My first post ever…
Not for want of trying. I started this blog/site in 2016 with the best of intentions that fell by the wayside. All the excuses in the world. Too busy, got to work, take care of my son, somebody needed me etc etc
Etc Etc Etc – story of my life. Too busy worrying about etc to stop – literally and finally do what I wanted to do. Write about travel, sites and sounds, hotels and restaurants, people I meet, adventures on the way and all the rest.
So now around 30 years too late LOL we start. Here in the most amazing city – on a cold weekend in December 2018.
I woke at 7am with a message from a friend in Singapore – to gaze out my window at the amazing The Edition Barcelona Hotel to a soft sunrise. The air was crisp and cool. I had just attended a work event in the days prior and decided to stay on for a few days to explore the city. I loved the little of the city I had seen, gothic and modern mixed together, with rambling streets, and the laughter of people filled the air as tapas and wine, coffee and churos, footsteps and dogs barking mixed in my mind.
I went downstairs at 9.15am to meet an old friend from Shanghai Ed Dean, who had stopped past (ironically we had planned to meet in London this weekend but weather concerns with flights cancelled had stopped me) and here we were in Barcelona, a million miles from Shanghai and the lives we used to lead. But the chatter and laughter flowed like it was yesterday – memories of old friends, talking of future, work discussions and catchup on our kids and other things.
Ed left for the airport and I ventured out into the old gothic streets of town. Starting at the amazing market next to the hotel Mercat Santa Caterina where fruits and vegetables jostle with freshly cut pieces of beef and pork and amazing cold cuts including salami’s, Jamon and amazing chorizo. The smells and sounds of the market were captivating. I turned right out of the market and walked down towards the narrow alleyways that led to the museum of the famous Picasso Museum
I entered the museum in wonder. The work of Picasso and the history behind his inspiration was fascinating. His life in Cannes, his muse Jacqueline, his friend Jaume Sabartés, and not just as the life-long friend and confident of the 20th-century’s most decisive painter, but also due to his own personal career as a biographer, writer, translator, teacher and intellectual, politically committed to the issues of his time.
The museum winds thru an old gothic sandstone house, in itself a fascinating and beautiful experience, before reentering the amazing streets again – so you can visit the Collection shop on your way out and get your own little reminder of your visit.
Back in the streets and its a shop, tapas bar, roving feast – so much to see, pop in and pop out style of walking. It’s so wonderful to see the neighbourhood go about it’s day and the pace is so enjoyable. It is modern yet retro at the same time, like a mix of soulful grooves with Nina Simone on vocals and Roots providing the beats, its fun, with a zesty Sangria… enjoy and spend the afternoon – lunch or morning. Grab food, sit down, cruise around… one of the best mornings ever…
#barcelona #elborn #ramblingstreets #foodieinbarcelona #morningwalks
Leave Nothing but Footprints... 