I got a late start. I didn’t sleep well and I was sleeping in. Jason called me around 11am, but I missed the call. I got up at that point and got ready for the day. I had my chocolate and churros again, but this time I also had an American coffee to go with it. Even though it was noon it really hit the spot. I went by the neighborhood stationary store and picked up a notebook so I had something to record my thoughts on as they happened.
The night before, the Jason’s and I searched for a restaurant known for serving authentic Catalan food. We walked south and looked around and asked people if they knew where it was, but we never ended up finding the place. Apparently it was closed. Not being able to find the place was bothering me so I went looking for it today. Come to find out it had been closed, that’s why we couldn’t find it. We had walked right by it.
While walking down the Carrer de Colom the night before there was this really cool looking door. It was made of wood and had brass plates fixed to the front. Looked like something out of the Princess Bride or something. I really liked the door, so I went to see if I could find it again. Come to find out it was just a side door to the Captain General’s office building. I don’t know who or what the Captain General is, but he or she has a really cool set of doors.
After that I walked down to the end of La Rambla. This is where a statue commemorates the 400th anniversary of Columbus’ discovery of America. The monument is really amazing. Around the base are several scenes in what I can only figure is Columbus getting ready for his trip across the Atlantic. In one it looks like he’s talking to a group of politicians, in another he’s readying his ships, in another he’s speaking to the Native Americans. There are also busts of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. The Columbus statue at the top of the monument is pointing toward the “New World”.
The buildings in this part of the city are so beautiful. You can tell they are centuries old and if only those walls could talk. I actually stood 10 feet away from the Mediterranean Sea and took pictures of the Port de Barcelona and the Naval District of Catalonyia. After that I walked back up La Rambla to the hotel to rest for a bit.
I went to the Mercat de la Boqueria later on. This place is like a farmer’s market on crack and steroids. I didn’t spend long in the Boqueria cause I wanted to get back to the hotel before Jason. When he got back we got ready for dinner and hit another place in my travel book, El Convent. Holy crap was the food good. We got this puff pastry with mushrooms au gratin. It was so good. Then the Jason’s got the Catalan sausage while I had the veal filet. Outback has nothing on this place. It was truly a work of art. On the way back to the hotel for the evening, I got another gelato, but it was from a different place and it wasn’t that good. I grabbed my computer and was going to post this and my pictures, but I couldn’t get the Internet working, so I went back upstairs and head to bed. I figured I would try again in the morning…