Europa part 1: Barcelona

I've been really excited to share our pictures and experiences whilst traveling through Europe, however as you can imagine internet access has been spotty and we have been way too busy exploring and having fun!  But without further adieu, here is an introduction to our journey!

With growing enthusiasm (and a little anxiety), Saturday May 12th we finished packing our bags for our 3.5 week backpacking trip to Europe!  On the agenda: Spain, France, Switzerland, and Italy. Departure scheduled for Sunday (Mother's Day) May 13.

Our trial run to make sure everything would fit.

Dominic eager with anticipation!

Prior to leaving for Europe, we made sure to have dinner with our good friends from New Haven: Natalie, James and Ian Bergin who will have moved away before we return.  James just graduated from Yale's law school.  We are sad to see them go-but we were grateful to say goodbye before our trip.

Dominic and Ian coincidentally wearing matching orange shirts at the Thai restaurant

EUROPE DAY 1 - Happy Mother's Day & Chaotic Day of Traveling

Dominic and Michael surprised me with a beautiful watch and some perfume for Mother's day, respectively!  I had been just thrilled about traveling to Europe as a celebration for my first Mother's Day, so I wasn't expecting any gifts.  My husband is so sweet.

Dominic presenting me with his gift

We went to church for the first hour, then rushed home to grab our backpacks and catch the bus to the train station in New Haven.  This is when the day started to get a little crazy.  The bus passed 10 minutes early, so we missed it and there wasn't going to be another bus for an hour.  We raced over to church as it was ending and pleaded for our friends to drop us off at the train station (there is no where to park the car at the station for 3.5 weeks!).  Once we arrived at the station, we bought our tickets and raced to the train just in time.  We were on our way to New York.

Phew, glad we didn't miss the train to NYC...it was already going to tight to catch our flight having missed the earlier bus and train.

Once we arrived to Grand Central in NY, our planned subway route to JFK was closed, so we had to take a different (significantly longer and more roundabout way to JFK).  By the time we arrived at the airport, we rushed to the check in line and begged if they could help us catch our flight (which departed shortly).  The attendant apathetically said that we would never make it and pointing to the end of long line suggested we wait to rebook our flight for tomorrow.  Defeated and frustrated, we waited in the line and upon reaching a different representative, again pleaded if there was anyway he could help us make our flight.  He took mercy on us and after his fingers danced on the keyboard momentarily, he checked us in and rushed us to the front of the security line so we could catch the flight. What a relief!

We arrived in Barcelona under slept from the all night flight, but grateful to be there.
MONDAY MAY 14-

Arriving at Barcelona's city center

In search of our hotel

Literally, we searched for our hotel.  We received some directions that sent us a few miles in the wrong direction.  After walking for what felt like forever (remember-we were under slept and carrying our heavy packs) we asked for more directions.  This time we walked a few miles in the other direction, to no avail.  We finally found a McDonald's and Michael was able to pull up WiFi on his phone so we could look at a map.

Tired and hungry, our first meal in Spain was McDonald's (because we still hadn't found our hostel and had only had 1 cheap airplane meal in the last 24 hours)

We finally arrived at our Hostel, excited to shower and head out on the town (and find some real food)!

Enjoying the beautiful view from our balcony

The balcony

The Barcelona Cathedral

Taking in the sights

Enjoying the architecture

We walked and walked and walked exploring the streets of the Gothic district of Barcelona

Flowers are beautiful perched in all the windows

I loved the narrow streets and coloring of the buildings in general

Excited to be in Barcelona!  We loved the vibe in the city instantly.

We're grateful to Wes and Ashley for getting Dominic that hat

Colorful graffiti

We saw so much cool architecture

I loved all the lamps in the city

...and all the cool archways.

This woman was playing a beautiful set in the streets...check it out in the video below.

Dominic loved taking in all the sights

Like I said, I really loved the lamps in the city

On a quest for dinner

..while still enjoying the city's architecture

There were lots of fresh meat stands everywhere, which we appreciated.  They always sold cheap delicious sandwiches

The market, that we visited often during our days in Barcelona

We enjoyed a delicious fresh seafood paella (rice mixed with fresh seafood and seasonings)

After dinner, we walked around some more and couldn't help but stop by the Barcelona Cathedral one more time to see it lit up in the night sky.

After arriving at the hostel for the night, we set about getting ready for bed.

Our bed was small, so we tried to make Dominic his own bed in the closet.  Apparently, he wasn't excited about sleeping in the closet :).  Needless to say, we triple spooned in the bed.

TUESDAY MAY 15 - DAY 2

We woke up and set out for the beach.

On our way to the beach

Our first time seeing the Mediterranean Sea

Dominic enjoyed a lovely nap on the beach

We napped, read, swam and relaxed.  Divine.

After returning from the beach, we set out exploring the city some more.  We ended up at this little restaurant for dinner where we had a divine duck dish as well as some exquisite fresh bass ceviche.

After dinner we explored some more.  We loved walking around at night with all the architecture and street lit up.

We loved Barcelona!! - And were excited to head to Paris and begin our journey there!  Wednesday morning (early) we hopped aboard Ryanair and traveled to France! Those pictures and stories to come next!