I treated last week as a fairly normal week- the kids and I went to the pool or park or played 
pretend at the house in the morning, had lunch and a nap, and then to school. I sat in my usual coffee shop and read (I have gone through 5 books in the last week...wowza). I just love the ladies at the coffee shop I go to near the school. We really don't have any conversation because they don't speak English, but they make food suggestions for me, and they always have my drink going when I walk in. We exchanged names this last week...so I think we are officially friends.
pretend at the house in the morning, had lunch and a nap, and then to school. I sat in my usual coffee shop and read (I have gone through 5 books in the last week...wowza). I just love the ladies at the coffee shop I go to near the school. We really don't have any conversation because they don't speak English, but they make food suggestions for me, and they always have my drink going when I walk in. We exchanged names this last week...so I think we are officially friends. 
The family had some friends in town at the end of last week, so I had Thursday off, while they took the train to Sitges and played at the beach. I took the opportunity to a. sleep in! (I just can't seem to get enough sleep) and b. finally payed to go INSIDE my favorite Barcelona building- Casa Batllo- the Little Mermaid house. hehe. I liked it- but somehow it was disappointing to me. I have loved everything Gaudi so far, and maybe because I love the outside of the 
building so much, I was expecting something more- don't get me wrong, it was very cool...I also might just have gotten used to the craziness of his stuff....but I think I liked La Pedrera more. I also made an attempt to find souvenirs for people along the Ramblas...without luck...sorry friends, I think all the souvenirs will
have to come from Paris- which I'm sure isn't a bad thing. I still need to buy a Picasso print that I like...hmmm, what else? I feel like I need to find something meaningful from Sagrada Familia for myself. I also finally went inside the big, open air market along the Ramblas, which was very cool- I got a huge bowl of all different kinds of fruit for 1 euro. I had a busy weekend- Friday night I met up with a few of my friends for dinner. We had sushi-which I have not had in a forever long time and was delicious. Then we went to Starbucks and sat around chatting in the big comfy chairs...it was just like being at home. Then we went back to their apartment and chatted a bit more. They have all been here for a while (one for 3 years, one for 2 years and one for 1 year...and they are all leaving- going to the US in the next month) so we talked about how Barcelona is different and what we expected versus what it was, etc. We all said we had a hard time with the slow pace of everything...coming from the US where everything is just go, go, go...Haley was saying how she made a list of things she needed to get done when she first moved here...and this list, which would have taken 3 hours in the states to complete, took over a week here. People just don't rush or worry about time at all.
Saturday I spent the afternoon up at Montjuic. The hill (they say "mountain", but when you come from the northwest...it is a hill) 
overlooks the city and was the site of 
much of the Olympic games when they were here. I went to the stadium where they held the track events, went inside the arena where the gymnastics took place. I visited the Olympic swimming pool- which was holding the Eurogames when I was there...so I watched a few heats of swimming. This is also the location of the "Magic Fountain"- everyone I know that has been to Barcelona 
told me about this fountain- and I have lived here for 3 months without ever seeing it. I was beginning to think people were making it up. But, I found it. They do a show every half hour in the evening, with lights in the fountain and music. Everytime the water changed shape or color, the whole crowd would say "ohhhhh..." like it was the most amazing thing they had ever seen- truly magical...very funny.
overlooks the city and was the site of 
much of the Olympic games when they were here. I went to the stadium where they held the track events, went inside the arena where the gymnastics took place. I visited the Olympic swimming pool- which was holding the Eurogames when I was there...so I watched a few heats of swimming. This is also the location of the "Magic Fountain"- everyone I know that has been to Barcelona 
told me about this fountain- and I have lived here for 3 months without ever seeing it. I was beginning to think people were making it up. But, I found it. They do a show every half hour in the evening, with lights in the fountain and music. Everytime the water changed shape or color, the whole crowd would say "ohhhhh..." like it was the most amazing thing they had ever seen- truly magical...very funny. Sunday I went back to the English speaking church- I'm sad I found it so late in my trip- they really have a great little community- and in typical Spain fashion, it was the last service until September because everyone goes on "holiday" for the month of August....I didn't realize church also stopped during that month. Then I met my Aussie friend at the beach for a couple hours, and while I promise I DID put sunscreen on, I still managed a pretty decent burn. Which just makes going to sleep in our hot stuffy apartment that much hotter! And last night I went back over to the girls' apartment for a going away party. Haley (who has been here for 2 years) leaves on Thursday, back to New Mexico, so she had a party to say goodbye. I asked what I could bring and was told that in Barcelona, when you have a party- going away, birthday, etc...whoever's party it is, is responsible for making everything...so to just bring myself. Most of the girls there are from Barcelona, so it was a lot of Spanish speaking...I had to get filled in on a lot of the jokes.
And now we are into our final week...we leave Friday afternoon and will be in our new apartment Friday evening. We looked at pictures of it today. We are trying to really prepare the kids for the change, in hopes it won't be quite so dramatic for them. We'll see....
My next blog will be from Paris...Au revoir.
Wait- one more thing...I am starting to think about my bit of traveling after the job is over- I am planning taking 2 or 3 weeks to visit a few other countries. I am feeling a tad overwhelmed with all the options- I would love to get suggestions and thoughts from you guys! I was going to buy a Eurail pass, and just go all over the place- but they are sooo expensive-it is cheaper to fly places. So I think I am going to pick just a few spots and spend some time in each...so please, pass along your thoughts...thanks!
