Day 8 - Beautiful Barcelona

Editor's Note: Blogger Megan Glidden has been following the Rosemount Choir on their week-long trip to Europe.

Friday, March 30

Barcelona

After a long day yesterday, we were excited for our bus tour this morning! We had a chance to rest our legs a little bit, and see a fantastic view of the city. Our Barcelona tour guide, Suzana, was a riot! She was very knowledgeable, yet at the same time loved to share her opinions and humor. The first stop on our tour was up to the top of a cliff to see a panoramic view of the whole city. It was beautiful up there and looked even bigger! We could see all of the main monuments and cathedrals with a beautiful view of the ports and the Mediterranean.

We got the chance to see the Olympic Village where the Olympics were held in 1992. We saw the stadium arena and various buildings were swimming and diving events were held! It was pretty cool to see all of those places and structures where Olympians competed!

Next, we saw the Sagrada Familia, a roman catholic church that is still being built. There are really no words to describe how incredible this church was! The construction started in 1882 and will not be finished for an estimated 15 years. The architecture is simply amazing and the detail is brilliant. La Sagrada Familia was designed by Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí, who died in 1926. The goal is to have the project complete by the hundredth anniversary of his death, 2026. We got an amazing close up view of the detailed outside. Two sides are finished with the story of Jesus’ birth and life depicted on one side, and his crucifixion on another. The final side will reveal Jesus’ resurrection and glory. It was truly a sight to see, and we all want to go back when it is completely finished!

We visited other places around the city in the Gothic Quarter, such as the place where Christopher Columbus was welcomed when he came back to Spain after he discovered America. It was pretty neat to be in that exact same place where he stood! We then saw the Rosemount High School choir sing at their final performance and a noon mass in a cathedral in the Gothic Quarter. This cathedral, again, was incredible, and so were the students! You could tell how happy they were to see that their hard work had paid off in such an amazing place and throughout an amazing trip!

After they sang, they had a free day until dinner, which for them was a huge treat! Our shadow group had some free time as well, which we spent visiting the Picasso Museum, eating lunch and shopping around La Rambla, the most famous street in Barcelona. We bought plenty of souvenirs and did a lot of walking! We headed back to the hotel in time to get ready for our final dinner!

For our last night and last meal, we went to el Poble Espanyol, a Spanish village in Barcelona. It was great to see all of the architecture, and of course, little shops that is had to offer. We were all very excited for dinner, at the flamenco taverna called Tablao de Carmen. The students had an earlier dinner than us because of their early flights the next morning. We did get to see them after their dinner and before ours, just enough time to take some pictures and wish them safe travels home!

Our dinner was amazing! It was a restaurant with great food, great sangria, and a memorable performance. Flamenco dancing, which originate in Spain, was performed throughout the dinner. It was incredible! The dancers were all so energetic and the music was phenomenal. If you haven’t herd of flamenco dancing, go to YouTube and watch some, it is so unique and fun! We were all so happy to have a wonderful ending to an amazing trip! It was one of the most fun nights of the entire trip and I wouldn’t trade it for the world!

We headed back to the hotel and spent some time together before packing up and going to bed before the morning! Until tomorrow. 

From Barcelona,

Megan