Continuing on in Barcelona...
Sitting at the sidewalk cafe… sun shining brightly… Restaurant Tuscania was the perfect location to reflect on our La Sagrada Familia experience. Enjoying a carafe of Sangria was the perfect addition to this beautiful day. Our time in the cathedral was incredibly powerful. Taking a moment to take it all in, we talked about what we saw… what we felt…and most importantly, what a gift Gaudi left the world. By no means secondary, the food was delicious! Paella, pizza and other goodies filled our tummies and prepared us for the rest of the day/night.
After our meal, we decided the best plan of attack would be to jump on the Ho-Ho bus (Hop On-Hop Off). Robby had a recent knee replacement to being able to see a bit of the city this way seemed our best option. The bus drove through the beautiful city, sharing important historical information. We ended up with a birds eye view of this large,, bustling, seaside city.
Continuing on our journey, in a gap between trees, we were graced with a whole new perspective of this magnificent work of architecture. Standing at the foot of La Sagrada Familia was impressive. It is obviously massive in size… but until we saw it from above, I had no idea! The cathedral dwarfs everything else in the city…keep in mind, the surrounding buildings are often stories high!
From the museum level, we were offered a view over the Magic Fountains. A Bellagio-style show with colorful water fountains that dance to piped in music. Walking down several flights of cement steps, passed fountains (that will light up during the show), we arrived at the main show level. It is a very lively show spread out over several levels. We have seen this show a couple of times… it’s one of my favorite things. We scoped out a spot for us to watch the show once the sun set…
We had a bit of time before sunset, so we ventured off to find a bite to eat. Our friend, Robby, picked out a little restaurant. It was about a block away… we found out after it was actually quite close but we took the long way to get there. Tucked away in a quiet neighborhood, this gem was quite the find. We had Rioja and some of their delicious olives, cheeses and prosciutto. The room was very small with a beautiful rock accent wall. For the life of me, I can’t remember the name! I remember I wrote it down but I’ll have to hunt it down later and add it to this post :-)
On the way to the restaurant, it was daylight and we were on a very public area that leads to the arena. Once an actual arena, it is now converted into an impressive mall. Returning to prepare for the fountain show, we passed historical buildings beautifully lit up. Much quicker, this backroad led us right to the spot we hoped to watch the show.
Thinking the bridge would be the best vantage point over the path of fountains, we were surprised at the lack of people. One group gathered on the opposite end of the major fountains. Knowing the city was quite busy, it made no sense that this venue was nearly empty. Finally, we asked a local man where all the people were and what time the show would begin. He let us know that, due to drought conditions, the show would not take place. It was initially canceled due to Covid and now due to drought. Currently, there is no expected restart date. Sad… maybe next time!
Though disappointed, and accusto0med to a “Plan B” on this trip… we took one last photo from the spot we WOULD have watched to light show, if it were to take place. Deciding we were actually quite hungry
Slightly disappointed but not deterred, we walked to the Arena Mall to find a rooftop restaurant. The one we chose had a variety of foods. Robby and Lara were ready for dinner… cheers!
The guys weren’t too hungry so they ordered beers. Lara and I ordered some delicious sushi. Salucka Restaurant and Lounge had a tropical vibe. The venue had a nice atmosphere…Service was great. We gobbled up as much sushi as we could but it was very filling! We decided to take a taxi since it would be much easier than navigating the subway… we were tired!
