Barcelona

July 17 - 22

Many years ago, when I travelled through Barcelona on a Contiki tour, I barely saw the city. Because that's what happens when you do a contiki tour! This time around, I gave myself four full days to see the city... And absolutely adored it.

I did two free walking tours, each very different but equally insightful. One tour took me through the gothic quarter. Roaming through gorgeous little pedestrian walkways, we found numerous churches and historical sites. 

We were shown the Roman Temple of Augustus, where Corinthian columns still stood from many thousands of years ago. 

We also talked a lot about Catalonia's desire to gain independence from the rest of Spain. There is a square in the center of town, dedicated to the fallen soldiers of the civil war who died fighting for their independence.

The other walking tour was specifically to check out the Gaudi architecture. His buildings remind me of the 'Crazy House' in Vietnam (Gaudi came first, and I'm guessing would have been one of the inspirations for the crazy house) I like how his buildings have curves and shapes and mosaic and lots of colour. Very unique.

The tour ended at Sagrada Familia, Gaudi's greatest masterpiece, though still unfinished.. They've estimated it will be complete in 2026 - which will also mark one hundred years since Gaudi's death. 

I found Sagrada Familia really fascinating! The idea behind the design was that the exterior would tell the entire story of the bible. The most famous view of the church (pictured above and below) is the Nativity facade, which, if you look closely at the details of the building, tells the story of the birth of Christ. It's incredibly intricate!

The inside is equally stunning. The stain glass windows create almost a rainbow effect.

I went up one of the towers in the Passion facade (which tells the story of the death of Christ) allowing me to take in lovely views of the city and also get a closer look at some parts of the church that I wouldn't have seen otherwise. 

With hopes of seeing more Gaudi buildings, I set off for Park Guell. Unfortunately tickets to enter the buildings were all sold out for the rest of the day, so I only got a little glimpse from outside.

But while I was there I had a roam around the park and took in some spectacular views of the city.

Another spot I really enjoyed was the La Boqeria market. The most incredible food market I've ever seen. I tried a little bit of everything! Including chocolate-covered candied oranges, jamón de ibirica (delicious local ham) and baclava....not really Spanish. Still delicious.

Speaking of food... Tapas is the best thing EVER! Nothing is better than a meal where you get to try lots of different things. I had huge varieties of dishes - including codfish (which perhaps I would never have tried had the waiter not recommended it) So many delicious foods!!

I jammed lots of tourist-ing into my time in Barcelona but I also enjoyed a lazy day at the beach. Oh, how I've missed you, Sun!! ...Of course, I picked the ONE day that it was overcast!

As ever, another highlight of this city was the friends I made. And the alcohol we consumed together. Drinking games at the hostel, dancing in a club by the beach and sipping on 2.50euro mojitos at a cute little bar down a dark alleyway... Many fun times with fun people!

The Big Move: Melbourne to London

June 10 - July 17

I packed my whole life into one (very heavy) suitcase and off I went.

Two painfully long flights later... I made it. London. My new home. Kind of.

I've been here for just over a month, but I don't feel like I really live here yet. This is probably largely due to the fact that I came here knowing I would only be hanging around for a short while before I set off for an adventure around Europe so I haven't really 'settled' yet.

Tristan kindly offered to host me for the month and at many times he has been my saviour - like when my bank card got hacked! Or when I lost my phone! Both fun times.

I have not been enjoying the work in London. In fact, I'd go so far as to say I've hated it. I'm working as a supply teacher in schools all across London. I don't really enjoy going to a new school every day (imagine having the first day of work EVERY day) and some of the schools in London are really rough. I'm on the hunt for a full time job to solve this problem. Fingers crossed!

To combat the misery of work, I've been going on many adventures which often means I'll only work 3 or 4 days a week. 

Some of the highlights of London so far include:

The shows!!! There's no denying that I'm hopelesly obsessed with musicals, a huge factor in my decision to move to London. So far I've seen Kinky Boots & Book of Mormon. Both brilliant. I have also branched out a little and seen two plays. Two very different plays. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time was just brilliant and Shitfaced Shakespeare was all kinds of hillarious (they do a condensed version of a Shakespeare play with one cast member incredibly drunk!)

A fancy bar up on the 40th floor that gave a stunning view of the Gherkin and the surrounding area of London.

British Summertime Festival... Florence and the Machine were the headline act and they were amazing. Kate and Kenzie came into London for the day and we had *mostly* glorious weather to enjoy this laid back festival. It did solidly pour down with rain for about 20 minutes right in the middle of the day, but we took shelter in the toilets (all class, here!)

A Roald Dahl adventure! Through the 'Aussies in London' facebook page I met a few girls and wandered around London, finding 'dream jars' created by various celebrities in celebration of the upcoming BFG film.

 

We also managed to catch Mark Rylance (the actor playing the BFG) doing a short reading from the book.

The night life! In particular, my first time at a gay club was just the best fun EVER. We've also been to a few ping pong bars - really common here it seems. And just recently we discovered an incredibly cool 60s themed bar, complete with bowling alleys, karaoke rooms, foosball tables, ping pong and diner-style booth seating. Not to mention, rockin' tunes.

And of course... Random exploring.

Regents Canal

Big Ben

Neal´s Yard

Camden

I'm enjoying discovering London, but also have managed to do some trips out of London to visit friends. 

I've seen Rach & Rob in Oxford.

While there I gawked oved the stunning buildings, noted important 'Naria inspiration' spots, and got a personal tour of Christ Church College, including a little wander around the Harry Potter dining hall!
 

We went to a few museums and quite a few bars. I managed to pull myself out of bed on the Sunday morning to watch Rob do bell ringing at one of the churches, and then climbed up to the top of the bell tower for a view over Oxford.

We finished the weekend off with an incredibly delicious roast lunch at a local pub. Check out that yorkshire pud..!!

I also went to visit Phoebe in Ascot...and fell in love with her dogs!

Pheebs lives in a beautiful house in the middle of a huge parkland. It's stunning, and perfect for a chilled out couple of days away from the busy London life.

While I was with her, we also explored Windsor. Firstly, for a bit of shopping. But also to see the castle (from the outside... £20 seemed a bit steep to check out the inside!) and to walk the 'Long Walk' to the Copper Horse.

Phoebe also cooked me a delicious home made roast!

Lastly, I went to Portsmouth for a couple of days, which was my 'home' for a few months way back in 2008. Safe to say not much has changed! Mostly I just went to visit Marc. We cheered along Nadia (Marc's girlfriend) during a charity mud-obstacle race, we had many drinks, we played mini golf and... I beat Marc at trumps! Yessssss.

All kinds of creepy!

And, yes, once again I got treated to a roast lunch... Yum! I could get used to this!

And now... I'm off to explore a bit wider. First up: España!!!