HALLOFUS: March 2011

Barcelona (16-19 Feb 2011)

Our flight on Ryanair landed on time and it was amusing that the moment the plane landed, a trumpet was blown and the captain announced the punctual arrival of the plane. Everybody started cheering and clapping!! It was so fun!

We quickly found our way to the main train station and boarded the train to our stop for the night.

Hello BCN Hostel
This is the place to stay for those who really want hostel feel, community living, and socialising.

The room was simple, spacious and clean. The bed and pillows were a bit soft though.
We slept as soon as we checked in, and I was excited to see the morning of Barcelona.

Hello BCN has a spacious dining hall. Breakfast in the morning was so canteen style.
Help yourself to loaves of bread, the toaster and spread include Nutella, jams, philadelphia cream cheese! There were coffee, tea, milk, sponge cakes, cereals. More than enough for you to recharge for the day! And we had a kitchen to prepare our meals too!

La Rambla (Day 6)
A sunny and warm morning, we headed out to the nearby streets.
Wen was smart to have gotten us a place just within walking distance of this bustling walking street - La Rambla! (from the name you could already imagine it's a happening place.)
Unlike Champs Elysee, the shops here cater to not just the posh'ies' but familiar retail shops at very affordable prices!

Along the way, we found many graffiti around the place. It's a common sight in Europe since it's not illegal, and some were really quite good.

For one, Zara got Wen hooked. We were supposed to start our morning looking for attractions, instead, we ended up at the walking streets for hours!

We then visited a vibrant morning market closeby:
St Joseph - La Boqueria

We were curious why the prawns looked 'cooked'... or are they just raw like that?

Interesting and unique display of fruits and juices, reminded me of Bugis Village!!

Apart from the shopping, we did try walking into the little lanes which led us to one district after another.

Some of these lanes bear walls with historical stories behind them.. Interesting.

The Roman Walls and Defence Towers

A protest was going on here...

Wen was attempting to join in the cheer!!

Got a better look at the building when the crowd had dispersed.

There's something very artistic about Barcelona from the things we saw on the streets.

We chanced upon this barbed wire structure designed by Antoni Tapies and he has named it 'Clouds and Chairs'... What an idea.

Can you imagine, they have ancient tombs (real ones!) in the centre of a shopping district!

Pablo Picasso
We passed by the Picasso museum and just in case you do not know how he looks like, here he is...

We visited the Picasso shop before deciding whether it was worth our Euros to view his pieces, and we somehow felt his artworks were difficult to grasp, for us.
Here are some pictures I found on the web which I saw at the shops. Some looked simple, like the Dove of Peace below, but... they are Picasso's.

The weeping woman ------------------------ not sure what this is... 'Art'?

We walked from La Rambla to BarriGotic, another district for shopping and to check out a few tourist spots.
Placa Reial
A popular square for night clubbers and tourists, and also a place for gathering or relaxing by the fountain during the day

Catalan Gothic, Santa Maria del Mar - Chapel

And there's more to discover in the next few days...
We headed back to HelloBCN, but before that, we made a stopover at El Corte Inglés, a place like Carrefour, or Monoprix in Paris.

Our chef for the night... :)

Barca! Barca! Barca! @ Camp Nou (Day 7)
Photos here are dedicated to ardent fans of FC Barcelona, and I was actually instructed to take these photos from an enthusiast...

Messi and his priced golden shoe!

Posters of the stadium in full view

Marketing gimmicks...

Even the toilet makes you feel patriotic!!

The press room

Yes, we held the Champions League Cup!!
It was heavy!

The changing room.

They get their personal jacuzzi!

And here's to pray before you head down to the field...

Here is the youth sports hall, training potential Messi-to be.

And a cemetery which houses some of the pioneers of FC Barcelona

The cheer and song was played over and over again in this video room, here's a translation in English...

FC Barcelona shops

AWESOME place, we spent almost a day there!

