Barcelona

I know I'm late to the party on this -- so many people have told me that Barcelona is a wonderful place.  But now I've been there, and, well, it's a wonderful place.  Also, perhaps to the benefit of this post, it's a visual treat.

I'm going to focus on two aspects of the city: the food, and the public spaces.  The street art above is related to both; as far as I can tell from The Google, it's the front of a restaurant (four by five, in Catalan, apparently referring to the restaurant's small footprint).

Below, an amazing dish of ceviche with a spiced sorbet made from the ceviche juice (the chef called the sorbet "leche de tigre."

We went on an amazing tapas tour (a gift from colleagues, thank you!!).  Here Zoltan, our guide, explains the best way to enjoy our prawns.

As fabulous as the food in Barcelona is, it is equaled by the visual delights.  There is street art everywhere

and the streets themselves are varied and interesting.

There are many imposing old churches

and even the water fountains are beautiful.

Scattered throughout the city are Antoni Gaudi's masterpieces.  We were enthralled by the Sagrada Familia church, begun in 1882 and still under construction (return trip to Barcelona in 10 or 20 years when it's done?).

The Casa Milà (La Pedrera) was one of Gaudi's last works.  Completed in 1910, it still looks very modern.

Gaudi even designed sea-themed sidewalk tiles used in much of Barcelona.

One final thing:  apparently Barclona is like a cat, and if we dispose of garbage properly, that will be good.

A really big cat....