Barcelona, March 1-3

Barcelona is full of beautiful architecture, culture, and energy, but let me tell you, their train system is AWFUL!!!!
OMG so the reason we went to Barcelona this weekend was because Shanda decided to run the Barcelona Marathon. She decided 4 weeks ago, and they booked our hotel (Ciutat del Prat) in the city called El Prat de Llobregat. Never heard of it? No worries, you aren't missing anything. This hotel came recommended on the list of hotels for the marathon, so they had absolutely no idea that it was SO far from the heart of Barcelona. It is conveniently close to the airport with a free shuttle, but try to get downtown, and you will have a headache on your hands :)
When we arrived and checked in, we got oriented to our surroundings and how to use the train, metro, and bus system. We headed to the Marathon Expo in the Placa Espanya, where Shanda got her bib, chip, bag, and map of the marathon. We walked around the city for a bit, and then discovered that it would be impossible to circulate via bus after midnight the night before the marathon because all the routes would be closed. That meant if I went out salsa dancing, I would never be able to get home! So we had a chill night at the hotel, and Shanda went to sleep early for the marathon.
Sunday morning after she left for the marathon, I did some sightseeing. I went to the Cathedral, Picasso's museum, La Iglesa de Santa Maria, and then headed over to the marathon site to see her cross the finish line. She finished in 4 hours and 30 minutes! Great job!
In the afternoon I headed to La Sagrada Familia, Casa Mila and Casa Batlo to see Gaudi's work. I am a huge fan of his architecture, and as you will see by my photos, I spent a lot of my sightseeing hours visiting his sites. La Sagrada Familia is a huge church that is still under construction. Gaudi began it, and now the inside is being restored. Casa Mila is an 8-story apartment complex that Gaudi designed. We were allowed to see the apartment, the attic, and walk on the roof. Casa Batlo is another Gaudi museum, but I never went inside.
The next day we woke up early and went to Parc Guell, which is a park that Gaudi was commissioned to design. Inside the park is Gaudi's museum, which was originally his house.
The park has such a unique design, reminding me of Hansel and Gretel. I absolutely loved it!
So now I am back in Madrid for a few days, then off to Italy (Lake Como & Milan) to visit my friend Ilanit. Enjoy my pics :)