All about Gaudi (Day 8)
The day was all about Gaudi.

But before that, we checked out of Hello BCN and got a room at Melon District Hotel.
A clean white and green place, I like the theme.

The bathroom was pretty small though, like a capsule/ portable kind.

Watch how the window comes down from the top and not from the bottom.

You might thought it was falling off the hinges!!

And we liked the fact that they have a kitchenette at our floor, it was so spacious, and beautiful!

They even had a TV in the kitchen!

We quickly checked out their storage amenities, ready to load our groceries tonight.

As we had enough of exploration at Melon, we headed out to the streets, in search of Gaudi's work.

Antoni Gaudi (1852-1926) was a famous Catalan architect who inspired modernistic designs and took extraordinary effort in all his work.

Here are 2 MUST-visit places when you are in Barcelona.

Segrada Familia

Construction of this Roman Catholic Church took place in 1882, and till today (i.e. 18 Feb2011), it is still under construction!!!!

It was sad that Gaudi devoted last years to this project and the UNESCO World Heritage site was not even a quarter complete.

This magic square in the Passion Facade tells the age of Jesus, a significant number 33.

The central doors were made in bronze and contains the texts of the gospels of St Matthew and St John, which recounts the last days of Jesus's life.

I like these stained glass windows...

This complicated facade actually tells several stories from the marriage of Joseph and Mary, through to the birth of Jesus...

I wish the speedy and successful completion of this project. Kudos to the team and all!

Park Guell

Commissioned by Eusebi Guell, Gaudi's work could be found in this beautiful garden on the hill of el Carmel. Depending on which way you took to enter the park, it was a steep way up the way we went.

You can spot Segrada Familia on the right photo.

She looks so pretty!!

Everybody was relaxing in the central public square of the park, lots of activities going on here.

People were drinking, eating, playing, performing, etc...

Watch out for Gaudi's work here, the use of twisting edges, colours, textures.

Gaudi added so much life into this otherwise usual-looking green park

Casa Mila, or La Pedrera (Catalan for 'The Quarry')

Initially built for a married couple, the Mila, it was now owned by the Caixa Catalunya, a Catalunya saving bank.

Note the gothic design used by Gaudi, his works stood out from any other buildings beside it.

However, we decided to save our Euros and to visit the other gothic architecture by Gaudi.

It was my most favourite piece of Gaudi's work...

Casa Batllo

Built in 1877, and subsequently restored in 1904-1906 by Antoni Gaudi and Josep Maria Jujol, just looking at the building itself was remarkable.

I was sooo excited to get in, regardless how long the queue was!!

A house built for the middle class Batllo family, Gaudi defied all odds by eliminating straight lines, emphasing on curves and uneven tiles to accentuate the look and feel of each and every room/ corner.

Look at how the handle of this stair moves along with your hand as you walk up/down the stairs.

The fireplace

The living room - look out for the windows, lightings and ceiling.

The dining area

The blue colour and texture added warmth and glow into the house.

It was interesting to watch this conventional lift at work!!

The patio/ terrace

All the unique furniture used in this home were featured at this little cafe area.

We were privileged to be invited into such an artistic piece of work, I love every part of this place!!

We went back to La Rambla for dinner and it was interesting to see these performers along the streets... There was a 'baby' in a pram which gave me a good scare when I walked close to him!
Irritating....!

Tapas (snacks/appetisers) & Paellas! (rice dish)

A perfect ending to the night at Barcelona.

Beach walk (Day 9)
We wanted to try out the exquisite kitchen at Melon District Hotel with the ingredients we got from marketing last night.

Off from Poble Sec station to the the Olympic for a walk by the Beach

We looooved the sunny and warm morning!

Nova Icaria Beach

Fun for the young and the old...

People were out exercising despite the chill.. But it was slightly warmer that morning and the breeze was ideal for a little play in the sun.
I liked the fact that this place has adequate facilities for people to enjoy the great view and fresh air.