Barcelona was such a great experience. Sorry to have waited so long to blog. There is so much to do in so little time. I went on an SAS trip to Montserrat, which is a beautiful Benedictine monk retreat in the mountains. The cathedral was stunning and we sat in the pews for a short service in Latin. The next day Mary, Cedar, Kate and I traveled to La Sagrada Familia- a cathedral designed by the architect Gaudi. Construction began in the 18th century and is predicted to be finished in 2080. The detail both inside and out was amazing. We tried to find Park Guell (a park also designed by Gaudi, full of mosaics and unique buildings) but the directions were confusing. We traveled around the city using the metro. It was simple, safe and clean so it was perfect. That night, we all went to a bar made completely of ice. They give you a puffy silver jacket and gloves to wear before you enter and you can only stay inside around half an hour because of the temperature. It was so cool! The walls, ceiling, benches, table, decorations, even the glasses were made of ice. We made it to Park Guell the third day and also climbed a huge hill overlooking all of Barcelona. I will try to update with pictures sometime in Italy. The four of us went to a flamenco show that we had reserved tickets for the previous day. It included tapas, which are basically smaller portions of dishes or snacks, and a glass of sangria. I didn't really know what to expect of the flamenco performance, I just imagined women dancing in extravagant dresses. But it turned out to be one of our best experiences in Spain. The guitarists, male singers, and both the male and female dancers conveyed so much passion and emotion through their body movements and facial expressions. And we sat in the front row! Our last day in Spain, we strolled up and down the main street La Rambla. We went to La Boqueria, the outdoor marketplace, and discovered just how little of the animal the Spanish waste. I realize that I am being ethnocentric of their culture, but I was slightly more than a little surprised to see the entire pigs, chickens, sheep heads, hooves, cow tongues and stomach for sale. I loved all of the bright fruit stands though! We ate at a little lunch bar in the middle of La Boqueria that a local told my friend Rosie about. It was delicious. And a man named Manuel who was sitting right next to us had a conversation with us in basic Spanish and kissed us all on both cheeks goodbye. He was so sweet. Over the four days, I tried seafood paella, tortilla de patatas, manchego cheese, chocolate con churros, sparkling wine, and sangria of course. We only had one day in between and then we just arrived in Naples, Italy today! I went to the ruins of Pompeii today and tried my first real Italian pizza! I will update with more soon!!