Hey everyone!
Long time no blog but today I'm back to document my time in Barcelona. Hannah and I had booked this maybe two months in advance so I had been looking forward to it for ages!
This post might help you if you're planning a trip to Barcelona or any other country for that matter. This may give you ideas of things to do and places to see.
So first of all we booked our flight via
https://www.skyscanner.ie/ which is what I always use when looking for cheap flights. We flew from Dublin to El-Prat for €65 return and we though that was a bargain. Luckily, we had our friend that was able to drive us all around so we didn't need transfers from the airport or anything but if you need a bus from the airport to the city center I would recommend
http://www.aerobusbcn.com/ because it's €10 for a return ticket & goes every ten mins.
Again we were super lucky to have the lads because they put us up for our first night which was actually in France but our hostel in Barcelona was booked via
www.booking.com and the hostel was: Hostal Europa and it cost €53 for two nights for two people so €25 each for two nights! We had our own bedroom with a wardrobe and sink and then we had to share a bathroom with about 5 other people I would say, we only ever saw 3 others, it was a very nice and relaxing hostel, not too much noise. The place was perfect, had everything we needed and was very clean. We were really happy with the hostel! It was a great location too as it was just beside La Rambla which is the most popular street for tourists in Barcelona.
So that's all of the flights and accommodation bits out of the way! On to the fun stuff...
If you have been following me on Snapchat or Instagram then you'll know that we didn't get to go skiing but I'm going to talk about it anyways because we still had a ball. So we were to go skiing in the French Pyrenees mountains but the weather was too dangerous for us to drive up in our own car so we didn't want to risk it. Better safe than sorry!
However, we still wanted to experience the snow and whatnot so we pulled in and walked up this hill in the show, had a snow ball fight and built a snowman. We also pulled in to visit a small town which was built inside a castle's walls and that was just amazing, so cool to see it.
After our play in the snow, we decided to head back to Barcelona, A lot of driving as you can imagine! Our bums had gone numb. Once we arrived we had a little walk on the docks, done a bit of shopping in the amazing shopping center and then went to the aquarium which was lovely and it cost €20 admission. It was class to see nemo and dory! haha.
We headed back to the hostel to get changed and showered and went on the prowl to find somewhere that had gluten-free food. Not many places in Barcelona have gluten-free options so if you are on a gluten free diet or you're a ceoliac just say Sin Gluten because that means gluten-free in Spanish haha!
Eventually we found me a place, can't remember the name of it but I wish I could because the staff were so lovely and were so accommodating which was lovely. We then went to The Flag I think? Which is an Irish pub, of course.
And that was our first night in Barcelona done! The next day was brilliant.
We got up really early and went to the market where they sell the most amazing juices and fruits and just food in general. It is a must-see if you go to Barcelona. So that's where we got our breakfasts each morning and I miss it terribly. After that, we got the Metro which is like the Luas, to Sangrada Familia which is a big massive church that they have been building for like centuries. I'm not a person that is really into this stuff to be honest but it was still amazing to see. A basic ticket costs €18 and if you're a student it costs €16 to go inside and see the place. Can't really say if it's worth it or not because as I said I'm not really into it yet it was still nice to see.
Then we went back to the city and if you've ever been to Barcelona or plan on going then you'll know it's hard to miss the cable cars. These are cable cars that give you the view of the entire city/harbor and also take you to the top of a mountain which is where this big fancy castle is located. The cable cars cost €11 one way and €16 return and it is 8 mins one way. We bought a one way ticket and then hiked to the castle on the mountain and let's just say Jodi has a few meltdowns because I hate heights/walking and I just couldn't cope.
Saying all of that now, once we got to the castle which is €3 entry, it was so worth it. I think the castle on the mountain was probably my favorite part. Many of you don't know this but I do actually love history and museums and I even wanted to be an archaeologist when I was in school. The castle was beautiful, the views were amazing and they had little museums in the castle rooms which were just unreal like I can't even put it into words.
After a long day of adventures and sight seeing, we headed back to the hostel to freshen up. There was a tattoo parlor beside us so we got a mad notion to get tattoos but for a tattoo the size of 10 cent, in any tattoo shop, would cost about €50 flat rate min. So we didn't get tattoos haha! Again, struggled to find me a place to eat but we found one in the end and it was great. The lads had sangria with dinner and sure that's when the drinking started.
So after dinner, the lads were staying in a party hostel which is the total opposite to ours and just opposite to us as we don't go out much or even drink much. It was Michael Jackson night in the hostel which was hilarious. The hostel was the Kabul Party Hostel in Barcelona and cost about the same as ours but that included free breakfast and dinner so the boys were sorted! But no it was a great place, it had pool tables and games and all that stuff. Beer cost €1 a pint and same for a shot of vodka or rum so needless to say I got drunk off €5, best laugh ever. That was also a great night!
The next day wasn't even a day because we were flying home early enough that morning so I guess that is where our adventure ends! I just wanted to document all of this as it's nice to keep the memories and as I said, it might give you a feel of Barcelona.
I can honestly say that I would happily return again and again. It's a city that I would love for my family to see and for other friends to see, it's honestly just so great and I do plan on visiting again, so if you're wondering where you should go on a holiday, make sure you check out Barcelona.
I hope you enjoyed this post as much as I did writing it. It was so nice to look back on it even though it was only a week ago! Take me back haha!
Thanks for reading!Xx
