AAVE Trip BLOG » Espana Clasica #1
July 14, 2008
Espana Clasica #1
Posted by AAVE Leader in : Espana Clasica , trackback
July 8 – 9: After 7 long hours crossing northern Spain in the vans we finally arrived in the beautiful city of Barcelona. We settled into our cozy youth hostel and then headed out to explore the famous street: Las Ramblas. We devoured falafels, then ate ice creams for desert, treated by the trip leaders. The next day we woke up bright and early to get a head start on our first day in Barcelona. We visited the beautiful cathedral, Sagrada Familia, designed by the famous architect Gaudi. After a morning of Gaudi’s architecture we returned to Las Ramblas for lunch and entertainment. We enjoyed the fresh food markets in town, then to the beach and then delicious paella for dinner.
July 10: We walked in the morning to another site deigned by Gaudi, Park Guell, where we listened to music, shopped for jewelry and observed beautiful sites and architecture. We headed back to the hostel where we packed our bags and said goodbye to Barcelona. A three hour car ride then lead us through the breathtaking forests of the Pyrenees mountains. For dinner our cook crew stirred up pasta, salad and other authentic sides for our first dinner put together by the campers.
July 11-12: We woke up for an early breakfast and headed out to the mountains to start our 2-day hike. At the start of our hike we met our Spanish mountain guide, Cesar, who lead us up the mountain. As we traveled up the mountain we came across gorgeous views of snow-capped peaks and walked along meadows full of flowers and small brooks. Yes, we are practicing our Spanish everyday in every way! Before dinner we took a siesta and enjoyed the peaceful natural surroundings. For dinner we extended our palette of food consuming traditional rabbit, chicken broth soup and various fruits. Everything felt serene and calm. Believing we would get a good night sleep we went to bed after our activity filled day. However, we were mistaken. After having settled down in our sleeping quarters our guide Cesar began his snoring musical operetta. Four hours after the production began most of us made it to the happy grounds of sleepy time. The next morning after a quick breakfast we geared up once more for our last day of hiking. The way down seemed easy enough for many of us in our group. We managed to breeze down the mountain in a record time. We stuffed our backpacks and our tired muddy boots in the van, eager to return to the campsite that we manage to now call home. Our second cook crew stirred up another delicious meal filling our stomach with grilled cheese, chicken and salad. Although there is only one week left the group is exited to soak in more culture, food, and develop our relationships further in Spain.
We are loving la vida AAVE!
Lien, Ernie and Caroline and the EC Crew
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