Citizen of the World - Weekend in Barcelona

Because of a fun trick (called "cross-ticketing") that my travel agent plays when I have to go on short business trips, I ended up with a free plane ticket to Barcelona this weekend. Yes, believe it or not, two round trips are cheaper than one when arranged this way! Sucks, doesn't it? :-) The same has happened to me in the past with tickets to Milan (took the trip but ended up actually working) and Budapest (passed on that one for some reason). Found a really cheap hotel that I'd stayed in a few years ago and was satisfied with (Barceló Sants right above the train station), so off I went. No plans other than a desire to take some photos with my new D-SLR and maybe go out to some of the bars I've been to before.

Had a great flight yesterday afternoon, met some charming Dutch lesbians on the flight, shared a taxi into town, and had a nice dinner at the hotel before going to bed with Harry Potter, calling Wilbert and then calling it an early night (had a bit of a headache).

Got up this morning, had a nice breakfast, then hit the road (via Metro, where I saw a very nervous Pakistani/Indian-looking guy who was fussing constantly with a taped-up cardboard box. Considering revent events in London, I decided to move as far to the front of the train as I could - I feel bad about saying this, but it's true). I safely arrived at my first stop, La Sagrada Familia, a photographer's dream - for two reasons. The first is obviously Gaudí's amazing work of architecture (and a total project management nightmare). I played with a couple different lenses to try to get optimal effects. I still need to learn how to take good pictures of things like spires against a bright sky - but give me time. The second reason is that there were lots of very attractive guys from all over the world there. It made sitting under a tree with a zoom lens a very relaxing and productive break. :-)

After making the most of my zoom lens, I moved to a sidewalk café next to the cathedral for some much needed food and drink. After my steak arrived, I was approached by two young men who put newspapers on my table as if they were trying to sell me something. My guard was already up when I saw both of them coming at me - I was very aware that it is a typical distraction technique for theives. So when the one on the right put the paper on top of my phone, I immediately threw it back at him and pocketed my phone. He was damn lucky I didn't chuck the steak-knife I was using to eat my chuletón at him. The waiter and neighboring tables witnessed the episode and joined me in shouting various Spanish and Catalonian epithets at the two boys as they ran off, after which I got an earfull about how I shouldn't have left my mobile on the table (I had been reading an e-book on my phone right before lunch arrived).

I was never really in that much danger, though, because since living and working in Washington D.C., and now especially that I travel the world so much, I always have my guard up for this kind of stuff. I've only ever been pickpocketed once during an insanely crowded Queen's Day celebration in Amsterdam the first time my father visited Holland. In retrospect it was stupid to have taken my wallet with me, and I now always modify my behavior according to the situation I'm in (for instance putting my wallet in the deepest reaches of my backpack instead of in my shorts, and leaving a few credit cards in the hotel room so I still have money available if I do lose my wallet).

After a pleasant lunch and some good natured comiseration from my fellow diners, I moved on to the Plaza de Catalunya, where I stopped by the local Starbucks, read some more, visited El Corte Inglés (bought nothing), and then walked down Las Ramblas. stopping now and again on a terrace for a drink. It's been really nice not to have any agenda and just to wander where my fancy takes me. Have no idea what I will do tonight, but I sense there might be Basque food somewhere in my future. The bars will have to wait for a final verdict around opening time (23.00 at the earliest). Perhaps I'll take a disco nap.

The moral of this story pretty much comes down to how much I love my life. Had you told me when I was in college (even after living in Spain for a year on a foreign exchange program) that I would be bouncing around Europe like a pinball pretty much whenever I felt like it, I would have laughed at you. As well as the fact that I would do so with a great feeling of comfort, relaxation, ease and "at home-ness". I love just going and hanging out in a city without any agenda and just feeling like I belong there. I think my dad might have some of that spirit in him (but doesn't get to exercise it very often), but it is the complete and utter antithesis of everything my dear mother stands for. Perhaps it's in reaction to her homebodyness that I'm this way. At the same time, I can stay home and love it too, so I guess I got the best of both worlds.

So yes, I am unbelievably lucky and priveledged to live the life I do. And at the same time it's a life of my own making, so I get some of the credit too! :-)

Now back to Las Ramblas to see where life takes me for the rest of the day. Miss you, Wilbert, and hope everything at the store went fantastic today!