kiwi juice, and I had a raspberry juice.  They were both delicious.  Since the places that had counters and chairs to eat at were full, we found a restaurant on the edge and ate there.  We ordered so much food: tuna carpacio, paella, cheese, mussels, and I´m pretty sure I am missing a few other things.  Everything was so good, and it was relaxing lunch.

When we were finished, we walked back towards the old city and went to the Picasso museum.  There are so many pieces of artwork in that museum!  It´s insane how much Picasso did in his lifetime.  The museum in Barcelona focuses on his early life, so we saw paintings and drawings from when he was in his pre-teens until he was in his mid-to-late twenties.  They had pieces from his blue period, as well as ceramic pieces that he made.  Usually when I think of Picasso, I think of those crazy paintings that make little to no sense.  These were not like that.  Most were portraits, and some were landscapes.  It was very easy to read the artwork.  The museum did not have small descriptions next to each piece of work, and Jeremy said that is because Picasso wants people to think.  Glad he is keeping our brains sharp!

Leaving the museum we headed towards the fountains at monjuic.  Robin and I were here, and I fell in love with the whole place.  Every night except Sunday, the park puts on a fountain show.  It is definitely not as good as the ones in Atlantic City, but they are pretty cool.  Last time the fountain show used different colors, like red, orange, yellow.  But this time it was all in red.  They made an announcement at the beginning that they were trying to raise money/awareness for blood banks.  The music for the show we saw was old Hollywood.  They had a Louis Armstrong song, the theme to the Odd Couple, L-O-V-E, etc.  Of course the music for the show after, when we were leaving, was music that Jeremy and I enjoyed.  They had Destiny´s Child and other music like that.  

The restaurant was near the montjuic, and we only got a little lost finding it.  The restaurant was called Rias de Galicia.  Apparently the downstairs section has been around for almost 26 years, and the second floor just opened up 2 months ago.  The first floor is typical food in Barcelona.  The section where we ate, upstairs, was different, more like sushi.  The menu was split into two sections: before man had fire, and after man had fire.  We order a mix of raw food (tuna and salmon) as well as cooked food (beef, shrimp, crab).  The fish was probably the best, most fresh fish we have ever had.  My mom said that she could have lived on that salmon, and I whole-heartily agree. 

Now it is after mid-night and Jeremy and I are catching up on facebook/emails.  We were debating going to a discoteca but they are pretty far from the hotel, and we have a busy day tomorrow.  Instead I think we are just going to grab some drinks and hangout!  Adios amigos!

Back to Barcelona

Last time I was in Barcelona was summer 2011, after graduating from Montclair State.   Robin and I backpacked around Spain and Italy, staying in hostels.  This time around is a little different.  I am traveling with family, so everything is a lot more fancy. 

 

We arrived this morning at around 9:20 AM, and went through customs pretty quickly.  We didn´t have to fill out any paperwork which was really nice.  The airport in Barcelona is beautiful, a lot of glass windows, very modern.  Jeremy met us at customs and it was great to see him!  He now dresses very fancy, in nice pants and top and a scarf!!  I think more American men need to head over here and learn how to dress.

 

We hopped in a cab and came to the hotel to drop our bags and change.  The game plan we decided on was to visit Sagrada Familia (church).  Robin and I visited the church last time, but we went at night.  Seeing it during the day was just as breath-taking.  The church is huge, and you can´t stop looking at it.  For the past few years they have been working on the outside, cleaning the soot off.  Once side is completely white, and the other side black.  It was crazy to see the difference.  We didn´t go inside today since the line to buy tickets was about two hours.  However, while looking at the church, we started talking to another couple.  They said that you can buy tickets online, and pick them up at an ATM at la Caixa bank.   All you need to do is enter the credit card you used, and select pick up tickets.  Brilliant idea Barcelona! 

 

Since we decided to skip the church today, we wanted to walk around the whole thing and see the back.  According to a guide (that we overheard) the back of the church represents Jesus´ birth, and the front of the church represents his crucifixion.  Pretty interesting. 

 

After looking at the church, we pre-ordered tickets to visit La Pedrera.  This building was built by Guadi (who also created Parc Guell).  It was an apartment building, but the architecture is so unique and stunning.  We bought the audio guide and learned a lot.  When you walk in, you´re not expecting the building to be circular, but it is.  The walls are painted multiple colors, bleeding into each other.  However, when you look up, you realize there is no ceiling.  It´s like a courtyard.  The walls near the top have been bleached white from the sun, and only the lower half of the building is still painted.  The first stop was the roof.  There you can see views of the city, including the Sagrada Familia and the W hotel.  There are many spires on the roof, and the walkway is curvy and full of steps.  The second floor visited was the attic.  The ceilings are rounded into the walls, and it is very dark inside, kind of like a cave, but not dark and damp.  This had different artifacts and information about the different projects Gaudi worked on.  The third and final stop was to see an apartment.  These apartments are huge!  Each had 3 bedrooms plus a servants room, office, living room, dining room, and two bathrooms.  The ceilings and door frames had different moldings on them.  The floor was also done specially.  The child´s room had a special green tile, and the floor in the dining room and living room was a special wood.  This was to show that the family was separate from the servant.  I highly recommend visiting the museum.  It was awesome to see the architecture.  However when you do buy the tickets, do some research online and buy them in association with other museums.  You will get a much better deal, and if you order online, you can skip the lines!

 

So far that is all we have done today.  It is now 5 pm, and after traveling/exploring for about 25 hours, we are ready for a little siesta.  We will be going to dinner in a bit, and then hopefully walking around after.  I would like to see La Pedrera lit up at night as well as Sagrada Familia.