I'd like to start by saying Happy Valentine's, a bit belatedly, to all my beloved JJ readers. Circumstances involving cleaning for the coming of an accreditation committee made it impossible for me to write an episode at my usual time, but know that the sentiment is no less heartfelt, if late.
Coming to the small country of Andorra on the border of Spain and France, we had some free time before our spa visit (yes, spa!!!) to sample the local cheeses and the wonderfully thick drinking chocolate. This was warm and delicious, as it began to snow. The spa was marvelous. . . lights and fountains and all kinds of hot and cold pools composed Caldea, this marvel the school brought us to visit. It's kind of neat to swim in warm water outside while it's snowing. I particularly loved, too, the Turkish sauna with all of its warm, wet steam--and the feeling of the freezing cold water afterward. I also loved the black light room--I wish I could find an excuse to install something like it at home.
Andorra was covered in a thick blanquet of beautiful white snow the next morning. We all took pictures and had snow fights while waiting for the chains to be put on the bus so that we could leave for Barcelona. Fortunately, we didn't have to go the entire way in chains. Unfortunately, Montserrat was closed off from a landslide, so my classmates couldn't see it. I felt really grateful for having gone with my parents.
Instead, we went to the top of Tibidabo, a mountain said to be the one where Satan tempted Jesus to worship him and be the ruler of the world. Although it is just a legend, the view of Barcelona it offers is magnificent, as is the small church with its famous statue of Jesus on top. Although that is the main tourist attraction of the church, I liked the ceramic murals inside better--they are more colorful than anything I've ever seen inside a Catholic church. The other famous attraction at the top of Tibidabo is Europe's second oldest amusement park. We didn't go in, but it was interesting to see from the outside what the old school rides look like.
That evening, my friend Jenny and I walked down to the sea, past the famous statue of Christopher Colombus to look at the famous mall there. We also poked around the free parts of Barcelona's famous aquarium, which do not include fish swimming around in tanks, but do involve a store full of adorably plushy stuffed animals I can't afford. We finished our day dining at a restaurant on La Rambla with absolutely horrible service and pricey drinks (Jenny's Coke was four euros!!!!!).
The next day was packed with visits to the many wonderful Gaudi buildings. In addition to the buildings I saw over Christmas (of which I was able to take better pictures, thanks to the perfect weather), we saw a park he designed as a highly exclusive gated community. The project was such a financial disaster that Gaudi had to buy one of the homes himself, but as a public park is is absolutely gorgeous, with ceramic tiles glittering in the sunlight and a style which blends artfully with the natural surroundings in a way I have never seen another architect do so well.
I ate lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe with Jenny and Chelo, the teacher accompanying us on this trip. Chelo had never tried ranch dressing before, and she loved it--it was highly entertaining to watch her face when she saw the American proportions they serve there. For me, it was a way of remembering my mom and grandmother, who ate Christmas dinner there while Dad and I were at the Teatre Liceu. Afterward, I went shopping and managed to buy a really cute dress and matching shoes for less than twenty euros put together.
We saw the Picasso Museum shortly thereafter, which had a lot of his early works. I'm not a fan of cubism, but his early works are much more interesting; he seems to have dabbled in every style at some point or another. There are even a few brilliantly colored Impressionist works in that collection.
Our last day in Barcelona involved a walking tour of the Barrio Gotico, where we saw all the Roman ruins my mother had wanted to see when she was there, but we couldn't find. This included the Aqueduct (which was teasingly close to the cathedral), the temple, and the old Roman wall. I went with a group to see the interior of the cathedral. They have a very interesting Romanesque crucifix there which was on the prow of the flagship of some important battle I should remember. It is said that the Christ on it flinched when a cannonball came close to the ship. Yeah, right. Great story, at least.
We got back just in time for the Sabbath, and yeesh, we were all wiped. Sunday was spent cleaning for the AAA accreditation committee (kind of an equivalent to WASC for those of you out on the West Coast). They gave us a real gem in the student interviews when someone mentioned that the bikes provided to us to go to Sagunto are all broken and a member of the committee said, "Why don't you fix them yourselves?" At least they were impressed by our collective level of Spanish--they haven't had such luck at other ACA campuses, I've heard. We may not know how to fix bikes, but we can speak Spanish well!
Anyways, thanks for reading, once again, and happy belated Valentine's Day. Best wishes and much love to each of you.
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