Madrid and Barcelona

Leaving Madrid for Barcelona was a bittersweet experience. In Madrid, we stayed in the touristy area of Gran Vía where the streets were clean and the environment was tourist-friendly. It felt like we were sheltered from witnessing some realities of living in a large metropolitan, realities like crime, homelessness, and an overall grunginess that often comes with city life. In the brief time we spent in Madrid, we enjoyed exploring the city center and its outlying parks. The locals and fellow tourists that we met along the way were helpful and friendly. Being night owls, we enjoyed the nocturnal vibes of the city where people of all ages from seniors to children were out and about till midnight on a Monday evening.

Apparently, it's common in Madrid to have a late start during the day and a late ending in the evening, with dinner being around 8-9 pm. We were in Mercado de San Miguel around 11 p.m. on a Monday, drinking vino tintos and eating tapas while struggling to speak to locals and tourists alike with our broken spanish...it was fantastic.

In Barcelona, we chose to stay in the neighbourhood of Sant Antoni, away from the main tourist areas such as Barri Gòtic and El Born. We hoped by choosing to stay in this particular area, we would have the opportunity to mingle more with the locals and observe how they lived. We observed people flocking to the local markets for their fresh dose of meat and produce; an angry neighbour yelling at the top of her lungs early in the morning; graffiti all over the walls of old, dilapidated buildings; and the occasional pungent smells of garbage and urine that filled the streets. Needless to say, our days of comfort ended when we arrived in Barcelona.

It took a few days to adjust to our new environment. We particularly did not enjoy our temporary home of 9 days where the laundry did not work and our room was the size of my office back in Canada. But alas, we were determined to have a great experience and to soak up as much of the city as we could. We noticed Barcelona’s diversity immediately. Catalans, immigrants, and thousands of tourists combined, filled the streets. As advised by a local, we were careful not to call the residents of Barcelona 'Spanish' as most identify themselves as Catalans. It was helpful to know some historical and political context while visiting the city.

Our time in Barcelona was filled with exploring different neighbourhoods (i.e. Poble Sec, Barri Gòtic, El Born, El Raval, etc.) and reveling in the amazing architecture and art of the city. Antoni Gaudí is definitely a rockstar when it comes to Modernism in Barcelona. We certainly chased a few of his famous creations such as Sagrada Familia, Casa Batlló,  and Park Güell. At the end of our time, we realized we had walked more in the 9 days in Barcelona than the past year, in Canada. The weather was hot and humid, topped with a couple of surprise thunderstorms along the way. 

As much exploration as we've had in the 2 major cities in Spain, we certainly looked forward to some time away from the busy streets and chaos. Our next destination is Tenerifé in the Canary Islands. As we continue traveling, being in Europe still feels surreal. The duration of our time away from all things familiar still has not fully hit us yet. It still feels like we will be going home to Canada any minute, even while we ate duck paella or drank homemade Cava. Perhaps when things slow down and we have some time for reflection, we may begin feeling homesick. Perhaps emotional meltdowns will occur along the way… who knows? At this point, so far, so good. We'll see what type of experience we will have at our next stop.